Been SLAM'ing for almost 2 weeks now????????

[lka674]

FC - 12 (it WAS 14 when I tested it at 7 am this morning)
CC - 1
pH - probably about 7.4 ish since i brought it down yesterday before adding more chlorine...too high to get accurate result now though
TA - 80
CH - 390
CYA - 30
Borate - 30
Temp - 63

I've been using the BBB method for a couple of years now and I've NEVER had to SLAM the pool before! We had some really rainy nasty weather about 2 weeks ago and it did a number on my pool chemistry. No visible signs of algae....just evident on the FAS-DPD tests and late last week we could smell the chloramines.

I've been bringing the chlorine up to about 15 (trying to go a little over the recommended 13 for SLAM'ing just in case it were to drop on me while I wasn't at home) at least twice daily and while the CC WAS 2 late last week....I'm still testing 1ppm of chloramine and NOT passing an OCLT either. I back washed the zeobrite filled sand filter when I began the process and added enough DE to bring the pressure up 1psi.....but I'm not seeing the chloramines dropping at all now!

I'm brushing the pool and spa probably twice a day and running the pool cleaner twice a day and running the pump on low speed 24/7 with high speed running about 4 hours each day as well.....


Going through liquid chlorine like it's WATER!

Any ideas???? I'm bummed b/c my pool has never done this before!

 

[duraleigh]

First of all you are very close.....don't give up now.

The cold hearted answer is you need more chlorine. In other words continue the slam. What was your chlorine loss on the OCLT.

You'll get this fixed (you almost already have it) but continuing the SLAM process is the key.

remember .5 ppm counts the same as zero on your cc's

 

[RobbieH]

It took me something around 3 weeks to SLAM mine when I had to. Quite the bleach eater keeping the FC up on a pool this size, too.

 

[lka674]

Thanks RobbieH....I knew it could take up to a week - 10 days...just didn't realize WEEKS! OK...well, I'll just keep on keeping on then. You DO have an enormous pool!

 

[RobbieH]

Yeah, and after thinking about it, my friend's pool (about the size of yours) took 4. He was in a panic. You might make sure you don't have anything behind the light, in the ladder, etc., that might be holding you up.

 

[lka674]

Yeah...I was really close to starting to worry myself! 4 weeks? Yikes! My husband has been teasing me to override my BBB method with magic powders b/c he wants to use the spa! Guess I'll be holding him off still! LOL

I've checked everything pretty well...the lights are going to be tricky though b/c it requires me to GET IN to the pool (they are too deep for me to reach down from the pool deck and I left my stretch armstrong like arms back in the late 70's)...and that ain't happening at 63 degrees!

Thanks again!

 

[jblizzle]

Just FYI, you could let the FC drift down slightly below SLAM level and let DH use the spa ... in fact it would likely be fine to use it briefly even at normal SLAM levels. Might be a little drying, but still would be less active chlorine exposure than at most unstabilized public pools.

 

[lka674]

Thanks Jblizzle...it's actually not the chlorine level that scares us...but rather the getting in knowing we have chloramines...it's just yucky. He actually got in it right before I started slam'ing and as soon as I smelled his swim trunks (from the other room!!) I knew we had a problem!

 

[lka674]

Thanks Dave! My OCLT this AM was 2ppm and the chloramine (CC's) was 1ppm....so definitely making progress. I just went and scrubbed all the water features...did find some green algae on top of some of our rocks (but well above the water level...more like where it had rained and rain water collected on top). I went ahead and scrubbed everything off and re-brushed the entire pool and spa....been doing that daily morning and evening. BOOOOOO!

Would running the pool filter on a higher speed 24/7 help any? I'm running low 24/7 and high about 4 hours/day. I was really wanting to get my borate level back up to 50 but I wanted to hold off until I get the sanitization under control first. I worry that jacking around with the pH right now might not be a wise decision.

 

[jblizzle]

The schedule you are running the pump should be fine.