splashpad - I'm glad you've adapted the TFPC methodology to your pool with great success. Thanks for becoming a supporter! If you were to experiment with your post-rain FC elevations, you'd likely find you don't have to raise it all the way to SLAM/shock FC to maintain your perfect water. It would likely lower your sanitizer cost and reduce your losses to the sun. Up to you. If you're happy, I'm happy for you.
Mdhkdh - since the
SLAM Process end criteria involves an
Overnight Chlorine Loss Test, the shortest possible SLAM is about 9 hours. You can re-
SLAM Process if you want. When you backwashed, did you bw, rinse, bw, rinse?
To clarify - yes, TFPC is a universal system that works for everyone and does encourage everyone to customize their approach by logging their test results and getting to know their pool's reactions to heavy rain, pool parties, and normal conditions for any given time of year.
While you are free to elevate FC all the way up to SLAM/Shock FC as often as you want - this should be viewed as strictly personal choice, and not TFP policy.
In the vast majority of cases, once you graduate
Pool School, 100% complete a
SLAM Process,
balance your water, find your own personal pump run-time and Target FC to avoid anywhere in your pool falling below min FC/clouding/hazing/algae, and follow your own version of the
TFP Basic Pool Care Schedule -
you will be rewarded with a very trouble free pool that is extremely predicable and probably cheaper than any other method to maintain.
Yes, you'll have to either have the SWG make more (longer or higher) or manually add more bleach after events that consume higher than daily average to ensure you stay in your target range.
Do most pools need to bring FC up to SLAM/shock FC after a heavy rain? No. Will they need a little extra FC? If enough gallons of rainwater (0 FC) entered the pool so that the average FC of the pool water has lowered unacceptably, yes, it will need to be compensated for, but in most cases this will only be 0.5-4 FC, not 5-25 FC. You are of course free to overshoot FC as often as you wish, but please don't think that TFP requires this at all. Daily FAS-DPD testing and topping off of FC so that you're in the target range all day, everyday, will keep, by and large, all TFPC pools clear and happy. If it doesn't produce that results, either your circulation is insufficient and/or the target FC you're maintaining is too low (most often due to CYA testing error).
Remember that average daily FC demand for TFP members is almost always between 0.5-4ppm FC - any pool requiring more than 4ppm FC being added per day during normal weather and minimal bather load most likely has hidden algae, filtration problem, special contaminants like residual bromine, incomplete previous SLAM, or other problem that should be solved when the pool owner has time/capability.
but again, it works for us, we did not open to a green pool this spring (following a 1st TFP summer last year) and we've been swimming alot =)
