Appropiate Levels for Chemicals
- Thread starter brandon1
- Start date
Pool School - Recommended Levels and the associated Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart
I despise charts that have a set FC level for any CYA level. It just won't work and shows no understanding or recognition of the CYA/Chlorine relationship. These types of hard and fast charts also do not allow for flexibility with CH and pH that is necessary for maintaining proper CSI, which is the important number for scaling/corrosive water situations. TA is also a number that's highly subjective to type of chlorination and your individual pool. 80-100 ppm isn't a bad range but it's certainly acceptable to have 60 ppm or 120 ppm if your pool pH is stable at that level.
I despise charts that have a set FC level for any CYA level. It just won't work and shows no understanding or recognition of the CYA/Chlorine relationship. These types of hard and fast charts also do not allow for flexibility with CH and pH that is necessary for maintaining proper CSI, which is the important number for scaling/corrosive water situations. TA is also a number that's highly subjective to type of chlorination and your individual pool. 80-100 ppm isn't a bad range but it's certainly acceptable to have 60 ppm or 120 ppm if your pool pH is stable at that level.
You look at the two links just given to you: Recommended Levels and the Chlorine / CYA Chart. You will note that in Recommended Levels the FC is a range and it says "(See chart)" that links to the Chlorine / CYA Chart where you can see that the FC level depends on the CYA level (technically the FC/CYA ratio is pretty much constant).
IF you have a vinyl or fiberglass pool, you don't need to be concerned much at all with CH or CSI. You can just maintain your pH between 7.2 and 8.0 and you'll be fine. Your TA will come down each time you add acid. If your TA gets below 60, add a little baking soda. Trying to keep it 80 or 100 as an arbitrary number doesn't make sense. Keep it at a level that limits how fast your pH rises since TA and pH are very closely linked.
If your pool is plaster, then pay attention to the total number, CSI when all your levels are taken into account. Use the Pool Math link above to input all your numbers and give your CSI. pH has a drastic effect on CSI so most CH and TA levels are manageable to keep a neutral CSI, within reason.
As has been said, the CYA/Chlorine ratio is a fixed one so your minimum FC is entirely determined by your CYA level.
The methods here might not fit on the back of a napkin to cover all the nuances, but it's fairly simple once put into practice and transfers from pool to pool as documented by the thousands of satisfied users on this site.
Spend some more time in Pool School, especially the ABCs and CYA/Chlorine link in my signature.
Updating your signature with your pool details will help us give you better, more tailored advice.
If your pool is plaster, then pay attention to the total number, CSI when all your levels are taken into account. Use the Pool Math link above to input all your numbers and give your CSI. pH has a drastic effect on CSI so most CH and TA levels are manageable to keep a neutral CSI, within reason.
As has been said, the CYA/Chlorine ratio is a fixed one so your minimum FC is entirely determined by your CYA level.
The methods here might not fit on the back of a napkin to cover all the nuances, but it's fairly simple once put into practice and transfers from pool to pool as documented by the thousands of satisfied users on this site.
Spend some more time in Pool School, especially the ABCs and CYA/Chlorine link in my signature.
Updating your signature with your pool details will help us give you better, more tailored advice.
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