Stupid question? What to do with samples after testing?

[svenpup]

I am a first time pool owner, and sooo glad I found this site! :-D

I am waiting for my K-2006 kit to arrive. In the meantime I tried out the cheapie test kit that came with the house, and I was surprised to see that the chlorine test maxed out at 3ppm, which is basically useless based on what I have read here.

Playing with that cheap kit did lead me to a (stupid?) question though...what do you do with your test sample after you are done? I assume it shouldn't go back in the pool with all the titrate, reagent, etc in there? Should I just throw it down the drain? Do a shot?

Thanks...probably the first qusetion of many!

 

[zea3]

I usually wash mine down the drain. I guess you could dump it in the yard if you test outside.

 

[257WbyMag]

I usually just pitch it in the grass. The grass doesn't seem to care. As far as putting it back in the pool, I have heard that this is a no-no for CPOs but that the chemicals are pretty weak and that you probably wouldn't have any untoward experiences by doing so.

My vote is yard or drain. Shot? Hmmm...I'd have to pass.

 

[polyvue]

I am waiting for my K-2006 kit to arrive. In the meantime I tried out the cheapie test kit that came with the house, and I was surprised to see that the chlorine test maxed out at 3ppm, which is basically useless based on what I have read here.

Welcome to the forum... :-D

If the "cheapie" test kit features an OTO (yellow) chlorine test, it's not entirely useless... especially if you have some idea of your current stabilizer level (aka CYA or conditioner). If the CYA level is 50 ppm, for example, a 3 ppm Free Chlorine reading is adequate (especially for pools where chorination is effected by a Salt Water Chlorine Generator). The big assumption of course is that the Total Chlorine level measured by the OTO test is equal to Free Chlorine as measured by FAS-DPD (found in the K-2006 kit). Soon you will be able to extinquish any doubt about the truth of that assumption.



... nice avatar, BTW.

 

[bk406]

I dump mine in the mulch bed

 

[Brentr]

Is there anything wrong with putting it back in the pool :?
I have been doing that

 

[bk406]

Is there anything wrong with putting it back in the pool :?
I have been doing that

Not that i can see. I've done that. Couple mLs in 14,000 gallons. No big deal.

 

[knick_mike]

If you are just doing a very simple 'at home kit' using OTO and Phenol for CL and pH readings, there is nothing wrong with putting the sample back in the water. In fact, Phenol is commonly used for leak detection in pools. Hope that helps =]

 

[polyvue]

If you are just doing a very simple 'at home kit' using OTO and Phenol for CL and pH readings, there is nothing wrong with putting the sample back in the water. In fact, Phenol is commonly used for leak detection in pools. Hope that helps =]

Yes, it's unlikely that the ingredients used in the minute quantities requisite for residential testing would cause any water quality issues -- melanine, thiosulfate etc. -- though Taylor advises against it. I initially thought everyone dumped the test results and excess titrants back in the pool because my PB's service did it that way... but pool owners don't have to test pool side, a realization that came to me during the first year of pool ownership on a cold December morning in pouring rain...

Water dilution and rinsing down the sink into the sewer/septic system works. The chemists who read this will post if this undereducated presumption doesn't hold water.

 

[JasonLion]

One of the chemicals used in the OTO test is a suspected carcinogen. The quantities used in testing are tiny, but I still wouldn't want that in my pool.

 

[bk406]

Which one in the OTO test?

 

[JasonLion]

The OTO test measures the total chlorine level, drops added to a sample turns the water various shades of yellow which is then compared to a color standard.

 

[polyvue]

Which one in the OTO test?

Orthotolidine reagent. Taylor labels it R-0600 - it's typically used in lower end residential OTO kits for testing chlorine ppm. (The phosphates, acids and sulfates used in the DPD kit chlorine tests aren't identified as potential cancer-causing agents in the documentation provided by Taylor.)

Orthotolidine dihydro-chloride 612-82-8 <0.5 ppm Suspect carcinogen

• Source: http://www.taylortechnologies.com/MSDSS/0600.PDF

The product instructions are explicit about the inadvisability of dumping it back into the pool:

http://www.taylortechnologies.com/produ ... umber=5314

 

[bk406]

The OTO test measures the total chlorine level, drops added to a sample turns the water various shades of yellow which is then compared to a color standard.

I was asking what chemical in the test is a suspected carcinogen.

 

[JasonLion]

Orthotolidine. The carcinogenic activity is not fully confirmed. It is listed as a possible carcinogen by IARC and NTP, but not listed as a carcinogen or suspected carcinogen by OSHA.