You should still maintain the same appropriate level of chlorine for your pool (regardless of borates). In some cases it may reduce how much chlorine is used due to it's algaestatic properties.fast1971chevelle said:
BBB and chemical questions
- Thread starter jbeale
- Start date
thank you linen for that info i am like a spong trying to soak up everything i can....this site is amazing......hail to the BBB method....lol
Got my test kit this afternoon and I'm perplexed on some of the results
fc = 0
cc = 1.5
tc = 1.5
ph = scale stops at 6.8 and solution is a lighter yellow than the yellow for 6.8
ta = ? added 2 drops R0007 still clear, added 5 drops R0008 turned red never green, add R0009 just gets more red
ch = 230
cya = off the chart, only have about 1/2" of liquid in the tube before the black dot goes away & its at least an 1" to get to 100
I guess the borax dump last night wasn't good or not enough.
It looks like I need a lot of washing soda now & a partial water removal and re-fill.
Would it washing soda that I need or baking soda or both? I know the baking soda will cut the acid as its used to neutralize battery acid so I'm guessing both.
Also I guess until I get the TA & CYA regulated it wont do much good to add any bleach yet since the CYA is so high?????
fc = 0
cc = 1.5
tc = 1.5
ph = scale stops at 6.8 and solution is a lighter yellow than the yellow for 6.8
ta = ? added 2 drops R0007 still clear, added 5 drops R0008 turned red never green, add R0009 just gets more red
ch = 230
cya = off the chart, only have about 1/2" of liquid in the tube before the black dot goes away & its at least an 1" to get to 100
I guess the borax dump last night wasn't good or not enough.
It looks like I need a lot of washing soda now & a partial water removal and re-fill.
Would it washing soda that I need or baking soda or both? I know the baking soda will cut the acid as its used to neutralize battery acid so I'm guessing both.
Also I guess until I get the TA & CYA regulated it wont do much good to add any bleach yet since the CYA is so high?????
PH & TA are both really really low. And CYA is really really high. You can deal with then in either order, just do the PH fairly soon.
The best way to raise both PH and TA is with borax, but washing soda is fine if you want to use that instead. The TA test turning red right away means that the PH is really really low, down below 5. You want to raise that up, but not overshoot, so it is best to add a batch of perhaps three or four pounds of chemical at a time, give it an hour to mix in, test the TA to measure progress if PH remains off the scale low. The TA will start to come up before the PH gets in range.
To get CYA down you will need to replace water. You can get an idea of how much by doing the CYA test again, but this time mix equal amounts of pool water and tap water, test that, and multiply the result by two. That won't have much precision, but it will give you a rough idea if the CYA level is around 100, 150, or 200+.
The best way to raise both PH and TA is with borax, but washing soda is fine if you want to use that instead. The TA test turning red right away means that the PH is really really low, down below 5. You want to raise that up, but not overshoot, so it is best to add a batch of perhaps three or four pounds of chemical at a time, give it an hour to mix in, test the TA to measure progress if PH remains off the scale low. The TA will start to come up before the PH gets in range.
To get CYA down you will need to replace water. You can get an idea of how much by doing the CYA test again, but this time mix equal amounts of pool water and tap water, test that, and multiply the result by two. That won't have much precision, but it will give you a rough idea if the CYA level is around 100, 150, or 200+.
I think I would retest the CYA doing the dilution method and then dump water and refill to get the CYA in range ... your fill water may help with the pH and TA numbers and then they could be tweaked when your CYA is good to go.
Otherwise you are going to dump a lot of the chemicals you add to change the pH and TA.
Otherwise you are going to dump a lot of the chemicals you add to change the pH and TA.
Is it best to add the borax straight in through the skimmer or sprinkle throughout the pool
read the "Recommended pool chemicals" article in Pool School for how to add each chemical.
Posted with Tapatalk ... sorry if I sound short ... hate typing on phone
Posted with Tapatalk ... sorry if I sound short ... hate typing on phone
Just to not make any assumptions, Any chance your socks of stabilizer are still in there? If there is any not dissolved, remove immediately. I do not understand the chemistry, but CYA doesn't show up on the test right away so I hope one of the experts can speculate for you if that #cya is actually higher since you added 4 pounds last night.
Southeastern Indiana, USA
27' x 4' 17,600gal AG round
1.5 HP 1 speed pump
22" Ecco sand filter
Southeastern Indiana, USA
27' x 4' 17,600gal AG round
1.5 HP 1 speed pump
22" Ecco sand filter
I have a feeling my CYA was probably OK, but because I was using strips to get the initial readings it was more than likely wrong. I was kneading the socks to work the stabilizer in, it was coming out of the sock in a real fine cloud. My fault for jumping the gun, I'm sure that was a wasted $15 on stabilizer. So tonight I dropped the water level 1.5' and currently have the hose running. I also added a box of baking soda and a box of borax. Hopefully this all will get the CYA to a more normal level, get the pH & TA up where they need to.
And here's the number for tonight
fc = 0
cc = 0
tc = 0
ph = 6.8 or a bit less, the yellow color was considerably closer to 6.8 color than it was yesterday
ta = 80 , 8 drops turned it red 9 made it more red
ch = 200
cya = still over 100 but it was close to the 100 where as last night it wasnt anywhere near it
So here's my thought process so far, I added 8 lb of borax tonight. I'm sure i'll need some more and I think some baking soda wouldn't hurt either. I know I still need to do some more water replacement to get the cya down. The higher the cya number means it takes that much more chlorine to have an effect on chlorine number correct?
fc = 0
cc = 0
tc = 0
ph = 6.8 or a bit less, the yellow color was considerably closer to 6.8 color than it was yesterday
ta = 80 , 8 drops turned it red 9 made it more red
ch = 200
cya = still over 100 but it was close to the 100 where as last night it wasnt anywhere near it
So here's my thought process so far, I added 8 lb of borax tonight. I'm sure i'll need some more and I think some baking soda wouldn't hurt either. I know I still need to do some more water replacement to get the cya down. The higher the cya number means it takes that much more chlorine to have an effect on chlorine number correct?
If you are commited on doing the water change on the pool, which is great, I would hold off on adding anything until you after you add the new water. Why keep wasting additives...eg the borax etc. Besides alot of your problems might deminish with the water change, but that of course depends on the make up water.
I'll agree, get the cya in range first, wouldn't hurt to dump in 2 gallons of bleach if your still clear on the water...it's possible that you might not need to shock if you don't lose the pool to algae.
Chuck
Chuck
Don't use any baking soda, your TA is already high enough, and will continue to increase as you add borax. Use borax to get the PH in range and worry about TA later.
Well good news tonight
fc = 0
cc = 0
tc = 0
ph = 7.5
ta = 120
ch = 200
cya = didnt test
After getting the water for this test I added ~2gal of 6% bleach
Tested chlorine after it had been circulating for ~4 hrs, and it was higher than 5, I'll retest in the afternoon when I get home from work. This will also give me an idea how much im loosing during the day
fc = 0
cc = 0
tc = 0
ph = 7.5
ta = 120
ch = 200
cya = didnt test
After getting the water for this test I added ~2gal of 6% bleach
Tested chlorine after it had been circulating for ~4 hrs, and it was higher than 5, I'll retest in the afternoon when I get home from work. This will also give me an idea how much im loosing during the day