Newbie with cloudy pool - Test results are here

Rocks have been bleached and pressure washed. I think we went a little too crazy with pressure washing. I don't think the rocks liked it Oh well. :-|

Anyway the pool that I "clarified" so lovingly over the past week is murky again. I should have done this in the beginning of the SLAM, I guess. You live and learn, I suppose.

Good news is, after about an hour of this bath and scrub, FC doesn't seem to have fallen too much (only 0.5) and there's hardly any CC. Keeping my fingers crossed!

Thank you all. Your support means a lot!!
 
Well the water is clear and beautiful, no CC either.
BUT the OCLT pass was a false alarm :( I rechecked at 8am (first test was 6:30) and FC had fallen 4 ppm! I must have tested wrong in the morning. I re-tested again and got the same result. I am so bummed.
It is cloudy this morning. Some rain might have fallen through the night. Could that have messed with the results?
The forecast is for thunderstorms through the weekend. Can I hope to pass the OCLT through the rain?
Thanks.
 
You can still pass an OCLT during rains, but sometimes rain can have a little bit of FC demand. Theoretically, rain should have no affect on FC demand, but as it falls, it can pick up particulates from the air or it may wash/splash in some material from the surrounding decking area that can have organics which will consume FC. Good luck and stick with it, you're almost there!
 

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Hey guys,
Just wanted to update you all that the SLAM is complete! It has been raining non-stop but hopefully tomorrow it will be dry enough to get back in.

I read somewhere that at high FC levels, pH test results are unpredictable. At what level can I test pH? Now that the pool is clear I hope to bring the rest of the chemicals back in balance too.

A question: How often do you guys buy your reagent refills? I just got the R0871 two weeks ago and with the SLAM it's almost 3/4 gone!

Once all chemicals are in order, I also need to think about the staining in the pool plaster. I have a bunch of little rust colored stains that responded to vit C tablets but I also have green/blackish stains that I think are copper stains so according to my research I can't treat the entire pool with AA. Anyhow, I'll eventually get to that later.

That's it for the updates. :) Thanks all!
 
Check the extended test kit directions in the fourm... From: JasonLion "High FC levels will throw off the test results. The Taylor pH reagent is compensated up to an FC level of 10. When FC is beween 10 and 20 the test will read higher than actual, the reading will be off by more at higher the FC levels. At FC levels somewhat above 20 the phenol red converts to chlorphenol red and will read as 8.2 at any plausible pH level."

 
Hey guys,
Just wanted to update you all that the SLAM is complete! It has been raining non-stop but hopefully tomorrow it will be dry enough to get back in.

I read somewhere that at high FC levels, pH test results are unpredictable. At what level can I test pH? Now that the pool is clear I hope to bring the rest of the chemicals back in balance too.

A question: How often do you guys buy your reagent refills? I just got the R0871 two weeks ago and with the SLAM it's almost 3/4 gone!

Once all chemicals are in order, I also need to think about the staining in the pool plaster. I have a bunch of little rust colored stains that responded to vit C tablets but I also have green/blackish stains that I think are copper stains so according to my research I can't treat the entire pool with AA. Anyhow, I'll eventually get to that later.

That's it for the updates. :) Thanks all!

Congrats Calgirl on the OCLT pass. :whoot:

As far as the high FC causing an inaccurate pH reading, that is correct. :) The pH will not read correctly when the FC is >10ppm, so once your Fc is below that you can accurately check the pH, and adjust as needed.

You do tend to use a significant amount of reagents during a SLAM. You might want to order more now so you don't run out, but these should last you good while since you're not having to test as often.

When you get ready to tackle the stains just holler back, and someone will be glad to help you.

Congrats again on passing the OCLT, and have a wonderful night. :)
 
Good morning,
I have come back to my original thread :)

So after the SLAM, these are the test results this morning:
FC 7
CC 0
pH 7.8
TA 90
CH 70 (yesterday it showed as 60)
CYA 45 (dot disappears between 40 and 50)

Pre-SLAM older results from 10/9/2015 (beginning of this thread)
FC 7.5
CC 1
pH 7.6
TA 100
CYA 100
CH 110

Before the SLAM, I drained about a third of the pool and refilled to bring CYA down. Also the last couple of weeks it has rained a lot and I've had to drain the pool because it was about to overflow. So I'm guessing that's why my CH has gone down?

Could you please tell me what's a good source of Calcium chloride to bring up the CH?

Thanks as always!
 
Could you please tell me what's a good source of Calcium chloride to bring up the CH?

Thanks as always!
Calcium chloride or calcium chloride dihydrate. You will probably have to get it at the Pool Store, I doubt places like Home Depot will have it in Texas, I know here it's only sold at hardware stores in the winter months.

Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals

As always make sure you use pool math! Nice job on the slam and getting your CYA down :testkit:
 
Ok, so correct me if I'm wrong but for a 20k gallon pool, to go from 70 to 250ppm CH, I need about 35 pounds of calcium chloride?
On amazon I found 25 lb tub of calcium chloride for $44 (incl. shipping). Is this a good price?
 
OK so the calcium is here! I have to add about 35 lb to increase calcium 200 ppm. What is the best dosage? (I know I'm supposed to mix it in a bucket of water and pour all around the perimeter)

The bag of the stuff says no more than 10 lb every 2 hours for a 10,000 gallon pool. So if my pool is 20,000 gallons, can I do 20 lb every two hours? I called the pool store to find about their price for calcium and the guy said to add no more than 5 lbs per day.
So which is it?

Thanks :)
 

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