Low chlorine/No free chlorine

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M

mark46143

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LifeTime Supporter
Jul 24, 2013
80
Greenwood, IN
Hi, I have a 30,000 gal pool. I have had an IC 40 for 1 year with no issues until about a week ago.

My problem is; faint chlorine levels and no free chlorine.

The water is crystal clear, PH looks good, phosphates are low.

The IC 40 is set on 100% and has been for 5 days - no change.

Any suggestions?

Thank You
 
30,000 Gal
IG
Vinyl
Sand (new sand summer 2013)
1.5 horsepower intelliflo/variable - run continuously run on level 3 all the time
Built 2005, new liner 2012
In ground floor cleaners


Salt level: 3600 (I have IC 40 pentair 1 year old with good life level left)
Total Hardness - 308
Total Chlorine - .5 ppm (salt cell on 100% for 3 days)
Free Chlorine .4 ppm
PH 7.5
Alkalinity 92
CYA 250

Thanks
 
How did you get a CYA of 250? Most tests only go up to 100. By far the best thing you can do is order one of the recommended test kits, linked to in my signature. If those tests are correct, you probably have something organic growing in your pool. That will require the SLAM process, linked to in my signature. Note that it is impossible with a CYA >100, so if your CYA really is 250, that will require a significant water change. I'm not sure how your CYA got so high. Have you added any forms of solid chlorine?
 
I agree with JohnN...if your cya is really that high (and I am not sure if I believe it) then you likely have algae that the swg is just keeping up with but not able to kill. How often are you having to backwash?
 
Thanks!

The print out stated what I wrote however, there's been a turn in events.

The pool as formerly stated is perfect in terms of clarity, etc.

Twist tonight; for the first time I have black around my lights in the pool. Its black on the lights pretty good. You cant just take a brush and get it off. Once on fingers it doesnt rinse off easily. There are no other stains anywhere.

Do you think this could be the result of no FC? If so what do you suggest for treatment?
 
It could be...first thing to do is to get accurate test results. We don't trust pool store results on here since they can be so inconsistent and not available when you need them. See this link: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/pool_test_kit_comparison Many of us have the tf-100 since it is the best value.

Next (hopefully with an accurate kit) I would recommend doing an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test (OCLT). This will tell you if you have organics in the pool. See: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/overnight_fc_test

Even if it ends up not being algae, you still need to know your cya level so that you will know what FC level you need to maintian (or if cya is high as is suggested by the ps results a drain/refill first).
 
Can you get some of the black stuff off with a fingernail and smear it on a white card? If it appears green, it is algae.

Other than the SWG, what chlorine chemicals have been added to the pool? (powder, granular, etc.)

Any algaecides?

You need to stock up on plain unscented bleach and/or liquid chlorine for the SLAM process. ALso, running the SWG at 100% will shorten the life of the cell.

As mentioned, the best thing you can do is get one of the recommended test kits. TFP has fast shipping and fantastic product and service. Link in my sig.
 
OK, Im back and still have issues.

OK - pool is clear, crystal clear.

In the last post, I took the lights out - a bunch of junk was behind it. I used Algaecide 2000. The next day I had all kinds of stuff on the bottom of the pool. I scrubbed the sides, steps, ladder, etc. One light got most of its shiny sheen back. The other light - not so much. the SWG was producing FC and it went well for a bit. Now, I have no signs on black on the in floor cleaners (good). FC went was zero last Thursday and on Sunday it was non existent. I took the pool sample to the pool store and it was perfect (or according to my print out).

Here's what I have:

TDS 5000
CYA 134
Tot Chlorine: 1..9
FC 1.9
PH 7.6
Total Alkalinity 125
Adj Total Alkalinity 85
Total Hardness 291
Salt 3600

I havent ordered the test kit here yet. I added 4 gallons of liquid shock tonight. My question is; do you think the algae is back and not existent? I took the pentair gear out to let it run and get the circulation going in the pool. The floor cleaners are up and working.

I have to have something in the pool organic although the pool is perfect in terms of clarity. I had the pool store test for phosphates and they were normal. Im open to suggestions. I have not had 1 issue in hte past with this before. I did take the pool chlorinator off to clean it and activated it in a cooler - generated chlorine like crazy in about 30 seconds. I have an intellichlor IC 40.

Do you think I should take lights out again? Is there a better stronger pool algae killer inhibitor. I did drain 18 inches of water off and refilled.

Im not sure where to go from here. Pools great other than no FC and a very low faint chlorine.

Thanks
 
Sounds like it could be Ammonia. Sometimes the CYA over the winter turns into Ammonia. Get an Ammonia test kit from a pet store. I had this problem a few times over the years. It takes 10 ppm of chlorine to knock out 1 ppm of Ammonia. You just have to keep adding bleach.
 

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Smykowski said:
It's important, so I'll reiterate:

You have to get a good test kit.
You have to follow the SLAM process correctly.
You have to spend some time in pool school.
Click to expand...
X3 , but only if you want to get off the merry-go-round with pool troubles.

btw, regardless of the organic issue in the pool, the SLAM process is the cure.

We can guide you, but you have to do your part.
 
I agree with Brushpup, the third reply to your OP told you that you needed a good test kit and several after reitterated that. Apparently you decided not to take the advice. And now a month later you come back with the same problem and still haven't gotten a good test kit. We're not like the pool store. We don't try to sell you anything that enhances our pocket book. We recommend getting a good test kit because we know what works, and it's much cheaper to invest in a good kit so you'll know exactly what's going on in your pool and can take the appropriate steps to fix it.

You can get a good testament to how bad pool store testing is by just taking a look at your CYA numbers. On July 24th you posted a CYA of 250 and then on August 26th you posted a CYA of 134. There's no way for that to happen unless you replaced half of your water and didn't continue to use chlorine sources that added CYA (Trichlor & Dichlor).

I know it seems like we bombard you with getting a test kit, but we do that for good reason.
 
I ordered the TF 100. My pool guy has the TF as well and he must not be using it or not know how to use it outside of basic testing. Should I wait for the test kit to begin the SLAM process to determine OCL? In the last month, I don't know what percent but, I have added a lot of water (with all the backwashing) and I drained it down 18" on Sunday at the recommendation of my pool service, then refilled. So my CYA may be accurate with all the exchanges/adding water.

Thanks
 
Well, it's hard to know what 18" did to your CYA dilution without some dimesions, but it is quite likely still too high. You can't perform a SLAM without the FAS/DPD test nor can you do an OCLT without a DPD test at minimum. As for your pool guy, he more likely doesn't understand what to do with the results, or is just not doing what he should.

Please add your pool info to tour signature line.
 
Your pool service is who recommended the chemicals to get you to either the 250CZyA or the 133 CYA, they also seem to have the correct TF test kit but are not testing correctly or applying the CYA/Chlorine logic we teach/ use here.

It is critical you understand that when your CYA is too high, you will get uncontrolled algae growth and a very difficult to manage pool unless you use very high FC levels. I am speaking of an FC in the 7-8 range at a minimum and a target closer to 10fc.

The pool store methods are counter to the methods we use here. You need to either test your own values and make your own decisions based on knowledge and be clear in about a week or blindly follow the pools stores suggestions and hope its not another month before you are done. Doing both pool store and TFP will get you nowhere.
 

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