Floatron The Original Solar Powered Water Purifier NEW

We bought this and only used it 4 days. We can’t use it because of our very old style pool cover. Really great purification system though.  New it is $259.00. PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OF SOLAR POWERED POOL PURIFICATION DEVICE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FloatronOn May 3, 1992 , the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) began the evaluation of a solar powered pool purification device designed and manufactured by the floatron corporation. The evaluation lasted eight weeks and concluded on June 28, 1992 . The floatron unit utilizes a small photovoitaic panel to supply electricity to two electrodes. These electrodes then produce a combination of copper and other ions which prevent the growth of microorganisms. The device floats in the pool and works when exposed to sunlight. During the test period the pool had a water sample drawn daily and this sample was tested for pH, alkalinity, cyanuric acid, calcium hardness, total and free chlorine, copper ions and temperature. An Olympus microscope was used to check for algae and bacteria. The pool walls were also visually examined for algae as pert of the daily tests. The evaluation was conducted in three stages: 1) standard pool operation with chlorine, 2) floatron device with the chlorine level dropping to zero, and 3) no chlorine or floatron. In addition, the device was evaluated in FSEC's photovoltaic labs. As a result of our evaluation, we are able to conclude that the floatron device is very effective at reducing the amount of chemicals required to maintain an algae and bacteria free swimming pool. The device produced a measurable amount of copper ions after one week of use and a sufficient level of ions for pool purification (0.2 ppm) after eleven days of use. The floatron unit was able to maintain the pool clarity without any measurable chlorine for over one week, but best results were obtained with a trace amount of chlorine. A free chlorine level of 0.5 ppm, which is about 25% of the average recommended chlorine level, is sufficient for good clarity while preventing bacteria growth. The test pool owner had previously experienced a problem with pernicious yellow algae on the east wall of the test pool. This problem was eliminated by the floatron, and at no time during the testing of the device was algae growth observed, in spite of very warm water conditions. The ion level produced by the device did not diminish rapidly after the floatron was removed from the pool. The ion level took over a week to drop from 0.40 ppm to 0.30 ppm and measurable ions were still present after three weeks without the device. Pool clarity did not diminish until three weeks after the chlorine level reached zero, partially as the result of heavy rains (over four inches in three days). Finally, the electrical performance characteristics of the device were found to be quite satisfactory for the proper functioning of the unit, with 1.53 watts produced under full sun. Based on the polycrystalline structure of the photovoltaic cells, the device should be able to produce the necessary power for at least ten years. It should be noted that the principal investigator has used a floatron in his own pool for over a year. He has experienced few problems with the device, floating it every other week and using less than 13 gallons of chlorine during the year.