What is the best way to raise the CYA?

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JulieLeo

JulieLeo

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May 13, 2011
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Atlanta, GA
Hi all - I also have a CYA question. My pool has been up for a week and it's looking good! I got my test kit from TFP and the first time I tested the CYA, it registered <20, CL - 1
pH - 7.4
CYA - <20

What is the best way to raise the CYA?
 
For a small pool you often want to raise CYA using dichlor, as described in your seasonal pool guide. For larger pools it is more common to use cyanuric acid, often sold as either stabilizer or conditioner.
 
So tonight I checked the water :
FC .5 - added bleach as per The Pool Calc
pH 7.2 - added borax as per The PC 30 mins after the bleach
CYA - <10 - I have some Aqua Chem Shock Plus Stabilizer

So how long do I wait to add the Shock Plus per PC ?
 
What are your test results currently? FC, CC, pH, TA, CH. Already know your CYA. If you have CC > .5, you might could just go ahead and shock with your dichlor.
 
With the pump running, you are safe to wait 30 minutes between chemical additions. As far as routine pump run times, it all depends on how long it takes for your pump to turn the water over. I run mine 4 to 6 hours a day in the summer. it is always on whenver there are swimmers in the pool.
 
So - my chlorine has been lasting for a couple days at a good level then it will drop down to .5. pH is stable at 7.5 most days. CYA is <10 but according to what read in PS the way shock my size pool is with bleach. So then if I don't use Dichlor, how do I raise the CYA?
 
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CYA Cyanuric Acid (Read pool school!!) sold at wal-mart as Stabilizer or conidtioner...

use pool calculator to calculate dosage for your pool. Do the dosage in steps to ensure you don't unintentionally get a higher CYA than you want. CYA can take a week to fully dissolve so don't rush to add more if you think the test is still low (highly subjective test for CYA) Once you have too much the only way to get rid of it is Water replacement

Read Pool School thru the link at teh top of the screen!
 

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old sock, rubber band, tie off to ladder. Then come by every couple hours and squish the sock and let the softened powder disperse. Use the pool calculator to determine how much stabilizer will add 20ppm of CYA to your pool. That should get you up to about 30ppm which is low for super hot climates but also a good starting point until you can get an accurate reading for CYA. Then, assume you have 30ppm CYA in the pool and set the pool calculator for that number. Remember, adding CYA will change your target, minimum and shock levels to min 2, target 6, shock 13 whereas without CYA you're looking at 1, 3, and 10.

Run your pump full time. It won't burn up, it has water in it. With these small pools and inefficient pumps, filtering is very important. I actually run two Intex/seasonal pool type pumps on mine. Full time. They are both 1000gph pumps. One sucks at the bottom of the pool, one is on the skimmer. Works for me till I decide to invest in a better pump/filter.
 
Yup, powdered stabilizer in the sock. I use triclor tabs to add CYA when I do my monthly "store test" since my kit doesnt test CYA, in fact just store tested today.

A month ago the CYA was 30, now it is 25. I'll pack my type A/C filter with 1 inch tabs two/three times, then switch back to bleach when I see the FC drop..

CYA is an important test, but only gets critical when it is too high or too low. Too high binds your chlorine causing needs to keep a higher chlorine ppm. Too low, your chlorine burns off in the sunlight and doesnt kill the green meanies.

As far as I'm concerned, with these Intex pools daily use is preferred and constant pumping are mandatory due to the lethargic flow.
 
Thanks for the responses folks. Good info there. Much better than having stabilizer on the pool bottom to get in-between my toes.

I just bought a 637 Intex pump to replace the weak 603 pump that came with my 12' AGP. That should give me twice the gallons being filtered and will help keep things clearer.
 
I did have the 637R pump with my pool (have upgraded to a Waterway sand filter system now) I did run it for 2 seasons 24/7 and still works good as I keep it in the garage for a spare should I need it.
These 637R pumps also have a overheat protection system built in so they just shut down when you have a problem like once I did when a hose split and pool drained down and pump ran without water and automatically shut down.
All I did was get new (better) hoses, refill pool, adjust pool balance and unplug pump for 15 mins. and it automatically reset and runs perfect again.

Chuck
 
So let me make sure I understand about adding diclor from the shock packets....I need to empty the amount indicated by the Pool Calculator into a sock and hang it from the pool ladder. After a couple hours, go to the pool and squeeze the sock to put the dissolved diclor into the pool. Correct?
 
Dichlor is chlorine plus stabilizer (cya). It can be broadcasted.

Stabilizer is hung in a sock, but it's not the same product as dichlor and if you're trying to raise CYA with dichlor alone be sure not to use the numbers for stabilizer in your calculations.
 
Last year as I was learning the BBB method but using packets for shock, I would dip about 4 gallons into a 5 gallon bucket and put 1/3rd of the packet in and mix well, then pour in. Repeat twice.

Straight granules on the bottom can bleach the surface.
 

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