Automation and controls

When you need it

• Equipment runs at the wrong times or not at all.
• The app or remote has lost its connection to the controller.
• Chemical readings on the controller do not match manual water tests.
• You are adding a variable speed pump, chiller, lights or a salt system to an existing panel.
• Old timers and switches that you want to replace with one controller.

How a specialist does it

A modern controller can run pumps, lights, heaters and heat pumps, salt chlorinators and other relays from one panel and an app. Hayward's OmniLogic is one example.

Chemistry control is the part that needs most care. Hayward's OmniLogic manual explains that with its optional ORP and pH sensing kit, the controller senses the pool's ORP and pH and generates or dispenses the right amount of chlorine, using a salt cell, liquid chlorine feeder or tablet feeder. Add a pH dispensing device using acid or CO2, and it controls pH as well. Hayward notes that wiring and plumbing requirements for these accessories should be considered before the controller is installed.

A typical job:

1. Survey existing equipment, wiring and plumbing, and agree what the owner wants to control.
2. Check compatibility. Not every pump, heater, light or chlorinator talks to every controller.
3. Install or repair the panel, relays, sensors and dosing equipment, following the maker's instructions and local electrical rules.
4. Program schedules, pump speeds and set points.
5. Calibrate sensors and confirm the readings against a manual water test.
6. Hand over with instructions, app access and a note of the settings.

What to ask before you hire

• Which of my existing pumps, lights, heater or chiller will the controller operate?
• Will chemical dosing be automatic, and how are the sensors calibrated and checked?
• Who does the electrical work, and are they qualified for pool installations?
• If the internet or app fails, can the equipment still be run manually?
• Who holds admin access, especially in a rental or shared building?
• What support and spare parts are available locally?

UAE notes

Dubai Municipality's guidelines for approving pool plans require private pools to have a chlorine feeder or an automatic system for dosing disinfectant. For public pools they require automatic injection and state that manual chemical dosing is not accepted.

Dubai Municipality's public pool safety guidelines, which cover communal pools, pools inside residential buildings and hotel pools, go further. They require an automatic dosing and monitoring system so that pH and disinfectant are continuously controlled within set ranges. For building and community managers, dosing control is a compliance item as well as a convenience.

Automation does not replace testing. The same public pool guidelines require daily tests of pH, chlorine and temperature before use, further tests every 15 days, and all readings in a logbook. Sensors drift, so a specialist should compare them with manual tests at each service.

In towers, the controller often sits in a shared plant room. Check with building management about access for the installer and who is allowed to change settings afterwards.