Low Bromine - I'm Stumped!

[KSchlies]

I'm hoping somebody here has some advice or insight on this problem.

The pool was installed in 2001. I purchased the house w/pool in 2003. I started having issues with Bromine levels last summer. I take my water in to a pool supply center for testing and Bromine is always 0.0. I have an offline PerformMax brominator setup.

Last summer when the problem started, I thought air might be getting into the system causing the required suction through the brominator to be low. I replaced all of the clamps and one of the venturi scoop fittings. I also took all the bromine out and made sure there wasn't a blockage at the bottom. This spring I replaced the brominator o-ring as well. The brominator is full.. but the tablets seem to be eroding very slowly. I've confirmed no air getting into the system. I also confirmed the venturi scoops are pointed in the correct directions to force water through the brominator.

So, now what?! I'm still getting 0.0 reading and am getting frustrated!

Thanks in advance for any advice you can give on this problem.

[dlzc]

I also confirmed the venturi scoops are pointed in the correct directions to force water through the brominator.

So, now what?! I'm still getting 0.0 reading and am getting frustrated!

A picture is worth a thousand words. Your words on the application of the venturi don't make sense. Can you provide a photograph?

[KSchlies]

Thanks for the reply. I will post pictures asap. Karen.

[KSchlies]

The scoop at the sand filter inlet is facing down (towards the ground). The scoop at the outlet of the heater is also pointing downward.

[dlzc]

The scoop at the sand filter inlet is facing down (towards the ground). The scoop at the outlet of the heater is also pointing downward.

There is a grey pipe shown coming up out of the pump (center frame). There is a black line approaching this grey pipe. Is this the ozone inlet? I do not recognize the brand, but comparing this to Mazzei eductors, the water inlet side is closer to the gas suction port than the water outlet port is. IF this "grey pipe" is the eductor, and IF brand is similar in geometry, the eductor is backwards.

[KSchlies]

Hi.

Yes, the black line off of the grey pipe is the inlet to the brominator. The outlet from the brominator is the black line left of the brominator (lower left corner of photo - difficult to see).

I'm not sure what you mean by "educator"? Do you mean the scoop fitting at the grey pipe?

[dlzc]

Hi.

Yes, the black line off of the grey pipe is the inlet to the brominator. The outlet from the brominator is the black line left of the brominator (lower left corner of photo - difficult to see).

I'm not sure what you mean by "educator"? Do you mean the scoop fitting at the grey pipe?

I made some assumptions, and they were wrong.

An eductor is a simple device that uses motive flow to pull a vacuum. This vacuum could be used to do something like pull flow through a brominator.

I guess your brominator is the critter with the black wrench on it. If so, then the brominator's flow is driven by the differential pressure across (at least) the filter.

Bromine will not survive long in a water sample, especially if the water is warm. You indicate that the pool shop shows 0.0. Bromine should show up on a standard pool test kit as free chlorine (I think...). You could verify this yourself. Maybe there is someone new checking your pool chemistry, or they changed the indicator system they use... and they made a mistake.

Are you having algae problems, or what do you mean by "the problem showed up"?

Hardness / alkalinity can sometimes affect how tablet brominators work, is this in the normal range for your pool, compared with previous years?