Bio Active Cyanuric Acid reducer review

[mendez4047]

Started maintaining my own pool. Previously had a pool guy and as you can see, doesnt look like he was doing much of maintaining based on my test numbers. CYA is currently at 140. we have a drought danger in California, so draining and refilling the pool is frowned upon. Bought this new product from Bio Active to reduce CYA levels. One pack treats up to 25,000 gallons. Its safe to drop in the entire pack into the skimmer. I've seen price ranges from 41.99 - 59.99 for this stuff. Test results have shown 150ppm CYA levels to drop to 70ppm within a week. Product indicates it will not harm other parameters of the pool chemistry. I'll post up the results in a week.

4/8/2015
17,000 gal
FAC 0.5
TAC 0.5
CH 540
CYA 140
TA 80
PH 7.3
PHO 500

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

Looking forward to it.

 

[Swampwoman]

Thank you for posting. We're all quite curious to hear how this product performs as it is new to market. I hope it works well for you!

 

[Leebo]

Hello, and welcome to TFP!

If at all possible, can you post your daily test results here for us to review? TFP is VERY interested in this product and it's workings.

 

[jblizzle]

Wait, how did you get those first set of test results? The PHOS makes me think they were from a pool store and they are notoriously bad at testing CYA. So, to me that would invalidate your experiment since the CYA testing would not be accurate or repeatable.

 

[mendez4047]

It was a pool store testing, however, I'm inclined to believe they are accurate only because I did an initial water test about one week at a different pool store and the numbers were very similar from both independent pool stores.

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

Please add your pool and equipment information to your signature as outlined here -> http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/165-getting-started

 

[jblizzle]

It was a pool store testing, however, I'm inclined to believe they are accurate only because I did an initial water test about one week at a different pool store and the numbers were very similar from both independent pool stores.

Well, what happens if you have a different person test it next time? And the lighting is different?
IMO, these results are not going to be controlled enough to get a good feel for the actual effectiveness of the product.

 

[mendez4047]

That is very true. Then let's just say my results will be a "ball park" numeric figure.

 

[jblizzle]

Please realize that the cornerstone of the methods we teach is testing the water yourself with a high quality FAS-DPD test kit. The TFPC method is really just about understanding your pool’s chemistry and through accurate testing, adding only what the pool needs.

Pool stores have repeatedly been proven to be inaccurate and not repeatable more often than not.

 

[mendez4047]

Just an update. I purchased a Taylor test Kit. It has been 5 days since I used the Bio Active Acid Reducer. So far nothing has changed. My tests still show CYA levels over 100ppm. I will go to the pool store to get my water tested to see what they come up with and I will compare their numbers to my numbers.

 

[jblizzle]

Use the diluted method to test the high CYA as described in the Extended Test Instructions. Forget about pool store testing.

 

[mendez4047]

Diluted method resulted in a CYA level of 200. I'll update again in 5 days as the manufacturer states it will work for 10 days.

 

[Richard320]

::watching

 

[JamesW]

I would suggest doing a daily CC test. One of the intermediary products described in the literature is ammonia. Therefore, if the product is working, I would think that there would be some increase in CC levels.

 

[mendez4047]

Today is day 8 of using Bio-Active cyanuric acid reducer. My personal readings show 200ppm and the pool store shows 140ppm. Absolutely zero decrease in CYA levels since I started.

I'm going to get ready to drain my pool. Doesn't look like this stuff is going to do magic in 2 more days.

 

[JasonLion]

mendez4047, how are you doing the CYA test?

We really only believe in the black dot based CYA test, and for high CYA levels it needs to be done with enough dilution to make sure it isn't maxing out, as it will report anything over 100 as 100.

 

[mendez4047]

I use the diluted method 50% pool water, 50% tap water, then multiply my results by 2. I'm at 100 ppm when the black dot disappears. 100 x 2 = 200 ppm

 

[mendez4047]

I've also done the diluted method at 25% pool water with 75% tap water, then multiply it by 4. I get the same results.

 

[JasonLion]

I've also done the diluted method at 25% pool water with 75% tap water, then multiply it by 4. I get the same results.

That is the important one. Using 1:1 and getting 100*2 means it could be way higher. But using 1:3 and getting 50*4 confirms that it really is 200.