Pool guy is leaving in a few weeks, what will I need?

[Drip]

Forget BR. You don’t have a bromine pool. It’s for hot tubs and such using bromine. The CL (yellow) side of the block is only an estimate like a test strip. Do the powder FC test everytime.


Use the smart stir for everything but PH. It’s sooooooo much easier.


A little high but it will come down on its own with the SoCal sun. Way better than we usually see when folks take back pool maintainence.

Thanks for the tips! It's only been a week since the pool guy's last service, hopefully I can maintain.

 

[Drip]

How often should I be testing at this point?

I just completed a FC and Ph test and the readings are the same. Does that sound right?

FC - 10
PH - 7.2

 

[mknauss]

I just completed a FC and Ph test and the readings are the same. Does that sound right?

Same as when? How are you chlorinating the pool water?

 

[Drip]

Same as when? How are you chlorinating the pool water?

Took my first series of test 2 days ago with the following results:

FC=10
CC=0
CH=750 (Not sure how accurate this is. How dark of a blue am I looking for? Can I swirl in between drops or should I be using my magnetic mixer?)
TA=70
CYA = 50
PH=7.2
CL/BR = Orange Jello Color

The FC and PH have remained the same since. I haven't added any chemicals since my pool guys last service (8/26) but there's still some remaining trichlor bits in the floaters.

The pool school is suggesting that I had 7 lbs of Borax (20 Mule) or 56oz of Soda Ash/washing soda to raise my PH levels.

 

[mknauss]

No reason to add anything to raise your pH, it is fine at 7.2.
Be sure to use the SmartStir for all the tests (FC, CH, TA)

How are you chlorinating your pool water?

EDIT -- I see the trichlor.
Do not use anymore of that. Liquid chlorine only. Be prepared to add it daily until we get closer to winter.

 

[kimkats]

Here is a set of links I put together for new pool owners or new to DIY pool care?

Pool care links:
Print these out:
Pool School - Basic Pool Care Schedule
Pool School - Recommended Levels

Bookmark these:
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
Trouble Free Pool
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry

Ihope these help!

Kim

 

[TexEdmond]

The FC and PH have remained the same since. I haven't added any chemicals since my pool guys last service (8/26) but there's still some remaining trichlor bits in the floaters.

You don't have to get rid of your leftover tabs, but it's advisable not to refill those floaters. Rinse them out and keep them for if you're going on vacation or need to slowly add CYA in the future. As it sits, you're right in the middle of the good zone for CYA on your pool.

Trichlor is acidic, so now that you've used up all the pucks in the floaters it'll be normal to expect a slow rise in pH. So like Marty said, no need to add anything to artificially drive pH up... it'll find a good balance. You can help it along by running any features that create bubbles in your pool, or turn the returns upward so they break the surface. Make sure you've got a jug or two of Muriatic acid on hand, and when your pH gets to 8.0, use the PoolMath calculator to lower it back down to 7.8 or 7.6. You're in a great spot with TA of 70. Knowing your fill water's chemistry will also help you plan your acid consumption if you're needing to refill frequently.

Also, like Marty said, be prepared to add liquid chlorine daily until you close the pool. Let your FC lower down a few PPM so your pH measurements are more accurate. 10ppm FC at your CYA levels is totally safe to swim, but right on the edge of throwing off your daily pH tests if it goes any higher. You'll quickly be able to tell how much FC is burned off during a normal day's sunshine, and that'll be your maintenance amount. If you get lazy (like me) you'll probably start thinking about a salt water chlorine generator...

 

[Drip]

You don't have to get rid of your leftover tabs, but it's advisable not to refill those floaters. Rinse them out and keep them for if you're going on vacation or need to slowly add CYA in the future. As it sits, you're right in the middle of the good zone for CYA on your pool.

Trichlor is acidic, so now that you've used up all the pucks in the floaters it'll be normal to expect a slow rise in pH. So like Marty said, no need to add anything to artificially drive pH up... it'll find a good balance. You can help it along by running any features that create bubbles in your pool, or turn the returns upward so they break the surface. Make sure you've got a jug or two of Muriatic acid on hand, and when your pH gets to 8.0, use the PoolMath calculator to lower it back down to 7.8 or 7.6. You're in a great spot with TA of 70. Knowing your fill water's chemistry will also help you plan your acid consumption if you're needing to refill frequently.

Also, like Marty said, be prepared to add liquid chlorine daily until you close the pool. Let your FC lower down a few PPM so your pH measurements are more accurate. 10ppm FC at your CYA levels is totally safe to swim, but right on the edge of throwing off your daily pH tests if it goes any higher. You'll quickly be able to tell how much FC is burned off during a normal day's sunshine, and that'll be your maintenance amount. If you get lazy (like me) you'll probably start thinking about a salt water chlorine generator...

What benefits would i gain from a salt chlorine system and how much does that cost to install?

 

[TexEdmond]

What benefits would i gain from a salt chlorine system and how much does that cost to install?

Primarily, you won't have to add chlorine to your pool during swimming season. Users also notice they're able to maintain algae free pools at slightly lower FC levels than a manually dosed pool. In winter when / if your pool gets colder than 60 degrees, you'll still need to manually dose the pool because the cell will not function in cold water. You'll save time, gas, and money not hauling jugs of bleach from the store, plus no more need to measure and dose the pool. I've had mine running for a few weeks now and notice much what others here on the site mention: now that I've got the settings dialed in, I never worry about missing a day and FC levels falling too low. I even left town from Weds last week til Sunday and FC was up 1.5ppm from when I left. The only thing I really need to monitor anymore is pH because I've dropped my TA numbers as low as it seems they'll go and my pH still rises due to high TA fill water and a pesky air leak somewhere.

Also, most owners notice a silkier, less harsh water feel by adding the 3000-4000 (per manufacturer's spec) PPM of salt to their pool. This is not a high enough concentration to damage any of your equipment or harm swimmers.

Depending on the size of your pool, you'll be looking at $1500-2k for the equipment, and many users here do their own installation. It's pretty easy. There are considerations if your pool is still under warranty, or if there's need for you to pull a permit with your local building authority. You'll pay more if you need someone to do the install. With a pool as large as yours, I'm sure before long you'll understand how much chlorine needs added daily to keep up with the 2-3ppm lost to sunlight. There are a few threads on this site where folks have talked through the "break even" analysis on chemicals cost alone, plus the added time and energy freed up that was being used for testing and dosing with chemical. When you start looking at units, make sure to look for salt cells with a 60,000 gallon capacity. Your pool is very large, and the recommendation here is to buy a salt cell with at least twice the capacity of your pool to reduce wear on the unit itself. You're right at that threshold, so your unit might need to run slightly more than my 60K salt cell, because my pool is 10k gallons less than yours.

 

[Drip]

You don't have to get rid of your leftover tabs, but it's advisable not to refill those floaters. Rinse them out and keep them for if you're going on vacation or need to slowly add CYA in the future. As it sits, you're right in the middle of the good zone for CYA on your pool.

Trichlor is acidic, so now that you've used up all the pucks in the floaters it'll be normal to expect a slow rise in pH. So like Marty said, no need to add anything to artificially drive pH up... it'll find a good balance. You can help it along by running any features that create bubbles in your pool, or turn the returns upward so they break the surface. Make sure you've got a jug or two of Muriatic acid on hand, and when your pH gets to 8.0, use the PoolMath calculator to lower it back down to 7.8 or 7.6. You're in a great spot with TA of 70. Knowing your fill water's chemistry will also help you plan your acid consumption if you're needing to refill frequently.

Also, like Marty said, be prepared to add liquid chlorine daily until you close the pool. Let your FC lower down a few PPM so your pH measurements are more accurate. 10ppm FC at your CYA levels is totally safe to swim, but right on the edge of throwing off your daily pH tests if it goes any higher. You'll quickly be able to tell how much FC is burned off during a normal day's sunshine, and that'll be your maintenance amount. If you get lazy (like me) you'll probably start thinking about a salt water chlorine generator...

so it looks like it's dropping about .5 FC per day at the moment. I was able to find some 10% chlorine today at HD. The current PH is still holding steady at 7.2 and the FC is now at 7.5. According to the pool school chart, at 50 CYA I should maintain 6-8 PPM for FC. Will my CYA maintain if I am not using the pucks any longer?

Also, how long should my pump be running after adding chlorine? Should I be dumping it on the deep end or where the return jets are (there's a baja shelf there)?

 

[TexEdmond]

so it looks like it's dropping about .5 FC per day at the moment. I was able to find some 10% chlorine today at HD. The current PH is still holding steady at 7.2 and the FC is now at 7.5.

Hot diggity! That's sounding more stable!

According to the pool school chart, at 50 CYA I should maintain 6-8 PPM for FC.

That's great, and you're right in the middle of the recommended zone. Never let your FC levels drop to the minimum for your CYA. Some folks even choose to run a bit higher FC, for example they let 8 be their pool's minimum, just to have a little more wiggle room. It's safe to swim up to the SLAM level at your CYA.

Will my CYA maintain if I am not using the pucks any longer?

Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Yes, you're good. CYA basically only drops if you're draining and refilling for rain or purposefully replacing large amounts of water in the pool. It does degrade slightly over time, but many pool owners end up in a situation where their CYA sneaks up to monster high levels using pucks and then they've got green water because the FC levels are insanely high to keep the water clear.

Also, how long should my pump be running after adding chlorine?

You should be good running the pump for 30 mins or so after adding. Not sure about the sun shelf, or if you've got any other jets. I'll let someone else chime in here, I've got a totally different setup and don't want to give you bad advice.... i just leave my pump running on very low speed 24/7. Some folks also brush the area around where they added the bleach to keep it from clinging to the walls and floor and causing discoloration.

 

[kimkats]

I would not add chlorine on/over a shelf or any shallow water area. It could cause discoloration aka bleach the plaster. Add it in front of a return and brush in the area to make sure it is dissipated through out the pool

 

[Drip]

I would not add chlorine on/over a shelf or any shallow water area. It could cause discoloration aka bleach the plaster. Add it in front of a return and brush in the area to make sure it is dissipated through out the pool

Good to know... the return lines flow over the shelf itself. Would you recommend just slowly pouring over the deep-end for my scenario then?

 

[kimkats]

So what I would do is turn the pump on high and let it run for a little while to get the water moving good then pour the bleach slowly just past the shelf then brush in that are as well.

Just thought of something..............throw some ping pong balls into the water with the pump on. Where do the balls go? That will show you the best place to put the chlorine as you will see where the water is flowing the best.

 

[Drip]

Thanks for the tips/advice! I think I am starting to get the hang of this. Ran some more test yesterday after adding about 72oz of 10% liquid chlorine.

	9/3	9/10
FC	10	8
PH	7.2	7.5
TA	70	70
CH	750	625
CYA	50	50

 

[TexEdmond]

Dunno how you're keeping your test results, but it's SUPER easy to do in the paid version of the app... Now I can go back and look at all of my changes and see trends over longer periods just by making sure I put chem additions and test results in the app. You can link the app to your profile here and it'll be easier for us to see them and offer advice.

CH test was always a bit difficult to tell because the color change was pretty subtle for me. Keep an eye on that, to my knowledge it shouldn't go down drastically unless you did a drain/refill in between those two tests. Might have something to do with the new mini-pebble, so don't quote me. As your pH slowly rises to 7.8 with that amount of calcium hardness, you might find yourself just above the +0.30 CSI and could see some scale forming. You might also see the need to clean your SWG cell more frequently with a CSI greater than +0.1

Your other numbers look excellent! Well done and congrats!

 

[Drip]

Dunno how you're keeping your test results, but it's SUPER easy to do in the paid version of the app... Now I can go back and look at all of my changes and see trends over longer periods just by making sure I put chem additions and test results in the app. You can link the app to your profile here and it'll be easier for us to see them and offer advice.

CH test was always a bit difficult to tell because the color change was pretty subtle for me. Keep an eye on that, to my knowledge it shouldn't go down drastically unless you did a drain/refill in between those two tests. Might have something to do with the new mini-pebble, so don't quote me. As your pH slowly rises to 7.8 with that amount of calcium hardness, you might find yourself just above the +0.30 CSI and could see some scale forming. You might also see the need to clean your SWG cell more frequently with a CSI greater than +0.1

Your other numbers look excellent! Well done and congrats!

Thanks! Would you happen to know if I subscribe to the app on my android device now would my subscription still be valid on a new iphone i plan on transitioning to?

 

[Drip]

Planning to go away for about 3 days... what's the best approach on keeping my FC within range? What happens if it dips below the 6ppm mark? Should I throw a few trichlor pucks to hold me over?

 

[Newdude]

Bring it to SLAM which is 40% of your CYA. You should be fine for 3 days.

 

[TexEdmond]

Thanks! Would you happen to know if I subscribe to the app on my android device now would my subscription still be valid on a new iphone i plan on transitioning to?

I've never not had an android / windows PC. I don't know how the google store and Apple store would handle the subscription. Somebody from the website could probably tell you? @Leebo ?

what's the best approach on keeping my FC within range?

Before I had my SWG we left for several days on a trip. Dropped pH to 7.2, Raised to SLAM, put a few tabs in the floater and inline chlorinator, set the robot to run every day. If you don't have all those things, just do what you can. Raise to slam and put a few tabs in a $10 floater if you don't already have one. You probably don't have to drop pH, looks like your TA is well under control. I was just doing it because my TA was still making it skyrocket up to 8.2... If you are noticing pH trying to rise higher than you'd like in that time frame you're gone, you might consider lowering it down a few points. A day or two at high pH won't cause scale if you come back and immediately take care of it.