Test results, help!?

[ddemarra]

Hi newbie here,
Have had trouble w/ a little algae, cloudy and tons of chlorine disappearing fast. Got my TF kit today, want to go BBB and after putting in a gallon of bleach yesterday here are the dismal results, help please? Thanks! Dean
CL - 0
PH- 7
CH- 650
CYA- 120
T/A- 260
CC- 1.5
FC- .5

10,000gallon, sandfiltered, older gunite pool

 

[Wolfmarsh]

You need chlorine, and a lot of it.

Based on your CYA level (which is pretty high) you need to bring your FC up to 25ppm and hold it there for a couple of days (until it doesnt drop overnight).

Based on your numbers/pool size, you need to put in the neighborhood of 4 gallons of bleach in to bring it up to 25ppm. (Download Bleachcalc and learn to love it).

Test a couple of times a day and add whatever chlorine it takes to get it back up to 25ppm until it holds overnight.

You should also lower your TA. (Find the sticky on lowering TA)

 

[JohnT]

With high CH, TA and CYA, you should really consider a partial drain and refill if your fill water is at all reasonable in these levels.

It would probably take about 6 jugs of 6% bleach to get started on your algae, then test again after four hours and add whatever it takes to raise your chlorine to 25. (Each jug will add about 4.5ppm to your chlorine.) After that, you can probably go to testing every 8 hours. For the first few days, you will go through a bunch of bleach. Testing and adding more often is even better. The key is a constant supply of chlorine, so keeping it high is the key. Run the filter 24/7 and backwash as required.

 

[ddemarra]

Draining half the pool, I will throw some bleach in it, fill it it up in the morning and check it again, Thanks for the help. -Dean

 

[ddemarra]

Hate to appear stupid but... my chlorine tester shows a scale of 1 to 5, and we are saying raise it to 25 ppm ...huh?

 

[Guest]

Hate to appear stupid but... my chlorine tester shows a scale of 1 to 5, and we are saying raise it to 25 ppm ...huh?

Use the FAS-DPD test not the OTO test in the chlorine/pH tester. The OTO test only tests total chlorine and is good for quick checks on your chlorine. For determining high levels of FC needed to kill algae you need to use the drop count test (FAS-DPD).

Also, I am wondering how you got a CYA reading of 120 with the TF Testkit since that particular test can only test up to 100 ppm CYA.

Also, you reported NO chlorine on the OTO test yet had 2 ppm total chlorine on the FAS-DPD test. (TC+FC+CC). I think your test results are suspect. If you are not sure of the proper way to do the tests reread the instructions or post a question here in the forum. Proper testing is the key to proper water balance.

 

[ddemarra]

Thanks for your reply, it will help. Yeah, it was so bad I could not get to the 100 mark on the CYA but I had to record something?, so looking at the distance between all the marks it looked like another quarter inch down was about 120...As far as the OTO test when you hold it up and it looks clear as a bell that reads 0 to me...hopefully when I get some levels up to where they are halfway supposed to be I will get better readings, thanks! -Dean

 

[algaeh8er]

Your CYA reading could be artificially high due to the algae clouding your sample. After your water clears, do another CYA test to get a more accurate reading.

 

[The Mermaid Queen]

Since your partial drain, have you checked your CYA?

 

[ddemarra]

Hi,
Yes, after a couple of days of pouring gallons of chlorine, yesterday the CYA was at 80, the chlorine seems to be holding a little more steady although it did drop a bit this afternoon, I will do a full test tomorrow and try to post the numbers. Thanks all!

PS. My kids want to know what they can do with all the plastic bleach jugs!

 

[ddemarra]

Saturday test results

Hi all,
Hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend so far!
Here's what I got;
FC-12
CC-1
TC-!3
pH-7.4
T/A- 190
CH-280
CYA- could not get to 100, (Thursday was 80??)

Thanks in advance for any more advice! -Dean

 

[The Mermaid Queen]

With a CYA of 80-100 you need to be getting your FC up to 20 or even 25 to shock (check Ben's best guess chart in my sig)

Keep shocking and everything else you are doing!

You'll get there!