First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions please

[Mark R]

Pool Water temp was about 75 degrees:

FC 3.65
CC 0.25

TA turned yellow, but on the Basic test it was over 8.2
CH 800-900

CYA 150

Let me know what I did wrong or what I forgot, and if the test seems off. Actually, I'm sure the waters not right.

Pool water is very clear, doesn't taste salty but can smell chlorine

Thank you have a great weekend !

Edit: took the chlorine pucks out of the pool for right now cause the high chlorine numbers. And the pool water was at room temp, the actual water temp is probably 45-50 degrees.

Also I should lower the ph and drain some water out of the pool and refill it through my water softener ?

 

[Smykowski]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Couple things.

1. How did you get 3.65 for FC. You should be multiplying by .2 or .5, though .5 is plenty of precision.

2. Did you dilute the water prior to the CYA test? Or did you just interpolate?

3. Explain the TA test. I think you were actually running the pH test in the K-1000 kit.

Post back and we will help you further.

 

[Richard320]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

What he said ^

I'm guessing you multiplied by .05 instead of .5, which would mean really high FC, which can cause the TA test to go blue>yellow instead of green> pink. It would also mean CC is also high, which is what you smell. High FC also messes with the dye in the pH test, so it's unreliable. Picture proof: accurate-ph-test-during-shock-levels-with-r-007-t61076.html

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

I'm going to do it again, thanks for the reply's. I read the directions twice and did everything pretty slowly. I'll post results again.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Hi everyone..

After using 1 scoop of powder as directed and 79 drops of R-0871 I came up with 39.5 on the FC
(79x0.5)

And then then testing for CC it now shows 1.5

Total Alkalinity never turned red.
Note: In the presence of high chlorine, initial color maybe blue and shift to yellow. It did shift to yellow and never turned red. I'm I not doing this right ? Because after a huge amount of R-0009, (40 drops) it never went to red.

Thank you and I'm off to You Tube to watch a video on this

 

[jblizzle]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

With a FC level that high, I am not sure one scoop of powder is enough, unless was really heaping. You can not use too much powder, but too little can be a problem.

Do you had reason to believe the FC is really that high?

As that says, if the FC is high, you stop the TA test when it turns yellow.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

jblizzle,
To be honest, I have no clue what I'm doing lol. I'm just learning pool chemistry and trying to get this right. I'm reading and learning and now going to watch a Video on this test and everything about the TF-100. All I can do is read the directions and go.

I want to take over my pool, I have no reason to believe anything is off. I've always had clear sparkling water and never a problem. I have taken the pucks out for now and test everyday.

Thanks

 

[Vette]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Any updates on this?

 

[Leebo]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

It sounds like you're having a few issues with the test directions.....take a quick look at the "How To" video's on TF-100's YouTube Channel. Should help you out alot.

 

[danacc]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Your FC test may be accurate--you are just taking over your pool from a service. You had pucks in the pool. They are probably trichlor or dichlor which add CYA as well as chlorine. You live in a place with fairly dry summers. We'd expect your CYA to be high; for it to be well over 100 is believable. With a high CYA, your FC would also need to be maintained quite high to prevent algae, and you say you've never had a problem.

If you used a 10ml sample for the FC test, added a heaping spoon of powder, and then it took 79 drops of the reagent to clear, your FC is 39.5 as you stated. Again, given how you described your pool, this is believable. FC that high will interfere with the pH and TA tests, so I'd recommend not running those for now.

CYA and CH both need to come down. Draining and refilling is likely your best option with these. You'll likely want to do a few partial drains and refills to get it down.

The CYA test can be a little tricky. When you do it, choose a sunny time of day, hold the vial at about waist level, and run it with your back to the sun. If it reads over 100, then repeat the test using half pool water and half tap water and double the result.

I recommend working to get your CYA in range, and then re-check your CH once you have your CYA down.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Thank you, exactly what am doing now. No pucks since my since Dec.12 and chlorine is still high.

And I received a pump today and will drain some water, maybe a third ? Rinse and repeat..

Happy Holidays !

 

[danacc]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Yep. If you're confident that your water table is low, you could drain around half to speed the process a little.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Update after refilling half the pool:

FC. 21
CC .25
TA 140

CH 500
CYA 100


Happy New Year

 

[pwrstrk]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Looks like you need to drain and refill some more.
Post back with how things are going.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Tested today after 3/4 draining of the pool over the past 3 weeks

CH is now 950. Tested the water from my house which runs through a softener and it's less then 50. Out of the faucet outside it's about 550.

FC is 14
CC is .5

CYA is still high 130

After doing all this, I did the basic test(K-1000) that came with the T-100.
Chlorine shows high, over 8, orange color
PH is 8.4

I've added no chlorine since December 12 but drained about 3/4 of the pool water.

I will add a pint of acid to lower the PH down to around 7.5

Is the water here in the desert really this hard to adjust ?? I can't figure out why the chlorine is still so high even after draining as much as I did. That goes with CYA and PH too.
Thank you
I'm really getting annoyed..

 

[jblizzle]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Keep replacing water. You have to get the CH and CYA down.

The more you drain at the same time, the faster they will drop.

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Thank you. I will drain another 7-8K gallons. Good thing I bought a water pump.

EDIT: 10k will be drained

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

FC - Free Chlorine
CC - Combined Chlorine

^^^ TFP.Com acronyms

Free Chlorine
Total Chlorine

An iphone app list these terms ^^
Can I assume that total chlorine has the same meaning as the TFP CC

App is called The Pool monitor

 

[Smykowski]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

No. TC = FC + CC

 

[Mark R]

Re: First test with TF-100 December 12, 2013.. Opinions plea

Thank you. Pool is 90% drained