New Member - First TF100 Results and Chem Adjustments

[muffin_dad]

First time dosing my (new to me) pool. Thanks to the help from this forum so far, I've calculated the size of the pool, purchased the TF-100 test kit, and tested a few times to get the results below.

Before I "dose" for the first time, here are my calculations and plan - I appreciate any feedback on whether this is right/wrong and if there is anything else I need to watch for. Thanks for the feedback.

FC - 0 ! (this was "normal" according to Leslie's back in December - yes I know that is 2 months back)
CC or TC - 0
pH -8.2
TA - 90-100
CH - 225-250
CYA - ~53


Plan with help from PoolMath - add 26 oz (volume) of Leslie's Chlor Brite (dichlor - came with the house). This should lower the pH, but raise CYA according to pool math. I would wait 24 hours to let the dichlor do it's thing and recheck pH (should I wait more/less time?). Is there any problems with CYA being too high?

Thanks all

 

[Richard320]

Is there any problems with CYA being too high?

Thanks all

Yes.

High CYA means the FC level needs to be higher to maintain effectiveness. Which isn't really that big a deal until you have to maintain it hiogher than the color matching test, which means you can only use the powder FAS-DPD test to measure FC. Still, usage is about the same. But when you need to maintain FC above 10, the pH test is no longer accurate. And if you should develop an algae bloom, the level of FC you need to maintain to kill it off is so high you'll be buying bleach by the pallet. The powdered chlorines will only cause the CYA to rise (which aggravates the problem caused by high CYA that created the bloom) or the CH will skyrocket and cause scaling.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/142-how-to-chlorinate-your-pool is a good place to start. You should read through all the articles in Pool School, just to get an idea of what's in there for future reference. It will save you a lot of grief in the future, as well as a lot of typing.

 

[muffin_dad]

Makes sense, worth a trip to the store then to make sure I don't wreck the CYA and cause other issues.

So a better plan would be to:

- Add 241 oz of 6% liquid bleach
- Add 49 oz of Muratic Acid (31.45% 20 Buame)

 

[Richard320]

Makes sense, worth a trip to the store then to make sure I don't wreck the CYA and cause other issues.

So a better plan would be to:

- Add 241 oz of 6% liquid bleach
- Add 49 oz of Muratic Acid (31.45% 20 Buame)

Yes. However, 6% bleach is hard to find. Chlorox went to 8.25% strength last year, so plug that into the calculator instead. It might also be worth investigating the pricing on higher strength pool chlorine at the pool store (some have it in refillable jugs) and the big box hardware stores. http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/56116-Bleach-prices-2013

Remember to allow things to mix at least half an hour before adding the other. Also note that your pH may be higher than 8.2, since that's as high as the tester goes. Don't freak out if you add the required acid and pH didn't drop as low as you expected it to.