CH is high in new fiberglass pool

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M

mckinneymagnum

0
Oct 23, 2012
57
McKinney, TX
I finally got my Taylor TF-100 Kit (and I added the Salt Kit) yesterday and did my first test. I also had Leslie's do it before hand so I would have something to compare/contrast against. This is for a brand new (6 month old) fiberglass in-ground pool.

Here are the results and keep in mind this was my first time doing my own tests...

FC: 3.5
TC: 4.0
Salt: 3200 (Leslies reported 2700 and suggested a bag of salt -- sales technique?)
CH: 625 (Leslie's reported 350) -- NOTE: this is a Fiberglass IG pool
CYA: 80 ppm
TA: 100 ppm
pH: 8.0 -- added muriatic acid last night after dark

EDIT: I just tested our tap water and the CH was 200.

The one that is off the charts is the CH. I know for a fact that our water in North Texas is quite hard and I do see some scaling around the waterline tile and there was scaling inside the SWG when I cleaned it last week, but how do I get the CH down to an acceptable level?

Do I have to drain it down a bit? I can only drain a few inches via the skimmer since we do not have a floor drain.

Or, are there chemical options here?

This is all new to me so wanted to ping the experts!! :)

Bryan
 
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If the tap water is 200ppm, then odd that in only 3 months you are measuring 625ppm. With a SWG, you would not be using cal-hypo powder would you? Did you or the builder add calcium?
 
Hi again Bryan. While Jason addresses your CH issue, I just wanted to remind you as well about your FC reading. Because your SWG system requires a CYA of 80, your FC target is 6. You are well below that right now at 3.5, so increase your FC right away. At that low level, you are setting yourself up for an algae bloom quickly in our TX heat & sun. It's not uncommon for those if us in horribly hot areas to keep our FC lightly higher than the target as a precautionary measure so it never dips too low. Enjoy your new pool!
 
Texas Splash said:
Hi again Bryan. While Jason addresses your CH issue, I just wanted to remind you as well about your FC reading. Because your SWG system requires a CYA of 80, your FC target is 6. You are well below that right now at 3.5, so increase your FC right away. At that low level, you are setting yourself up for an algae bloom quickly in our TX heat & sun. It's not uncommon for those if us in horribly hot areas to keep our FC lightly higher than the target as a precautionary measure so it never dips too low. Enjoy your new pool!
Click to expand...

Thanks. Using the Pool Calculator for FC, I see if it lists BLEACH and how much, but I don't see liquid chlorine. How do I figure how much liquid chlorine I will need for a 10,800 gal pool to get from 3.6 - 8.08 FC?

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jblizzle said:
If the tap water is 200ppm, then odd that in only 3 months you are measuring 625ppm. With a SWG, you would not be using cal-hypo powder would you? Did you or the builder add calcium?
Click to expand...

Hi Jason, I think it's odd too. As far as I know the only thing that was added was the bags of salt back in January. No Calcium was added.

Any chance the test kit could be wrong? Leslie's numbers were much lower but I hate trusting them :)
 
You are NOT going to be using "liquid chlorine," as that is more of a "municipal" method of sanitizing. (Trust me, you don't want to go there....) Generally, you are going to be using some form of sodium hypochlorite... sold as shock, liquid chlorine, yada yada, wherever marketing felt sounded best.

Sodium Hypochorite from the pool store is 10%-12% in strength, sodium hypochlorite from the grocery store, big box store, etc. is called "bleach," but will be 6% to 8.25% Just use bleach and the % of your purchase and it will figure accordingly.
 
Based on the FC and pool volume size you just gave us, I came-up with just over 2 quarts (1/2 gal) of regular liquid bleach (8.25% type). Bleach and liquid chlorine (i.e. pool store chlorine) are basically the same thing. Sodium Hypochlorite is the active ingrediant. You just need to confirm the % on the bottle. :)
 
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