I run a school pool built in the 1960s.
The pool is hand dosed. We use a combo of trichlor tablets in a feeder to give us some continuous addition and 14% sodium hypochlorite for topping it up. I know all about CYA thanks to TFP and am able to manage this combination of chemicals pretty well. I am very proud of my sparkly water!
However, the requirement for two-hourly testing in a hand-dosed pool is killing me! The alternative is an automatic dosing machine, but I have a feeling that this will bring its own set of problems.
For instance, the turnover of the pool is really long compared to what it would be in a modern pool. We've never had to worry about chlorine levels being too high - unless a pixie adds stuff to the water behind my back then that's simply not going to happen - but with an automated machine then there could be a delay between the chlorine being added and the sensors in the system registering the new levels, and the pool could end up overdosed. Or is this something that the people who make this kit have already thought of? Is there some way to limit the amount of chlorine that can be added in a certain period of time?
The same concern goes for acid. We have hard water and couldn't use NaHOCl without also adding acid.
Is there somewhere better to ask these kinds of questions? The people who sell this equipment seem to have too much vested in selling the equipment to want to talk about potential problems using it. Automated dosing would be a huge step for us, so I want to make sure it's the right one.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
The pool is hand dosed. We use a combo of trichlor tablets in a feeder to give us some continuous addition and 14% sodium hypochlorite for topping it up. I know all about CYA thanks to TFP and am able to manage this combination of chemicals pretty well. I am very proud of my sparkly water!
However, the requirement for two-hourly testing in a hand-dosed pool is killing me! The alternative is an automatic dosing machine, but I have a feeling that this will bring its own set of problems.
For instance, the turnover of the pool is really long compared to what it would be in a modern pool. We've never had to worry about chlorine levels being too high - unless a pixie adds stuff to the water behind my back then that's simply not going to happen - but with an automated machine then there could be a delay between the chlorine being added and the sensors in the system registering the new levels, and the pool could end up overdosed. Or is this something that the people who make this kit have already thought of? Is there some way to limit the amount of chlorine that can be added in a certain period of time?
The same concern goes for acid. We have hard water and couldn't use NaHOCl without also adding acid.
Is there somewhere better to ask these kinds of questions? The people who sell this equipment seem to have too much vested in selling the equipment to want to talk about potential problems using it. Automated dosing would be a huge step for us, so I want to make sure it's the right one.
Thanks in advance for any advice!