Metal Remover
Advice ) Metal remover will cause relay chattering and even display flickering on the best built programmable, with or without CO2, fully tested and run wet. In 2006 we experienced a 40,000 gallon new build pool with three quarts Metal Magic (Phosphoric acid) based as with all metal removing and scale control agents) put in by the pool builder, not an ECOsmarte dealer. It resolved with two 24 hour non-chlorine shocks AND an aluminum sulfate drop, with phosphates testing zero on Natural Chemistry. The phosphate test does catch some of these sites however when interrogation of startup or operation personnel is not possible or inaccurate..
It took three weeks to figure out, we burned out components in the fourth or fifth day of operation on two separate build generations,(2006 March and 2006 August, both current Version Code) and the third unit fired up without issue after the alum drop preceded by the24 hour spaced consecutive non-chlorine shocks. There was no issue in the build or original software upload on the second programmable that failed. In 2007 we will endeavor to document which components, if any other than the code crashing, fail in a metal remover environment. The 40,000 gallons on the site referenced would indicate this problem will be more dramatic on smaller pools and only discovered by questioning the builder, consumer or service person on whether or not metal remover was put in the pool.
We will replicate in our new R and D department and have noted in the updated manual.
Q) We purchased one of your systems last year, we are having trouble getting
our copper level up to .4 ppm. this spring.The pool is checked twice a week, PH
levels are good 6.8 to 7.2, filter runs 12 hours a day and is always on the
ionize mode, the filter is kept clean. I have been around pools for twenty years
and never had any problems like this.
A) One of two things is most likely the cause-- phosphates over 200ppm or
calcium below 300ppm or both. The ECOsmarte system will not function with the
copper below .4ppm, as you understand the main issue. both are easy to fix, the
phosphates are not well covered in the industry yet or in the pool industry
generally. Metal remover or scale control put in the pool
inadvertently would require two consecutive non-chlorine shocks 24 hours apart
to remove as really the only other possible issue. If you had box or chamber
issues you would have virtually no copper. Call us at 1-800-ION SWIM with your
numbers, we are in until 11AM on Sat as we are still on winter hours LC