TDS at 1100

Jump to latest Follow Reply
aswarren628

aswarren628

0
Jul 15, 2016
28
St. Louis, MO
I am a new (1st year) pool owner (14000 gal in ground painted concrete) and the local pool store has been my weekly hangout spot over the last few weeks. I've got a MAJOR algae bloom and can't seem to shake it. The guy mentioned TDS (total dissolved solids) and said mine was at 1100. I didn't know what the heck he was talking about and just stood there like a deer in headlights. I've been taking everything the store has said as gospel, then found this forum. THANK GOD I DID!! I'm super upset that I've spent hundreds of dollars on chemicals that only further exacerbated my problem. Now my CYA level is at 100 and I can't kill this algae even with strong algaecide. I'm in the process of draining 30% of my water and refilling to see if that helps the CYA level and then switching to bleach. I'll be ordering the tf100 testing kit as soon as I have the extra money, but for now I'll just have to rely on testing strips and just shocking the **** out of it. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as to how to make this work as quickly as possible would be awesome.
 
Hello and welcome to TFP! :wave: Our biggest recommendation ... you've already nailed it - the TF-100. You might want to include the XL Option and definitely the magnetic Speed Stir. Other than that, exchange some water now, add about 1/2 gallon of bleach to the pool each day, and post new results from YOUR kit once it arrives. :) We'll go from there. Nice to have you with us.
 
hi aswarren,
in order to clear your pool, you are going to have to raise FC to 40% of whatever your CYA level is and you are going to have to keep the FC at that level until the water is perfectly clear. Thats the way to kill off the algae once and for all.

If CYA is 100, then your FC level will need to be 40! Man that is a LOT of chlorine to be adding every day and maintaining. Maybe even for weeks to finally get it crystal clear and algae free.

Here is the real issue though, All CYA test, only can measure up to 100. If the reading is 100, then the CYA may actually be well above that number. If you cant measure the CYA accurately, then there is no way to know how much chlorine to add in order to get that 40% mark.

To add, the only FC test that can measure up to 40 or higher, is the FAS-DPD which is contained in the TF 100 test kit.

Draining 30% of your water may help, but at a minimum that would get your CYA down to 70, and FC requirement would then be 28.
Still, thats a lot of bleach.

I dont know how much your water costs in St Louis, but it will likely be less to refill at least 50% of the pool than the amount of bleach your going to need will cost if your CYA even gets to 70.

Given these considerations, a test kit in the short term along with a larger water change is going to be less expensive than tossing massive amounts of chlorine into the pool without any reliable way to test the levels. You may well spend a few hundered more with no improvement unless you can measure the water parameters reliably.

I know it seems like an expense, but its really an investment and at the end of the day, will save you a lot of sweat, tears, heartache and money.

Im not trying to sell you a test kit, but just letting you know what you're in for if you dont have one.


PS 1
TDS has nothing to do with your algae problem. 1100 is not even considered to be high by TFP standards.

PS 2
Algaecide is not effective at killing an algae bloom. It's somewhat of a measure to prevent it from happening, but considering the cost of the stuff along with the copper it adds to your water, it ain't worth it. Using straight liquid chlorine is a much more effective and less costly way to prevent algae.
 
Have a bunch of "burnout 73" shock. Would I be able to use that during this process? It's granular shock but it says it has other things in it it's 73% calcium hypochlorites and it says it is a buffered sanitizer oxidizer and destroys organic contaminants


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Cal-Hypo shock should be fine to use in your situation. Rather than containing CYA, Cal-Hypo uses Calcium to bind the chlorine into a solid.

Over time (months) using Cal-Hypo will cause your calcium levels to rise - sometimes to levels much higher than you'd like.

With a TDS of 1100 it's possible your Calcium levels might be on the high side already - but it's more likely most of your TDS is Salt.


As always - it would be much better to use only Bleach or liquid chlorine until your test kit arrives. Once you have real test numbers you'll know exactly what you can use.
 
Without knowing your current CH level is it hard to know if Cal-Hypo is ok for you or not, however given your location, if you don't have a water softener your fill water is likely to be low to moderate in CH naturally (high CH fill water is a big problem in most of the western US). However you should be aware that under some conditions Cal-Hypo can cause water clouding, therefore we generally advise against it when trying to clear algae as it can be hard to tell if the cloudy water is from Cal-Hypo or from Algae. I too would strongly suggest ordering the TF-100 with the XL option as soon as you can, without it you may either end up not keeping the FC high enough for long enough and end up right back where you are, or you may spike the FC so high that you do damage to the rubber seals in you pool equipment.

Ike
 
a82bb2319afd15beb6f14904634f407f.jpg
found the source of my problems.

Opened the filter to deep clean hoping that would help with my water clarity issues and I found that the last time the sand was changed the previous owner forced the valve onto the stand pipe and broke it. I had to cut it off the valve assembly as it was shoved about 4 inches into it. He even broke this part.
b994a5660cdcbe7786476f5bf2ef73b9.jpg


Sheesh


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
After I replaced my filter standpipe (which came with all new laterals) I've been slamming the pool s best I can without a TF-100 and am seeing GREAT results!
bb45d518ecd80c58b706058917cf8fe1.jpg


Had my water re-tested and TDS was at 250!

Can't wait till next pool season to start off righ and re-paint my pool.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
It is nice that you've fixed the filter, but you still need SLAM in order to clear the pool. The TF-100 is really the only way and you'll spend much less using this kit and bleach vs whatever the pool store will sell you.

The bad news is that paint only lasts 2 to 3 years. Best to wait until you can afford to replaster which can last 10-15 years or more by maintaining the proper chemistry (hint=TF-100 and staying out of the pool store). I understand your position as the last owner of my pool decided to paint the plaster and it has been a hassle is very ugly.
 
Don't get your hopes up based on the current testing your getting. A TDS of 250 is quite rare and I would throw the Baloney Sandwich flag on that. TDS doesn't matter anyway but I just point out that when you trust other people to test your pool, why do they want to do it for free? Do you think they might be selling you something?

It will be helpful if you read "The ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry" up in Pool School before your kit gets to you. There's a TON of info squeezed in there.
 
BuckeyeChris said:
not to be, like, a TFP snob, but there is a lot of room for clarity improvement there.
Click to expand...

What you're seeing is a bad paint job from a few years ago that I have to deal with this season. The water is leaps and bounds clearer than it was! See earlier posts!

- - - Updated - - -

Also, I did this without any proper testing supplies besides crappy strips (as that's all I can afford after spending HUNDREDS on unnecessary chemicals from the pool store and fixing the broken filter. Next season I'll have a new paint job and the TF-100 XL with Speed stir.
 

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