Hayward Swimpure Extreme Controller swp925

I recently purchased a home with a 12K gallon pool that has the Hayward Swimpure Extreme Controller (SWP925) and T-9 salt cell. Back in December, the controller board light indicators started reading Green-Power, Amber-Inspect Cell and Red-Check Salt. After doing some basic research and troubleshooting, I decided to replace the T-9 salt cell with one I found on Amazon “Autoverse Pool Salt Cell Chlorinator Generator Replacement Part Fit for Hayward Turbo Cell T-9 T Cell T9”. It worked for about a month and then this weekend right back to the same thing. I cleaned the salt cell with muriatic acid, reinstalled it and no joy. I’m going to take the salt cell to a Pinch a Penny and have them test it to see if that is the issue, I highly doubt it. My questions are as follows:

  1. Can I test the Hayward Swimpure Extreme Controller myself to see if I can repair it? If Yes, can you please provide me a link or directions on how I would accomplish that.
  2. If I have to replace the Hayward Swimpure Extreme Controller, what would you recommend I replace it with?
  3. Finally, if it turns out that it’s the salt cell because it’s a cheap knock off, besides Hayward what other salt cell can I use with this Hayward Swimpure Extreme controller? Much gratitude in advance for any and all answers!

We are sorry to hear about your issues with your saltwater chlorine generator. These are wonderful when they are working but frustrating when things go wrong.

The controllers either seem to work or not work and it sounds like yours is okay. Unfortunately, there is no way for you to test it unless it is throwing an error code or is blank/not working.

Before we talk about replacing the cell or the whole thing I would highly recommend getting a good test kit and testing the salt level yourself. Pool store test results can vary wildly from person-to-person or store-to-store.

There are many reports of the cheaper knock-off cells not lasting a long time. Regardless of where they came from, be very careful with acid washing them, since that can shorten their life considerably. With good water chemistry, the cells should rarely need to be cleaned.

Are you testing the salt level yourself? What are the results?