Electronic water treatment can also eliminate the need for chemical additives to be added to the cooling tower water. In a properly installed and operating system, bacterial counts are reduced, with a subsequent minimization of the buildup of biofilm on heat exchanger surfaces.

The resulting reduction in energy use, increased cooling tower operating efficiency, and reduced maintenance effort provide cost savings as well as environmental benefit and regulatory compliance with respect to discharge of wastewater from chemical blowdown. Cooling towers associated with chillers for air-conditioning are good candidates for water ionization applications. The use of water ionization as a maintenance treatment for cooling towers has good potential for operation and maintenance savings. Water ionization acts as a powerful biocide that eliminates the need to remove quantities of water from the cooling tower in order to decrease the concentration of organic and mineral solids in the system.