calcium scaling in vinyl pool .... bad :(

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Charleston-Dawn

Charleston-Dawn

0
Apr 28, 2008
28
Summerville, South Carolina
HI Everyone!!
It's been quite a while since I had to ask any questions but it seems I have a hideous calcium problem. Long story short... I let "others" tend to the pool. :hammer: I'm in the process of refilling after draining out 3/4 of the pool so I don't have a CYA reading as I'll just have to add it in when the pool is filled enough to start the pump again.
My pre-drain Numbers were...
FC- 0
CC-0
tc-0
ph-8.0
ta-70
ch-450.. I know :(
cya- 30ish
The pool wouldn't hold chlorine and I didn't realise there was scaling. It's bad scaling too. So prowling threw the forums I've figured I'll drain the pool to lower hardness. It's filling now, about 1/2 inch to go before I can start the pump. I took readings and here are the new water #'s
FC-0
CC-.5
TC-.5
ph-8.0
TA-130
CH-230
I haven't added anything yet but I know I need to get and keep the PH down, but how far??
I will add CYA to 30ppm
I will shock to 15ppm using clorox bleach.
Is this correct??
The tap water measures CH- 90.. is the scaling in the pool leaching already?
and any idea how long or fast this will be??
Thank you so very much :)
Dawn
 
CD,

The numbers you post up don't indicate a horrible scaling condition but a very slight one. Can you post a pic that clearly indicates what you're talking about? Where is the calcium depositing....on the liner?
 
I'll post a photo a.s.a.p. This white hard stuff showed up all over the bottom of the pool very quickly. It won't come off unless you literally pick it off and the pool wouldn't hold chlorine over night, even at 15ppm shock levels. I'm finding it quite interesting that I have a chlorine reading at all after replacing 75% of the water. I'm using a taylor high reading K-2005 kit with fresh reagents.
 
Here are the photos..
pool002.jpg

White lines show direction of water flow.
[img
pool001.jpg
][/img]
Down side of pool to bottom. Darker stripes to the right are where I scrubbed the liner.
The center of the pool shows spots where I scrubbed it like crazy.
If I brush this pool any harder I'm gonna have arms like Arnold Schwartzneger.. (sp?)
Hope these are helpful.
 
C-D,

1. Lower your pH down to 7.2

2. Shock your pool according to the procedure in the article in Pool School....it's important to do that complete process....not just dose the pool once.

3. If you do have calcium scaling, it is not related to chlorine consumption. Chlorine consumption is the result of organic material (like algae, etc.) in the pool.

I am very confused by your description. Calcium scaling is normally indicated by high pH, TA, and CH numbers over a fairly prolonged period of time....not something that comes on suddenly as you described.

Nevertheless, Lowering your pH and shocking the pool seems mandatory to me. Others will be along to comment on your calcium scaling. Are you sure it came on suddenly?
 
Thanks duraleigh,
It seemed as though the probem only got worse as I was trying to clean and figure it out this last week. We've had 3-4 downpour thunderstorms these past few weeks.that put enough water in the pool to make it RUN OVER! and I'm not talking about just the skimmer throat.
I've added the MA and already the crust?? seems to be lifting off a bit. I'll do the rest as you said and keep it up.

Again, Thank you!!
Dawn
 
You should be able to get rid of the calcium scaling, but it is going to take a while. The advantage of having a vinyl pool is that your can lower the CSI quite low, which will help the scaling come off. But don't worry about that until the algae is all dead and you have the FC level back under control.
 
:) Thanks!!
I've dropped the ph to 7.2 with MA.. brought the CYA up to apx 30. Got the chlorine up to mustard shock. 19ppm. and i'm losing 10 ppm per hour. I started the shock at 6pm and it's 10pm now. Dang!! The water looks so clear! I have NO idea what got in the pool... but it's gotta be ugly! Glad wal-mart is open 24/7 here LOL!! my csi right now is -0.3 according to the (WOW!! I love it!!) pool calculator.. thank you so much JasonLion!!
 

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Up-date.. 11:25 pm. est.
Things are looking much better. After 22 hours of adjusting the chlorine to keep it at shock, it has finally stayed at 19 since 4 pm this afternoon. The scaling is starting to lighten up and the "dust" on the pool bottom has turned from white to brown. I've been sweeping and backwashing almost hourly since I started this process. I truly have no idea what was or is in the pool water but it seems to be dying off. According to "Pool School" If my numbers don't change over night I done with the shock, correct? Then balance the pool water when the chlorine is within my ideal range.
Thank you all, so very much!!
Dawn
 
This turned out to be sand algae. It's a new problem in my area. If you look at my numbers in the beginning of this post, yup 4 years ago when it started, you'll see the numbers were within range of good. This type of algae builds a shell from calcium, even if it's on the low side. I never got rid of it completely because I didn't know what it was until this year. I scraped a bit of the "scale" into a glass jar, added distilled vinegar, and waited 5 minuets. I had a nice healthy layer of really green algae on the bottom of the jar after the scale dissolved. Unfortunately one of the kids accidentally popped a whole in the liner that we didn't find in time. The leak moved the sand cove so we decided to drain the pool to fix the cove. the "sand algae" had been on the liner too long, making the vinyl brittle. We are in the process of replacing the liner. Not a fun project. I still don't know how to handle this problem.
 
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