New to pools downunder please help
- Thread starter fgin
- Start date
Awesome job- PH looking good. How long do you plan on running the pump for now- still need to get that FC up a bit.
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Oh forgot to mention about 1/2hr to an hour after addition before retesting- of course with the pump running
- - - Updated - - -
Oh forgot to mention about 1/2hr to an hour after addition before retesting- of course with the pump running
Thanks guys, it's a relief things are moving towards the brighter side. 
I was going to run the pump overnight but now I might switch it off in a few hours once the CYA sock is well and truly empty. I am guessing there should be enough FC to last till the morning when I will test again. The pump is set to come back on at 8am weekend mornings.
aussieta, I did get in the pool this evening for a bit. It is still a tad cold with the cover off. I might have the solar heat pump on tomorrow and have a dip. Looks like it might be sunny.
I was going to run the pump overnight but now I might switch it off in a few hours once the CYA sock is well and truly empty. I am guessing there should be enough FC to last till the morning when I will test again. The pump is set to come back on at 8am weekend mornings.
aussieta, I did get in the pool this evening for a bit. It is still a tad cold with the cover off. I might have the solar heat pump on tomorrow and have a dip. Looks like it might be sunny.
Good plan. See what your FC is in the morning then you can just readjust the chlorinator. Then to just reduce the TA and check what your CH is at
Ok morning tests done
FC 5 (has gone up from 3ppm, tested 2 hours after pump came on this morning)
CC 0 (remains the same as last evening)
PH 7.4 (remains the same as last evening)
TA 120 (remains the same as last evening)
CH 210 (remains the same as last evening)
CYA not tested. Will wait a few more days and test. Socks are empty now.
Happy to see the figures remain stable. I will add another 500g of calcium chloride today. How long does it usually take for it to register in CH tests ?
Also, should I now go ahead and add more MA to get the TA down ? then aerating to increase the PH.
FC 5 (has gone up from 3ppm, tested 2 hours after pump came on this morning)
CC 0 (remains the same as last evening)
PH 7.4 (remains the same as last evening)
TA 120 (remains the same as last evening)
CH 210 (remains the same as last evening)
CYA not tested. Will wait a few more days and test. Socks are empty now.
Happy to see the figures remain stable. I will add another 500g of calcium chloride today. How long does it usually take for it to register in CH tests ?
Also, should I now go ahead and add more MA to get the TA down ? then aerating to increase the PH.
I would test for CH before adding and get an up to date number since your additions. Maybe consider an FC test in the morning which you have done but do another just before sunset to gauge FC loss relative to your new CYA level and runtime on the pump.
add some more ch each day until you reach your target 350-450
be careful of typo, cc is combined chlorine, ch is calcium
dont stress on the ta, that is a long term project
unless your csi is badly positive, which it isn't, i have you at about -0.4
many people get in a big panic to have it perfect immediatley
if you lower your ta now you will be too negative on your csi
when ph gets to 7.8 drop it to 7.2, eventually it will settle on its own
my pool seems to have settled at 70ta and 7.8ph
be careful of typo, cc is combined chlorine, ch is calcium
dont stress on the ta, that is a long term project
unless your csi is badly positive, which it isn't, i have you at about -0.4
many people get in a big panic to have it perfect immediatley
if you lower your ta now you will be too negative on your csi
when ph gets to 7.8 drop it to 7.2, eventually it will settle on its own
my pool seems to have settled at 70ta and 7.8ph
Sorry fgin I reread your post and realised that you retested for CH. Interesting that there hasn't been any changes but otherwise add some more.
Sorry Jezza i made a typo. Will test again this evening as sun sets.
aussieta No worries. Saw the typo and corrected. I meant (i.e. CH 210)
Im assuming my CYA at about 40 now and pool calc shows by CSI at -0.07 which is 'Balanced'
Will do as you suggested. I will add another 500g of the CaCl2 and jet keep testing regularly.
aussieta No worries. Saw the typo and corrected. I meant (i.e. CH 210)
Im assuming my CYA at about 40 now and pool calc shows by CSI at -0.07 which is 'Balanced'
Will do as you suggested. I will add another 500g of the CaCl2 and jet keep testing regularly.
I haven't measured salt yet. I might have to take a sample to the local clarkrubber outlet and get the salt level tested. My SWG has a low salt indicator LED. Since its not ON, is it safe to assume the salt level is within its range?
Considering my current numbers what would you suggest my short term and long term goals should be ?
Considering my current numbers what would you suggest my short term and long term goals should be ?
hi fgin
short term get at least 50ppm cya and 5 fc
long term keep adjusting your ph until you notice it isnt raising as much
try and get some more ch in there
all in all you are looking pretty sweet now
fyi my target levels i aim for are
fc 8.0
ph 7.8
ta 60
ch 400
cya 70
salt 3000
seems to be holding quite steady
todays readings are
fc 8.5
cc 0
ph 7.6
ta 70
ch 380
cya 80
salt 3000
i just added stabilizer 2 weeks ago which dropped my ph a bit
short term get at least 50ppm cya and 5 fc
long term keep adjusting your ph until you notice it isnt raising as much
try and get some more ch in there
all in all you are looking pretty sweet now
fyi my target levels i aim for are
fc 8.0
ph 7.8
ta 60
ch 400
cya 70
salt 3000
seems to be holding quite steady
todays readings are
fc 8.5
cc 0
ph 7.6
ta 70
ch 380
cya 80
salt 3000
i just added stabilizer 2 weeks ago which dropped my ph a bit
evening tests done
FC 5 (has remained the same as it was in the morning despite the sunny day with the pump and SWG turned off. As such I am guessing the CYA is kicking in and there is minimal FC loss)
CC 0 (remains the same as the morning)
PH 7.6 (I think its gone up by .2 but not entirely sure since test done indoors, after dark, having said that I did have the solar heater pump on for while which was blowing tiny bubbles which I presume aerated the pool which is the cause of this PH increase)
TA 110 (has dropped by 10 since morning)
CH 230 (has gone up by 20 since morning which is encouraging since I have added 1kg of CaCl2 since yesterday)
CYA 38 (Thought I will go ahead and test it and glad it now registers something)
FC 5 (has remained the same as it was in the morning despite the sunny day with the pump and SWG turned off. As such I am guessing the CYA is kicking in and there is minimal FC loss)
CC 0 (remains the same as the morning)
PH 7.6 (I think its gone up by .2 but not entirely sure since test done indoors, after dark, having said that I did have the solar heater pump on for while which was blowing tiny bubbles which I presume aerated the pool which is the cause of this PH increase)
TA 110 (has dropped by 10 since morning)
CH 230 (has gone up by 20 since morning which is encouraging since I have added 1kg of CaCl2 since yesterday)
CYA 38 (Thought I will go ahead and test it and glad it now registers something)
Just a quick note: The scale on the CYA test is not linear, we usually just report it to the next number. So yours would be 40.
Good work Fgin things are moving along nicely. Just about the salt levels- the recommended salt levels for SWG's varies between makes and models. My Davey SWG recommends between 4500 and 6000. I've looked your model SWG up and yours is simply around 4000, so that should be more or less what your ultimately striving for. If there is no low salt indicator showing, then you can assume that the SWG has enough salt to function without damaging the cell. But yes if you want to calculate your CSI- you need to key in a number. To tell you the truth I have not gotten around to purchasing a salt test in the 2 years I've had my pool, and so have monitored my SWG chlorinator closely so that when the salt level gets low and the warning indicator comes on I simply add a couple of bags of salt straight away- its not the ideal way to do it and soon enough I will get the Taylor salt test. I have used Clarke Rubbers pool testing and I have found their salt number pretty close to what I roughly thought, keeping in mind the optimal range for my SWG. But yes I would strongly suggest getting the Taylors salt test, maybe when you place your next order for some refills for your K2006C.
Your FC indicates that you are in the ballpark for maintaining your chlorine levels at the moment- keeping in mind that hotter temperatures (more sunlight) and bather load will have an impact on FC demand, so you really need to keep the FC testing regime daily in the lead up to summer ( or at least until you can start seeing some patterns about your FC loss relative to these 2 things). Keeping in mind you will probably be adding more stabiliser to bring your CYA level up to the recommended levels for a SWG and reducing loss to sunlight. The most important thing is not letting your FC drop below the minimum for your FC/CYA level.
I would also test and record your PH level level daily to see what's happening, with a TA still high you would expect that this will keep going up but whilst you keep adding acid it will also be bringing down your TA to a level where PH will begin to stabilise.
Your FC indicates that you are in the ballpark for maintaining your chlorine levels at the moment- keeping in mind that hotter temperatures (more sunlight) and bather load will have an impact on FC demand, so you really need to keep the FC testing regime daily in the lead up to summer ( or at least until you can start seeing some patterns about your FC loss relative to these 2 things). Keeping in mind you will probably be adding more stabiliser to bring your CYA level up to the recommended levels for a SWG and reducing loss to sunlight. The most important thing is not letting your FC drop below the minimum for your FC/CYA level.
I would also test and record your PH level level daily to see what's happening, with a TA still high you would expect that this will keep going up but whilst you keep adding acid it will also be bringing down your TA to a level where PH will begin to stabilise.
Hi again Fgin. I was interested in the importance of salt and CSI and I found this from one of the TFP experts and legends Duraleigh. I thought it hit the mark fairly well regarding CSI
'In other words, a CSI that is more negative than .6, which you are not.
Those of you who have read my posts over the years know what's coming next.........
I believe an important principle of BBB is simplicity. The average new forum user comes to this site does not understand many of the very basics of pool water chemistry......i.e. the function of chlorine, normal parameters for pH, CH etc. We should take that into account.
I have successfully maintained my pool (as have thousands of others on this forum) without ever performing a CSI calculation. If you follow the basic guidelines for maintenance and stay within the parameters for pH, TA, FC, CH and CYA that we suggest. You will fall within acceptable results for CSI virtually every time. If there is an exception (that's realistic) I am not aware of it.
I consider CSI a tool that can be helpful for some VERY fine tuning of your pool water or a calculation to let you know what you really already should know from basic testing.....that one or more of your basic parameters is out of whack and needs correction.
Hope that helps! (Sorry Aussieta- I this doesn't come across as having a crack!)
'In other words, a CSI that is more negative than .6, which you are not.
Those of you who have read my posts over the years know what's coming next.........
I believe an important principle of BBB is simplicity. The average new forum user comes to this site does not understand many of the very basics of pool water chemistry......i.e. the function of chlorine, normal parameters for pH, CH etc. We should take that into account.
I have successfully maintained my pool (as have thousands of others on this forum) without ever performing a CSI calculation. If you follow the basic guidelines for maintenance and stay within the parameters for pH, TA, FC, CH and CYA that we suggest. You will fall within acceptable results for CSI virtually every time. If there is an exception (that's realistic) I am not aware of it.
I consider CSI a tool that can be helpful for some VERY fine tuning of your pool water or a calculation to let you know what you really already should know from basic testing.....that one or more of your basic parameters is out of whack and needs correction.
Hope that helps! (Sorry Aussieta- I this doesn't come across as having a crack!)
morning tests done, no pump/SWG since last tested last evening. Pool cover remained opened overnight.
FC 5 (remains the same as last evening)
CC 0 (remains the same)
PH 7.6 (remains the same)
TA 110 (remains the same)
CH not tested
CYA not tested
Thanks for the additional info guys. I will keep it in mind.
The temperature on the pool calc is out side air temp correct?
FC 5 (remains the same as last evening)
CC 0 (remains the same)
PH 7.6 (remains the same)
TA 110 (remains the same)
CH not tested
CYA not tested
Thanks for the additional info guys. I will keep it in mind.
The temperature on the pool calc is out side air temp correct?
No, it is water temp.
CSI becomes a more important factor when managing pools in areas with hard water and high CH levels. There are members here managing pool water with CH 800-1000 ppm. It is important to manage CSI in these cases.
CSI becomes a more important factor when managing pools in areas with hard water and high CH levels. There are members here managing pool water with CH 800-1000 ppm. It is important to manage CSI in these cases.
FC and Ph now looking good Fgin. Now a good time to primarily focus on getting that CH up so I would think about starting at putting in 2kg calcium chloride between CH tests. Pool math still indicates you have a way to go.
Yep, I added another 500g of CaCl2 to increase CH this morning. Will keep doing that for the next few days.