Hello All,
This pool stuff is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be...
I just got an intex 18x9x52 (4545 gallon) vinyl pool about two weeks ago for my birthday. The local pool store told me to put in about 1/2 gallon of chlorine + 1/2 gallon of stabilizer to open the pool. My kids and I have been swimming pretty much every night since then. So that's a bather load of 3-4 people for the last two weeks. I've been running the filter for about 12hrs/day.
So, I've been trying to do the test strips to keep an eye on things, but I haven't done anything "intentional" to modify/adjust the pool chem. I just picked up a taylor 2006 complete test to get a "better" account of where the chem stands. Here's what I got after testing last night:
Temp: 84F
TH: 250
TC: 10
FC: 10
pH: 7.0
TA: 210
CYA: 40
From what I can tell my TA is at least 110ppm to high and I should try and bring my ph up to 7.5 at least. But now I'm stumped... If I add Borax, it'll raise my pH but also raise my already high TA, right? If I use Muriatic acid to lower the TA, it'll lower the already low pH, right?
Anyway, it's probably clear that I have no idea what to do and I could really use some help. Do I add Borax or Muriatic acid, and in general, which should I try to address first, pH or TA? Also, is that high chlorine going to bother anything, or is it okay to live with?
Thanks a bunch!!!
btw: here's what the pool calculator says I should do:
This pool stuff is a lot harder than I thought it was going to be...
I just got an intex 18x9x52 (4545 gallon) vinyl pool about two weeks ago for my birthday. The local pool store told me to put in about 1/2 gallon of chlorine + 1/2 gallon of stabilizer to open the pool. My kids and I have been swimming pretty much every night since then. So that's a bather load of 3-4 people for the last two weeks. I've been running the filter for about 12hrs/day.
So, I've been trying to do the test strips to keep an eye on things, but I haven't done anything "intentional" to modify/adjust the pool chem. I just picked up a taylor 2006 complete test to get a "better" account of where the chem stands. Here's what I got after testing last night:
Temp: 84F
TH: 250
TC: 10
FC: 10
pH: 7.0
TA: 210
CYA: 40
From what I can tell my TA is at least 110ppm to high and I should try and bring my ph up to 7.5 at least. But now I'm stumped... If I add Borax, it'll raise my pH but also raise my already high TA, right? If I use Muriatic acid to lower the TA, it'll lower the already low pH, right?
Anyway, it's probably clear that I have no idea what to do and I could really use some help. Do I add Borax or Muriatic acid, and in general, which should I try to address first, pH or TA? Also, is that high chlorine going to bother anything, or is it okay to live with?
Thanks a bunch!!!
btw: here's what the pool calculator says I should do:
