- May 3, 2014
- 58,562
- Pool Size
- 6000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
FC is FC. CC is CC. You do not need to record CC unless you wish to track it. You must enable that Poolmath settings.
My TF-Pro Test Kit review + Results
- Thread starter bbillingsley1985
- Start date
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,800
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Hit the gear 
icon
Scroll down to track combined & toggle it on
Then your + add log page should look like this
iconScroll down to track combined & toggle it on
Then your + add log page should look like this
Just an FYI- as another example of why pool store testing is usually poor is they combine FC & CC and call that "Total Chlorine" or TC. Who can tell if the water has zero FC and nothing but CCs with a TC report? Useless.
So we like exact numbers to know what we're dealing with.
So we like exact numbers to know what we're dealing with.
Figured I'd throw out 1 more review. With the installation of my swg, I bought the K-1766 Test Kit. I'll now add my thoughts on that.
One question I had just because I like to make myself feel bad is, if I'd of spent $20 more for the TF Pro Salt vs the TF Pro that I got originally (didn't think I was going to go salt at the time or I would of obviously bought it then), is the case altered to fit the 2 salt reagents in there, or would I have just got the exact same TF Pro kit and then the smaller blue box that the K-1766 stuff comes in. I'm a little bummed that I don't have 2 more little spots in the TF Pro case (which I love) for the 2 salt reagents. They will however fit in that netting area. I'm just curious if the TF Pro Salt has those cutouts or if its just the regular TF Pro + the blue box that the k-1766 stuff comes in.
As far as the test goes, pretty straightforward with the magnetic stirrer. It was slightly confusing to me to tell tell the difference between the milky brick red vs the brown (indicating you had gone too far). It kind of went yellowish, yellowish, yellowish, maybe a slight color variation, then brown. I ran the test twice and the first 15 drops was milky yellowish. On the 16th drop, maybe slightly less yellowish turning towards red, then 17th drop brown. 18, 19, 20 same brown. So I guess I could say pretty confidentally that its somewhere between the 3200 and 3400 range. My target was the 3200 so I'm pretty close. The hayward aquarite reads 3000-3100 so if it is 3400 in actuality, I wonder if that's reasonable that the swg would be I guess up to 300 off.....probably not a big deal.
From my experience, though not an exact science because of the color variations, I'd say you can feel confident that you can definitely be within 200 ppm of what your actual salt is, which is all you really need. Absolutely beats the heck out of 500 variation test strips.
One question I had just because I like to make myself feel bad is, if I'd of spent $20 more for the TF Pro Salt vs the TF Pro that I got originally (didn't think I was going to go salt at the time or I would of obviously bought it then), is the case altered to fit the 2 salt reagents in there, or would I have just got the exact same TF Pro kit and then the smaller blue box that the K-1766 stuff comes in. I'm a little bummed that I don't have 2 more little spots in the TF Pro case (which I love) for the 2 salt reagents. They will however fit in that netting area. I'm just curious if the TF Pro Salt has those cutouts or if its just the regular TF Pro + the blue box that the k-1766 stuff comes in.
As far as the test goes, pretty straightforward with the magnetic stirrer. It was slightly confusing to me to tell tell the difference between the milky brick red vs the brown (indicating you had gone too far). It kind of went yellowish, yellowish, yellowish, maybe a slight color variation, then brown. I ran the test twice and the first 15 drops was milky yellowish. On the 16th drop, maybe slightly less yellowish turning towards red, then 17th drop brown. 18, 19, 20 same brown. So I guess I could say pretty confidentally that its somewhere between the 3200 and 3400 range. My target was the 3200 so I'm pretty close. The hayward aquarite reads 3000-3100 so if it is 3400 in actuality, I wonder if that's reasonable that the swg would be I guess up to 300 off.....probably not a big deal.
From my experience, though not an exact science because of the color variations, I'd say you can feel confident that you can definitely be within 200 ppm of what your actual salt is, which is all you really need. Absolutely beats the heck out of 500 variation test strips.
- May 3, 2014
- 58,562
- Pool Size
- 6000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
The salt reagent bottles sit inside the two test vials. At least they do in the TFPRO Salt.
DrewLG
Gold Supporter
Each bottle of CYA reagent is only good for like half a dozen tests, so by the time you've done 12 CYA tests, you'll have two empty holes in the foam.
They'll probably be bigger than you need for the salt reagents, but still.
Also, if you use only the FAS-DPD test to measure chlorine, you can throw out the R-0600 that the comparator-block test uses. That'll give you a hole appropriately sized for a small reagent bottle or a SampleSizer.
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Yeah I was a little dissapointed that there weren't dedicated spots for the salt bottles. Not a huge deal.
Also, I splurged for the pH meter and I don't think I will ever use it. I'm not sure I trust the results and am worried about when it needs to be recalibrated. Also, it does take around 30 seconds to stablize.
I moved my salt test vials over to the right hand side, then put the R-003 reagent inside the FC test vial (since its used for that test) and the R-0014 reagent into the other vial. Just seems to make more sense to me since the tests I do most often are all on that left side. I also keep my DPD powder in a small tupperware container to help keep it dry.
Oh ... in case anyone wonders--> the big thing in the back of the kit is an instant read thermometer. As soon as I scoop the water for testing out of the pool I slap that into the mug of water. Not as fancy as others automatic thermometers, but works fine for low tech me 
In addition to my own pool and hot tub, I've now used this test kit to help out 5-10 friends and neighbors. Every single one of them has complimented the Pro Test Kit. I bet I look like a bad A** carrying it over there like a surgeon carrying over his tools . Every one of them were going to pool stores and some had all kinds of pool store potions stored with their stuff. Had to of spent hundreds on them.
Helped them all with various issues. One hot tub using the chlorinating granules had a sky high cya. Luckily with a hot tub I told him to drain it and referred him to the hot tub stickied post about what I started following which is basically add enough of the granules until your cya hits 30-40 and then exclusively use the liquid chlorine. My hot tub has been sparkling since I stumbled on that and his has been too.
Helped another neighbor who had very low cya and the calcium hardness was through the roof. He uses the same water I use and also has a vinyl liner pool so I asked how is your CH so high? My CH is around 150. Why was his higher? Pool store advice. In the beginning they talked about what a huge deal it was that his CH was low so he had been adding a bunch of calcium to the pool due to pool store tests and advice
. Another guy's wife was pretty upset because green bathing suits and hair....already knew the answer to that one. They had a bunch of the good ole clorox copper based algacide. Saw so many clorox products among other's supplies (probably since walmart sells a lot of them).
A couple others just wanted peace of mind that their levels were ok. As you guys know, when you compare these real tests to some of the test strips, they aren't even on the same planet. As an example, one neighbor's cya in a chlorine pool (using tablets) was already 80, but his test strips were showing low stabilizer. Went to the pool store and they were very happy to sell him some stabilizer. Luckily he hadn't used it yet. Gave him the spiel about using the liquid chlorine and told him to use it the rest of this year and then when closing the pool/draining a portion of it, by next season the cya will probably be close to within levels.
Referred all of them to this site and tried to tell them what I've learned so far (and still have a lot to learn). One friend has already bought the pro test kit and I think some of the others will eventually too. No real point to this post I guess, other than just noting that this test kit has received A LOT of compliments and my one test kit has helped myself with a pool and hot tub and probably ~10 other pools and hot tubs.
. Every one of them were going to pool stores and some had all kinds of pool store potions stored with their stuff. Had to of spent hundreds on them.Helped them all with various issues. One hot tub using the chlorinating granules had a sky high cya. Luckily with a hot tub I told him to drain it and referred him to the hot tub stickied post about what I started following which is basically add enough of the granules until your cya hits 30-40 and then exclusively use the liquid chlorine. My hot tub has been sparkling since I stumbled on that and his has been too.
Helped another neighbor who had very low cya and the calcium hardness was through the roof. He uses the same water I use and also has a vinyl liner pool so I asked how is your CH so high? My CH is around 150. Why was his higher? Pool store advice. In the beginning they talked about what a huge deal it was that his CH was low so he had been adding a bunch of calcium to the pool due to pool store tests and advice
. Another guy's wife was pretty upset because green bathing suits and hair....already knew the answer to that one. They had a bunch of the good ole clorox copper based algacide. Saw so many clorox products among other's supplies (probably since walmart sells a lot of them).A couple others just wanted peace of mind that their levels were ok. As you guys know, when you compare these real tests to some of the test strips, they aren't even on the same planet. As an example, one neighbor's cya in a chlorine pool (using tablets) was already 80, but his test strips were showing low stabilizer. Went to the pool store and they were very happy to sell him some stabilizer. Luckily he hadn't used it yet. Gave him the spiel about using the liquid chlorine and told him to use it the rest of this year and then when closing the pool/draining a portion of it, by next season the cya will probably be close to within levels.
Referred all of them to this site and tried to tell them what I've learned so far (and still have a lot to learn). One friend has already bought the pro test kit and I think some of the others will eventually too. No real point to this post I guess, other than just noting that this test kit has received A LOT of compliments and my one test kit has helped myself with a pool and hot tub and probably ~10 other pools and hot tubs.
I love this stage in everyone's journey.
You'll lay in bed wondering what the PH of the sky is.
We knew you'd love the kit, thanks for trusting us to get one. We, and now you, can walk anyone through anything pool chemistry related, anywhere in the world with its results. Obviously someone in Europe would just be reporting their #s, but with you both on the same page, BOOM, international pool pro.
You'll lay in bed wondering what the PH of the sky is.
We knew you'd love the kit, thanks for trusting us to get one. We, and now you, can walk anyone through anything pool chemistry related, anywhere in the world with its results. Obviously someone in Europe would just be reporting their #s, but with you both on the same page, BOOM, international pool pro.
My wife already makes fun of me because I'm now so tuned in to pool chemistry and things concerning pools. I've always been technical minded and enjoy knowing how things work and learning about it. Definitely neat to see me going from knowing absolutely nothing about it in 2021 when the pool was built and knowing what I know now. I joke that I have trust issues with other people/companies doing things and it still just amazes me what the supposed "experts" in pool companies and pool contractors recommend and do to pools. I get it that pool chemistry doesn't interest some people and they're busy etc. but I wish everyone would spend just a little time reading through this site. The basics really are pretty simple and its a win win.....completely free advice and you gain the knowledge, thus saving yourself literally $100's of dollars per year compared to wasting money on pool store potions.I love this stage in everyone's journey.
View attachment 447308
You'll lay in bed wondering what the PH of the sky is.
We knew you'd love the kit, thanks for trusting us to get one. We, and now you, can walk anyone through anything pool chemistry related, anywhere in the world with its results. Obviously someone in Europe would just be reporting their #s, but with you both on the same page, BOOM, international pool pro.
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,800
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Pro Tip * Always request extra business cards when ordering reagents from tftestkits- I give them to everyone that I have used my kit to test their pool or who asks me questions about pools. I have also thought about leaving them on cars in the parking lot when I make my few runs per season to the local pool store for liquid chlorine. Haven’t gotten up the nerve yet
Thread's getting kinda old, but I thought I'd add my only bit of feedback on the TF-Pro Salt kit. I'd love a version of the waterproof laminated card that included the salt test instructions. I don't test it too often, but I have to go find the TFP page for it every time. Otherwise I'm pretty happy with the kit.
Oh maybe one other thing I want to get. A test tube with easy to read label that also doesn't wear off in a month or so. My chlorine tube is fading quickly, good thing I have another arriving soon. The stirrer came with a nice tube with raised labels but they're clear. My old eyes are getting worse at seeing such details, LOL.
I have some new goodies coming from TFTestKits today, in fact. Needed to use the credit I got from donating to TFP. One thing I did order was the PH tester. I guess I'll find out soon what I think; the phenol PH test is easy, but still takes a minute, and I never feel like I get a perfect match with the colors on the scale. My pool has a very steady TA & PH, but my hot tub is constantly going pink on PH every few days. Probably all that aeration. Since I test it often, I thought the electronic tester would be easier. I need to add a muriatic acid drip line...
Oh maybe one other thing I want to get. A test tube with easy to read label that also doesn't wear off in a month or so. My chlorine tube is fading quickly, good thing I have another arriving soon. The stirrer came with a nice tube with raised labels but they're clear. My old eyes are getting worse at seeing such details, LOL.
I have some new goodies coming from TFTestKits today, in fact. Needed to use the credit I got from donating to TFP
. One thing I did order was the PH tester. I guess I'll find out soon what I think; the phenol PH test is easy, but still takes a minute, and I never feel like I get a perfect match with the colors on the scale. My pool has a very steady TA & PH, but my hot tub is constantly going pink on PH every few days. Probably all that aeration. Since I test it often, I thought the electronic tester would be easier. I need to add a muriatic acid drip line...
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,800
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
I always have the same issue with the test tubes but reading your post made me realize I already have the fix - time to bust out the label maker! A clear label withThread's getting kinda old, but I thought I'd add my only bit of feedback on the TF-Pro Salt kit. I'd love a version of the waterproof laminated card that included the salt test instructions. I don't test it too often, but I have to go find the TFP page for it every time. Otherwise I'm pretty happy with the kit.
Oh maybe one other thing I want to get. A test tube with easy to read label that also doesn't wear off in a month or so. My chlorine tube is fading quickly, good thing I have another arriving soon. The stirrer came with a nice tube with raised labels but they're clear. My old eyes are getting worse at seeing such details, LOL.
I have some new goodies coming from TFTestKits today, in fact. Needed to use the credit I got from donating to TFP
( ——— 10ml) ought to do the trick to mark the line. I thought maybe it was just me & perhaps my sunscreen or something being on my wet hands that caused the writing to smear.
Hi rootusrootus,Thread's getting kinda old, but I thought I'd add my only bit of feedback on the TF-Pro Salt kit. I'd love a version of the waterproof laminated card that included the salt test instructions. I don't test it too often, but I have to go find the TFP page for it every time. Otherwise I'm pretty happy with the kit.
Oh maybe one other thing I want to get. A test tube with easy to read label that also doesn't wear off in a month or so. My chlorine tube is fading quickly, good thing I have another arriving soon. The stirrer came with a nice tube with raised labels but they're clear. My old eyes are getting worse at seeing such details, LOL.
I have some new goodies coming from TFTestKits today, in fact. Needed to use the credit I got from donating to TFP
Feedback on our kit is always appreciated so thank you for taking the time to post! The chlorine-only cylinders certainly can take a beating from repetitive use, so we advise users to fill a primary container (empty soda bottle) with pool water first, then pour into the cylinders. Rinse and let air dry to be as gentle as possible. We are also exploring options for a more durable ink in future cylinders.
If you have any questions about the pH meter please contact us at [email protected] or send us a PM.
Nate @ TFtestkits