Water Balancing

[Tipop]

I just got a new hot tub, and following the famous Dichlor/Bleach method finished the purge today and have slowly been lowering the TA the last few hours. Using a Taylor K-2006 Currently I am at:
TA: 40-50 (Turns Red at 4 drops seems a little Darker at 5 but it may be my eyes fooling me)
Ph: 7.6 (After aeration) *From 110 TA to what it is now from adding 3oz of ph down I did not see a PH drop but TA did go from 110 range to the 40-50 it is now*
CH: 225
CYA: 0 (Not added Sanitizer yet)
FC: 0 (Not added Sanitizer yet)
Not added Borates yet

Before I continue Is my TA too low? It seems to be balanced but also seems lower than others are hovering around and before I get borates to 50ppm I wanted to make sure this seemed accuracte.

 

[Tipop]

I continued to fool around some more while typing this thread up because I double checked and the 40 TA was bothering me, the thread required approval so I probably wouldn't get a reply until the morning and was hard headed and kept going. I added some TA Increaser, It read 70, so put in borates to lock it in then used the app for an initial mild shock.
Added Dichlor to get to 7ppm FC, per the app (.5oz by weight) I think it wasn't quite accurate because I don't think the tub ate 3ppm Chlorine in 4 hours with 0 combined left over. But ran jets for 3-4 hours with the cover open on 15 minute cycles for every 30 minutes then tested everything. This is the result
TA: 70
P.H. 7.4-7.6 (Between 7.2 and 7.4 before aerating, ran jets 15 mins got a solid 7.6)
CH 225
CYA ~5PPM
FC 3.8
CC 0 (didn't turn pink and stayed clear So I guess that means 0)
Slightly over 50 PPM Borates

Before the final fill and balancing I ran 2 ahhsome purges since it had been in their warehouse for a month and the 2nd because the first one was alarming when I saw the green/brown gunk that came out. 2nd purge resulted in clean sudds. Wiped out interior of Tub both times.

I feel it came out pretty well. I learned alot, for example I needed to add alot more acid to decrease the TA at a time because it started ~200. 1/2 oz at a time took far too long and I increased my dosage as I realised I was barely moving the needle after 3 hours, in the end overshot a little. Also 2 drain and fills for purging was overkill and my water bill is going to hate me this month. Time to go to bed and check the FC in the morning to see how much it eats.

 

[Texas Splash]

Welcome to TFP! It appears your numbers are in a pretty good place now. Some things that caught my eye are:
- Try to avoid long term use of dry acid as it adds sulfates that could be problematic over time. Muriatic acid is preferred.
- Do be sure to get the CYA up to at least 30 to help buffer the intensity of the free chlorine against the bathers.
- Don't try to force the pH low. If it settles in the mid to upper 7s that's fine.
- I agree, if the TA falls below 50 it's time to bring it up a little. Baking soda is preferred for that. It's cheap and easy.

Good job on those Ahh-Some purges. Many people make the mistake of skipping that one.

Enjoy the tub.