Ph keeps rising daily. using the BBB method

[ds18425]

Ok I need help! I have been on the BBB method from the start and have yet had my ph stabilize. All summer im having to add acid. Pool is a year old. Anyone have the same problem? Solution?

PH 7.8
Chlorine 6
CC 0
TA 70
CH 250
CY 68

temp 89

 

[Bjarni]

Aerating your water can slowly raise your PH. Do you have a spa, waterfall, or fountain?

 

[ds18425]

I have a waterfall but it is rarely on. It still rises wee to week when the falls are completely off all week.

 

[linen]

Do you have a swg (Saltwater Chlorine Generator)? That can cause ph to go up. By the way, it would be helpful if you put your pool and equipment details in your signature.

 

[y_not]

What type of pool do you have, plaster, gunite, vinyl?
In ground or above ground?
Any sort of rock features, slate, stone, etc..?
Do you have a SWG?

Consider adding this info to your signature in your profile.
How-To here.
You can add whatever you'd like and format any way you wish. You can see mine as an example and many other creative ones here on the forum. Or just KISS (Keep It Simple Silly).

A pH of 7.8 should be pinkish red /w a hint of purple. That's on a white background in daylight with your back to the sun.

 

[y_not]

linen, you beat me to it man!
Drat!

 

[ds18425]

no SWG. Plaster pool in ground, add bleach based on usage. no stone in the pool.

 

[ds18425]

updated profile

 

[Bloomfield]

Yeah. Mine is always high too. It doesn't seem to matter that much. Pool still looks great. I put in about a 1/3 of a gallon of muriatic acid a week.

 

[linen]

How often are you adding acid?

What is the ph typically when you lower it?

What ph are you lowering too, and how much acid (Muriatic or dry?) are you using?

 

[ds18425]

Could add acid every other day but I add about every 3 days. I try to keep it at 7.4-7.6. When I check the ph it's almost always 7.8- 8.0. I use the pool calculator to add muriatic to adjust.

 

[johnsjets]

I used to have that problem (ph rising over time) when using only liquid chlorine as my sanitizer/oxidizer. Since the liquid chlorine we use in our pools is inherently alkaline, its continuous use without taking counter measures will result in increased ph levels. As others have indicated, adding acid will help keep your ph in check. However, I found that by alternating the use of liquid chlorine WITH trichlor pucks, I can keep my ph within acceptable range. Since I have had trouble maintaining an adequate level of cya in my pool in the past, this was a good solution in my particular situation. Besides, it was getting old lugging all those bottles of liquid chlorine from the store. Now, I use maybe less than half as much liquid, and the cost differential between the two is insignificant.

 

[chem geek]

Some bleach or chlorinating liquid has more excess lye in it and can cause the pH to rise, but the better higher quality bleach (6% Clorox Regular with a pH of 11.9) and chlorinating liquid (12.5% with a pH of 12.5) will have little effect on pH. The usage/consumption of chlorine is acidic so while the pH rises when you add the chlorine, it drops when the chlorine gets used up. If the pH rises in spite of using high quality bleach or chlorinating liquid, then it is from other sources including carbon dioxide outgassing or from the initial curing of new plaster. Perhaps your bleach is very high in pH so has a lot of excess lye.

The use of any acidic source, be it pure acid or be it substituting some chlorine with Trichlor, will balance the pH rise.

 

[linen]

With your cya at 68 already, I wouldn't use trichlor...your better off continuing to use MA when needed.

 

[duraleigh]

My pool stabilizes around 7.8 so, for most of tiume, I just leave it there and it usually doesn't get much higher.

As Linen said, don't use tri-chlor. Adding acid to many pools is simply a fact of pool water management.