Conversion to salt water chlorination: pro and con

[PoolDoc]

1. I've never seen ANY evidence that saltwater systems damage liners. That sounds totally bogus to me.

2. Using salt water does result in corrosion problems, ESPECIALLY on existing pools.

3. There's a fair amount of evidence that using salt water can damage decks and stone work in dry climates, where splash out evaporates and is not rinsed away by regular rain.

4. We've ALWAYS noted that using salt water does NOT save money, when all the costs are counted.

5. I'm finding that SWCG's generally do not last as long as claimed.

BUT . . .

1. SWCGs are a wonderful relief for people often away from their pool. They are probably the most reliable (but not perfectly reliable!) method of chlorinating a pool consistently during a 10 day vacation or business trip.

2. They benefit people who struggle with consistent pool care, and there's nothing wrong with paying $2,000 for a system that makes your pool more 'forgiving' of negligence, if you've got the money.

3. Many of the 'problems' with salt systems seem to result from people thinking that they have purchased a fully chemically automated pool, rather than just a method of chlorination. That's not a defect in the SWCG systems, though it is certainly a defect in the way they are marketed.