Test results:

8/17/2011
FC: 4.0
CC: 0
PH: 7.6
Alk: 70
CH: 70
CYA: 110
Salt: 3000

I'm not experiencing any issues and the water looks awesome but should I be concerned about the high CYA? It's been like that since about May and I was hoping through splash out and evaporation that it would go down but it's held at that all summer.

Yes, you should be concerned about it. You are operating your pool outside what we consider "safe" (algae free) guidelines but you already know that.

You may get away with it the rest of the summer or you may not.

Splashout and excess rain will help. I don't think evaperation will. Be very careful not to use anything that will raise the cya. We get a lot of rain here so I would try to let it come down. Where do you live? Do you get a lot of rain? If not the only answer is partial drain and fill.

I meant evaporation and then a top off of the pool which I've done a few times this year already. Live in Florida and the afternoon storms seem to keep the pool full most of the time.

If my water didn't look so good and everything staying so stable I would make a change but I haven't had to add anythin to the pool. PH is stable, ALK is stable and FC never drops below 4.0.

What happens with evaporation is that as the water evaporates, the concentrations actually get higher, and when you refill, they go back to where they were before the evaporation. So evaporation and refilling doesn't gain you anything.

Makes sense. If I can plan a day or two out and I know we are going to get rain, I'll do a good backwash to drain the pool some and then let mother nature fill it back up. Just by the posts on here, it seems like I should do something rather than do nothing.

It can be done. I did it all last summer as we were under water restrictions. But it's not easy, and I don't reccomend it.

For starters, you need to maintain a minimum of 8 FC. And that's at the end of a hot day with people swimming - so really you shouldn't let it slip below 10, which also means that when you add bleach, your target should be 12 or 13. And all that means you must use the FAS-DPD test every day, the color block won't do.

Second, your pH tests will always be suspect, because you're reading it with FC>10. How far off? I don't know. I didn't have a choice, it was the only way to read pH!!

My big break came when it started raining. I was able to divert a downspout to the pool, and capture about 3X as many inches of rain as the storm dropped. Until rains come, your best bet is to use pool water to water the lawn and any landscape plants. I haven't used it on the vegetable garden. Typically, you'll lose 2-3% every time you pump off a couple inches, so it will take a while to cut it in half.

You have gotten some good advice already...my two cents... : It appears like you are on top of your testing and pool, i.e. you have good test numbers (what test kit are you using), and you know your "problem", therfore you are unlike many posters that come on here with problems . I am not sure where you live, but putting myself in your shoes (and then your shoes would be in Minnesota), we do not have much longer to swim , so I would wait, but keep a watchful eye out for problems (like it seems you have). My CYA level was lower when I opened this year than what it was when I closed last season (dropped from 80 to 50), so I would adjust next spring.

I agree with Linen. At this point of the season I'd just be proactive and not too reactive. Keep every thing under control and plan for backwashing before a rain and it'll come down before long.