Water quality question

[BrantlyJ]

Had a water test tonight. Chlorine level is my fault. I had some some tabs that were about two years old, hissing the chlorine was ineffective. Put in a fresh stick. And yes, I’ve been schooled on the sticks and read all the articles. I bought a whole jug of them so I’m going to at least use them.
Anyways, how concerned should I be on the other numbers. Pool store said not to worry about them…
My water is crystal clear.

 

[cledee]

Pool store testing is unreliable. You need a good test kit in order to get good guidance. CYA shows 100 on the pool store test, and according to the pool company this is an acceptable level. This is the test they get wrong the most. At TFP CYA above 60 for a non Salt Water pool is too high.

I recommend ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry[]

 

[HermanTX]

Suggest you purchase your own test kit and verify what your CYA really is. If it is 100 or higher, then you need to have FC at 11-13ppm. You need to add liquid chlorine to raise it quickly.
Chlorine pucks normally do not go bad. I have had some for 3 years and use them when away for 3-4 days.
If you want to take control look at Test Kits Compared and FC/CYA Levels

 

[Sunnydaze]

It's telling when a company hides the type of chemicals behind marketing names. What chemicals are they recommending and why?

Always know what you're putting in your pool by looking at the ingredients and don't use anything not recommended on this page. Recommended Chemicals

If your CYA actually is anywhere near 100, you're going to regret using more of those sticks. They are trichlor and add lots of cya. Not to mention they contain copper according to the label. Bad all around.

As mentioned above, get a reliable test kit. I have the TF100 and recommend it. Then avoid pool stores like the plague.

 

[BrantlyJ]

The ingredients are on the bottles. Or an easy google search.
I do have a Taylor kit on order. Seems weird that the machine they use is worse than the home test that sounds kind of subjective where you have to be in a certain amount of light and look at it in a certain way

 

[HermanTX]

Seems weird that the machine they use is worse than the home test

Consider lack of experience of summertime employees, lack of calibration of the test machine, cross contamination of the previous client's pool sample. This is a recipe for inaccurate test results.
With practice you will be great. Also, at the most you may be off by 10 i.e. is it 40 or is it 50 (CYA value). But the pool store has been known to be off by 50 or higher i.e. 40 vs 100.