If you’re hunting for a chlorine alternative for your pool, EcoSmarte is a name you must’ve heard by now. Ecosmarte is supposed to be one of the best chlorine alternative systems, as per their claims. However, we’re afraid that’s not exactly the case.
After extensive research, we found out that EcoSmarte has a controversial reputation amongst its customers. In addition to a below par efficacy, EcoSmarte is also notorious for its bad customer service.
But well, let’s find out the complete story and see if you find EcoSmarte suitable for your swimming pool.
What is an ECOsmarte Pool System?
Since chemical treatment of water is harmful to the health and environment, many people have been looking for alternatives to chlorine treatment of water. A prominent name in this regard is EcoSmarte, which was launched in 1994 and offers both commercial and residential pool treatment systems.
They offer a chlorine alternative system that allows you to maintain your pool water without using chemicals. Not only that, EcoSmarte is also made to outperform any other pool sanitization method including salt, ozone, and UV.
How Does the ECOsmarte System Function?
EcoSmarte is one of the few environment friendly and chemical free water sanitization systems. It works on a water oxidation or ionization system. The system generates active oxygen to neutralize the harmful effects of uric acid and suntan lotions.
Most of the time the system stays in the oxidation mode to prevent the excess metal discharge in the water. The reduction in metal residues also prevents any damage or staining to the pool equipment.
The copper system serves to kill the bacteria and viruses with a stable residual without causing erosion inside the pool. EcoSmarte is also anti-algae, meaning it is programmed to prevent algae growth and leave the pool water crystal clear without any cloudy appearance.
All of this is based on the claims made by EcoSmarte, but does it really live up to the claims?
ECOsmarte Performance
All the non-chlorine, non-toxic, and environment friendly talk is convincing enough to make anyone purchase the EcoSmarte system instantly. And while many users are satisfied with their purchase, we’ve seen the negative reviews outnumber the positive ones.
The main problem with the EcoSmarte system is its inability to perform at pH levels close to or higher than 7. This means you’ll have to constantly monitor and maintain the water pH. In case the pH levels are off, the copper levels increase, and the metal in the pool starts breaking down. On top of it, the water turns green, leaving you with no choice except chlorination, which defeats the purpose of a chlorine free system in the first place.
Here’s what a user mentioned about the same, at Yelp:
Other than that, EcoSmarte claims to work actively against algae. However, several customers have reported a complete failure of the system in this regard. The pool water stays clean around 1.5 to 2 weeks, at best, which again is an absolute disappointment. A majority of the users have reported persistent cloudiness in their pools with EcoSmarte systems.
Now these problems sure are manageable but they’ll cost you a lot of time, effort, and even money. And that is not something you expect from a system worth thousands of bucks.
ECOsmarte System Cost
According to the claims made by EcoSmarte, their system, once installed, is way more cost effective than salt to chlorine generators or even regular chlorination. If we consider the energy consumption, then EcoSmarte does seem cheaper as it uses only 4 Watts of power as compared to the 200 Watts of salt to chlorine, ozone, or UV systems. So in terms of energy efficiency and hence lesser power bills, EcoSmarte does have an edge over other water sanitization systems.
However, if you look at the overall cost of the system and the maintenance that follows, it kind of puts you on the fence. The starting price for an EcoSmarte system is $1500 and can go upto $2500 and more. Add to it the installation cost and the replacement cost of copper/titanium plates around $175 to $500 every year or so, and you’ll find the system not so impressive. Especially with the several hiccups we’ve already discussed.
If you are still willing to buy it, you can get from Amazon by clicking on the link below:
Durability
If you’re lucky enough to have the EcoSmarte system work in your pool, it might be the best thing ever because it is stellar in terms of durability.
The EcoSmarte system is built for the long haul and is made to last for 8 to 10 years, which puts the 2 to 3 year life of salt-to-chlorine generators to shade. In addition to that, EcoSmarte offers a 5 year warranty for its chlorine alternative system and honestly, it’s the only thing we’ve actually liked about it so far.
Is EcoSmarte Worth it?
If EcoSmarte works for your pool system, the investment is definitely worth it. However, the problem is you don’t know if it’ll work for your pool or not.
Keeping in view the reputation of the brand, it is hard for us to suggest EcoSmarte to you. Installing the system in your pool can be incredibly expensive as it requires quite a lot of maintenance. On top of it, the performance of the system is largely at question and recommending it to you won’t be a good call.
However, you can give it a shot at your own risk. Who knows your experience may turn out good like several other users as well!
What Can You Use as an EcoSmarte Alternative?
If you’re looking to get rid of the regular chlorine maintenance in your pool, we’d recommend salt to chlorine generators to you. Haywards’ Aquarite salt chlorine generator does an amazing job at water sanitization while also eliminating the hassle of chlorine handling.
Hayward Aquarite Salt Chlorine Generator
The Hayward Aquarite Salt Chlorine Generator is designed for in-ground pools up to a capacity of 40k gallons.
This salt chlorination system naturally converts salt into chlorine. It offers an incredible convenience to the user, in that they never have to worry about the mixing, measuring, or maintenance of chlorine in their pools.
The greatest upside of Hayward’s salt chlorine generator is the fact that the chlorine produced by the salt in the pool does not have a pungent smell like store bought chlorine. It keeps the water soft and gentle on the skin and hair, unlike typical chlorination.
This salt chlorine generator costs around $1500 and comes with a 3 year warranty. The cost and warranty period may not be this systems’ greatest strength. However, it performs, unlike EcoSmarte which sounds extraordinarily promising but fails to meet user expectations.
Here are some other quality brand reviews from us: