Curiosity Question...

[bagd98rt]

I have a question kind of for some advice and also a little curious about a couple of things.

Here are my levels as of Last Night just in case anyone needs them.

FC - 3.6
pH - 7.6
TA - 120
CH - 160
CYA - 80
Salt - 3300

Ok so what you see as my FC is what the water normally tests at. So i'll usually add chlorine to get it up to around 5.0 as far as how long it lasts as 5.0 has yet to be determined. I really haven't had a chance or time should I say to do constant tests of the water every day. I usually get to test every 2 to no more than 3 days being that I am really busy with work and stuff. I keep my aqua-trol set at 85 and I have a T-5 Salt Cell. So a question I have is with it being set at 85 shouldn't I get a good amount of chlorine out of the SWG to keep it at around at least high 4's or 5's or more? Also is my T-5 Salt Cell the right size for my pool? Now I'm not sure if this has anything to do with it but I run my Pump and Filter 8 hours a day. But it is split between 2 times of the day due to my electric rates. I get free electricity from 7am to 10am and from 7pm to 10pm So due to that I run my pump and filter from 7am to 11am and from 6pm to 10pm... Is that turning over my pool completely or does it need to run for a straight 8hrs or more to turn the pool over completely? Should I Be running the pump and filter more? I know I should probably invest in a larger filter just haven't addressed that yet. Also my pool gets Direct sun from around 9am to 7pm. If anyone has any advice for me I thank you...

 

[needsajet]

Nice to meet you via TFP

I would raise the FC to 8 ppm with chlorinating liquid, and change the timer to run the pump and SWC for 12 hours per day at 100%. The pool is safe for swimming all the way up to 32 ppm FC with 80 ppm CYA in the water, so it's plenty safe doing this. Then, I'd check the FC after 2 or 3 days, and if the FC level climbs, I'd reduce by one hour and check again a few days later. Likewise, if the FC dropped, I would add another hour of pump run time.

Free electricity sounds great!!

 

[Jimrahbe]

b,

I don't see a T-5 cell??? Did you mean a T-15 cell which is rated for a 40K pool?

A T-15 produces about 1.5 lbs of chlorine gas a day running 24/7 at 100%. That would increase your FC about 12 ppm per day. Running at 85% for only 8 hours will increase your FC by about 3.3 ppm per day.

Since most pools use 2 to 4 ppm of FC per day, it seems to me that your cell is working fine.

To keep a higher FC level, I would initial raise it, using Liquid Chlorine/bleach, and then increase the cell's output to 100% and increase your run time to 10 hours per day. If you see the FC starting to get a little higher than you want you can then either cut back a little on the pump time, or the % of output, or a combination of both, to meet your FC demand.

I have to increase my output as the days get hotter and then decrease my output as the summer winds down.

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[bagd98rt]

Ok but changing the SWG to 100% is Super Chlorinating... Isn't that the same thing as a SLAM? Is it necessary to get the level of chlorine that high if all i'm trying to do is get the pool to maintain a chlorine level of around 5 to 6 which is what the FC/CYA Chart says I should maintain with a SWG. I'm not sure if there is a way of testing the amount of chlorine the SWG is producing is there?

 

[LFrankow]

I think we have the same swg's on the same size of pool. Jim R. they are rated for an 18k gal pool, about .63-.67 lbs per day.
Currently I run mine overnight for 12 hours @ 40%, tested an FC of 6 last night at closing, cya of 70. I can also raise my FC up to 9 so far as I have gone, but % is only 60.
I know we don't have the heat you do down there but it has been around 90 up here for the last month or so.
Super Chlorinating is not a SLAM, if we had t-15 cells or an ic40 we might be able to SLAM with our swg's, I really can't see doing it with the trol.
Have you done an Pool School - Perform the Overnight FC Loss Test (OCLT)

 

[bagd98rt]

I think we have the same swg's on the same size of pool. Jim R. they are rated for an 18k gal pool, about .63-.67 lbs per day.
Currently I run mine overnight for 12 hours @ 40%, tested an FC of 6 last night at closing, cya of 70. I can also raise my FC up to 9 so far as I have gone, but % is only 60.
I know we don't have the heat you do down there but it has been around 90 up here for the last month or so.
Super Chlorinating is not a SLAM, if we had t-15 cells or an ic40 we might be able to SLAM with our swg's, I really can't see doing it with the trol.
Have you done an Pool School - Perform the Overnight FC Loss Test (OCLT)

LFrankow,

I think your right. I think we do have the same unit and yes I believe it is rated for an 18k. T-Cell-5 is what the cell is I believe. As far as doing a OCLT I have not done one yet but I will perform one this weekend when I'm off of work and have the time... Also I was always under the impression that the Super Chlorinate was a slam so thank you for clarifying that for me... So from what it seems everyone is saying the only way for me to see a difference in the FC level is to run my pump a lot more or a lot longer than I am now... Now that comes back to the question of running my pump 2 separate times a day as opposed to running it continuous is there one that's better than the other? And can I completely turn over the pool water splitting up the time instead of running for however many hours straight?

 

[mknauss]

The amount of chlorine your SWCG creates is based on run time and % on time of the cell when the pump is running. So you can increase your % on time or run the pump longer, or both, if needed.

You can split your run times. The key is to test your FC at the lowest point it could be during the day as that is the one you must have at the target level for your CYA. That is a FC of 6 for your CYA. So if you stay with your split run times, you should test just before your evening run time to see what the FC is. Then adjust your pump run time or %cell on time to account for the FC swings you will see during the daylight with your split run times.

Take care.

 

[Jimrahbe]

B,

Sorry, I had "assumed" it had to be a T-15 as anything smaller is way too small for your pool... Rahbe 0, Error Rate +1.....

I am amazed that with a SWG of that size your FC is as high as it is...

Sorry for any confusion,

Jim R.

 

[bagd98rt]

Rahbe No big Deal it happens to us all... lol...:lol: Well I guess I'm gonna go ahead and do some of the tests that everyone is suggesting and up my pump and filter time and see where that gets me... looks like im just gonna have to go at it and find that sweet spot between my SWG, Pool and pump and filter run time until I get it dialed in... Thanks to everyone for your Input and Replies... I know I can always count on TFP...

 

[needsajet]

The super-chlorinate setting does two things. It bumps the setting up to 100% plus runs for 24 hours. With that size pool and SWG, it wouldn't be much of a shock, but might be useful for a bigger swim day. Lots of SWG owners keep some chlorinating liquid handy and put a cup or two in before and/or after a big swim day, especially when little kids are part of the picture.

SLAM is a multi-day TFPC method used to eliminate algae by maintaining shock level long enough, found here: SLAM Process

The OCLT suggestion above is a very easy and handy way to find out if you have free-floating algae that you can't see yet.

Happy swimming!