Need to vent...

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M

mike_s

0
Sep 14, 2007
26
round rock Texas
It's been awhile since I checked in 8 years lol! Been trouble free :). I am having a problem passing oclt test. Let me start at the beginning. Last week I noticed I was having a hard time maintains my cl levels. My swg was running at 100% for 10 hours and I had never had to do this before. So I broke down the aquapure and got the minuscule amount of scale off of it ( no error codes). Cleaned the filters (that were not that dirty). Checked my cya and saw that it was at 90, a bit high. Checked my salt and saw it was at 3200.

So This Monday came around and I decided it was time to slam the pool for the first time e v e r because obviously something was trying to take hold in the pool and this must be the reason the swg couldn't keep up. Picked up 12 128oz bottles of bleach. The girl at the check out was like whoa! I told her i had to get rid of the blood stains Bwhahahhhahhaaaaa and then she was really freaked out lol. I dumped a bit of my water to get the cya down to 70 and put in 6 bottles but that was too many because I had the wrong size pool in the calculator. Whoops.

I had been getting by with the oto test kit for the past 7 years. And my pool has been perfect. You could see a pin at the bottom of it...and here is the part that kills me....STILL can. But I knew to do the test right I had to get the tf100. Ordered it, and it will be here today. In the mean time I am borrowing a friends who I turned on to tfp when he moved and got a pool. He is a tfp believer :).

Here are my Sunday pre slam numbers

Fc 2
Cc 0
Salt 3200
Ch 250
Cya 90
Ta 70
Ph 7.8
Temp 90

Here is my log starting this Monday with slam and notes


Xxxxxxxzxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Monday

Stay at 28! Number of drops x.5. Start with 6 bottles of bleach

600p 40 fc 0cc

745p 25 fc 1 cc

845p 22 fc no test cc ........added 89 oz or 12 cups

945 30fc .5cc

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. tuesday

730a 19.5 fc .5cc .........put in one bottle

1150a 28 fc o cc. ...........Added 6 cups

630 26 fc 0cc

830 24 fc cc0......... added 8 cups

1000p 25 fc ........... added 6 cups

1040p 28.5 fc or 57 drops. O cc nothing added fingers crossed

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx wednesday

650 a 22fc 0cc......... added 12 cups turned generator on 100%

1p no test ................added 1/2 bottle

324p 32fc 0cc

615p 25fc 0cc......... Added whole bottle small..... And 1lb of cya to bring up from 50

917p 33.5 fc

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx. Thursday

715 a 27.5 fc cc0 ...........added small bottle



I noticed last night that my cya dropped 20 since starting the slam process? I found that strange. I am also frustrated as I pride myself on my ability to keep my pool looking flawless. I mean I am always checking levels, brushing, cleaning filters, etc... So this is getting more than a little bit old to say the least especially since my pool looks great and always has.

:(

Photos pre slam Sunday




Photos today



The small shiny circle in the middle is a penny!



The deep end



If you have read this far congratulations! And thanks for letting me vent.
 
6 FC lost overnight is a significant drop. Have you taken out any ladders and removed any lights from niches and scrubbed behind them? It could be a small algae growth in a problem area that's preventing the OCLT from passing and increasing your daily chlorine demand. Sounds like you are very good at keeping up with your pool but those are initial thoughts, considering your water looks very clear and sparkling. Check out all the nooks and crannies.

The CYA drop would be uncommon for sure if chlorine was never too low but it can decrease in certain insufficient chlorine situations and if the pool is exposed to certain soil bacteria. Unlikely in this case and could be sampling/testing error. If you repeat the CYA test, be sure to do the test, then dump the sample back in the mixing bottle, shake and test the dot disappearance again. Repeat 3-4 times if you like to get more comfortable with the test until it's repeatable.

Also... I also love messing with the folks in the check out line when I pick up may summer supply of liquid chlorine as well. You get some strange looks with a cart full of bottles...
 
You should not measure the CYA at high FC. Since your shock level is quite high and, in some cases you went significantly over shock level, the CYA test can sometimes be off. The technical explanation is that the chlorinated cyanurates do not readily react with the melamine to form a precipitate. So at very high FC levels, the R-0013 reagent can show a CYA level that is lower than expected by the FC level. So in your case, since your FC was up near 30ppm, it is entirely plausible that you saw a 20ppm decrease in the measured CYA (the test itself is +/-10ppm).

This high FC error doesn't affect most pool owners because for the majority of people, their SLAM FC level is typical less than 20ppm. Those of us that have SWGs use much higher levels of CYA this causing us to have higher shock level FCs.

Just use your pre-SLAM level of CYA (adjusted for the extra pound of CYA you added) as you correct level and don't waste time doing the CYA test during a SLAM.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
mike_s said:
I noticed last night that my cya dropped 20 since starting the slam process? I found that strange.
Click to expand...

Not uncommon. I've experienced the same. A couple of days after the FC was back down in the normal range I had only 20 CYA where I had 40 before. I added a 5 lb. container of stabilizer and went back to 40. It seems clear to me that, in some pools at least, high FC levels will "burn off" CYA.
 
Most lights do allow some water behind them and can be removed/serviced with the pool still full. They should be wired to a GFCI circuit so no risk of shock, etc. but you should turn off the breaker when servicing. If you can get a good picture of each, perhaps we can help you out with the model and how to approach it. Most lights have a single screw at 12 o' clock (top of the light rim) that can be removed, then the light tips forward and can be lifted out of the pool. Then you can scrub the outside of the light housing with a dilute bleach solution and scrub the niche behind the light with something like a toilet brush. No need to open the light or take out the bulb unless you see water inside it.
 
ha ha. I liked the blood cleaning comment. My wife and I do things like that too after watching all the Criminal Minds episodes. :) So much good advice already provided. Just wanted to add a couple more items after re-reading your notes above:
- Do all you can to never let that FC drop below 28 (assuming that your CYA is actually 70)
- No sense running your SWG at 100% during the SLAM - most turn it off completely. (Also make sure it's off at night when doing your OCLT)

Everyone else has you covered with info. Best of luck. Nice looking pool. :)
 
mike_s said:
No ladders. Two lights. Haven't taken them out, and not really too sure about doing that because of electricity issues. I guess if I turn off the breaker to that it would be ok. So does water go behind those? Never even thought about that.
Click to expand...

You swim with the lights in the pool and don't have issues with electrocution! I had to do a SLAM because of a sensor issue with my SWG and the light and under rungs of my ladder were the only two places that had active algae. It was gross to say the least.
 


So I took both lights out and noticed the same brown sedimate stuff that is on the lights. It was mainly ontop of the lights and only on the bottom of where the lights fit into. I scrubbed the stuff and it came off easily. We have a ton of poll on here in central Texas and this is kinda what it reminded me of when the live oaks are blooming but who knows? Regardless it is gone now. I am going to leave my lights out of the pool. I am assuming this will be ok to do as long as I do t turn them on? It gets hot on the walkway in the sun all day will they be ok there as well?

Thanks!
 
Cover the light with a towel to keep the direct sunlight off it. Otherwise it's fine to leave on the deck. Hit the breaker that controls the light just to make sure it can't accidentally energize.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

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That material on the light looks a lot like the dust from construction, specifically I bet your concrete under the light matches it pretty well when it's wet. If the light hadn't been removed since construction, that's certainly possible. Whether or not that or anything inside your niche is causing a problem... we'll see after you've scrubbed them out.
 
Passed oclt! Musta been whatever was in the light niches. Gotta tell yall that this was pretty much a pia lol but now it's done and I can put cleaning out the light niches on my routine. How often do yall clean them? Never in my life would I have thought to clean there.

So now If my aquapure has a hard time putting Cl in the water I know it's the unit and not something lurking in my water.

Have to figure out how to get the fc down to the right level for my cya on the tfp chart. Any hints for that? I'm guessing adding water to the pool. Safe swimming fc levels are? Having to be out of the pool for a whole week just about did my kiddo in ( who am I kidding I'm the one who missed it the most ha ha ha)

SLAM works even if your pool isn't green, thanks again for listening to my story.

Mikes
 
Woohoo! Glad you passed the OCLT!!! I clean my niches at the start of every season when I open the pool (April) and again in about August. Usually close in late September/October. I would recommend doing it when you start using your pool in the spring and when you close or are not using the pool in the fall/winter. Taking them out, then scrubbing the outside of the housing and the niche then putting them back in usually can be done in 10 minutes per light which isn't bad. Good peace of mind.

If your SWG has been off, just leave it off until your FC gets to about 12 FC, which shouldn't take too long at warm temps and Texas sun. Then turn on the SWG again and get it dialed in to maintain 5-7 FC. Your CYA is on the high side at 90 above the recommended levels for the CYA/Chlorine chart for SWG pools but it's workable.
 
kimkats said:
What ya got in the keg?????

Do ever bother going inside? You have everything you need out there!

Such a nice set up!

Kim
Click to expand...


Im outside almost year round...that's why they make electric blankets :). I have been brewing for 7 years now. Keg on the left is a Pliney IPA clone and the right is Maharaja IPA clone..

- - - Updated - - -

Texas Splash said:
Looking pretty sweet there in Round Rock. Although what really caught my eye in those last pics was the beer tap. :cheers:
Click to expand...

Few more taps in the garage but it's not quite as clean looking as the outside install :)

 

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