No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

[casastevo]

Inline feeder. I had the dial set to 3ppm. So when I checked it again this morning, the tabs were still in there (no major degradation that I could see) and the Chlorine level today at .2ppm.

I added a couple more tabs just to fill up the canister, and dialed it to 3.5ppm today. I put my ear to it and feel like I did hear water running through it.

Will the ppm level out in a few hours, days, or what? Am I doing anything wrong?

TA: 110
pH: 7.5

 

[JasonLion]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

The dial on the feeder isn't marked in ppm, it is just a relative setting: more or less.

When your CYA level is very low, as I guess yours probably is, you will lose chlorine very quickly to sunlight. When CYA is low, even setting the feeder all the way up will not maintain a very high FC level.

Please get a full set of test results, including CYA, and we can see if I am guessing correctly or not.

 

[JesseWV]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

I'd add a jug of bleach pronto!

 

[casastevo]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

The dial on the feeder isn't marked in ppm, it is just a relative setting: more or less.

When your CYA level is very low, as I guess yours probably is, you will lose chlorine very quickly to sunlight. When CYA is low, even setting the feeder all the way up will not maintain a very high FC level.

Please get a full set of test results, including CYA, and we can see if I am guessing correctly or not.

Ah, thanks for the tips on the feeder. Is it possible that the feeder wasn't circulating water? Maybe I didn't prime it correctly (it's the first time doing it).

CH - 275
CYA - 30
TA: 110
pH: 7.5
Temp: 76

 

[JasonLion]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

CYA at 30 is on the low side, but not low enough to cause the effect you are describing in the way I was imagining.

You might be right, but chances are the tablet feeder is working. They can get clogged, but that isn't all that common.

How does your water look? If the water is clear and sparkling, odds favor some problem with the tablet feeder. While if the water is cloudy/murky odds favor algae getting started and consuming most of your chlorine.

While you are figuring this out, you should take JesseWV's advice and add some extra chlorine manually. Using bleach is a good way to do that.

 

[casastevo]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

CYA at 30 is on the low side, but not low enough to cause the effect you are describing in the way I was imagining.

You might be right, but chances are the tablet feeder is working. They can get clogged, but that isn't all that common.

How does your water look? If the water is clear and sparkling, odds favor some problem with the tablet feeder. While if the water is cloudy/murky odds favor algae getting started and consuming most of your chlorine.

While you are figuring this out, you should take JesseWV's advice and add some extra chlorine manually. Using bleach is a good way to do that.

Thanks. I had a pool company servicing this for a while, and they never had any issues with the feeder. It's crystal clear, so no problems there. Do I add just typical bleach, as in washing whites bleach? How much? 12k gallon pool approx.

 

[JasonLion]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

Yes, ordinary household bleach. You want the plain standard unscented kind, without any special features.

For 12,000 gallons, 2 to 3 quarts of concentrated bleach (8.25%) or roughly a gallon of Ultra bleach (6%).

Test the FC level again a couple of hours after adding the bleach to see if it is all vanishing or if most of it is staying around. If it all vanishes, there may be something more complex going on.

 

[Casey]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

You can use PoolMath to determine how much bleach to add.

 

[casastevo]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later, still no chlorine

Yes, ordinary household bleach. You want the plain standard unscented kind, without any special features.

For 12,000 gallons, 2 to 3 quarts of concentrated bleach (8.25%) or roughly a gallon of Ultra bleach (6%).

Test the FC level again a couple of hours after adding the bleach to see if it is all vanishing or if most of it is staying around. If it all vanishes, there may be something more complex going on.

Thanks. I checked again just to make sure I wasn't going nuts. It looks like it's closer to .4ppm. I will run to the store and grab some bleach to bring it to 2-3ppm.

- - - Updated - - -

You can use PoolMath to determine how much bleach to add.

Oh! Thank you.

 

[casastevo]

Re: No chlorine, added 3" Trichlor tabs (2), checked 2 days later

I'm up to 4ppm now (thanks for the bleach suggestion) and will continue to watch it daily. Just want to really make sure the feeder maintains it for me. Thanks again for all the advice.