Starting to lose hope....

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DMS2014

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Jun 22, 2014
812
Houston, Texas
We have been slamming now since Monday. Checking water every 3 hours. Water is clear. Filters are brand new. Pumps running 24/7. Water wall and bubblers are on to clean out those pipes.

We get close and then over night we are down 4 ppm. We go several times a day where there’s no change in 3 hours and then before bed, it’s always down. 6/10 to 6/11 was the least chlorine loss from night to morning. This morning was 27 and it needs to be 31....
The husband really wants to dump the algaecide powder stuff in ....I’m trying to stay strong but i see no end in sight!
 

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Have you checked books and crannies for algae? Ladders, light niches, skimmer throat, weir doors, etc.? Did you test after adding chlorine to verify the level rose to what you were expecting at the start of the OCLT?
 
Algaecide won't kill algae that is already there. It is supposed to prevent algae from starting. Also if you use something that contains copper, you are trading one problem for another, as copper will stain the pool surfaces and turn light colored hair and fabrics green. If you use a "green to clean" or "yellow out" product you will add ammonia to the pool which will greatly increase chlorine demand.

Check your chlorine level at dusk and again at dawn, before the sun is fully on the pool. You do not need to add chlorine to do an overnight chlorine loss test as long as you have at least 5ppm of chlorine.
 
IceShadow said:
Have you checked books and crannies for algae? Ladders, light niches, skimmer throat, weir doors, etc.? Did you test after adding chlorine to verify the level rose to what you were expecting at the start of the OCLT?
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yes and yes. we see no algae anywhere. When we switched bleach, we checked it and this bleach and the pool calc app have been spot on so far...sigh..
 
zea3 said:
Algaecide won't kill algae that is already there. It is supposed to prevent algae from starting. Also if you use something that contains copper, you are trading one problem for another, as copper will stain the pool surfaces and turn light colored hair and fabrics green. If you use a "green to clean" or "yellow out" product you will add ammonia to the pool which will greatly increase chlorine demand.

Check your chlorine level at dusk and again at dawn, before the sun is fully on the pool. You do not need to add chlorine to do an overnight chlorine loss test as long as you have at least 5ppm of chlorine.
Click to expand...
we have been checking every 3 hours. At night before bed is our dark test and I do it first thing in the morning. that is where we have been losing 3 to 4 ppm is overnight.
 
DMS2014 said:
yes and yes. we see no algae anywhere. When we switched bleach, we checked it and this bleach and the pool calc app have been spot on so far...sigh..
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BTW we have taken our lights out of the pool. We have no ladders. We do have a water wall (Raised beam) that we have been running too to clear out those pipes. This is just crazy....
 
Are you using 5ml, 10ml 25ml sample to test FC? If you water is clear, i would suggest you let your FC levels drop to 8-10ppm and test FC with 25ml sample so you get greater accuracy on the OCLT. You also need to test for Ph.
 

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@NorCalX drove himself nearly mad in a similar situation. Over 22 FC burned off quickly making it look like there was still a problem after the problem was long gone. The solution may be to let it drift down back to regular levels and see if the FC holds better under 20.

Is SLAM inevitable? (YES...it was...5 Days of stress complete now)

Just had my first FC mishap where it dropped below expected and dipped below the minimum. Pool crystal clear entire time...but FC wouldn't rise. Here are my log notes PH is 7.5 CYA was increased from 60 to 80 during these notes Date FC 5/4 7.5 *Turned SWG off to check drift 5/6...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
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How is your pool? We STILL have algae. I'm now going to go out around every 2 hrs during the day to test. I have no idea how a pool can lose this much FC in such a short time. I even have my husband doing a separate FC test each time to double check my results.
 
amytude said:
How is your pool? We STILL have algae. I'm now going to go out around every 2 hrs during the day to test. I have no idea how a pool can lose this much FC in such a short time. I even have my husband doing a separate FC test each time to double check my results.
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Girl, I feel your pain. We were double checking ourselves too. I have an iWatch and I literally set a timer and checked every 3 hours for just about 7 straight days. I was about to go mad!
 
We are there! I still don't understand how our pool is losing so much chlorine. 7ppm in 2 hours? Really??!? DH has lost all patience with this process and is gonna call a pool company. We lost only 2 ppm last night but cannot keep the level at 30 to save our lives.
 
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amytude said:
We are there! I still don't understand how our pool is losing so much chlorine. 7ppm in 2 hours? Really??!? DH has lost all patience with this process and is gonna call a pool company. We lost only 2 ppm last night but cannot keep the level at 30 to save our lives.
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Losing large amounts of FC during the day drove me insane but eventually I learned it is totally normal.

The higher you raise your FC towards and above SLAM the more you will lose. I kept a log after I completed my SLAM to show how drastic a drop I had even with a "clean" pool

*CYA 80 SLAM target 31
Started the day at 37.5 (5am)
Middle of the day at 30 (1pm)
Ended the day at 26.5 (8pm)

Your 7ppm in 2 hours is definitely on the high end. But that could also be a confirmation sign that you are clearing something out.

If I had to do SLAM all over again I would put all my energy into maintaining SLAM levels at night as well and running all pumps and water features non stop

Make sure you give that filter a clean as well. Mine had been cleaned 1 week prior to my SLAM but I found algae junk in there that needed cleaning all the same.

Good luck! I understand the frustration of trying to SLAM at high CYA...never want to repeat that again
 
I changed my filter out a few days ago, but will check again tonight. 8ppm lost since 9am??? Ugh! My CYA is really low (I could still see the dot at 20), but everyone says don't worry about raising it right now??
 
FC (chlorine is) depleted by two things only........UV from sunlight and organics in your water. No magic tricks, no hocus pocus, no unique ingredients that are exclusively in your pool......if you are losing FC, it is because of one or both of those things.......UV from the sun or organics,

The OCLT eliminates sunlight so your loss in an OCLT is strictly live organisms in your pool (algae) Reading between the lines of your post, I am not sure you understand the purpose of testing over a nighttime period

amytude, don't hijack this thread but I will tell you your issue is NO CYA. Get some CYA in there now and re-read the SLAM article. YOu should be at 30 ppm.
Start your own thread for more help
 
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