Heres my measurements......Safe to swim ?

[gdog2004]

FC: about an 8
CYA --20 or less
PH--6.6-6.8

I did this with the test kit I purchased here. Im very surprised the chlorine is so high, I took the measurement twice. But that's about what it is, maybe even a little higher than 8. Soince opening pool yesterday this is what I've done.
1)When removing pool cover , I dumped a bunch of filthy leaves in my nice blue pool ...ugh!!
2)I used this pool shock http://www.walmart.com/ip/Pool-Essentia ... k/19795892 ---I think it was like 48% trichlor and 49.8 % chlorine ? --something to that effect.
I did this last night, ran my pump for 2 hours.
3) I also ran the pump on high for an hour this AM and vacuumed for two hours.

Very surprised the FC is as high as it is as its been crazy sunny the last 2 days.
The pool looks a little cloudy but I vacuumed it pretty good. My kids are DYING to go swimming so I was wondering is it safe.
Any responses in advance would be appreciated.

 

[duraleigh]

Yes, go swimming. As soon as you get to a store, purchase enough CYA to get to 40-50ppm and purchase enough 20 mule team borax to get your pH up to 7.4

Stop using the other stuff to chlorinate your pool....use Clorox for now.....you can use the other stuff later...it wont go to waste.

 

[gdog2004]

thank you ! I have a giant bucket of powder CYA..to be honest I remember last year putting it in a sock in front of the return and watching it just sit there for weeks. It wont dissolve. I ultimately used shock to bring the CYA level up.
I just added 4 oz of Borax to bring the PH level up to around 7.2-7.5 .
There must be a better way to raise CYA---why wont it dissolve ? Should I put it right in the skimmer ?
Also my pool is still pretty cloudy. Why is that if my FC is pretty high and the PH is close to normal ?

 

[duraleigh]

-why wont it dissolve ? It will

Should I put it right in the skimmer ? If you want to, don't backwash for a week

Also my pool is still pretty cloudy. Why is that if my FC is pretty high and the PH is close to normal ? They are completely unrelated. Did you think they have a connection?

 

[gdog2004]

-why wont it dissolve ? It will

Should I put it right in the skimmer ? If you want to, don't backwash for a week

Also my pool is still pretty cloudy. Why is that if my FC is pretty high and the PH is close to normal ? They are completely unrelated. Did you think they have a connection?

I've only had my pool for one other season prior to this one. I havent really backwashed at all. Should I ?. I have a Heyward sand filter.
When a pool is cloudy I assume it to be dirty, I guess I figure if it has enough FC it would be clean ? Still learning :/

 

[duraleigh]

Post a full set of current test results and we'll help you clear up your pool.

 

[Butterfly]

FYI, when your filter pressure rises 25% over the clean pressure psi, it is time to backwash the filter!

 

[gdog2004]

OK no need to backwash. On high my filter shows about 15-20 psi.
Current measurements--
TA 40
FC --about 4
CYA--20 or less
PH-- about 7

Per the pool calculator I am going to add 30 oz of baking soda. I also have a half a packet of shock I can add to raise the CYA and chlorine a little.
If I put CYA in the skimmer can I dump it right on top of the nylon stocking I have covering the skimmer basket ?
Most importantly--will it be safe to swim doing all these things if i wait a few hours ?

 

[Butterfly]

I don't understand the comment about not needing to backwash. What is the clean filter psi reading? ...not current psi.

First you need to add the baking soda and raise the TA.

Next, you need to add borax and raise the pH to about 7.5.

After that is done, you can add the CYA (which is acidic and will lower the pH a little).

You can add the CYA on top of the nylon stocking; however, you shouldn't backwash the filter for about a week. Don't add so much CYA at a time that it blocks the flow.

No swimming until about half an hour after pH adjustment. It is fine to swim with CYA in the skimmer.

 

[gdog2004]

I don't understand the comment about not needing to backwash. What is the clean filter psi reading? ...not current psi.

First you need to add the baking soda and raise the TA.

Next, you need to add borax and raise the pH to about 7.5.

After that is done, you can add the CYA (which is acidic and will lower the pH a little).

You can add the CYA on top of the nylon stocking; however, you shouldn't backwash the filter for about a week. Don't add so much CYA at a time that it blocks the flow.

No swimming until about half an hour after pH adjustment. It is fine to swim with CYA in the skimmer.

My filter has always read about 17 PSI when on high--keep in mind my pool has only been open for a total of maybe 6-8 weeks(between last season and this one) so everything is fairly new. So I am assuming that is my clean filter psi.


Yesterday
I added enough borax to bring PH up to 7.3 or so. It seemed to be back down to 7 or so this AM.

Today
I just added 48 ounces of bleach to bring my FC up a bit.
I added 30 oz of baking soda to bring the TA up a little and raise the PH too.

 

[duraleigh]

I added enough borax to bring PH up to 7.3 or so. It seemed to be back down to 7 or so this AM.

That is confusing. It doesn't look like you have added anything to lower pH so it shouldn't have gone down. Is your testing careful and precise?

PS - Baking Soda does not affect pH....it only raises TA

 

[gdog2004]

I added enough borax to bring PH up to 7.3 or so. It seemed to be back down to 7 or so this AM.

That is confusing. It doesn't look like you have added anything to lower pH so it shouldn't have gone down. Is your testing careful and precise?

I'm really just doing the taylor test of FC and PH. So its as precise as that is. Im sort of just eyeballing it.
Is there a more accurate way to test the PH ?

PS - Baking Soda does not affect pH....it only raises TA

According to the pool calculator page it does.
http://www.poolcalculator.com/chemistry.html#TA
Specifically...." as adding baking soda will also affect the pH and you don't want the pH going out of range."

On a related note, since I've added these things the pool does look clearer then it did earlier. Its not murky or cloudy by any means, its just clearer than it was. Its hard to describe these things sometimes without pics.

 

[duraleigh]

According to the pool calculator page it does.

Use the pool calculator to see just HOW MUCH it changes pH. Add, for example 4 lbs of baking soda and see how much your pH moves....not enough for you to measure with your test kit.

Baking soda raises TA, it does not raise pH.

Is there a more accurate way to test the PH ?

No, it's the best test for the money but most folks can detect changes of .1 or more pretty easily.

 

[gdog2004]

According to the pool calculator page it does.

Use the pool calculator to see just HOW MUCH it changes pH. Add, for example 4 lbs of baking soda and see how much your pH moves....not enough for you to measure with your test kit.

Baking soda raises TA, it does not raise pH.

[quote:ftzb2kr6]Is there a more accurate way to test the PH ?

No, it's the best test for the money but most folks can detect changes of .1 or more pretty easily.[/quote:ftzb2kr6]

OK---I see, the baking soda does raise the PH it but its such an insignificant amount its not really relevant.