Getting really frustrated here!

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S

STX Steve

0
Jul 3, 2013
16
Eustis, Fl
Been trying to get this thing right.

I added a Autopilot SWG in hopes of keeping the Chlorine levels up.

Tuesday's test form pool company:

FC = .06
TC = .09
Combined C = .03
ph = 6.9
CH = >1,000
CYA = 79
Salt = 2700 ppm

At their suggestion I drained 5,000 gallons of water and replaced it w/desalted water from local utility that tested < 5 ppm CH and 8+Ph.

Replaced salt to bring it back up to 2,800 ppm.

Shocked with 1 pound Pool Time 72% tricloro-s-triazinetrione through the skimmer.

Chlorine above 4 ppm after shock.

This mornings test with my tester:

FC = .5
CC = < .5
Ph = 7 or less
CH = 340ppm
CYA = 80 ppm
Salt on SWG @ 2,800 ppm

HELP!

Where do i go from here?

STX Steve
 
Welcome to TFP!

I'm guessing that your issue is that you cannot seem to keep your FC level up?

How does the water look?

To shock your pool involves much more than putting a bag of granulated chlorine into the pool and calling it good. Shocking is a process that is carried out. To shock your pool, you need to do so with your chlorine generator off and use bleach. Trying to shock with your chlorinator on just adds wear to the cell and causes you to not be able to tell if you are making headway or not.

You need to read our Pool School section and you need to get yourself a good test kit. Pool store testing is geared toward selling you chemicals, not fixing your problems. Additionally, here is some information on how to properly shock your pool:

pool-school/shocking_your_pool
 
Where do you go from here???????.............You're already here! Welcome! Step 1 is to order one of the test kits recommended in pool school----which you need to read a couple of times. You need to adjust that PH up into the low 7's range to start. Your testing gives no number for TA-total alkalinity? Add plain old bleach to get your FC up into the 4 to 5 range so your SWG can catch up. Use the pool calculator to tell you how much to add---again, pool school! You don't need any more "shock" with cya in it.
 
What's most likely happening is that the SWG and the algae are at a stalemate. Your SWG is producing chlorine at the same rate the algae is reproducing. To get ahead of it, you need to really jack up the FC and keep it jacked up. It's not enough to just knock the algae down once, you need to kick it while it's down, again and again and again until its dead. Which is the shock process.
 
STX Steve said:
Sorry I omitted the TA and water clarity.

TA=80
Water is crystal clear.

Should I adjust the ph before shocking with bleach?

THanks
Click to expand...
I wouldn't bother. The SWG will be driving that up anyway. Normally we recommend leaving the SWG off during the shock process, but I suspect bleach is expensive where you are, so leave it on to reduce the amount of bleach you have to buy.
 
Richard320 said:
STX Steve said:
Sorry I omitted the TA and water clarity.

TA=80
Water is crystal clear.

Should I adjust the ph before shocking with bleach?

THanks
Click to expand...
I wouldn't bother. The SWG will be driving that up anyway. Normally we recommend leaving the SWG off during the shock process, but I suspect bleach is expensive where you are, so leave it on to reduce the amount of bleach you have to buy.
Click to expand...


If I'm ready this correctly it requires 30ppm to shock?

How much bleach would that be fore an 8000 gallon pool?
 
STX Steve said:
If I'm ready this correctly it requires 30ppm to shock?

How much bleach would that be fore an 8000 gallon pool?
Click to expand...
For CYA of 80, shock level is 30 by pool school, 21 using http://www.poolcalculator.com/ Either will work - it will just take longer at the lower level.

http://www.poolcalculator.com/ will crunch the numbers for you. How much depends on the strength of the chlorine you buy and which number you target.
 
STX Steve said:
Is there a tester to test those high numbers for 30 ppm for C?

My test kit only goes to 5 ppm.

How long should I maintain those high levels?
Click to expand...
Why, yes, there is. It's called the FAS-DPD test, and it can read FC as high as 50. Which is why we recommend the K-2006 or TF100 in Pool School.

You maintain those levels until:
1) The water is clear
2) CC is .5 or less
3) You lose less than 1 ppm FC overnight.

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HOLD THE PHONE!

Okay so what i see is this

First test CYA 79 (pool store)
drained 65% of water and refilled (should have lowed CYA to 25
Shocked with 16 OZ trichlor (raised CYA to 33)

How is the second test reading 80? One of the tests HAS to be wrong or I missed something and my calculations are off.

Either the Pool store test was WAY low, to be at 80CYA after a 65% drain and 1lb of trichlor, it would have had to have been 180ish before drain
Or your test was wrong, either that or I missed something?

What are you using when doing your own tests, especially that CYA test?

*Just ran the CH numbers, and that seems to check out...to go from 1000 to 340 called for a 66% drain*
 
Richard320 said:
STX Steve said:
Is there a tester to test those high numbers for 30 ppm for C?

My test kit only goes to 5 ppm.

How long should I maintain those high levels?
Click to expand...
Why, yes, there is. It's called the FAS-DPD test, and it can read FC as high as 50. Which is why we recommend the K-2006 or TF100 in Pool School.

You maintain those levels until:
1) The water is clear
2) CC is .5 or less
3) You lose less than 1 ppm FC overnight.

[center:1750yh9y]
file.php
[/center:1750yh9y]
Click to expand...


Maybe doubtful he can get the kits in the USVI. Maybe the pool store could aquire one of them for him?
 
Good morning.

You are correct I would have to wait for shipment to get the tester I need. :(

So, I just added 3 jugs of 8.25 bleach and I'm playing it by ear. :shock:

I'm using my regular test kit that goes to 5 ppm and only adding 1 drop of reagent. It turns a dark reddish color just assuming that it's somewhere between 25-30 ppm. I intend to keep the level there all day and brush the algae with vigor. :party:

Steve
 
Update 7/6/13.

Added 6 121 oz 8.25% bleach over the last 2 days.

Brushed like a mad man, ran pump and SWG the whole time.

Pool is clear.

Had some black spots appear this morning in the coves of the pool. I scrubbed them with a puck and they have vanished, for now.

I'm sure that my CC is close to or above shock level even though I have no way of testing it exactly. No one on the Island has a kit that tests anywhere close to 30 ppm.

I did however test the CYA, PH and CH this morning.

CYA 100+
PH 8+
CH gives a funny reading: 25 ml pool water + reagents and the water does not turn red, just kinda very faint pink then even before I add the 3rd reagent it turns clear?

I intend to run the pump until this evening, then shut off and resume normal pumping and SWG tomorrow. I currently run for 5 hours but will have to see how it goes.

Any help, comments appreciated. I know it's tough with accurate testing but "I live on a rock" with not many options.

STX Steve
 
Ignore the pH when FC is way high - the test reagent is affected and you won't get an accurate reading.
The CH test may shift from green>pink to blue>yellow at high FC.

That's why we encourage people to fix pH and then ignore everything else during the shock process.

Does the US Virgin Islands get mail service from the US Postal Service? You could probably order what you need from http://tftestkits.net and use the post office instead of fedex or UPS.
 
Ok.

Opened new test kit, Taylor K-2005.

FC = 25+
CC = Looks the same color wise as FC.
PH = 7.4-7.6
TA = 90
CH Does not do what its supposed to so I did a test on my tap water it is only 20.
CYA = 100+ as the dot is obscured by only about 1/2 inch of liquid.

It's raining right now but Trade Wind showers are a daily occurrence.

1 st. CYA was test strip.
 

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