New here

[Jmerich]

Hi all, I've been lurking since I became a pool owner 2 months ago. I'm really trying to get the pool dialed in. Currently having trouble keeping FC levels up. Had tiny algae bloom in a few areas, brushes right off. After getting water tested a few weeks ago (mod phosphates) I got sucked into their Phos Free product.

Current #s: FC 2
CH 325
CYA 80
TA 90
PH 7.6
Copper, iron, phosphates 0

My current questions: what is purpose of nature 2? I know I need a new filter since it probably hasn't been changed in FOREVER.

Liquid chlorine or granular? Been reading about BBB but Leslie's says granular will be more consistent.
I have the floater with 2 pucks

Also have solar, unknown brand. Live in So Cal. Pool temp 82. Thanks friends!

 

[Isaac-1]

To answer in no particular order,

1, I suggest you read the pool school link in the upper right a couple of times, most people get more out of it the second time through

2, Nature2 does a couple of things, it causes headaches for pool owners and makes money for pool stores

3, Your CYA level is already too high for a manually dosed pool (if the test results are to be trusted), if right you need to replace 40-50% of your water. Pucks contain chlorine and CYA, I would suggest you stop using them

4, dry chlorine products are more profitable for pool stores, when selling liquid the have to compete with bleach at Wal-Mart (bleach and liquid chlorine are same thing, just one is stronger, or one is more watered down depending on how you look at it)

5, Your current problem is likely caused by FC being WAY too low for a CYA of 80, see Chlorine/ CYA chart in pool school

6, You should get your own quality test kit and take control of your pool, see my signature.

Ike

p.s. why do you think your DE filter needs replacing, have you opened it up, inspected the grids, etc? Even if torn it may be cheaper to replace the broken grids than to replace the whole thing.

 

[Richard320]

If your DE filter is some once-shiny stainless steel behemoth with a green bronze pump and a crumbling metal backwash valve, then maybe it is due for replacement. Otherwise, perhaps all it needs is to be broken down and cleaned good, then recharged with a fresh load of DE or one of the substitutes. As for the rest of it, Isaac pretty much covered it. Fix yourself a large beverage and settle down to study pool school a while.

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[Jmerich]

Hi...thanks for the quick replies! Our DE filter was just cleaned and we had 3 grids replaced by home warranty company. I was referring to the nature 2 filter. Glad I didn't order a new one yet!

My pool gets a lot of direct sun, do you expect cya to be higher in that instance?

I also have lots of hard water-like deposits on waterfall and on tile at water line. What is the best way to clean? Is it like bathrooms where you can use vinegar to remove calcium? . Thanks everyone! I'm learning so much!

 

[Jmerich]

In looking at the calculator my FC should be WAY higher with. High cya. Is that dangerous to swim in? Also, is there another way to reduce CYA without replacing water (besides removing floater?). We are in a drought in SoCAL and I try to be water conscious when I can. Sorry for all the questions. I've read pool school about 5 times now :-D . Still learning.....

 

[jblizzle]

Only other method to lower CYA is reverse osmosis which is only available in limited areas ... one area is south CA. Try Google to see if near you.

 

[Isaac-1]

As to the CYA level, we generally suggest a maximum of 50 ppm in extreme sunbelt regions, so yours still needs to be reduced. Like Jason said, RO treatment may be an option in VERY limited markets, mostly in the south west, with parts of So Cal, just be aware the service is not necessarily the most economic choice. We usually don't even mentioned it since it is only available is so few locations.

 

[Jmerich]

Thank you for the explanation. I'm assuming high FC levels are safe to swim in (I know I'm focusing on the number 8 ish) but I also sort of understand that it is not necessarily a true representation, since CYA is so high. Just don't want to burn anyone's eyes or skin.

 

[jblizzle]

Perfectly safe to swim up to shock level for your CYA level.

 

[Jmerich]

Thanks Jason!

 

[Zadd]

Jason is right on. FC is kind of relative based on CYA level. Your safe to swim in as long as you are under the recommended shock level of your current CYA level.

And don't mess with the Phosphate junk. It may be a good insurance policy against agae but it will cost you way more than it is worth. Recommened FC level will do much more for you than throwing money at Phosphate removal. However I still have several bottles of that trash if you want to buy it.

 

[Isaac-1]

I just spotted this in a link Richard posted on another thread, thought it might be of interest to you

search.php?keywords=%22nature2+exploded%22&terms=all&author=Durk&sc=1&sf=msgonly&sk=t&sd=d&sr=posts&st=0&ch=1000&t=0&submit=Search

On the topic of phosphate remover, it is at best a bandaid for the underlying problem, usually high CYA to FC ratio, speaking of this, yes your safe to swim with higher FC levels when you have high CYA, as the CYA buffers the active Chlorine level, if you want the science behind it chem geek has posted long detailed messages on it, but it can be hard to follow unless you have a good chemistry background.

Sorry I can't offer advice on tile cleaning, don't have them and don't have any first hand experience

Ike