Swimming Pool Water Ionizers

Seems like a gimmick to me...but I guess if you follow the instructions and recommendations carefully it probably won't do any harm, and will help to keep the pool water algae under control....

http://www.poolcenter.com/ionic

...". Elements will last around one season and cost between 55- 85.00 depending on how you shop. If you check water for amount of Copper and take unit out when amount is at optimal levels you will prolong the life of the element. Usually I can find for around 55."...

https://www.amazon.com/Solar-Clear-NA4155-Ionizer/dp/B004VQDYG6

I've used chlorine for pool sanitizing for over 30 years. A floating tablet dispenser and liquid shock every week, or so depending on the season.

Changing the water to reduce all the accumulated minerals and gunk every five years also helps keep things clean and stable.

I would not try any of these other systems.

First, the Blue Sea Ionizer is for "kiddie" pools. 6,000 liters.

They are a gamble, as I see it.

Can Swimming Pools Go "Chemical-free"?

I must recon I have just attached the first ionizer link that showed up in E-bay.

No worries, mate. We knew you meant this:

You are darn right mate!

Very nice pool!

Thank you Lyn.

It's getting a lot of use too, temperatures have been hovering in the high 30s and low 40s for over a week now.

We've had over 60mm of rain this month so far, which replenishes the pool evaporation just nicely, the pool has an auto overflow so I don't have to worry about pumping excess out.

The trichlor tablet also assists in neutralizing the effects of freshwater input from rain and tap water during Summer.

You're not far from Hannam Vale where my fiancée and I would like to live one day. Lovely area. She once lived in Kew and has dear friends in Laurieton.

Yep, all those places you mention are just a stone's throw away from here. Hannam vale is a really beautiful spot in the bush.

I'm pretty sure you would love it there, and you never have to winterize your pool either (or anything else for that matter) .

My question may have sounded a bit weird for those living in the northern hemisphere, but it´ summer down here too!

I also manage to keep the pool clean and the water crystal clear by just using Chlorine tablets (they are called triple action tablets here), and some liquid Chlorine every now and then.

As a friend who owns one of these ionizers insisted about it´ advantages, just wanted to know other people´s experience. Thak you!

Great pool you have!

Why use Liquid Chlorine at all, it has a very high pH (around 13) and very low Chlorine (typically 12% when manufactured, but normally closer to 8% by the time you use it), so as a shock treatment it is all but useless - and expensive in the quantities required to actually shock a pool.

If you want to effectively shock your pool, better to use simple Calcium Hypochlorite - lower ph (around 10) but higher Chlorine level (about 68%), but it can increase hardness levels in hard water areas and is a little slow to dissolve, or, if your stabilizer levels are not too high, and/or you have hard water, consider using dichlor (Sodium dichlorisocyanuric acid or Sodium dichloro-s-triazinetrione generally in dihydrate form for domestic use) powder. It has an almost neutral pH and a Chlorine level of about 60%, it dissolves rapidly and doesn't leave any residue, so is ideal for hard water areas.

The one downside is its stabiliser level of about 0.9ppm per 1 ppm of added Chlorine. Stabiliser should be kept at between 30-50ppm, so if using other forms of stabiliser, take care.

When not in use I cover the pool with a silver yarn sun shade net, which is great, as it prevents water from getting too warm, also preventing leaves from falling into the pool. It has the great advantage that it floats and therefore can be easily placed and removed.

86F Sounds like a great pool temperature.

Here comes the troll...

Phew! Saw previous comment and logged off. YES!!

During my brief stint as a state certified (residential) pool & spa contractor in Florida, I was privileged to see and work on a wide variety of 'hydrofun' systems.

For the $250+ price tag, there are numerous (other) approaches.

By the time one of these fancy solar-ionizer's "konk-out", the owner will most likely be able to say (unequivocally) "Well, it saved me a good $250 on chlorine tabs"......

The "original_plan" for all of our fresh-water needs was provided by: horsepower.

((Whether we convert radiant heat, or W/m², 746 watts ≈ 1hp.))

I learned (several-times-over), that "nothing-but-nothing" keeps a pool (or spa) more ready-for-use and free of unwanted/unnecessary excess "chemical-soup" than a properly sized and maintained filtration system, run for the appropriate amount of time {based on all factors, including bather load, temperature, exposure to sun, organic debris, etc. etc.} ~ and, of course, properly maintained (the filter).

But then ; there are those who take great pride in their calculators, and knowing how to use them, to figure-out just how much of "this-'n-that" to toss in each week.....

To EACH their own ...

I agree.

Pool pumps/motors/filters don't really need much down time.

During summer swimming season, mine runs 16 hours every day.

While I agree that filtration is important, it runs a distant second to disinfection.

Many people confuse the two because their filtration is also linked to their disinfection setup, ie. most automatic dosing systems require the pump to be running, and this generally means that the filter is also in the circuit, although it doesn't necessarily have to be for the disinfectant to do its job.

The filter itself is only there to remove the dead organisms that the disinfectant produces - along with other dust etc. that gets in the pool.

You can prove this point the next time you get some warm weather - stop filtering but keep the disinfectant running (for an auto dosing system you can do this by putting the filter on bypass) - the water will stay quite clean for a goodly period and you will generally notice a buildup of gunk on the pool floor after a couple of weeks, which is mostly burnt up dirt and bugs. The pool won't go green if your dosing is adequate, although the water will lose its sparkle over time.

Then run the filter 24 hours a day but stop disinfecting - the pool will start to turn green within a few days.

If you have to run the filter for much more than 8 hours a day in summer to keep the pool clean, then your filter/pump and/or dosing system is way too small.

Yeah...I know all the stuff about 2 water changes per day etc. but in reality it's just not true if your dosing system is up to the job.

One change is plenty, and a pump/filter combination like mine that can move around 30,000 litres per hour will do an adequate job in 2 hours.

As I said earlier, my pool as pictured gets just 2 hours running per day in summer (that's no BS) and to take advantage of my PV panel power input I do that in the middle of the day which is not optimal as sunlight kills Chlorine, I add no chemicals other than the acid from the pH controller (I keep pH at 7.5) plus the 1 Trichlor tablet per week. The clarity of the water in the pic shows that theory works for me.

You could well be right, but for two reasons in my particular case, I run it more.

This could just be a holdover from before we rebuilt the pool and the water was "old" not having been changed for many years, what with the accumulated minerals from many years topping off with mineral rich water. We have a high evaporation rate here in the summer. (Force of habit)

The other reason is the frequency of dust storms we have and the debris that gets blown into the pool.

I'll reduce the run time and see how it goes. Two hours seems too little for my pool, and I may never get near that number.

While I agree wholeheartedly with 99% of your words, above, there is a caveat hidden in the words (that you stated as though axiomatic):

"filtration ... runs a distant second to disinfection"

I ought to have gone "on-and-on" in my original post, delving into how each and every pool is unique in its own situation. The content would have included:

A thoroughly proper (i.e., "more-than-just-adequate") filtration system (with "crawler", or, manual brushing daily), will keep the "dead-stuff", etc, OUT of the pool itself, leaving little for algae and other "uglies" to thrive on....

(I used to hate showing-up for a "much-needed-service-call" because a relatively new pool was "unswimmable" ~~~ only to find piles of dead leaves on the drain and in the skimmer basket. ^IDIOTS!)

I shant "argue" back-and-forth, one-versus-another [[disinfection with THIS {_ozone*} versus disinfection with THAT {_chlorine} or filtration by THIS {_sand} method or filtration by THAT {_DE} method]]

... I shall simply reiterate: "Every pool is its own unique character", and needs to be dealt with accordingly. MOST pool owners will find that IF they study their situation, evaluate the options, and instead of trying to 'scrimp', go with the equipment needed to do the job right, they WILL be swimming in the cleanest/clearest most "chemical-free" water that is possible for them.

[ Horsepower does it best . . . ]

* for all "engineer-types" - get your hands on a junked ozonator, pop the lid, and you'll see just how much "better" a unit you could design and make yourself... and, once you've "seen-the-light", you'll have a whole new fresh take on how to care for YOUR pool...

I wish to thank you all for the interesting input! I discarded the idea of getting the ionizer

Much of the foregoing makes me kind of glad I don't have a pool, quite honestly.

You can have mine for free!

Unless you use them a lot (or have young boys with friends) they are hardly worth the expense.

My pool is not maintenance intensive.

Summertime dust storms are a pain because they overwhelm the filtration system.

I have a sand filter and back washing is usually only needed once a month, or less except during the Haboob season when san\d, Palm fronds and other debris is blown in.

Otherwise, it't just tabs in the floating dispenser and some shock, as needed.

We've a decorative pond here, with lilypads and koi. Very low maintenance - except that the local heron has discovered the fish. Apart from that it's just a matter of keeping the pond topped-off. Weather here is either blistering hot, which causes the pond to evaporate; or a frog-drowner, which causes it to overflow. Crazy-arse Texas weather.

"Unless you use them a lot (or have young boys with friends) they are hardly worth the expense."

I had young girls with friends...Much more entertaining.

We don't have a big dust problem but have a stand of very high gum trees behind us with a couple of deciduous trees very close by. The gums happily are mostly downwind, so don't create a problem, but the deciduous ones drop a fair bit of litter at times and make the Kreepy Krawly (also 27 years old with just a new skirt and 2 wings in that time) earn its living. The high rate sand filter gets a quick backwash fortnightly - if I remember.

I recommend No More Green Technologies original solar pool ionizer for your list if you are looking for a reliable, efficient, and durable option. This item helped me a lot since I no longer need to feel anxious about ionizing my pool to eliminate excessive algae formation. With this device, my pool stays clean and safe for my family to enjoy.