K, so I got my tax return and bought a Circupool Core 35 swg. Self installed it and now Dialing it in. With the SWG @ 25% it’s holding @ 5 FC. Pump is running 24/7 @ 40 gph, 1750 watts. Is that too much? Would it be better to run pump less, like 12 hrs, and bump SWG to 50%? Would that save wear and tear on the pump? And is that the correct amount to bump the SWG to get the same chlorination result? SWG is preset to only do 25, 50, 75, or 100% increments. Thanks for any guidance u can give me!

Hi,

Looking for help, just had a new Jandy JXI heater installed and cannot work out if it can be programmed to a schedule, starting to think that it can’t be on its own.

My old Jandy Lite2 was simple and you could select a daily schedule for the pump to run and it would heat when required during this time. The new unit just seems to be on or off and if I want the pump to stop running I have to kill the power at the wall.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

How do you test for metal? Cooper from algicide, in particular.

Hello, I have 6 SR Smith pool lights. One of the lights consistently is a different color than the other 5 pool lights. It is always the same light that shows a different color. Could this be due to a defective light (bad LED) or is it more likely an issue with the communication between the controller (Hayward Omnilogic) and the light?

Hi,

The catch tank of our wet edge / infinity edge pool just has a plain plain troweled or brushed concrete finish and we are constantly having green algae appear on the walls below the water level.
The main pool is coated in pebblecrete and does not seem to have any problems.
The chemical balance / chlorine levels have been well maintained for the last couple of years thanks to TFP and a good test kit. There is no combined chlorine and free chlorine levels are good at 5 or 6 - sometimes higher - but if the catch tank is not scrubbed weekly algae will inevitably appear, even in the depths of winter (which isn't that cold in Sydney, Australia).
We did have some serious algae problems a few years ago due to a bunch of problems that have all been sorted, I think, and we had a final long SLAM to sort it out.

I wonder if algae has gotten deep into the "raw" concrete and is now impossible to shift?
Do we need to drain the catch tank and attack it some other way. Acid wash? Algecide? Paint the catch tank?
Any thoughts or solutions gratefully accepted.

50,000 liter pool.
oversized SWG
Pebblecrete finish on pool
Plain / brushed concrete in catch tank





Thanks.

Chris

Hi Everyone,

It's been a little while since I posted on here. I did an OB back in 2017 and met a lot of great people through this forum. I am now doing another OB, this time on my own without the help of BYOP. I was able to find a draftsman and engineering company to do all of my plans.

Here is where I am stuck. My excavator left the business, and I really do not want to buy equipment thru BYOP again as last time I discovered after the fact that they price gouged terribly. Does anyone have any recommendations for Excavators in Phoenix, AZ Area and Equipment companies?

Thanks in advance

-Matt

Hello all ~ I have some bleach left in my Stenner tank that i need to use up before its nothing but water. Can I dose from the Stenner while still producing via my IC60, that is, both dosing at the same time? Any danger in doing so?

TIA

Hello my friends. Like many of you, I'm working to get my water in shape for summer.

lately when I perform my chlorine drop tests, the red disappears but the water is very cloudy. It didnt used to appear so cloudy. Any cause for concern? I will say my salt levels for my SWG are kind of high, not sure if that could be it.

Robot is 4 years old. I have cleaned impeller, tracks/brushes appear clear. I have tried unplugging, restarting upside down out of water with no luck. Any advice?

Hi. I'm planning on buying my first pool ever; INTEX 26711EH As you can see I'm on a budget.
I don't like chlorine pools much, so I thought I would buy a saltwater chlorinator system and add it to the pool. I'm considering INTEX 26661EG QS200. I see I need a sand filter to go with that. Maybe Bestway Flowclear or BLUBERY 13".

Am I on the right track? Would I be better off with a kit that includes multiple items, if that exits?

My plan is to build a level pad and have the pool rest on a 2" top layer of pea gravel. Is that acceptable?

What am I missing? Thanks

Now that everything is up and running, I'd like to enquire those who run the Pentair system how they have their automation setup.
I am looking for what people (in the south, like TX/OK) are running for schedules. Right now I have the pool run for 3 hours, spa for an hour, then pool for 3 hours with the SWCG running about 45% and the chlorine levels stay in check.. RPM is 2500/3000/2500 With that said..

Does anyone run at night to take advantage of less energy costs?
I feel the RPMs I am running are too high, and can be optimized..
When to run during the day and how long?

I am really looking for an optimal schedule to keep levels in check and the pool sparkling.. Most swimming is done after lunch to early evening..
I have read that some people run high speed in early AM to skim and run the bot, followed by low speed for filtering and then a med speed for enjoyment
Id like to take advantage of the VSF pump the way it was supposed to be used.. the previous owner ran it 24 hours a day at 2750 RPMs.. No clue why, but a huge waste of $$
Appreciated in advance

How do I change 2 of the 6 buttons on my spaside remote?

Hi all,
Tried to fire up the heater and got an ERR PS message on the lcd screen. Backwashed the filter and that solved the problem, heater fired up. However, it got me thinking about the heater pressure switch. It’s roughly 13 years old and I’m trying to determine whether it’s still functioning properly or if it needs to adjusted/replaced. Thanks, as always for the replies.

Hello, TFPers. Long time, no post. Yesterday I ran into a situation and I wanted to run it by a few of you folks that understand this deep-end chemical stuff better than this amateur.

I was late opening the pool this year and had to SLAM it to deal with the algae. All was looking great recently. The water was crystal clear and looked great. Turned the heater on and brought the temperature up to wifey-warm-enough. This weekend was the final vacuum-to-waste to clear the dead algae collected on the bottom.

Friday's test results:



The test results above were in line with the results of my TF-100 test kit.

Following the vacuuming, I added a 22 kg bag of salt, a bottle of instant stabilizer, 4 kg of calcium (1 kg at a time mixed in a 5-gallon bucket and poured directly into the pool), and 650 ml of 31.45% muriatic acid. I then decided to add some algaecide (something I don't normally do) to ward off the little buggers. Admittedly I didn't measure and definitely poured too much in. The instructions were an initial dose of 135 ml per 10,000 litres, so 130,000 litres would need 1755 ml. As near as I can tell, I used about 2400-2666 ml or about 30%-33% of the 8L jug. No worries, I thought, it'll dissipate and be gone in a few weeks anyway. Then the SWG kicked in and now I get a white cloud out of the return jets whenever it runs. There is also a smell that is similar to chlorine but my wife described it as "soapy". The cloud disappears but the water definitely is not as clear and shiny as it was on Saturday.

The algaecide used:



My initial research was on algaecide and SWG chlorination. One article I read had a vague statement, "Algaecides can produce harmful chemical reactions if they are mixed in with high chlorine level pool water". My thought at this point is that when the cell generates the chlorine there is a localized high concentration of chlorine within the cell. Rather than going to Facebook for advice (just kidding), I asked a certain popular AI to spill the beans on whether (it thought) the statement was accurate and what the specific chemical reactions were, because that would be more helpful.

Here's the response - colour was added by me to highlight the text specific to this particular algaecide.

The specific chemical reactions depend on the type of algaecide and the existing chemicals in the pool, but the quote is essentially correct. Some algaecides may react with chlorine to produce potentially harmful byproducts.

Pool algaecides typically contain various compounds, such as copper-based chemicals (like copper sulfate), quaternary ammonium compounds (quats), or polymeric biguanides. The reactions of these algaecides with chlorine can be complex and not entirely predictable.

Here's a simplified explanation for some potential reactions:

1. Copper-based algaecides and chlorine: Copper can react with chlorine to form copper chloride. In large concentrations, copper chloride can cause staining on pool surfaces and lead to green-colored water. Moreover, it may cause eye, skin, and respiratory irritations in people.
2. Quaternary ammonium compounds and chlorine: Quats can react with chlorine to form chloramines, which are responsible for the "chlorine smell" often associated with pools. They can cause eye and skin irritation and respiratory problems.
3. Polymeric biguanides and chlorine: Biguanides don't typically react directly with chlorine. However, biguanides and chlorine are incompatible as sanitizers. If mixed, they can cause water cloudiness and may leave a residue on pool surfaces.

Click to expand...

A test performed today with my TF-100 test kit indicates a TC reading of 3.5 and CC of 0.5, which seems to support the possibility of the formation of chloramines through this reaction.

So, in search of truth and true intelligence on such matters, I of course turn to the TFP community and its resident experts. A search of the forums turned up a few threads like this old thread from 2010 with no mention of algaecide at all, this one from 2013 and this one from a month ago. None of which though, tie the cloudy exhaust with this chemical reaction forming chloramines. All of this leads me to humbly ask you, experts, "Is this really what's going on?" Ammonium compounds are reacting with the momentarily high chlorine levels within the salt cell and produce chloramines as a result which are seen as a cloudy exhaust from the jets until it is dissipated within the expanse of the pool. And if not, what would explain the sudden rise in combined chlorine levels?

I anticipate this will resolve itself as the algaecide subsides and so it's just a matter of time but in the meantime, I'd appreciate any insight anyone might have on this subject.

Kind regards,
Hubbs

So I've got my new build complete and filled. I have all levels in an acceptable range. I'm going slow at establishing my CYA count to be safe. While playing with the pool math app I noticed that the less CYA is less FC needed. The higher CYA count needs a higher FC. My question is why wouldn't I want a lower number CYA and use less chlorine?

I’m a little frustrated so far but writing to see if maybe this is normal. Getting tired of my family saying “why is the pool still cold didn’t we get a heater?!”

Yesterday the pool started at 62.8. It was in the 70s all day and my pool gets a lot of shade during the day. Only an hour or two is direct sun. Running the pump from 9am to about 10pm, I was up from 62.8 to 69. I lost a degree or two over night. Today it’s in the 80s but a bit cloudy. Pump turned on around 8am (starting at likely about 68). It’s now 2pm and I’m up to just about 72. 6 hours for 4 degree on a pretty warm day.

Feeling the return with my hand the water is generally only slightly warmer than the overall pool temp. It’s subtle for sure.

Does this seem like normal electric heat pump operation or should I expect a little more out of this thing?

21’ round above ground and heater is Aquacomfort ACT750.
Hayward pump is single speed at about 70gpm.

I am looking for advice for repairing a chunk, that one of my children broke off, on my spa spillover.
I'm hoping I can use an adhesive or something similar to essentially glue it back in place. Namely, what would be the best products and methods for this type of repair.

I've attached two pictures of the stone showing where it is broken, and one picture showing me holding the broken piece against the stone.

I'm not certain, but it appears to be a marble stone slab that is used for the spa spill over.

Thanks!

two days ago, I’m just opening the pool and found my pH low (using a Taylor big kit):
FC:6
PH:7.0
TA 65
CH 250
CYA 75.

Pool Math app suggested 9 pounds of 20 mule team borax. I put in 4 pounds, even though I don’t have borax in my pool. I happen to have an unopened box, so I used it. I have a salt, water, pool and plaster.

Two days later, today:
FC: 1.5
PH: unknown. It looks to be way off the scale, above 8.0. Super dark pink.
TA 65
CH 250
CYA 75.

I tried to find something on the forums that would explain, but I couldn’t. Should I use muriatic acid to bring it down?

Thanks for the help.

Will the same plug fit either controller? If not is there an adapter available?

Our home is White Stucco (Snowbound SW) and I'm having a really hard time decided what travertine to do for the decking because they all have so much beige and tan in them. We were originally going to to do limestone Shellstone but it is almost blinding in the sun and worried about stains with the small kiddos.

Does anyone have a recommendation on what would look good? Or pictures you could share if you have a white house?

Hi all. Season 7 opening our inherited pool, experiencing a new challenge. Our robot has been picking up DE with each clean (see pic for typical amount). I've done about 20-3 hour cleaning cycles since opening the pool a few weeks ago. DE pickup has been fairly consistent. Decided to do some testing and turned off the pump for ~18 hours and let the robot run. By last clean, there was very little DE in the filter.

Well I turned the pump back on this morning, and there was a ton of air in the system, and I was able to see dark (presumably DE filled) water entering the pool via the returns. I guess I had never noticed before because our pump is on a timer and starts at times I'm either not home or typically outside. I've manually started the pump closer to the previous shutoff time (~4 hrs) and observed some bubbles coming out of the returns, but not visible DE like this morning.

I'm assuming this means I have at minimum, an air leak. Suction side? Is this likely my only problem? The only thing different at startup this year was an attempt to fix the o-ring on my air relief valve. I will admit I don't know if I replaced correctly as the o-ring was completed broken, stuck in the valve. Could this be the cause? I have another valve on the way to either compare to or entirely replace my current one.

Any other things I should be checking? No other obvious plumbing leaks that I can see. Any suggestions on how to avoid what happened this morning until the new valve comes, other than running pump constantly or not at all?

Appreciate any guidance!

my newish pump 2 years old was making weird noises since start of the season, now its not pulling in any water no pressure on the filter. Skimmer baskets are clear. Any ideas?

Plan is to remove existing material with dremmel and or small angle grinder, then replace with Sakrete mortar mix while avoiding doing damage to anything. Probably 10% of the stone joints need redone.
Should I be using a different material?
Thanks in advance for any comments.

I put together all of my PVC and hoses. Found one leak that I have since fixed with an added gasket. And now I still have this leak. In the picture, you’ll see that I have an arrow pointed at this threaded fitting at the top of the tee.

It absolutely refused to not leak, so I used the same PVC primer and cement that I used on the slip fittings, but there is still a leak. At this point, is there anything I can do to stop the leak?

So I have a 12K pool with a SPA that spills over into the pool (via 3 spill ways). I run the pump about 7 hours a day to do a full cycle of the water. what seems to be happening is during the night over time, the spa level drops about 5-6 inches after the pump shuts off, but no more than that.. Pumps turns back on in the AM and SPA fills back up to spill ways. Pool level does not change over night, remains constant overnight.

I am thinking leak, but the spa only drains a certain amount then stops.. which if there was a leak, I would imagine it would continue to leak.. with that being said, without the pool mister on, the pool water does go down over a few days when the spa gets filled back up in the AM when the pump kicks in..

My first guess would be to have the spa return vents checked.. but then again, the water level stops at some point (jets are still a few inches under water as well)

Any thoughts? Appreciated as I am looking for some feedback before I call in someone to look at it

Just reviving this stagnant thread.

For clarification, I can simply swap my Quad DE 80 cartridges for CCP420 (seems to be same size) ones and I’ll no longer have to use DE?

@1poolman1 you mentioned you’ve done with before…. What modifications did you need to make, if any? I saw you mention 1” manifold pipe.

Not that I’ve had any issues with our quad DE (been running great for 3 years!), I’m just looking to have replacement cartridges in hand and this thread caught my eye (anytime I can still have TFP clear water with less chemicals or filter media, I’m in!).

Moved from here.

We are new pool owners and an AquaSmarte system came with our package. After reading all the info here on TFP we now use liquid chlorine instead of the AquaSmarte so we don’t end up with a CYA issue. If I use the AquaSmarte while on vacation for 7 days, should I also super chlorinate before we leave or get a floater with extra tabs to be sure my FC levels don’t get too low while we’re gone? We run our pump on low speed 24x7 and we plan to leave it on, but will turn our heater off that week. I do plan to have someone come check my skimmer basket and water levels every other day, but they aren’t pool people, so aren’t familiar with testing and adjusting chemicals. Also, am I missing any other steps I should take to prepare? I appreciate any advice!

I was amping up my FC before adding salt to the pool, in anticipation of having to keep my swg off for 24 hours, so I had my swg at 100%.

I thought I had turned my swg down to 0% before I added 80 lbs of salt, but after looking at it after about 7 hours, my swg was still at 100%. Did I ruin it? What are the consequences? My Pentair salt ppm on the app is still reading what it was prior to adding salt, but my standalone meter reads what it should be reading (500 ppm higher)

Hello. Info first, trouble second maybe? Pool is in ground, plaster, 20,000 gallons, central florida, faces east / west so blasted with sun all day, no screen, hayward vsp pump and cartridge filter, fed with city water.
The issue started with copper staining the bottom of the pool. Used citric acid and was told that chlorine has to be 0 to do so. Got to 0, citric acid worked. In that short time at 0, green algae took over hard. Pool store said blast with chlorine and all will be good. Did so. Green algae went away. Black algae started to appear. Tested the water using the AccuBlue machine and it showed low chlorine so they advised keep putting more in. The black algae only grew larger, now going around the entire pool and 1 ft down.
Yesterday readings: FC 4.67 Total 5.24 pH7.4 Phosphates 3,751 (all other parameters are in line so no need to post)
Used Natural Chemistry Pro supposedly concentrated phos remover. Instructions for my volume and number were to use 8 ounces. Used 16.
Today readings: FC .39 Total .39 pH7.4 Phosphates 3,649 (all other parameters the same as before).
So is there any way possible to figure out what sort of chemical nightmare this is.....or is this doomed to be a skate park?

1st post and hoping someone has experienced this and can help. I went to check on my pump this morning and it was dead, nothing on the screen and no lights. Turned off the power and the breaker and went to remove the control panel and water just poured out when I loosened the screws holding in place. The board is shot, pics attached and also the 6 pin connector coming from the motor that attaches to the display connector on the motherboard looks corroded as well. I found a new display unit.

Here's my main question. Has anyone ever cut and rewired that cable that comes from the pump motor? Ideally I would take a pic of the wire color order and cut off the end and rewire those cables to a new connector, just not sure which connector I need. I found a JST-XH connector that looks similar, but not sure if that's the right one.

I've attached some photos for reference. Your help is appreciated!