*** Hayward Chlorine Feeder Help ***

[poolg]

I am a newbie pool owner, so I am not familiar with the pool equipment yet.

I bought a Hayward Chlorine Feeder (CL220 Off-Line Automatic), but I don't know where to attach it. You can see pictures of my pool equipment at http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...8BauGTlq4ZKLVQ

Can someone help?

[CarlD]

Hi and welcome, but I don't know anything really about installing that kind of chlorine feeder. Realize that you use it to add Tri-chlor tablets, which add lots of acid and lots of stabilizer. If you test and monitor your water so you watch your pH daily and your stabilizer (CYA) weekly, switching to other chlorine, like bleach or cal-hypo chlorine, when the CYA level reaches the level you want. Di-Chlor powder adds even MORE stabilizer than Tri-Chlor. NEVER put anything in your Hayward Chlorine Feeder but tri-chlor tablets--very dangerous to put any other chlorine type in it. But in the water itself, chlorine is chlorine.

You'll want to get a proper test kit and we recommend the Taylor K-2006 or K-2006C test kits. I think PoolDoc and Watermom still have links to sources for them on their signatures. Also a good OTO test kit for daily test is highly recommended.

Finally read here about how to use the B-B-B method (Bleach, Borax and Baking Soda) with your new pool so it is a joy and pleasure and not a pain in the neck.

As for the plumbing...someone else should be able to help you.

[poolg]

Thank you Carl for your information on Tri-chlor tablets.

Can anyone let me know where to attach the chlorine feeder to?

[PoolDoc]

The black visible pump is for your in-pool cleaning system; I'm guessing your actual pool pump is on the other side of the filter. You'll need to take some more pictures. If you would, mail the pictures to me, poolforum@gmail.com. Shutterfly is not really a link-friendly host service.

I don't recommend the Hayward feeder, because of the tremendous restriction on water flow that it creates. The feed rate adjustment system also tends to work very poorly. Instead, *if* you install an trichlor feeder, use the Rainbow 320:
http://astore.amazon.com/poolbooks?_...g=UTF8&node=61

(Access the complete PoolForum Amazon store at http://poolforum/amz/ )

[poolg]

Hi Carl,

I already bought the Hayward CL220 Off-Line Automatic Pool/Spa Chlorine Feeder, and I can't return it now. It was affordable and had good reviews.

I emailed you some pictures over the weekend. Did you get them?

[CarlD]

Ben or someone else may be able to help you. I've never installed or used those feeders. I just use floaters when I want to use tri-chlor tablets. Sorry.

[poolg]

The instructions just say to install the feeder to the intake and outtake but I'm not sure where that is. Can you tell by looking at the pool equipment pictures?

http://youtu.be/0ewyOQ_TVVE

===================================

"give the CL220 to someone you dislike" - hahahaha!

Ben - My pool is around 17,000 gallons. Initially I was thinking of getting floaters, but I travel a lot for work, and sometimes I am away for a month or longer. That is why I choose a automatic chlorine feeder.

How can I find out what the "pressure differential" is? What PSI is considered good or not?

How much does the "Rainbow 320 inline chlorinator" cost? How is it better than the Hayward CL220?

[PoolDoc]

It was affordable and had good reviews.

An affordable piece of junk is not a particularly good deal. However, the CL200 (inline model) is the real turkey. I'm not sure if the CL220 (offline model) is any worse than any other off-line model. If you put a needle valve on the upstream side of the CL220, you may be able to regulate it successfully -- it may even come with a needle valve.

Regardless . . .

All off-line chlorinators work off a pressure difference. The greatest difference is between the suction side and discharge side of the pump. However, there are many problems with that layout. A more common layout is to connect the INLET side of the chlorinator to the pipe on the OUTLET side of the filter, and then connect the OUTLET side of the chlorinator to the drain plug on the pump (SUCTION side of pump). That can work OK, if . . .
=> you put a valve just upstream of the pump on the chlorinator outlet connection. (If you don't do so, you may not be able to prime your pump. This error causes many mystery 'can't be primed' pumps.)
=> Another form connection discharges the chlorinator downstream of the equipment, often by connecting the chlorinator INLET to the DISCHARGE side of the pump, and the chlorinator OUTLET to the pool piping downstream of the filter and all other equipment. Depending on the pool, there may not be enough pressure differential for this to work well. Also, you may have problems with debris, since unfiltered water is going into the chlorinator. Worse, you must be VERY careful to NEVER put chems in the skimmer, since they will go straight into the chlorinator -- and trichlor reacts badly with most other pool chemicals.
=> A third form is a modification of the second, with the chlorinator INLET connected immediately downstream of the filter, and the chlorinator OUTLET connected downstream of all pool equipment. This is the safest method, but will only work if there's a lot of equipment creating a pressure differential sufficient to operate the chlorinator.

However, the BEST recommendation I can give you is, give the CL220 to someone you dislike, who has a pool. Then either buy a Rainbow 320 inline chlorinator or a floater. Floaters work fine, and are very cheap.

Good luck.

[PoolDoc]

Sorry about the confusion above -- you had 2 posts in the queue, and I merged them so they both appear before my reply. Unfortunately, I can't undo it. My bad.

Anyhow:

1. Neither a Rainbow 320 nor a Hayward CL200 or CL220 will keep your pool chlorinated for a month.

2. You can check current pricing on the RB320 in the PoolForum / Amazon e-store: http://poolforum/amz/ . Here's the link to the feeder page:
http://astore.amazon.com/poolbooks?node=61

You have 2 options for month-long *chemical* maintenance:
(a) Installing an SWCG. We recommend either the Hayward / Goldline or the Autopilot. The e-store page is http://astore.amazon.com/poolbooks?node=45

(b) A HiC2 pool (high chlorine + high CYA) *PLUS* adding borax to 60+ ppm *PLUS* low phosphate maintenance. This would be cheaper and easier in installation, but not quite as easy in long term operation.

Actually, even with the SWCG, it would be best if you also did borax, and if your fill water is not high in phosphates, reducing your phosphate level will also make the pool much less hospitable to algae.

None of this addresses the physical maintenance issues on your pool. However, since you are in California, that may not be an issue. Here (in N. Georgia) leaf fall, thunderstorms, etc. make that a major issue.

[poolg]

How long do you think the Rainbow 320 or Hayward CL220 will keep my pool chlorinated for?