Confused about alkalinity and PH

[riseandrun]

Hi everybody!
I'm new to the forum, and new to pool care. I have been "drafted" into taking care of the pool at the place I work. To keep things simple, heres a few things not in my signature I should put. The pool is heated to 92 degrees, it's also indoors.
I can't get the ph in my pool to go up. It's like it's frozen at 6.8-7.0 I read on-line somewhere that having a high TA could act as a buffer to getting the ph balanced. So I've been adding MA by the quart to the point of almost putting in 3 gallons. Not all at once over the last week and a half. Here's the specifics this morning.
PH. 6.8
FC 3
CC 3
TA 150-160
I have also added probably 7 lbs. of PH up thinking that as I lowered the TA I could raise the PH. Like I said I'm new to this and any help is appreciated. I've printed out the definitions and abbreviations and looked at the pool school and will go back and do some more reading shortly.
Great site! TIA

 

[duraleigh]

That should be an easy fix. Go up into Pool School and read the article on lowering TA. Follow that process exactly and your TA will come down and your pH will come up....all just by aerating.

 

[JasonLion]

Muriatic acid lowers PH. PH Up raises PH. The two together more or less cancel out leaving a small net increase in TA.

Your PH is now too low, perhaps dangerously too low. The common PH test will report anything below 6.8 as 6.8, so your actual PH might be much lower.

The first thing you need to do is to get the PH up to at least 7.0 right away.

Then you can work on lowering TA by following the procedure listed in this Pool School article.

 

[riseandrun]

Thanks for the replies. I'm off to a swim store for an airator.
I had read the Lowering TA article before I posted. I thought TA was "buffering" my ability to raise the PH but I have a lot to learn.

 

[riseandrun]

PH problems persist

Hi Everybody and Happy 4th of July. We have lots to be thankful for....
I posted earlier that I had a very high TA and couldn't seem to get my PH up above 7.0. I was told it could be way low because the kits don't show lower than that.
Here's what I've done since. I put an aerator on my inlet. Just a 1 1/2 pvc, 1- 45 a cap so I have a "fan" of water breaking the surface. Since I put it on I get about 10 hours a day of aeration for a week.
I've also taken a sample of my water to a pool place and here's what they told me.
Everything was in the "acceptable range" even the PH was 7.3 My CH was 700. These are the only two I can remember. The sheet is at work, I'm at home.
My problem is when I test with the kit, and I have 2 that I've been using, the color chart is never above 7.0 I've put 9 lbs of PH plus in in the last week or so.
I inherited the job of maintaining a pool that is inspected by my state. I've checked the last few months of recordings and surprise, every page has the PH at 7.2 which is the minimum. I wonder if they were "fudged'? For the fun of it, I checked the PH coming out of my tap and it's 7.4 I wanted to see if the color changed!
My plan is to keep aerating and keep adding PH plus. Any thoughts?
Thanks much for the help.

 

[JasonLion]

When you have a chance, please post your complete set of test results. We prefer results from your own test kit, but pool store results are better than nothing.

Also, what do you use as a source of chlorine?

 

[Bama Rambler]

Which two kits do you have?

What are the other requirements of your state?

 

[riseandrun]

Here's my readings TC 2.7
FC 2.7
PH 7.3 (I don't believe this)
TA 150
Calcium Hardness 700
Stabilizer 135
I use 3 inch pucks for chlorine. I have one kit that has PH and CL on each side with the reageants added 5 drops I believe it's pretty standard, and my other kit has 4 different reageants from 1-4 and 2 different "pills" to add depending on the test. I should also add to my signature that the pool is kept at 92 degrees. I work at an assisted living community and it's very beneficial to seniors to loosen up in. My state testing consists mainly of chlorine and Ph levels. thanks for asking

 

[Bama Rambler]

Is it an indoor pool?

You really need a good test kit.

The tablets are the reason the pH stays so low all the time. They're also raising the CYA level and it's way too high already.

 

[Leebo]

What state is this pool in? There's a chance the pucks may not be legal, nor could the cya level you are currently at.

There's several issues with this pool. Your PH is being lowered by the pucks. Change to liquid and your life will be much easier. It will also make your life much easier to read pool school and order a good test. Lower your cya level to 20 before switching to chlorine. What does the water look like? Can you see the main drain? If the pool ever gets cloudy you will have a major fight.

Many states require a fas/dpd test for chlorine testing which it sounds like you don't have. It also sounds like a talk to the inspectors could help you out as well.

 

[riseandrun]

I changed my profile to help analyize the situation more. I use an automatic chlorinator. Open the top and put in the pucks adjust the dial. I read in the pool school I need to drain the pool a bit and add more water as the only way to lower cya? The pool water is crystal clear. The inspectors don't really help me with the chemicals except to close the pool if it's not at the proper levels.
thanks for the replys though. It's been a learning experience for me.

 

[Leebo]

What state is this in?