First time testing!

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nlsndog

New member
Jun 11, 2020
2
St. Petersburg, FL
Pool Size
13500
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Jandy Truclear / Ei
I've owned a pool for 3 years but I've always just used the pool store in the neighborhood to test my water. I decided to start doing it myself and just completed my first test with the TF-Pro Salt kit.

I know we are testing ourselves because of the issues with pool store tests, but I am looking for the guidance of more seasoned testers: should I presume this difference is truly pool store margin of error versus home testing, or first time newbie testing issues? I'm not sure why my salt number is so much higher, and the pool store CYA number is so much higher. "Today" is my test, "4 days ago" is the pool store test results. I didn't make any adjustments after the last pool store test.

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For the drop-based testing, I would absolutely trust your own numbers. If you have specific questions about each test, fire away - we'd love to help.

CYA testing is a bit trickier because it is somewhat subjective. I'd try that again following the detailed steps here:
www.troublefreepool.com

CYA - Cyanuric Acid Test

Cyanuric acid (CYA) is the chemical name for the product commonly called “pool water stabilizer” … Read more…
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com

CYA always rounds up - so "35" is really 40.
 
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Welcome! :wave: While you may have doubts in your own abilities, stop. Even as a newbie we trust your numbers more. Practice makes perfect. We'll be here to help.

In case this helps.

CYA Testing:
Proper lighting is critical for the CYA test, so you want to test for CYA outside on a bright sunny day. Taylor recommends standing outside with your back to the sun and the view tube in the shade of your body. Use the mixing bottle to combine/gently mix the required amounts of pool water and R-0013 reagent, let sit for 30 seconds, then gently mix again. Then, while holding the skinny tube with the black dot at waist level, begin squirting the mixed solution into the skinny tube. Watch the black dot until it completely disappears. If it helps, pour a little, look away, then look back and pour some more. Some people like to squirt enough solution to go line-by-line for a better feel. Once it disappears, record the CYA reading. After the first test, you can pour the mixed solution from the skinny view tube back to the mixing bottle, shake, and do the same test a second, third, or fourth time to instill consistency in your technique, become more comfortable with the testing, and validate the CYA reading. If you are still questioning your own results, have a friend or two do the same test 2-3 times. Share your results only after everyone is done to see if you came up with the same average results.
 
reggiehammond said:
For the drop-based testing, I would absolutely trust your own numbers. If you have specific questions about each test, fire away - we'd love to help.

CYA testing is a bit trickier because it is somewhat subjective. I'd try that again following the detailed steps here:
www.troublefreepool.com

CYA - Cyanuric Acid Test

Cyanuric acid (CYA) is the chemical name for the product commonly called “pool water stabilizer” … Read more…
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com

CYA always rounds up - so "35" is really 40.
Click to expand...
I went ahead and retested my CYA today and got the same result - I could clearly still see the dot at 40, but somewhere after that before it got to 30 I could no longer see it. Man, I'm wondering if the pool store guy really needed some glasses!
 
nlsndog said:
I'm not sure why my salt number is so much higher, and the pool store CYA number is so much higher.
Click to expand...
2 strong possibilities: 1. It's common to use the wrong sample size when testing salt. You should use 10ml. 2. The pool store was wrong.

Either way, don’t spend any more precious time trying to compare your results to the pool store.
 
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+4. You are officially the smartest kid in class. Never. Ever. Try to cheat off the dumbest kid in class. I don't give a flying patootie that he got one right last time. My money is on your educated guess, any day of the week.

Also belated Welcome !! :wave:
 
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nlsndog said:
I've owned a pool for 3 years but I've always just used the pool store in the neighborhood to test my water. I decided to start doing it myself and just completed my first test with the TF-Pro Salt kit.

I know we are testing ourselves because of the issues with pool store tests, but I am looking for the guidance of more seasoned testers: should I presume this difference is truly pool store margin of error versus home testing, or first time newbie testing issues? I'm not sure why my salt number is so much higher, and the pool store CYA number is so much higher. "Today" is my test, "4 days ago" is the pool store test results. I didn't make any adjustments after the last pool store test.

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Click to expand...
Absolutely trust your test compared to theirs. And if you're not comfortable yet with adding or changing anything based off your own testing, test a few more times in a row. Like if you don't want to go thru adding CYA in yet, give it a few more tests and if youre consistently seeing the same result then you may start to feel more comfortable with adding/changing things with the water based on your own results.
 
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