Hey TFP, this may be a long post so I apologize in advance. There will be questions at the end 
We had our pool resurfaced about 45 days ago with StoneScapes pebble/glass. Also did waterline tile at the same time with 1" glass tiles. It looks amazing and the contractor did a pretty good job, best I can tell. The main observation I had about the surface we selected (Aqua White 3 - light blue with blue glass) is that it is MUCH darker under water than it is in the showroom. Drastically so. Take that into consideration if you select a tint.
The contractor we used did not offer chemistry services beyond the initial fill and acidification, I was on my own to do this. Since it was Feb and the pool wasn't swimmable, the main concern we had was just to allow the plaster to cure so we added only acid and brushed daily with a combo brush. I did keep the pH low but was surprised at how much acid the pool eats. The problem with my Taylor test kit is that it doesn't read below 7.0 so you can't tell the difference between 6.0 and 6.9. And let me tell you ... pH swings FAST when plaster cures. We had a couple days where I read the pH in the morning and the solution was yellow (well below 7.0) and that afternoon it was bright pink (8+). This likely led to some discoloration which had to be fixed with a no-drain acid wash. Contractor sent a guy out to dump 8gal (!!!) of acid into our 8000gal pool. The marks definitely went away and the finish looks awesome.
So here we are now ready to bring the water back to normal and begin balancing the chemistry. We've been getting a bit more sediment in the last week and that's causing me to brush more and hose my filter cart out every day or so.
Now I go to the local pool store yesterday to pick up what I need to make the pool swimmable. At this point I'm around FC=0, TA=0, CH=450, pH=??low?? and so they give me pH+, TA+ and a sequesterant. Instructions are to add the seq and wait 2 hours, then add 2lbs of the pH+ an hour apart, followed by 2lb of the TA+ an hour apart, staggering it all out. Seq, then pH, then TA. Figure I'll test again after all that and see where I am. Only then will I add stabilizer and bleach.
Well, after the first 2+ lbs of pH+, we have sediment. HUGE amounts of sediment. Filter goes from clean to clogged in like an hour. Overnight the pool looks as if it was snowed in, and we dumped a gallon of milk. Really awful. So I clean the filter, brush some more, and start the motor. pH is still ??low?? (solution is yellow) ... and I'm slowly filtering and replacing water. I've only added about 2.5lb of pH+ and the quart of sequesterant (yesterday).
So, the questions:
1. Should we have left the pH that low for more than the time it took to remove the calcium staining?
2. How bad is this pH for my piping and pump?
3. Is it normal to have INSANE amounts of sediment when you raise pH?
4. Should I just drain half my water and replace?
5. I'm freaking out a little ... should I be?
Thanks TFP ... I trust you guys way more than my LPS or the pool contractor....
We had our pool resurfaced about 45 days ago with StoneScapes pebble/glass. Also did waterline tile at the same time with 1" glass tiles. It looks amazing and the contractor did a pretty good job, best I can tell. The main observation I had about the surface we selected (Aqua White 3 - light blue with blue glass) is that it is MUCH darker under water than it is in the showroom. Drastically so. Take that into consideration if you select a tint.
The contractor we used did not offer chemistry services beyond the initial fill and acidification, I was on my own to do this. Since it was Feb and the pool wasn't swimmable, the main concern we had was just to allow the plaster to cure so we added only acid and brushed daily with a combo brush. I did keep the pH low but was surprised at how much acid the pool eats. The problem with my Taylor test kit is that it doesn't read below 7.0 so you can't tell the difference between 6.0 and 6.9. And let me tell you ... pH swings FAST when plaster cures. We had a couple days where I read the pH in the morning and the solution was yellow (well below 7.0) and that afternoon it was bright pink (8+). This likely led to some discoloration which had to be fixed with a no-drain acid wash. Contractor sent a guy out to dump 8gal (!!!) of acid into our 8000gal pool. The marks definitely went away and the finish looks awesome.
So here we are now ready to bring the water back to normal and begin balancing the chemistry. We've been getting a bit more sediment in the last week and that's causing me to brush more and hose my filter cart out every day or so.
Now I go to the local pool store yesterday to pick up what I need to make the pool swimmable. At this point I'm around FC=0, TA=0, CH=450, pH=??low?? and so they give me pH+, TA+ and a sequesterant. Instructions are to add the seq and wait 2 hours, then add 2lbs of the pH+ an hour apart, followed by 2lb of the TA+ an hour apart, staggering it all out. Seq, then pH, then TA. Figure I'll test again after all that and see where I am. Only then will I add stabilizer and bleach.
Well, after the first 2+ lbs of pH+, we have sediment. HUGE amounts of sediment. Filter goes from clean to clogged in like an hour. Overnight the pool looks as if it was snowed in, and we dumped a gallon of milk. Really awful. So I clean the filter, brush some more, and start the motor. pH is still ??low?? (solution is yellow) ... and I'm slowly filtering and replacing water. I've only added about 2.5lb of pH+ and the quart of sequesterant (yesterday).
So, the questions:
1. Should we have left the pH that low for more than the time it took to remove the calcium staining?
2. How bad is this pH for my piping and pump?
3. Is it normal to have INSANE amounts of sediment when you raise pH?
4. Should I just drain half my water and replace?
5. I'm freaking out a little ... should I be?
Thanks TFP ... I trust you guys way more than my LPS or the pool contractor....
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