First test results water out of the faucet

[pmsmith2032]

We are having our 27' 54" round above ground pool installed this coming weekend so I decided to use our new Tf-100 test kit to test the water coming out of the faucet since we will be using the city water from our hose. Here are the results I got:

Chlorine - Looked to be between 1 and 2
pH - In between 6.8 and 7.2
FC - .25
CC - 0
TC -.25
TA - 330
CH -140
CYA - 0

I'm not sure how closely my results will mirror my pool water once it is filled, but assuming they are similiar, what type of chemicals should I buy to add? By the way, I will be using the BBB method. Do these results seem out of the norm for city water? Thanks in advance!

 

[JasonLion]

Municipal water varies from region to region. High TA fill water is common is some places, extremely unusual in other places.

You are going to want to have a fair amount of muriatic acid on hand. TA of 330 is very high, and you are going to need to spend some time lowering TA, as described in Pool School.

You will also want to have some CYA on hand. Fill water never has CYA in it, so it always needs to be added.

 

[duraleigh]

I would suggest 10 or so small jugs of Clorox. Once your pool is full, you can immediately add 1 small jug each evening. That'll keep your pool sanitized while you are learning how to bring the other parameters in line.

You will also need CYA. Purchased at a Pool Store, Walmart, or HD/Lowe's, you will want enough to get to about 40ppm in your pool. You should be able to calculate that dosage using Jason's Poolcalculator.... have you found that yet?

Lowering TA is somewhat advanced and, Like Jason indicates, will require some muriatic acid. Read How to Lower TA in Pool School. I would make that a secdondary step after I have the CYA in the pool and am able to maintain chlorine.

That was a very smart move to test your fill water. Gets you familiar with the tests and let's you know in advance some of the adjustments you will want to make.

 

[friendswoodnewbie]

Did you make sure to wipe the bottle tip when counting drops for TA? My first TA analyses were also very high until I also followed that little bit of advice. The drops became bigger and the TA number smaller.....

 

[pmsmith2032]

Thanks for all the help. I have two more questions.....

1. To lower the TA, I need to add aeration. According to the directions in Pool School, I need to lower the pH to 7.0 to 7.2 with muriatic acid. However, it looks like from my test results that my pH is already there. So now I just add aeration? Once my pH goes up from the aeration, I add muriatic acid and the pH and TA will lower. I repeat the process until the TA is between 70 and 90, correct?

2. I did not wipe the bottle tip. However, by not doing so, my actual TA is probably even higher than 330, correct? Should I wipe the tips of the bottles on all tests or just for the TA test?

 

[JasonLion]

1) Right!
2) No, failing to wipe the tip tends to give higher than actual readings, so your TA might be lower.

 

[fuzzy_dba]

You will also want to have some CYA on hand. Fill water never has CYA in it, so it always needs to be added.

In case you don't have it handy, Walmart has CYA in their pool isle's for about $11.97 for a 3 lb. container. They call it "Conditioner", but it's the same thing. Just look at the ingredients for "99% Cyanuric Acid".

Terry in NC