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Single digit to 0 degrees will be here in the next couple of days. Most of the things I have read say to just keep the pump running and that will prevent freezing. They usually add that "moving water won't freeze". That sounds good, but I know that rivers and waterfalls freeze. What should I...

I found out the hard way. I was opening my pool this year and tested my CH at 125. I loaded it up with calcium and found out later I had grossly overloaded it- all because I was using old regents. It only costs $50 or so to get a fresh TF100 refill. It's well worth it. I'll do it every year...

Is there a wrench for this? I try to use the shaft of a screwdriver but when the slot gets vertical I have a heck of a time with the screwdriver. I've tried everything I can think of. The slab is immediately below it and the overhang of the tank is about 2" above it. Very close quarters.

The amount of bleach it tells me to add for FC seems excessive. Example- 10,000 gal pool. 6% bleach. It tells me to add 2 cups + 5 oz to bring it up 1 ppm. That sounds like about twice the amount required. Thanks

Having a problem for the first time. FC- 7 ppm Ph - 8.2 CYA - 40 TA - 160 Borate- 30 I can't lower the Ph. I've put about 6 quarts of acid in it over the past 4 or 5 days. It's still at 8.2 the next morning when i check it. No aeration going on, that I'm aware of. Been doing TFP for the...

I just noticed what looked like two bugs (round backs and yellowish) attached to the side of my pool, about a foot under the surface. I ground them off with a pumice stone and under them was a black pit about 1/16" deep. I couldn't get rid of the black. I've taken good care of the pool for...

I'm a little confused about the proper FC / CYA levels. I have a CYA of 30. PoolMath gives the proper FC range of 2-6 ppm FC The Chlorine/CYA chart gives Min 2 / Target 4 ppm I bring my FC to the "proper" level every evening. Should I top it off at 6 ppm or 4 ppm?

Regarding CSI, Pool Math says: "Less than -0.6 is suggestive of problems for plaster, tile, stone, and pebble pools." Does "less that -0.6" mean more negative that -0.6? For example would -0.7 be less that -0.6? Thanks

I've just started hearing about natural pools. The water is supposedly sanitized by hydroponic plants and special micro organisms and no chemicals are used. There's a TV show called The Pool Master that deals with them. Does anyone know anything about them?

My water has been sparkling clear for almost a year since I started BBB. This morning I added 15 lbs of borax to bring it up 20 ppm. That was about 4 hours ago. I'm noticing what looks like tiny dull snow flakes all over the surface. I'm assuming that is some sort of undissolved borax, at least...

FC- 6.0 CC- 0 pH - 7.2 TA - 80 CH - 850 CYA - 30 I know for a fact I'm losing CYA. It was 50 ppm two months ago and it's 30 now. There is no leakage. No splashing to amount to anything. Only my wife and I use the pool and we're too old to cause any splashing. The only water loss is when I clean...

Several nights ago, I topped my FC off to 8 ppm. I usually do it every other day. It was reading 2.5 which is abnormally low. I tested it twice from water at different places in the pool. I added 10 cups of 8.25 bleach. So far so good. The next morning I tested again and read 14 ppm. I tested...

FC - 7.0 pH - 7.8 TA - 120 CYA- 50 Borate - 50 My TA was down around 60, so I added 8 lb of baking soda, yesterday. I waited 3 or 4 hours and it read 130. My pH was up around 8.0 so I added 1 qt +3 oz. of muriatic acid. That was 1/2 of what the pool calculator gave to lower pH to 7.2. Checked...

Black algae is what caused me to find troublefreepool and BBB about 10 months ago. Since starting BBB I have not seen a trace of algae and my water is always crystal clear. I have carefully maintained my chlorine level. Yesterday, I noticed a triangular shaped, black stain on a side surface. It...

I know my question does not fit under pool chemistry, but I couldn't find a category for it. I have debris floating on the pool surface. It won't work it's way down to the skimmer. The skimmer is working fine and has plenty of suction. Weir door is working properly. I suspect I need to adjust...

I've been doing BBB for about 10 months and am certainly no expert. I have found a few things that make everything much easier. I'd like to share them. 1. 2' of 1/2" PVC - Costs about $2.00. It lets you take your water samples 18" deep without getting on your knees and dipping your arm in the...

I'm wondering the purpose of using a sock to add CYA. I used a sock the first time I added CYA. I put the sock in the skimmer and it was empty in a couple of days. I added another two pounds a couple of months ago and poured the CYA directly in the skimmer- no problems. I read somewhere that...

I've been having fits testing CYA ever since I've been doing BBB. I never felt good about the readings and thought the test was too subjective. I finally broke down and bought the standardized 50ppm sample. I've been playing with it all afternoon and found that if I hold the test beaker at...

I've started using a little over 2 ppm per day of chlorine. This started about 3 weeks ago. That's up from .5 ppm (or less) a day before Winter. My temps are 40 something at night and 70's during the day. I just measured CYA and got 50, 40, 50 with three tests. Pool is clean with a few leaves...

As I mentioned in another post, I'm running my pool this Winter. In previous years this has never been a problem. It's been a lot colder this Winter. I estimate my water to be about 45 degrees. Tomorrow will be H 62 L30 Monday will be H 39 L 19 Tuesday - H 34 L 19 Then it warms up again. I'm...

I'm running my pool through the Winter. I've still been testing and keeping the proper balance. Is there any use in maintaining a chlorine level when the water is probably around 45 degrees?

I keep my bleach and acid in a corner of my patio. It's supposed to get down to the mid 20s tomorrow night. Should I bring them in the house? If that temperature won't hurt them, I'd rather leave them where they are.

I don't close my pool during the Winter. The average Winter high temperature where I live is about 60 degrees. The average low is about 40. I assume the water temp would not be above 50. Would it make sense to only test and adjust FC and pH about once a week? PH is more likely to need...

I lost the blue spoon that comes with the TF-100. I'm sure I'm not the first one who has done that. Does anyone know of a substitute I can use?

My TF-100 measured my CH AT 1,100. I've tested it three times with the same results. I have had my water tested at 2 pool stores and the CH measured 450 and 550. I'm starting to wonder which is correct. FC Last night I did 3 FC tests within about 15 minutes to see how consistent they were. The...

I started last weekend trying to balance my pool after years of neglect. Here are my present readings, for what it's worth: FC 11 pH 7.1 TA 80 CYA 20 CH 1,100 - Yes I know it's a problem. This post is about the CYA. I started with 0 CYA according to my local pool store's test. I added 4 lb of...

FC 11 CC .5 ph 7.1 TA 90 CYA 20 CH 1,100 I just got my TF100 test set. I have a minor black algae problem and started this morning doing the SLAM routine to get rid of it. Everything is going fine. I brushed with a steel brush (twice) and have kept at shock level all day. The algae is...

I have what I believe are black algae spots on the bottom of my pool. It is 15,000 gal., in ground plaster. I found a prescription on the internet that calls for putting 8 gal of liquid chlorine in it followed by 2 gal of ammonia hydroxide. The claim is that this is the only way to completely...