How To Maintain a Salt Water Pool

One of the most common questions we get asked as pool professionals is, “Is there any alternative to chlorine or a way I can use less chlorine in my pool?” We get it, guys; chlorine is not for everyone. With that being said, chlorine simply is the best pool sanitizer there is, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to cut down on your chlorine usage. You guessed it… salt!

Salt chlorine generators are one of the swimming pool industry’s greatest inventions. These nifty little machines will reduce the time it takes to maintain your pool, allowing you to enjoy it even more. Before you purchase a salt generator, it is important to understand that it is not an alternative to chlorine, as the process that the salt undergoes within the generator transforms it into chlorine. You won’t smell chlorine near the pool the way you do near a traditionally chlorinated pool, but that doesn’t mean there’s no chlorine in the pool.

We have installed hundreds of salt chlorine generators at Royal Pools G2 Landscaping over the years. One thing we have noticed is that the most successful salt pool owners are the ones who take the extra steps to make sure the cell always runs to the best of its ability.

 

Maintain Proper Water Chemistry

Saltwater pools, like any pool, require chemical balance in order to be clear and swim-ready at all times. You’re going to want to keep balanced water chemistry always, and you want to pay extra attention to pH, alkalinity, and calcium hardness. 

Maintaining proper pH and alkalinity levels are key to maintaining saltwater pools. The pH levels in your pool indicate whether the pool water is acidic, balanced, or basic. High pH creates basic water, which can cause scaling on the pool wall. Low pH leads to acidic water.

If the pH is too high forcing the alkalinity to rise with it, this makes the pool basic or scale forming. This can force calcium deposits to attach to the salt cell, rendering it inefficient. If the pH is too low, this can also force the alkalinity to drop lower, causing the salt cell to deteriorate, rendering it inefficient as well. Alkalinity is the buffer to the pH count in the swimming pool water. If the alkalinity is too far out of range, the pH will begin to fluctuate. Below, you will see the proper ranges of pH, alkalinity, and calcium hardness. It is important to test your chemicals weekly to ensure they are in the proper ranges. 

• pH 7.2 – 7.8
• Alkalinity 80 – 120
• Calcium Hardness: 175 – 350

pH is the scale of how acidic/ basic your swimming pool water is. pH is very important. If the pH level is below 7.2, the water becomes very acidic and will become corrosive to surfaces. If the pH is above 7.8, the water becomes very basic, which can lead to scaling of the pool surface. 

Pro-Tip: The chlorine that is produced from the salt cell has a high pH, so it is normal to add muriatic acid or pH down to your swimming pool.

 

Monitor Salt Levels

Your salt generator will have an electronic display showing the salt PPM levels in the pool, but it is a good idea to manually test the salinity of the water at least once a month. The typical salinity range for a saltwater pool falls between 2,700 and 3,400 parts per million (PPM). You may need to add more salt to the pool once or twice a year depending on if you had to drain or add a lot of water into the pool.

You may be wondering how the salinity of a saltwater pool compares to the salt levels in, say, the ocean. Frankly, it’s tiny oranges versus the biggest apple ever. The salinity of the ocean can reach 35,000 parts per million. The salt levels in a saltwater pool are relatively low when compared to other bodies of saltwater. In fact, saltwater pools contain less salt than your teardrops, which have a salinity of 9,000 parts per million!

 

Clean the Salt Cell Regularly

A salt chlorine generator utilizes a process called electrolysis within the cell to transform salt into chlorine, sending the chlorinated water back into the pool. Because of this, it is important to disassemble and inspect the inside of the salt cell and clean it every 2-3 months. 

To clean a salt cell, you need to shut the pool down, open up the cell, and check for any debris or mineral buildup on the inside. Usually, you can get it clean with a garden hose, but if the buildup is excessive, you should do a thorough acid wash with 3 parts water and 1 part muriatic acid (note: never add water to muriatic acid; add muriatic acid to water!)

 

Monitor Ladders and Handrails

One downside about saltwater is that it can corrode metal surfaces. The good thing is that if you pick the right materials and maintain proper salt levels in the pool, you shouldn’t have to worry about excessive corrosion. 

There are different sealants and metal coating materials that you can use to prevent corrosion of your metal surfaces, such as rustoleum, galvanized spray, and different types of anti-corrosion and rust-inhibiting materials. Another great addition that can be added is a sacrificial anode, which is a piece of metal that is plumbed in-line with the rest of your pool equipment and is designed to rust and corrode faster than the attached metal and metal in the pool water, “sacrificing” itself to help the pools metallic surfaces last longer. 

 

Use A Conditioning Kit

The other practice that you should do routinely on your saltwater pool is to apply saltwater conditioning kits to the water. Saltwater conditioning kits are chemicals that are applied directly to the water to help keep the cell from scaling. These conditioners should be applied monthly or bi-monthly. This helps the salt cell operate smoothly without any excess corrosion, and some conditioners also have pH and Alkalinity balancers built in to help the acidity of the pool water.

 

Replace Generator When Needed

Another important thing to note is that salt chlorine generators are not a lifelong product. Proper maintenance is important to ensure that the generator will work to the best of its ability for as long as possible, but the truth is that regardless of how thorough you are with maintenance, the salt cell itself, as well as the control board, will need to be replaced every 3-5 years.

 

Conclusion

There it is, folks: the simple maintenance that will help save you tons of money and tons of time on your saltwater swimming pool! Salt chlorine generators, like any product of its kind, require a little bit of maintenance to ensure they function properly. Now that you know what it takes to maintain one, do you think a saltwater pool sounds like the right pool for you? Maybe you’re not sold yet. Maybe you want to know about the specific pros and cons of salt chlorine generators. If you are, check out the article below. For more educational content on all things pools and landscaping, check out our learning center.

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