Today is the day to choose....

[poolbee]

Well, I have a SWG in Noetheast-for only about 6 weeks now, but love it so far. We chose it mainly because my daughter has very sensitive skin and chlorine does a job on it. So far with the SWG she has no problems and she swims hours almost every day.
Other than adding some CAL and a little stabilizer, my only additives have been muriatic acid(about 7.00 for a gallon-I add about 4-5 cups every 8-9 days) and a couple of cups of baking soda after a big rain to up the ALK.

MY BIL in Houston spends a few hundred dollars a month on chlorine and algae preventatives and a few hundred to treat a pink algae bloom alone-thanks to major pool store chain. They found out later of a fix that would have cost then about 50.00 Gotta love those pool store chains!
It's my understanding that SWG have been around over 20 years in Australia and that more than 80% of pool "down under" use the SWG.
This forum http://pool-information.com/forum.html used to have a number of Australian members. Might be worth your while to check it out.

[Jeffski]

Do you guys honestly think the only reason a pool builder would NOT recommend the SWCG is because they make less off the chemical purchases?

Don't they run the risk of looking like idiots like the people who defended the VCR over the DVD?

Is the corrosion/rust issue legit or are they doing a huge disservice to their customers?

I'm not leaning either way, just asking.

[gldungan]

My pool is 3 1/2 years old. I have the AquaRite SWG. I live near Dallas and the water is warm this time of year (85 F - 88 F). It was suggested that the SWG would not produce enough chlorine to protect the pool in the Texas heat. I have never had that problem. I run my pump for 8 hours this time of year and the AquaRite is set to 50% and my chlorine stays around 3.0 My water is clear and I have never had a problem with algae and to date I have never shocked my pool. I do add a cup and a half of muriatic acid every couple of days to keep the pH around 7.6

I have yet to experience any corrosion and the pool water does not have a negative effect on the landscape. I keep my salt level at 3200ppm and I have read that tear drop has 3 times as much salt.

I do give the SWG a soak in a muriatic acid solution twice a year. I believe that AquaRite recommends 4 times a year but I haven't noticed any build up on the cells so I believe 2 times a year is working for me.

In the winter when the water temp hangs in the 40's my SWG does not generate chlorine (below 55 F). I just add a few cups of bleach to keep the chlorine up.

My pool is 18,000 gallons and over the year I probably buy 4 gallons of bleach, 6 - 8 gallons of muriatic acid, 80 - 120 pounds of salt, 4 pounds of cyanuric acid and 8 pounds of baking soda. I don't consider that a lot to maintain a crystal clear pool. Anyway that's my experience. I'm glad I bought the SWG and I will buy another one when the time comes.

Gary