Florida Heat and Chlorine Loss

[klandaverde]

It is summer, and here in SW Florida that means a heat index over 110 on some days. I have a ph of 7.3, CYA level of 50 ppm and when I add chlorine, I generally have it at about 5 ppm. The problem is that by the next day, there is 0 available chlorine . At first I suspected an algae bloom, but so far it has been about 2 weeks, and the pool is crystal clear but I am loosing my chlorine everyday. Is this because of the heat? Do I need to raise my CYA level because of the heat? If so, to what and what should I raise the chlorine level to correlate? Or, should I still suspect an algae bloom? Oh, and I am using the BBB method and added CYA with the sock method (not sure if that matters or not. :?: )

 

[woodyp]

You should see the chlorine/cya chart in pool school. 5 is just about your MINIMUM for that level of cya. You should add enough FC to where it doesn't drop BELOW that.............in other words, the target number listed or a bit higher if you need to. You may also have CYA of 60 in your future if it won't hold that. I lose at least 3.5 daily with CYA of 50 here. Do an overnight chlorine loss test to see if you need to shock..........I'm gueesing so if it went to zero.

 

[klandaverde]

Thank you! I figured that I probably wasn't doing it right. haha

 

[duraleigh]

Or, should I still suspect an algae bloom?

Yes. THE OCLT will likely confirm that.

 

[chem geek]

When some algae starts to grow, it may not yet become visible since there isn't enough of it to clump and diffract light to make the water dull/cloudy let alone green. If you lose significant chlorine (> 1 ppm FC) overnight when there is no sun on the pool, then that's a sure sign you've got either algae or some chemicals consuming chlorine.

 

[klandaverde]

If you lose significant chlorine (> 1 ppm FC) overnight when there is no sun on the pool

The pool gets direct sunlight all day. It is pretty much in the sun from sun up to sun down, that is why it makes it kind of tricky to really know what is going on. Should I treat for algae anyway to be safe?

 

[chem geek]

Though you could just treat for algae, you can easily test your FC level after sundown and, with more difficulty having to get up early, test your FC again before sunrise or as soon as possible after sunrise (an hour or two after sunrise isn't going to lose that much FC).