Optimum Pool Technologies Simple Cell Replacement Salt Cell Up to 40,000 Gallon

Figured this is a big enough ticket item to write a review for since most of us check the reviews before buying. The install was not difficult at all, it took less than 10 minutes. Some had issues with it leaking, however the one I recieved was threaded correctly. The key to threading it to a watertight seal is getting the pvc above and below the cell to line up perfectly before tightening. 1 person holding the alignment flat and tight would help, but I did it myself using towels to brace the bottom piping. Only took 3 tries to get it watertight under pressure using the supplied new O-rings. Plumbers tape would have been the next step if needed. The cell has been running continually for 3 weeks, the hayward box read the chlorine and salt levels correctly at startup without having to recalibrate. My generator is about 4 years old so not the newest model. The chlorine level adjusts proper when using the dial, and all other chemistry is spot on. So for $450 instead of $900, so far this is the way to go. We will see about lifespan down the road. Update: May 2026. And it's done. Got 2 full seasons out of it. Pump ran 24/7 for 7 months+ a year. Wish these things had a longer life span. Seems to be par for the course

I was extremely happy to have purchased this as the price was substantial less than the Hayward product. After installation the cell worked exactly as described, however: three month into and never uninstalled from original time, the cell has developed a crack in the PVC/Plastic body and is now leaking. After sending an email to the seller, his reply was that the one year warranty does not include what they regard as user mishandling of the product. I am not sure how you can mishandle something that is installed and never touched again. At this point all i can say is that you may want avoid this product because of the cheap manufacturing and bad warranty. What has happened to the cell i bought can easily happen to many others. Disappointed in the product, disappointed in the seller and the warranty but certainly aware now of the "you get what you pay for." I am going to edit this further and tell you that even though I was able to seal the crack with PVC glue, the thread on both ends of the cell came apart after less than one year. Once again, beware of the price, cheap manufacturing.

I purchased this for our 36K gallon pool when the Hayward unit failed just outside warranty. This unit was installed easily, and most importantly, the seller (and manufacturer) responded quickly to a few questions. I recommend you take a few minutes to understand and follow this Cell's installation instructions as there may differences to Hayward (or similar) device installs. For example, I've become used to adding silicone to threads to ensure the cell attaches securely without leaks, but you don't need it with this device. After more than 5-months of use, it has kept our pool pristine through a hot Texas summer and runs flawlessly. A++ Seller and A++ Product! If you need to replace your salt cell, I recommend giving the Optimum product a try.

Easy quick replacement for my hayward. it just failed after 3 years of service. I believe that is how long my previous hayward lasted, but cost less half the price. Would purchase again

This replaced a dead T-15 that we'd used for over 10 years. The install for this unit went perfectly, no leaks on my system as reported by others. Started creating chlorine immediately and after a couple weeks appears to be working great. Hope it lasts many years but for the price, cannot complain. I ordered extra O rings for the connecting pipes, which are still the originals. When I clean this unit, I'll replace the O rings just in case. I like being able to see the water flowing through this unit. It appears more fragile than the Hayward T-15 though. It came with it's own clamps but I didn't need them. Overall, very pleased so far. Again, hope it lasts at least a few years.

I've only had this cell installed on my 22k gallon saltwater pool running a Hayward AquaRite system for a couple of days but it's doing exactly what it's supposed to do so far. I had no issues whatsoever with threads breaking or connections leaking. I suspect those that have broken threads are tightening the couplers beyond spec which is *hand* tight. This style of coupler uses a rubber o-ring which does not need a lot of force to make a watertight seal. And for those with leaks, I would bet many of them have worn out, or at least dried out, o-rings. I personally apply silicone grease intended for use on sink o-rings to all of my rubber gaskets/o-rings once a year to ensure they do not dry out and continue to provide a watertight seal. I have a variable speed pump so I installed the cell upside down. If you have a variable speed pump and run it at a lower speed for longer durations in order to reduce energy consumption, the hump in the SWG cell can collect the gases produced by the cell which would normally be carried away by the large amount of water flowing through it. If the cell plates are no longer fully submerged in water, they are damaged at a significantly increased rate resulting in a shortened cell life. The upside down cell continues to produce sufficient chlorine to maintain 2.0 ppm in my 22k gallon pool running at around 20-25%. Lastly, one thing I love about this cell over the OEM Hayward t-15 is the clear housing. I can easily verify the cell is producing chlorine (via bubbles coming off the plates), that the cell is fully submerged, and when the cell needs to be cleaned. All that to say, as long as this lasts more than half as long as an OEM cell, it was worth the price at approximately half the cost. I installed this aftermarket cell when I opened my pool for the 2024 season. If it fails before the 3 year mark (which is about half as long as an OEM cell lasts me), I will update my review. Update: Not quite a full year after purchase and my saltwater generator has a steady "check cell" light on. I tried cleaning the cell but that didn't help. It's still generating chlorine but I'm not expecting it to last much longer. I would stick with a different brand.

I had a salt cell from Discount Salt Pool that had a 4 year warranty. Year 2 the cell stops working. They dodged me about the warranty, then eventually offered me a replacement at essentially retail price. They said my warranty only covers a depreciated price. I found this from Amazon at 30% lower price than my warranty replacement. Love this cell and Amazon

I was on the fence about buying this as many of the reviews were complaints about the salt cell not working correctly and complaints about the seller being less than helpful when there were issues. But I thought, well, it still worked for some people so I'll try it. end result? DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY OR YOUR TIME! Almost right away we had issues with the cell popping off the connection. This got worse each time to the point we were unable to run the pool unless we were home because we were afraid it would come off and the pool would drain. Contacted the seller and it came down to we had to send the cell back (at our cost) for them to test it. I have videos and photos showing the cell was installed correctly and that the connection would click off when you tried to tighten it because the threads are defective. However you can only send photos through Amazon chat and they refused to provide an e-mail address so I can send the videos which CLEARLY show the issue. Said it would "violate Amazon communication policies" which I did not see stated anywhere on Amazon. If this were my business, I would want to see all supporting evidence. And of course when they "tested" it, they said it was not defective but it was my connection. But - we have been borrowing our neighbor's salt cell and have not had one single issue with it so it is not our connection. In conclusion, if you are on the fence about buying this generic copy, I hope this is the review that convinces you not to. It is a cheap plastic that does not hold up and this seller is unwilling to back up their product and is less than helpful when it comes to resolving issues.