Cal Hyo used in an automatic feeder

[skipcoon]

Can you used Cal. Hypo. in an automatic feeder? The feeder I have says you can only use Tricor.

Any help would be appreciated.

[waste]

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In case that wasn't clear enough NO!!!!!


Mixing any other form of chlorine with trichlor can cause an explosion! It is not safe - no matter how well you clean the feeder, the risk of explosion persists!!!!

There was a thread by Ben on this last season, but the answer needs to be posted STAT so I'll link it later.

edit - skip, sorry for not taking the time to welcome you to the forum when I first posted, but this is a major safety issue! (btw - welcome to the forum!! ) here is what I was talking about (Ben's is the last post)

[medvampire]

DO NOT USE ANY OTHER FORM OF CHLORINE BUT TRICHOR IN YOUR FEEDER !!!!
Diffrent forms of clorine tend to react violently with each other.
Steve

[skipcoon]

Thanks for the info, and warning. I was just thinking of using regular cal hypo to prevent my CYA from rising.

[jpdurk]

i am familiar with the risks of mixing different types of chlorine, but what about using cal hypo tabs in a brand new, never been used, pressure feeder such as a hayward cl220?

the feeders for cal hypo tabs are difficult to operate, whereas the cl220 is relatively simple.

[Poconos]

In the earlier days of this forum I did experiment with using Cal Hypo granules in a Hayward CL-200 feeder. First, the warnings are all true about the risk of explosive problems, and, the statement about various forms of chlorine reacting violently with each other is definitely TRUE. Concentration, pressure, and heat are the undesirable results that lead to disaster. To be safe, never mix the forms of chlorine directly where you can get any or all of the above results. So, to be on the safe side, never mix in any feeder at all.
That all being said, I did try fabricating a kind of time release capsule for granules made of a piece of 2" PVC pipe capped at both ends with a bunch of holes drilled in the pipe. After much fussing (experimentation) with the number of holes and hole size, it did work. Was it worth the effort in my case? NO. I reserve the chlorinator for pucks when I need to raise the CYA, and just dump CH granules in the skimmer and let them dissolve in the sand filter. I have a low calcium hardness reading so I can benefit from the convenience of cal hypo compared to bleach. I do use all three forms of chlorine as appropriate.
Al

[jpdurk]

i'm hesitant to keep this thread going as we all know the risks involved here, but i would like to add a little clarification. i'm not talking about putting CH granular in a hayward cl220, i'm talking about CH tabs. that would eliminate any need to "modify" the chlorinator, assuming the CH tabs dissolve correctly in a pressure feeder (the CH tab feeders i've seen are erosion rather than pressure)

also, i wouldn't even put CH granular in a skimmer if i had a trichlor feeder on the system, with or without pucks in it.

so back to the original question, would CH tabs work OK in a brand new, never been used cl220?

j

[aylad]

so back to the original question, would CH tabs work OK in a brand new, never been used cl220?

j

Ben's answer to that same question, years ago, was that no, it is not okay to use it, even in a brand new, never been used feeder because the trichlor feeders are not designed to handle the increased heat and pressure that is generated from dissolving of the cal hypo pucks versus the trichlor pucks. So the risk here is not from the combination of the chlorine types, but from the heat/pressure combination that can make a bomb out of your trichlor feeder.

Jan

[jpdurk]

thanks for the reply, i guess it was all theoretical anyway.

j