Why the resistance to ECG’s in the commercial market?
Here are my thoughts after being in this industry for 25+ years
- Fear of Change. Delivered chlorine has been the staple for decades so despite its numerous drawbacks it is still in pole position
- Induced Fear. The chlorine industry has seen the inroads into their revenue in the residential market, and has worked hard to dissuade their clients from switching
- Misinformation. See my last point
- Product misapplication. Many pool dealers used residential sizing guidelines for commercial applications, resulting in units that did not keep up with bather demand resulting in a culture of “These ECG’s are good for a backyard pool but not true commercial”.
- Lack of Knowledge. The idea that you can install a ECG on a commercial pool, connect it to a Chemistry Controller, and walk away, is simply not correct, (in fact it is nuts, but I have seen it all too often) Not that this stopped it from happening, resulting in many dissatisfied clients who spread the word
- Cost. Chlorine is a monthly rental where ECG’s are normally a CapEx; this is slowly changing as Financing packages are now available.
- Corrosion. ECG’s have been falsely blamed for corrosion, if you refer back to my previous blog, I address this issue head on; bottom line it is not true; if it were companies like mine would not have a 25+ year business history and over 300 commercial facilities in operation, with Hi end resorts, hotels, universities, colleges, and health clubs and municipalities as satisfied clients.
One of the most interesting outcomes from properly sizing, installing, training and supporting an ECG installation is the sheer appreciation of a client, who has transformed their water, reduced their toxic footprint, increased their membership, and reduced their maintenance time. We have clients who have been with us for 20 years, upgrading their systems when required and never once considering the idea of going back to ordinary chlorine.
As the saying goes…” Once a believer, always a believer……”
How about you??