I am slowly growing fond of the Balboa Ecomatic units.
Their design is proven and rock solid.

I do not like the limited functionality of the intellichlor units without a controller. With a easy/intellitouch, they have been very reliable.

Have you ever had to contact Balboa on this unit for info/service and how did that go? A buddy of mine had to chew them out pretty bad last November in Vegas as one of their tech guys hung up on him when all he wanted was some tech info. They did not have the answer. Have they improved the wire connection to the cell? Most people twist the cell off with wires attached and end up breaking them.

Thanks racket, repair guy.

I am in the process of buying a new pump and filter for my pool (approx. 35k gallons, gunite, no heater). I've been hearing good things about SWC, so I thought, while having everything put in, I might think about that as well. After reading this site, I now am leaning toward a Pentair pump and filter. From an earlier post, it looks like Pentair might provide some kind of discount if you purchase a kit.

Along with the IntelliChlor, what do you think about pairing that with the Pentair 60 DE filter and an 4x160? Is the 4x160 overkill for me? I have a separate light switch for lights and absolutely nothing else other than a Polaris pool cleaner (it hooks into the side of the pool)

[Sorry, but I know almost nothing about this stuff; still learning]

I've had the Aqua Rite since 2003 and it's been problem free as long as I was doing the every three month cleaning.

That said, Goldline/Hayward does have a new SWG unit coming out in April "Aqua Rite Pro" that will add auto-testing and adjustment of the pool chemistry (ORP and pH sensing and dispensing). The pH dispensing can be either via Co2 injection or acid pump.

Since I'm constantly adding acid to control the pH creep from the SWG, I thinking of upgrading to the Aqua Rite Pro model. It will also be nice to not have to be checking chlorine levels and adjusting the SWG output.

Here is a link that might be useful: Goldline Sense and Dispense

I'm wondering who Goldline thinks the customer for Sense and Dispense actually is. My supplier can't even get info on the thing and it's been available for quite awhile. Where is one going to buy CO2? Who in their right mind will put a drum of acid in the yard if you opt out of CO2? I just don't get it. They claim the proportional feed as being something late and great but ChemTrol has had that for eons. Sure that's a commercial product but don't sell it like you invented it.

I sent e-mail to Goldline on Monday asking about the product and I've got quite a bit of info back. It's launching in April (not out yet). About $2600 for the kit. They don't seem to be claiming they invented it, just that they have got the cost down to be affordable for non-commercial use.

Co2 is actually very easy to come by. I guess if you're into paintball, you'd know that, but you can get 15 and 20 pound tanks pretty cheep. I think the salt-water fish tank owners are also using it for pH control. The tanks can be refilled at a welding supply, lab gas supplier, or other locations. On a 20 pound bottle, on a 15K gallon pool, it's supposed to last about two months.

As for who the customer is... If it was an option when I built my pool, I'd go for it. The small incremental cost to get actual ORP and pH sensing, plus dispensing, is worth it in the time it saves me managing my pool. Even then, I'm looking at it now as a retrofit.

Here is a link that might be useful: Aqua Line Pro

I'm with Repair Guy on the Goldline sense and dispense stuff. CO2? I sure hope Goldline has figured out how to reliably sense ORP with a salt pool. Goldline owners will not be happy when they have to frequently fork over 2 bills (or more) for a new pH or ORP sensor...$2600 for the kit? That's a lot of cabbage!

I think people don't really realize the costs of the technology. Sure they can make the unit cheaper but then again everything they make is cheap and in the long run you pay for it somewhere. Probes, circuit boards, etc on that kind of stuff is hugely expensive. I question the April date. They've been saying it's coming for a looooong time. Kind of like Jandy's pump.

Goldline is offering a five year warranty, so if there are problems, at least you're covered. I must say, I'm really surprised on the responses. I'd expect more curiosity in seeing if the product can do what it says before knocking it. I guess I'll report back once I get mine.

As for the Jandy pump... They have been demoing it, and here in California there are many in-field trials going on. That said, each time I've asked, they've said July, and as of a week ago, that's still the planed release date.

What's your opinion on BioGuard Mineral Springs?

You guys compliment my ADD very well.

Let me try to address these in order.

1. RG Balboa's tech support is like the weather in seattle, when it's good it's really good, when its bad, it's really bad. As of late it has been good.

2. Goldline was a great company be for being purchased by Hayward, now they pretty much suck.

3. I cannot suggest pH and Orp control for most homeowners. I only recommend these types of controllers for pools that have large dynamic bather loads, such as health clubs, and municipal pools. Because of their complexity and the frequency of calibration required, I could not suggest that one be put on a backyard pool, because it is not going to change the amount of oversight required on the pool. You cannot just set a controller and walk away from it. Calibrating the pH is easy, but the orp requires far more sophisticated equipment or procedures.

Keep in mind that the proper operation, and execution of these feeders are over 80% of pool professionals heads, so imaging the hard time a homeowner will have with it.

We had several very high dollar projects that demanded these types of controllers on them initially have since abandoned them and have gone back to doing it the old fashioned way.

4. Mineral Springs is the same unit as the Goldline one (last time I worked for a BioGuard dealer at least) so #2 applies to them as well. BioGuard does have great dealer support, so their tech support may be better than buying the goldline product, but its still now made by Hayward, so I would steer clean.

Ive had an Ecomatic for 3 years now. I had one instance to call tech suport and had no issues with them. I love the unit and would recomend it!

Ecomatic is the reverse. It sucked BEFORE Balboa bought it.

"I must say, I'm really surprised on the responses. I'd expect more curiosity in seeing if the product can do what it says before knocking it. I guess I'll report back once I get mine."

You would never find an industry person making this comment! Hayward has not produced anything new for this industry that has been accepted by this industry in mass. When a Hayward product is removed, it is in most cases replaced with a competitors product.

ORP and pH control really is a full time job. On our commercial pools, we spend more time dealing with those controls than actually servicing the pool. They are a must on chlorine feed in those settings as you're typically pumping 200+ gallons a week. You can never get enough acid into that kind of a pool with the full time bather load so the pH control is also needed. In a perfect world, nobody in their right mind would willingly go into one due to ongoing costs to maintain. When a company that is known for cheap says we can do it cheaper, head for the hills.

I am pretty sure that Mineral Springs is now using the Pentair IntelliChlor model.

Landa you are probably correct, I couldn't imagine that a company with a culture like BioGuard would put up w/ Haywards crap for very long.

"I must say, I'm really surprised on the responses. I'd expect more curiosity in seeing if the product can do what it says before knocking it. I guess I'll report back once I get mine."

I agree w/ RG here, In the case of a pH ORP controller, we have seen better companies than Hayward Fail. We don't want you to spend $2500 to prove us wrong.

"In a perfect world, nobody in their right mind would willingly go into one due to ongoing costs to maintain. "

On the residential side I would agree, but due to bather loads fluctuating hour by hour large commercial pools benefit from the tremendously.