Pool Virgin's 1st Time TEST RESULTS... what now... ????

[dbishop0011]

First time pool owner, just finished first ever water test (w/ TF100 Kit), want to start BBB.... now what ?????

TC - 1.5 ppm
FC - 1.0 ppm
CC - 0.5 ppm
TA - 40
CH - 50
CYA - 70
PH - 7

water is crystal clear btw.

 

[lovingHDTV]

what is your PH?

Those numbers look low to me, you need to increase TA and CH depending on your PH.

Also details on your pool will help, is it vinyl or plaster?

 

[dbishop0011]

what is your PH?

Those numbers look low to me, you need to increase TA and CH depending on your PH.

Also details on your pool will help, is it vinyl or plaster?

pool details are in my sig... and I completly forgot to test for PH.... will be back in a couple minutes lol..

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

While your testing PH...your FC is too low for the CYA level...check my sig for the link to the chart.

As long as your water is crystal, no need to shock (yet). Go ahead and bump the FC up to 8. Before dark, test the FC again, record the results. In the morning, before the sun hits the pool, test FC again, and compare the two results. If you lose more than 1ppm overnight, you will need to shock the pool, which for CYA of 70 is 28.

Your CYA is on the high side so it will require more chlorine than you would like, but since you have a sand filter, backwashing will eventually help to lower the CYA level. Ideally you want it at about 50.

Waiting on the PH!

 

[dbishop0011]

While your testing PH...your FC is too low for the CYA level...check my sig for the link to the chart.

As long as your water is crystal, no need to shock (yet). Go ahead and bump the FC up to 8. Before dark, test the FC again, record the results. In the morning, before the sun hits the pool, test FC again, and compare the two results. If you lose more than 1ppm overnight, you will need to shock the pool, which for CYA of 70 is 28.

Your CYA is on the high side so it will require more chlorine than you would like, but since you have a sand filter, backwashing will eventually help to lower the CYA level. Ideally you want it at about 50.

Waiting on the PH!

PH - 7 (or as best i can tell)

as far as *bumping* things up goes the only chemicals i currently have on hand are 3 chlorine tabs (1 in the skimmer and 2 in the garage).

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

PH - 7 (or as best i can tell)

as far as *bumping* things up goes the only chemicals i currently have on hand are 3 chlorine tabs (1 in the skimmer and 2 in the garage).

I forgot to Welcome you to TFP! :-D

Have you read the articles in Pool School? Most of your questions can be answered if you study the articles there... and then if you still have specifics not addressed in Pool School we can help you.

I would not use the tabs...they are adding to your CYA which is already too high and they are lowering your PH which is already too low.

I can tell you, you will need to go to Wal-mart or somewhere similar and buy bleach, borax and baking soda. Right now your pool is in desperate need of BBB. The pool calc will tell you how much you need to add. If you need confirmation from us before you dose, feel free to post your q's and we'll do our best to answer.

Shopping List:
4 large jugs of bleach, 174 oz (your pool needs at least 2 of them right now.)
12 pounds of Baking Soda, for starters
60 oz of 20 mule team Borax or if you can't find it
30 oz of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda.

This is a starting point.

Hope this helps.

 

[dbishop0011]

Shopping List:
4 large jugs of bleach, 174 oz (your pool needs at least 2 of them right now.)
12 pounds of Baking Soda, for starters
60 oz of 20 mule team Borax or if you can't find it
30 oz of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda.

This is a starting point.

Hope this helps.

Yes, that helped a great deal and was exaclty the type of answer I was looking for... I purchased the items on the list and added 2 x 174 oz bottles 6% bleach to the pool 2 days ago (removed the chlorine tab from the skimmer 1 day ago as I forgot about it being in there when adding the bleach)

Anyhow, I just now finished testing again and here are the #'s:


TC - 6.5 ppm - up 6 ppm
FC - 6.5 ppm - up 5.5 ppm
CC - 0 ppm - down 0.5 ppm
TA - 50 - up 10 ppm
CH - 40 - down 10 ppm
CYA - 60 - down 10 ppm
PH - 7 - same

water is still crystal clear.

 

[JasonLion]

Great! You are making good progress.

You want to keep adding about 32 oz of washing soda at a time until your PH is at least 7.2. Add 32 oz, give it at least an hour to mix in, test the PH, and if it is still below 7.2 repeat.

 

[dbishop0011]

Great! You are making good progress.

You want to keep adding about 32 oz of washing soda at a time until your PH is at least 7.2. Add 32 oz, give it at least an hour to mix in, test the PH, and if it is still below 7.2 repeat.

is there really a significant difference in a PH level of 7.0 vs 7.2 ? .... and do the rest of my #'s look ok ?

 

[JasonLion]

The long term goal is to get the PH up to between 7.5 and 7.8. We are suggesting steps to take along the way. You don't want to make large changes in the PH all at once. It is much better to make them a little at a time.

There is a large difference between a PH of 7.0 and 7.5. For now, I want you to change the PH fairly slowly. Thus the suggestion to stop for today when the PH is above 7.2.

 

[dbishop0011]

The long term goal is to get the PH up to between 7.5 and 7.8. We are suggesting steps to take along the way. You don't want to make large changes in the PH all at once. It is much better to make them a little at a time.

There is a large difference between a PH of 7.0 and 7.5. For now, I want you to change the PH fairly slowly. Thus the suggestion to stop for today when the PH is above 7.2.

awesome explenation, thanks Jason.

 

[dbishop0011]

ok... added ~half box of baking soda (4lb box) waited about an hour and half and tested PH again....

PH = 7.5 now (or best I can tell.... the color comparison thing is a little subjective).

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Great update

 

[Nod]

ok... added ~half box of baking soda (4lb box) waited about an hour and half and tested PH again....

PH = 7.5 now (or best I can tell.... the color comparison thing is a little subjective).

Good Job - Just be sure to test your chlorine and PH every day. You will finally learn what you need in order to keep your pool sanitized. For example, in the summer w/o a cover, I use about 90oz of 6% bleach everyday with a moderate bather load. You will want to keep your chlorine around 7-8 ppm with your CYA. You may want to drain some and refill to lower CYA, which will save you money on bleach. You should be down around 40-50ppm CYA which only requires 3-4ppm of chlorine.