Hello from Wylie, TX again.
I have a similar problem in my pool that came with the house, scale and all. I may be a complete newb, but BBB has helped me move right into taking care of the pool without getting "pool-stored" and spending way too much money. Being able to jump in and cool off during these hot north Texas summers is priceless.
While the water looks great, the pool surfaces need some help. In playing with the pool calculator (thx Jason) I find that while holding the ph at 7.2, TA has the next biggest impact on CSI. What I plan to try is to keep the CSI ~-0.5 or so, keep working on the scale with a wire brush and not to expect results overnight. If I take my TA down to 40 or so, will I have to keep a tight rein on ph? Will it need checking multiple times in a day? I don't have much control over water temp. Am I even taking the right approach?
I don't relish the thought of draining and replacing a large percentage of the water, and then still having the scale to deal with, and then the CH would just climb again. As long as I can keep the calcium in suspension I'm good. I would prefer to copy the technique that Richard320 has embraced, to replace pool water with rain water gradually, while working on this problem and still being able to use the pool.
I would sure like to disprove the naysayers that say the plaster is degrading or "you can't get rid of scale". The pool is in great shape except for the scale.
I would appreciate any constructive comments.
Here are the test results from this morning:
FC-6
CC-0
ph-7.2
TA-70
CH-400
CYA-50
Thanks