Everytime I goto this pool place I'm spending 100-200 dollar

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J

jbijker

0
Jul 4, 2008
2
Cambridge, Ontario
Good Afternoon

I'm new to the web site (Great site and appreciate any help).
Not sure how to post this as a new thread, so I just replied to an existing.
Moved to a new topic. JasonLion

The pool :
18 foot Round x 52 inch deep above ground pool = 7,120 gallons
Vinyl with Cartridge pump and Salt water system.
Took the water sample to the store yesterday and received the following report.
Temperature = 78 F
pH 8.2
Acid 3
T.A. 230
C.H. 149

I have the AquaChek test strips which read as follows from this morning :
pH 8.4 +
F.C. 1-3
T.A. 240+
CYA - 30-50

My concern. Everytime I goto this pool place I'm spending 100-200 dollars on chemicals.
They keep saying my Alkalinity is too high but nothing seems to work.
pH has been too high since day one.

The pool is clear and chlorinator runs for 12 hours a day.
Salt level is perfect.
I filled the pool up with Water Conditioned water (Oops).

Chemicals I've purchased...Not necessarily used...
Scale Away
pHDown
SunShield
Hy-Cal
10 packets of Clearshock
5 bags of salt
Mineral Springs Salt pool Enhancer
and more....

How do I get the Alkalinity down (pH as well)..
Without spending another 300+ dollars.

Any help would be appreciated!!!
Thanks

[email protected]
Cambridge, Ontario, Canada
 
First suggestion is to get rid of the strips and order a test kit from this site. Then, NEVER return to the pool store again. They are in business to sell you stuff regardless if you need it or not. You can buy 1 gallon jugs of Muriatic acid from Canadian Tire for around $15, it's in the paint department.

I've never seen an "acid" measurement, what's that???
 
Jason and Co., gave you good advice, get your own test kit. It's from TF Test kits and the link is on the home page, this site doesn't sell the kits. But a member on here, Duraleigh, is frequently on giving firsthand customer service. You won't regret it.

Your PH is always high because your high TA combined with your SWG result in aeration that causes your PH to drift up.

You need to lower your TA using Muratic Acid and the aeration method, in the article link Jason provided. Your cya and chlorine are fine, if those numbers are accurate. I don't necessarily trust the results of strips and/or the pool store. You need your own kit!

WElcome to TFP....together we will help you clear your pool!
 
I noticed you mentioned salt level so I assume you have a SWCG. In that case you should read this pool school article
category/pool-school/water_balance_saltwater_generator

and when you get a better understanding of things this thread explains a bit more
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=3663

You need to:
Raise your CYA to 70-80 ppm
Get your TA down to about 70-80 ppm
(These are the first things and very important!....you can actually do both at the same time)

Maintain your pH at about 7.5-7.6
Adjust your generator to maintain 3-5 ppm FC.

Take these one step at a time.
When you have it done you might want to add borates to 50 ppm and save a LOT of money on the mineral springs stuff (which is just basically borax!)
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=4921

Finally, get a good test kit and test your own water. Either the TF100 (see the link to TF TEST KITS in my sig) or a TaylOR K-2006 (NOT the K-2005) Will do. Check out this thread to compare them
category/pool-school/pool_test_kit_comparison

For salt testing use the AquaChek salt test strips. TF Test Kits has them for a good price.
 
Thanks everyone

All very good information.
I'm in Canada and the test kit I tried to buy was not available in Canada. (Could not ship to Canada)
Any suggestions of were to get this TF100 that excepts Mastercard and ships to Canada?
I will go to Canadian Tire tomorrow and pickup the Muratic Acid.

I will also read up on everything noted in your postings.
Pool is great. I just don't want it to go bad.
The pool guy always panics and say's you need to get the alkalinity down. Try this...Then This...Then this...
:hammer:

Again thanks
 

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You do need to get the alkalinity down, but it isn't cause for panic. My fill water TA is 480, and what I trucked in originally was 280ppm, but I have mine at 140ppm this year. It'll probably get to around 120ppm next year, and I won't have to hoard water in my pool when it rains to the point that the skimmer doesn't work.

I did it through a combination of low pH aeration (down to around 180ppm) and just letting natural rainfall replace my original water over the winter through my mesh winter cover.

Check out this thread http://www.troublefreepool.com/place-to-buy-test-kits-in-canada-t7694.html?hilit=canada for info on test kits you can buy in Canada. If you get to the US often or have a friend who can recieve the package, you can buy one here. It seems Taylor has an exclusive distributorship that restricts sales in Canada.
 
jbijker said:
Thanks everyone

All very good information.
I'm in Canada and the test kit I tried to buy was not available in Canada. (Could not ship to Canada)
Any suggestions of were to get this TF100 that excepts Mastercard and ships to Canada?
I will go to Canadian Tire tomorrow and pickup the Muratic Acid.

I will also read up on everything noted in your postings.
Pool is great. I just don't want it to go bad.
The pool guy always panics and say's you need to get the alkalinity down. Try this...Then This...Then this...
:hammer:

Again thanks
Click to expand...
In Canada you will have to get a Taylor K-2006. The TF testkit is not available in Canada because it uses Taylor reagents and Taylor has one distributor there that has an exclusive.
 
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