We put in a 22 x 52 Intex pool. I am used to Bacquacil and trying chlorine this year. I do not have enough CYA in the water, the water is too hard, 1000. I need a different test kit not the strips correct?
new pool this year
- Thread starter Heavenrain
- Start date
Welcome to TFP Heavenrain. The recommended test kits are the TF-100 or the Taylor K-2006.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,731
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Here are some basic pages/links to keep you informed:
Poolmath calculator
Pool School - Recommended Levels
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
TFTestkits.net
Pool School - Test Kits Compared
Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
Poolmath calculator
Pool School - Recommended Levels
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
TFTestkits.net
Pool School - Test Kits Compared
Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
We have a winner!
That's no kiddie pool you have there. that's pushing 11000 gallons! It needs a grown-up test kit for sure.
Test strips are generally only good at testing pH. Everything else is all over the place. If you instinctively set the strip on the plastic chart, surface tension causes the water to bleed across pads and mess up things. High FC can bleach out the dyes. If you wait too little or too long, the results will be off. And they generally make enormous jumps. 0-100-200-400-1000. Gimme a break! What if you're at 150, or 300 or 600? Which color will it match?
Taylor K-2006 is generally cheapest and sometimes people get free shipping off Amazon. But value-wise, the TF100 is a better deal. It has more of the reagents you'll use the most. Pool School - Test Kits Compared
If you keep careful track of how much of each chemical you've been adding, you can use Effects of Adding Chemicals to calculate roughy where your CYA level is. It's at the bottom of poolmath. Be sure to put the pool volume (Intex says 10,472 gallons) at the top.
Thank you! I haven't put in any stabilizer. I think that is my problem. I will pick up a kit or order one tomorrow.
What about the hardness of the water?
What about the hardness of the water?
If you know you're at zero CYA, you can use poolmath to get the dose. Conveniently for you, a four pound canister of stabilizer will raise your CYA to about 46. Use the sock method to add it.
Hardness? What can you do? If you try replacing water, you'll be replacing it with the same fill water you used initially. And maybe you're not really at 1000. I'd seriously doubt it unless you're on a well and your area is known for its limestone caves. Your showerheads and drip coffeemaker would be a solid chunk of white crud if that were the case. Wait for a proper test kit, then deal with facts. High Calcium Hardness (strips only tell total hardness) can be managed up to around 800. I do it all the time.
And just so you know, the K-2005 DPD test kit is not the same as the K-2006 FAS-DPD test kit, no matter what the pool store clerk tells you. If it doesn't use powder to measure FC, it's not the test kit you want.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,731
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Best to reduce that PH to the mid 7s using muriatic acid per the calculator. Somewhere between 7.2-7.8. I suspect your TA may not be 2800. 
Usually we see it from 70-150 give or take some. But 2800 would be incredibly high. A TFP record perhaps? Maybe consider double-checking the testing method (# of drops or math used)?
Hope this helps.
Usually we see it from 70-150 give or take some. But 2800 would be incredibly high. A TFP record perhaps? Maybe consider double-checking the testing method (# of drops or math used)?Hope this helps.
I didn't buy MA. Can I use minus ph? I do have some of that. I can recheck the TA. I am sure I have or will make some mistakes.
Can I use minus ph? I do have some of that. I can recheck the TA. I am sure I have or will make some mistakes.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,731
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Yes, PH down is probably a powder version of acid. Just follow the directions on the container. I believe sometimes the powders need to be pre-diluted in water first.
I goofed again. I didn't put the cya in a sock. Now I have cya on the floor of the pool. I am stirring it. What else can I do?
If you can vacuum it into the filter, that will work. Otherwise, brush it around every hour or so lest you develop freckles on the liner.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,731
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Don't worry, you're not alone. A couple months back the tube sock I used to hold my stabilizer fell apart and all my stabilizer feel to the floor as well. 
I was stirring and sweeping like crazy for a while.
I was stirring and sweeping like crazy for a while. It is almost dissolved. The levels look good. Ph is still a bit high as is the alkalinity but with all the rain we are having I am not surprised.
The levels look good. Ph is still a bit high as is the alkalinity but with all the rain we are having I am not surprised.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,731
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Per the Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart, with a CYA of 50, your normal (target) FC would be 6. If you had cloudy/green water and we doing a SLAM, it would be 20. Does that help you?
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