spozz Posted November 11, 2016 Report Share Posted November 11, 2016 Hello. I was told today that high phosphates in pool water negatively affect the chlorine generation from a SWG? Somehow the phosphates interfere with the electrolysis process. Does that sound right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chem geek Posted November 12, 2016 Report Share Posted November 12, 2016 That is not true. What happens is that higher phosphate and nitrate levels provide more food for algae so they can grow faster IF there is insufficient active chlorine to kill it. You need a Free Chlorine (FC) to Cyanuric Acid (CYA) ratio of at least 5% to be able to kill algae faster than it can grow regardless of algae nutrient levels. If you want to maintain a lower than 5% FC/CYA ratio, then you can use a phosphate remover to slow down the algae growth rate. So the choice is yours -- target a higher FC/CYA level or lower the phosphate level. Either approach will work. I wouldn't go lower than around a 3% FC/CYA ratio though. At very high phosphate levels combined with high Calcium Hardness (CH) levels then that can cause calcium phosphate scaling in the SWG, but that is uncommon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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