AquaLit
Pool Care & Automation
Most real equipment pads already mix manufacturers. The question is whether your controller can actually talk to all of it.
Yes, you can mix pool equipment brands — and almost every pad more than a few years old already does. What decides whether that is a problem is your controller. Open platforms such as Poolside Tech Attendant publish integrations across many manufacturers, which is why we lead with one on high-end mixed-equipment installations.
AquaLit designs automation around your pool, your goals, your existing equipment and your budget. We automate your pool, not your equipment brand.
There are two very different things a controller can do with a piece of equipment, and companies rarely distinguish between them when quoting:
A data connection — commonly RS-485, often carrying Modbus — lets the controller read status and send detailed commands. It can see the pump's actual flow, set a target, read a fault code and respond to it.
A dry contact is a simple switch closure with no voltage of its own. The controller can turn the device on and off and nothing more. No status, no setpoints, no fault reporting.
Both are legitimate. Being told a device is "integrated" when it is really on a relay is not. On every quote we write, you get that stated device by device.
No, and insisting on it is usually more expensive than it is worth. What matters is that your controller can communicate with each device at the level you need.
A wired communication standard used widely in pool equipment so devices can exchange data with a controller. It commonly carries protocols such as Modbus. Practically, an RS-485 connection means the controller can do far more than switch a device on and off.
A voltage-free switch closure used to trigger equipment that has no data connection. It gives on/off control only — no status, no setpoints. It is the fallback when proper integration is not available.
Often, yes. Equipment with a supported data connection integrates properly. Equipment without one can usually still be switched. The realistic answer for your pad comes from looking at the pad, which is what the assessment is for.
Decide the control architecture before you replace major equipment. If a single central system is your end goal, buy equipment that system integrates with properly. If it is not, buy each piece on merit.
The expensive mistake is buying a heater or salt system this year that next year's controller cannot properly talk to.
For a mixed-brand, high-end pad, an open platform is our leading recommendation — Poolside Tech Attendant currently being the strongest candidate, because it publishes documented integrations across the manufacturers these pads actually contain.
But the honest version is this: if your pad is already Pentair or already Jandy and works, the open platform is a solution to a problem you do not have. We would tell you to keep what you have.
Call or text for a free pool assessment. We look at the pool, the equipment already on your pad and how you actually use the backyard — then tell you what is worth doing and what is not.
Tell us what you have and how you use the pool. We'll walk the equipment pad, ask what you ultimately want controlled, and give you an honest recommendation — including the upgrades we'd skip.