Hello from Southern California

Pool247

New member
Jul 15, 2023
2
Los Angeles, CA
Pool Size
11000
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Good morning. I became a first time pool owner about a year ago when we bought our current home. We kept the pool guy the previous owners recommended, but after the past few months of looking for tutorials on pool care, I decided to try it myself starting this week. TFP's articles went a long way toward encouraging me this is something I can do.

My first round of testing had the following results:
pH 7.5, FC 19.5, TC 20.5, CYA 40, TA 50

I understand CYA is low/FC is high, so I'll be adding to raise CYA. I'd appreciate if anyone has any other suggestions/observations based on this chemistry profile. Thank you!
 
Welcome to TFP! :wave: Just a couple comments.
1 - I don't see your CH. You might want to post that as well.

2 - With a TC of 20.5 and FC of 19.5, that means your CC is 1.0. A little higher than we ideally like. Lots of stuff being eliminated. Do you use a cover? Been cloudy in your area? Did you recently complete a SLAM Process? How does the water look?
 
Thanks! No, we don't have a cover (pool is a big of an irregular shape). We do have a fair amount of flowers that fall into the pool...I clean them out in the mornings and evenings. It's been very sunny and hot the past two weeks (it was overcast yesterday, after I took the sample with the results above).

I haven't done a SLAM, and I don't think the pool guy ever did. the weekly reports he emailed listed pH, Free Chlorine (this was always 2-3 ppm, which made me question my testing results...I performed them 3 times), salt, and TA. The levels in the reports never varied much.
 
With CC of 1.0 ppm, it would be a good idea to complete an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test to rule out algae.

How did your FC get so high?

Check your testing methods for FC. Confirm you're using a 10 mL sample. Multiply each drop by 0.5 (divide #drops by 2).

What is your calcium hardness level?