Need testing help AKA clueless new pool owner

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schmory@

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May 6, 2013
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Three months into being the concerned owner of a sometimes lovely pool I decided that I did not like blindly doing/buying what the guy at the pool store told/sold me to.

So after spending many hours here stalking you fine folks, I made the move and ordered the Taylor K-2006. Below are my results. I think I have a basic understanding of how to get the results now I need you to help point me in the direction of what to do with them. PLEASE!

FC 16
CC .5
pH 7.9
CH 870 (not sure if this can be right?)
ALK 170
CYA sample turned cloudy after adding only a few drops, so I'd guess many hundreds

Oh also the pool has an issue with mustard algae, small amounts form on the side wall in two places. I attempted to clear up by following the pool stores instructions only to have it return in a few days. I now have a better understanding of why that didn't work. For now I am more concerned about getting everything else into line. Other than that, the pool looks ok. Although it has gotten a little cloudy the last couple days.
 
Welcome to tfp, schmory@ :wave:

First it would be good to know how high your cya is. You can repeat the test by mixing half pool water with half cya-free water (tap water works for this) and repeat the test. Then multiply your result by 2.

Most likely you will have to do a partial drain/refill.

What pool surface do you have?

Do you know how high your ground water level is?
 
I entered my pool info in my signature, then must have forget to SAVE it! Hopefully it is fixed now. Just in case it is a 26,000 IG Plaster in Los Angeles.

I tried doing the 1/2 pool 1/2 tap water trick, and the CYA still wasn't calculate-able. I recognize that some large portion of water will have to be replaced. I just want to double and triple check that that is the case before I attempt it. Also we plan to drain the pool and do some work to it at some point (replace tiles etc.) so I would rather if I could drain at that point if I can get along until then.

I am currently using the pucks (I bought a whole buckets worth before I knew better) as had the pool guy for years before me. So I am sure that the level of CYA is high, I'm just not sure how high.

As for the CH, I did not think to test our water, will do that and compare.

Thanks for such quick replies!
 
schmory@ said:
...
FC 16
CC .5
pH 7.9
CH 870 (not sure if this can be right?)
ALK 170
CYA sample turned cloudy after adding only a few drops, so I'd guess many hundreds
...
Click to expand...
Welcome to the club.

870 CH is really easy to get around here. I'm close to it again, myself. Our very dry winter really put a crimp in my rainwater dilution scheme.

Astronomical CYA is also really easy to get if the pool is fed a steady diet of pucks. When I took over my pool, I had to dilute 1:3 and came up with somewhere between 220 & 240 on CYA.

That year we also had water restrictions in place, so a major drain was out of the question. Fortunately, my pool was clear, so I was able to struggle through. You don't really have that option. If you want to get rid of the green, and the high CYA, and the high CH, the only feasible way is to start draining.

Just as a tip: CYA doesn't hurt the lawn any.
 
Since you REALLY need to drain because of CYA, I would suggest doing 1/3 drain/refill, 1/3 drain/refill, and then a third 1/3 drain refill.

This will not only cure your CYA issue but get your CH to a manageable level, too.
 
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