need help with TA and Ph

[dogman]

Hello all, been using TFP for my pool for years with little to no problems. Hot tub for almost a year no problems. Not sure what happened but my hot tub numbers are all over the place. have a sundance Marin 880 315 gallons:

FC 2
CH 300
TA who knows as soon as i add the green solution it turns bright red
Ph 6ish or lower.
temp at 101

admittedly i was traveling so a week or so went by without attention and very little if any use.

I assume i need to keep ph low to lower TA and aerate to raise Ph back up. should i add some Ph increaser? how long will this take to lower Ph. I would have thought my TA would have dropped given the low Ph for at least a week.

thoughts?

- - - Updated - - -

so i need to slap my wrist. went back to the Pool School for extended test kit help. I should have known all answers are generally on this site. so i am misreading my tests. what is my first step? bring Alkalinity back into play and then manage the Ph or reverse? thanks.

 

[ant 83]

Alkalinity needs to be up to par in order for aeration to cause PH to rise.

Low ph in spas is generally caused by the use of dichloro chlorine power. That stuff is acidic.

Most of us use dichlor until CYA levels get to an appropriate level (20-80, depending on who you ask), then switch to liquid chlorine/bleach.

Liquid chlorine raises PH slightly over time.

You can raise alkalinity with baking soda, or washing soda. PH increaser would be washing soda in fancy packaging.

Also 50ppm borates is recommended frequently here at tfp as a component of your buffers. Do search here to learn how to do that if you wish.

 

[duraleigh]

Yes, bring your TA up until you get a result....even if it 10 ppm.

Then bring pH up to 7.2 with Borax.

Last, retest TA and adjust it to about 80 ppm.