Thoughts on cause of foamy water??

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J

justboy81680

Member
Apr 17, 2024
8
Lake Oswego, OR
Pool Size
420
Surface
Fiberglass
Based on my water chemical readings, I'm a little stumped on what may be causing my water to be foamy. I test with a LaMotte ColorQ 2x 7 test kit and rarely have issues with my water. I test my FC and pH daily. I use Bleach as my sanitizer. Hot tub was last shocked 2 nights ago and last filled about 6 weeks ago. Filters were last rinsed 3 days ago.

Here is how my water tested at this AM. It is quite foamy and the foam is taking about 90 secs to dissipate.

FC - 4.56
CC - 4.98
pH - 7.5
Alk - 59
CYA - 39
CH - 189
TDS - 688

Any thoughts?
 
Texas Splash said:
Welcome! :wave: @Jimrahbe may have some thoughts about your LaMotte testing. I was just wondering when was the last time you did a really thorough purge of the system? Something like an "Ahh-Some" purge? Have you done one?
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I’ve battled different testing from Test Strips to Taylor K-2006 and they all cause me challenges due to Red/Green Colorblindess. I switched to the LaMotte about 9 months ago and my water has been trouble free and clear until today.
 
All Clorox brand bleaches use “Fabric Protection Technoloy” which is essentially an oxidizer-stable surfactant. The surfactant can build up in water and act as a foaming agent. Clorox has been adding it to bleaches for several years now. Not sure why it’s suddenly an issue but it is known to be a problem.

You need to use liquid chlorine from the pool store as that does not contain additives.
 
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JoyfulNoise said:
All Clorox brand bleaches use “Fabric Protection Technoloy” which is essentially an oxidizer-stable surfactant. The surfactant can build up in water and act as a foaming agent. Clorox has been adding it to bleaches for several years now. Not sure why it’s suddenly an issue but it is known to be a problem.

You need to use liquid chlorine from the pool store as that does not contain additives.
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Thx - would you suggest empty and refill or leaving it for a few days to let the chlorine levels drop and then try again? I would have expected a surfactant to increase my TDS.
 
I’d definitely get the correct liquid chlorine. Ace Hardware, rural king, tractor supply all have it in my area. Ace Hardware was cheapest. However, I went through same type foaming after a family member and his 2 children went in with bathing suits that had been washed in a regular wash. The leftover detergent produced so much foam! It took about a week for the foaming to subside. Any chance of something like that happened?
 
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Gebo said:
I’d definitely get the correct liquid chlorine. Ace Hardware, rural king, tractor supply all have it in my area. Ace Hardware was cheapest. However, I went through same type foaming after a family member and his 2 children went in with bathing suits that had been washed in a regular wash. The leftover detergent produced so much foam! It took about a week for the foaming to subside. Any chance of something like that happened?
Click to expand...
Definitely - I’ve got a teenager in the house that always forgets and either goes in with regular shorts or washes his swimsuit with his regular washing load.
 
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