Should I Give Up on PH in AZ?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
asusundevil said:
Yuck, things aren't improving.
Click to expand...

Have you had a pH test yet where you were under 8.0? Do you ever test shortly (30 minutes or so) after adding the MA? Overnight or all day could be long enough for the pH to rise back up. If you end up figuring out your dosing you could get this where you can add in the AM and the PM and really speed up the process.

It's a slow process - don't get discouraged or give up. Every time you knock down the pH and it rises back up, you knock a bit off the TA. It's too small to read with one or two cycles. But you'll find a difference in the TA in a week or two for sure - if you stay on top of it.
 
Cinic said:
Have you had a pH test yet where you were under 8.0? Do you ever test shortly (30 minutes or so) after adding the MA? Overnight or all day could be long enough for the pH to rise back up. If you end up figuring out your dosing you could get this where you can add in the AM and the PM and really speed up the process.

It's a slow process - don't get discouraged or give up. Every time you knock down the pH and it rises back up, you knock a bit off the TA. It's too small to read with one or two cycles. But you'll find a difference in the TA in a week or two for sure - if you stay on top of it.
Click to expand...
This is driving me crazy!

Today's reading:
FC: 6
CC: 0
CYA: 55
PH: 8.0
Alk: 175
CH: 450

I stopped using Home Depot's 14.5% MA, picked up 4 gallons of 29% from Leslie's today and dumped 1 gallon in tonight. I'll re-check tomorrow morning in hopes of seeing some progress. At this juncture, anything marginal would be uplifting. [emoji35] [emoji35]

On average, how patience do I need to be? I'm on pace to drop a good $100.00 on MA this month and am getting really frustrated.

Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk
 
BattleOfYakima said:
I believe you just need to keep at it, remembering that each gallon of 31.45% is an investment in the long term health of the pool.

I was wondering though, the chemicals in your test kit, have they been stored indoors and protected from sun and big temperature swings? Did you buy it from somewhere that sells them regularly or might it have been on the shelf for years? Just wondering if the test is reliable. My bet is that it is and you're just catching up from all the months you didn't add your gallon of MA or whatever it wanted. I suppose if your kit is questionable you could pick up the hth oto&ph from WalMart for $6 until fresh chemistry from TFTestkits (or other trustworthy vendor) were to arrive. Again, I bet it is testing true though.
Click to expand...
Yes, I make sure to store all my test chemicals indoors. The kit is so small that it never crossed my mind to place it outside expose it to the AZ heat. It's in a cabinet in our laundry room.

Speaking of storing chemicals, the guys at Leslie's today recommended that I store my MA and LC indoors but far apart. It made me pause and wonder where in my house would I feel safe storing such chemicals. Today I store the MA outside, behind a cinder block wall, and under shade 24x7. I store my LC in my 4-car garage that houses only two vehicles. Would like to know what y'all do for storing these chemicals.

Thanks!

Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk
 
Leave your MA outside in the shade. Bleach/chlorine usually goes in the laundry room or pantry.

Good job on dropping the 14% MA. The right stuff to use is 31.45%. Lowes has it in the paint dept, right next to the 14% for the same price, and in the pool section for less. HD is probably same.

Next time you have a couple of hours put your numbers in Poolmath and set your PH target to 7.2 and add that amount of 31.45% MA with the pump running and brush the pool. Test in 15 minutes if it is still 8.0 add it again or enter the new number in Poolmath and add again until your PH gets to 7.2.
 
You're getting some pretty good variability in your testing. TA has been anywhere from 140 to 175 in your tests. The 175 doesn't make any sense at all in the most recent test. If the TA really is rising, there's something else going on here. Like a big leak in the pool which is introducing a lot of high TA fill water. You haven't had any unusually high water bills have you?

I also agree with pooldv's post above. You need a couple hours to string together so you can get a handle on this. I suspect you're lowering the pH to a reasonable range but it's rising back up by the time you test it again. If you could get a feel for what's going on here, you could get away with a quick pH test before adding acid and not need to run the whole gamut every time.

I'm not sure where you are in Chandler, (I'm near the 101 & Ray) but if it's not too far I'd be happy run some tests on your water to validate your results and rule out any testing problems. PM me if you're interested.

- - - Updated - - -

How did you get 175 anyway? Did you use a 10ml sample?
 
Finally, I'm seeing some light!

Fc 6
Cc 0
Cya 55
PH 7.8
Alk 150
Ch 350

I've been following Pool Math religiously and hope to have this PH conundrum mastered soon.

I also performed the bucket leak test and am happy to post no leak.

And I've been using the 10ml test for Alkalinity and CH.

Sent from my VS990 using Tapatalk
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply