Hayward Aquarite Salt generator cell replacment- the low cost way

[@krishwarsha]

I got the same Cell but i put the other way so that you can actually see the generator working. very cool to see how the clear water turns cloudy when the cell while running. love this product all the way from Austria to USA.

[@RobertLawrentz]

Had the exact same problem on my HEYWARD T-15 that was 11 years old. They wanted $900-1000 bucks for a new one. Paid $368.00 for this exact generic one. Works great. Saved a pile of $!

[@99somerville]

I took a chance and ordered a T3 cell earlier this summer. My Hayward was no longer generating any amperage. My Salt Pool Store cell arrived from the USA and has been working fine so far except for the salt reading. I can’t get it to calibrate no matter how many times I try. It reads about 1200 PPM high. I use a portable salt reader instead.

[@cadiehl1]

Mine reads 1000 over actual salt level. It won’t calibrate to actual reading. I contacted them and they said it was normal due to the coatings they use and that after time it will read properly. Been almost 3 months and still reads 1000 over. Not sure what I’m going to do.

[@99somerville]

@@cadiehl1 I bought a $35 salt pool tester from Amazon and it works great. Try that instead of worrying about the calibration.

[@MrDave-bs7tc]

Got one of those. So far so good. My 15 runs $900 and this one runs $400. Definitely worth the savings

[@wayneguess7946]

I used the same one, works great so far, three months!

[@zmanphx]

I am using the same one. The input from the pump is the side with the cord . It works find. Saving money from buying chlorine. Chlorine prices have tripled the last few years.

[@zmanphx]

You can verify it is making chlorine by looking at the amps on the display panel. It should be around 7 amps for t-15 . The site glass on the cell you should see cloudy ness which is the chlorine. Also you can fill your chlorine tester vial directly at the jet to test the chlorine exists.

[@michaelcox5888]

I ordered one of these after seeing this and another video. The order took a couple weeks longer than stated. I figured well there have been supply line and shipping issues, so I waited. When the unit finally arrived, the clear housing was cracked from damage in shipping. The packaging the company had used was the thinnest single sheet of bubble wrap.

[@michaelcox5888]

… I emailed the company with a picture of the damaged cell to ket them know, and they replied, they said I needed to ship it back to them so they could inspect it before replacement or refund. I wanted to call them to just ask “are you sure because that will cost more money for shipping both ways,” I found out their number is unlisted. While the address looks legit, having no phone access puts a real limit on what kind of customer assistance they can render. They have not replied via email to let me know whether they received my package. I will have to find out from my credit card company whether a refund was issued, or I will have to ask my credit card company to rescind the charge. Mean while I’m feeling like I probably will just pay the extra money from Hayward because I need a new salt cell generator. Or I switch to the Pentel system … First world pool problems.

[@bseville100]

@@michaelcox5888 I had the same exact issue!!! This company is horrible. I just bought a Hayward cell.

[@michaelcox5888]

Update … this “company” sent me a replacement anyway even though I requested a refund. No way to communicate with them if they won’t read their email. I’m led to think that it’s a robot or someone so limited in their language skills that they only know how to take money and send a package. I may just try to cancel the charge with my card company, then see if I get a response from an actual human being.

[@jeffhamilton416]

Interesting and disturbing experience. I ordered their T-15. Arrived yesterday and has the same damage you described. The clear part of the housing is completely smashed. Emailed them. They wrote back right away asking me to ship to them so they can inspect it before approving an exchange. Same experience all around, so far.

[@kaiguy702]

Hey guys… I see your video is three years old. Curious how this “salt pool store” cell is working? Please update! Thanks.

[@Beachnative42]

Todays date is 5/14/2021, I returned it after going thru the warranty process and it has been running fine after getting the replacement

[@russelljohnson7067]

I replaced my T 5 Hayward salt cell about 18 months ago , no problems so far . The pool store had a 100$ rebate on the cell

[@drewferrante1263]

Bought the T-15 Salt Pool Store generic replacement (same as yours but for 40,000 gallon pools) and it FAILED after 1 year. (My Hayward was around $700, but lasted 9 years!) You get what you pay for...

[@chrissewell1608]

Not always! I replaced my original Hayward T-cell 15, which ran for 14 years +/-, with another hayward T-cell 15. It is only about 3 - 5 years old, and it has crapped out! Now I don;t want to spend $900.00 for another short term expense! 1/3 of the price sounds good to me. And these come with a 5 year warranty. Hayward doesn't even give that much!

[@drewferrante1263]

@@chrissewell1608 in their defense, Salt Pool Store replaced the failed unit and the replacement has worked fine for now.

[@boostshiftboost]

How did you get them to replace the salt cell? They do not respond to emails?

[@zmanphx]

@@boostshiftboost , they respond to my emails .

[@boostshiftboost]

@zmanphx maybe I'll try again. The last time I sent a request for warranty and they responded that it was out of warranty, and when I asked about this warranty and were it said the time frame on their website, they stopped responding. They wanted me to send it in, and then they'd tell me I needed to pay the same cost for a new one anyway. This has happened to multiple buyers of this company. Plenty of reviews out there.

[@michaellynch9430]

I bought the same unit from the pool store in April 2002 and it went out this week 11-22-22. I spent an hour on line with the pool store uploading the receipt, pictures of the unit, and water testing records. they said give them 48 hours to look at the claim. I'll let y'all know how this goes.

[@esteemedenergy]

20 years?

[@georgemacedo7537]

Did they replace?

[@zmanphx]

Has 5 year warranty.

[@--Harley]

Dude, is the date of April 2002 correct? .... means you got 20 years out of it! 😁

[@oj4253]

How long did it last? I just replaced mine with a hayward cell. I didn't want to chance it.

[@ben13th83]

Outstanding video... LOL Love the dialogue

[@richardhanson8148]

Did you calibrate the right tcell size to the board? If it's a t5 and your old cell was a T5 you should be all set!

[@Beachnative42]

Yes t5 to t5

[@krehbein]

Getting ready to buy this cell now. Hope it lasts at least a few years. My Hayward cell lasted something like 10 years. I have a 24k gallon pool and am using the t-15 cell, rated for 40k pools.

[@jeremyholt9211]

I got the t15 as well, works great so far!

[@romma11]

@@jeremyholt9211 t-15 is type /size, all t-15 will fit original hayward t-15 for fit and power/rating generation, question is which brand you have, you can't just say I have t-15

[@jeremyholt9211]

@@romma11 mine is identical to the one in that video. It’s a Hayward brand

[@romma11]

@@jeremyholt9211 video shows two different, the old one - white the Hayward brand and one new as replacement with transparent body - NOT hayward brand

[@jeremyholt9211]

@@romma11 ok, I had the old Hayward and I have the new clear one. I believe it’s actually Hayward brand as well.

[@Beachnative42]

Frank Florentine brings up a very good point about the company's reliability to deliver and stand behind their product. I went to the Better Business Bureau and looked them up here: www.bbb.org/us/il/northbrook/profile/saltwater-pool-supplies/salt-pool-store-0654-90012211/complaints. it was littered with many negative reviews and this is what the BBB has said about them: "A recent review of consumer complaints filed with the BBB of Chicago and Northern Illinois against the company delineates a patter of consumer allegations. In their complaints, consumers allege that the business failed to abide by the 1-5 year warranties on their products. In addition, consumers allege business fails to respond to any inquires regarding the estimated time frame for delivery of their purchased item. Lastly, consumers allege business fails to provide a refund for items that were either canceled or not fulfilled after a request for a refund is made. To date we have not heard back from the company regarding the pattern of consumer allegations. The BBB will continue to monitor complaints, but advises any consumer to be aware of this business and the pattern of consumer allegations. " I also looked into the domain name and ran a whois to see what I could find, it's all hidden and I get suspicious when people do that especially when a manufacturer does it. Here is the hidden domain info who.is/whois/saltpoolstore.com Here is the salt pool store phone number 888-454-7353. I called it and guess what? Nobody answered. I have been fortunate to have received a salt cell that has performed flawlessly

[@MucaroBoricua]

Fork! I almost ordered one. They are basically scammers.

[@boostshiftboost]

Absolutely a scam company. I regret buying mine a year ago. It failed a few months back and I finally figured out it was the problem. They do not stand by the product or their warranty.

[@Jennyblackburn]

Do you have any updated reviews? Is it still working? I’m looking into ordering to replace my Hayward

[@Beachnative42]

UPDATE 4/24/2023 - After a nearby lightning strike taking out a few things in our home including a washer and dryer, tv's and the whole pool filter and salt chlorinator system we replaced the whole thing.

[@osmith5086]

get a whole house surge suppressor installed at the main panel. Hire an electrician - don't do it yourself. A bit cheaper than everything you listed that was destroyed by a single lightning strike - "nearby". Florida is the lightning capitol of the US. lived there 20+ years with a suppressor installed as I describe - never had an issue. Direct strikes, brown outs, etc.

[@WatsonsModels]

Is it still working?

[@ericensley2427]

found out this failed in 6 months or so... that sucks

[@mycatmycat3786]

Hi. Is it still working. ? Thanks. Good job.

[@Beachnative42]

Not after the lightniing strike that took out more than a few things

[@Beachnative42]

My Salt Cell from the saltpoolstore has failed and I have to put chlorine in the pool ...NOT HAPPY. I have left messages and have begun the warranty process

[@andybd11a]

The hayward cell has wires in the harness that actually aren't being used. On the cell side they are connected to nothing. Short waiting to happen

[@RichOliver]

Curious how long it lasted before it quite working. Can you confirm?

[@Beachnative42]

Mine lasted around 2 years, and then everything died after a really close lightning strike took a few things out in our home and our neighbors house.

[@stricklandgarageaviation2864]

Is it still working? I heard that these don't last very long.

[@zmanphx]

They have 5 yr warranty .Mine working so far fine after a year.

[@rafaelfclima]

Hello!! Is this cell still working properly after a couple of years?

[@Beachnative42]

This cell failed and we replaced the whole system. In all fairness it's not a really good litmus test for the reliability of these cells since we took a nearby lightning strike that took out a few of appliances as well. We did get two years plus out of it before the lightning strike.

[@rafaelfclima]

@@Beachnative42 great! 2years out of it is what I would expect from this cheaper alternative. My OEM hayward lasted only 2.5 yrs…

[@MuthaDucka1]

​@@rafaelfclima my Hayward T-15 is going on 12 years. I guess it's a crap shoot

[@EltonBorssoi]

I wish I had watched this before spending too much money in the Hayward cell

[@tonywoloschinow3756]

A couple of things I will point out to you. First you installed the salt cell backwards, the cord end faces the direction of where the flow is coming from. Secondly you installed the cell inverted, the hump is supposed to be facing the ground so the tungsten cells are always submerged in the salt water. The cell most likely failed because of those two issues.

[@jamesc9975]

Its installed exactly as Hayward says to install it in the manual, the flow sensor should be after it though.

[@MuthaDucka1]

Actually Hayward says either way is acceptable.

[@romma11]

my experience with 'replacement' cell is not best, got different brand than this one and lasted like 3 months then got free replacement which lasted ~1y. Paid about 1/2 of what new hayward cost was at that time, and got 1/4 life time (my original hayward lasted ~4 years). So aftermarket cell needs to be 4x cheaper to break even, not accounting for hassle with returns. All what cell is, is a plated sheet metals in better case titanium with fancy metals like platinum, titanium , Iridium.... Thinner the plating, or uneven, the faster it will fail. Found a hack to fix low salt reading and get it going for longer, the downside is the chlorine generation will be less and less efficient - which for many is fine as you just dial up the percentage to compensate for it.

[@jjwiggs28]

How's the salt cell working out for you?? Debating on replacing my T15...

[@Beachnative42]

###Update - I did not get an immediate response from the Salt Pool Store when I called but that was my fault for not reading the warranty process. After following their instructions I have received an email containing a return label and the process has begun. In all fairness to the the Salt Pool Store I have to remind myself that there is the COVID 19 virus in the US and certain businesses and suppliers have different rules applied to them in regards to their operation and protecting all of their staff. Since I am only armchair quarterbacking the return process (and acting like thing are "business as usual") I cannot fairly say they are operating with a lesser intent of being honorable. The Salt Pool Store has contacted me in a timely manner and the warranty process has begun. I will keep you updated.

[@danielholloman7087]

Ok so it was working and then it was not and you had to get a refund or replacement? Do you have a final verdict? My opinion after using hayward salt system for over 20 years on 2 different pools... they are crap! dont know if other companies are any better as Hayward has all i have every tried

[@Beachnative42]

@@danielholloman7087 I have replaced it but the first one but it died immediately. I returned it and the warranty replacement has been running fine

[@infinitigirl2]

Hi I was so stoked to see this video. I’m on the verge of buying this cell from same company, how is yours doing after a few weeks? I hate to drop 681$’s when I can pay 269$. I have a T-15.

[@Beachnative42]

My salt cell is working perfectly today with not one issue

[@infinitigirl2]

Beachnative42 Awesome thank you this video was so helpful! I'm in South GA! 😊

[@shekida3877]

I brought this May it's now August and it stopped working in the process of going through the warranty process.

[@bzerk86]

I don't think this is an Australian website, when I navigate to the above link, it's for a company in IL USA. How is it going anyway? Their google reviews are a little bit scary...

[@Beachnative42]

Tracking the package is when I saw it was coming from Australia

[@bzerk86]

@@Beachnative42 Okay, good to know

[@chrissewell1608]

As of 2022, the website says they are located in Knoxville, Tennessee. Do they keep moving around?

[@siestakeygirl1000]

How is your soul working now??

[@RichOliver]

Additional information; I ordered one from saltpoolstore, there was no serial number indicated on the device (but a date code that it is 3 years old) and no serial number in the documentation. Immediately, I was getting readings of 6800 - 7000 (2x of what the pool store measured using two different test methods). I kept getting high salt alarm. Most reviews said their device did not last long or did not work correctly, and no response from the company. Try getting any real support from these people; zero, zilch, none. After doing a lot of research, found multiple BBB complaints, negative reviews (1 of 5) and an actual judgement against them for infringing on the Hayward brand. Even the courts could not get a response from the company. All tech support works from home (remote) and I believe the company is actually located in Australia. Horrible company and product. I am in process of filing formal complaint against them as well.

[@marcc3593]

My fail after 2 months. High temperature error Spent 3 months try to get replacement no help from fl office or in Melbourne Worst company i have every dealt with. STAY AWAY

[@zmanphx]

Had temp sensor error as well. They are sending me a new sensor. But in mean time you can cut the red and blue wire for the temp sensor . It works fine .

[@samdavis6591]

I believe yours is on wrong way the flow is supposed to go through end where cord is

[@Beachnative42]

The cell works the same regardless of which direction water flows. In fact my manual suggests that you reverse it each time it's removed for cleaning. There is a diagram with the control module that has an illustration as well that shows the way I have it is installed to spec

[@samdavis6591]

@@Beachnative42 how do you plan on doing the warranty if they don't respond

[@DavesWestsideEdit]

mine is garbage. it has broken 3 times in less than 2 years and the company wont replace or repair it. Waste of money!

[@Beachnative42]

Yeah, from what others are saying it's hit or miss but better than paying the $700 plus shippng for one on Amazon that they say will have a warranty but you'll find out that what is said in the add is not what they promise. Hayward will not warranty anything sold on Amazon. So if you go back to the original buy it from Hayward direct. Sorry to hear you've had such a bad time with it, two neighbors have a salt pool store replacement and have been going strong for over 4 years. One neighbor is one who told me about the Salt Pool Store in the first place.