pH versus TA

[Windcrest]

My pool pH goes up constantly. I have been just adding acid but my TA goes to 50 or so.

I learned about Baking Soda after reading pool school so I started using that to raise TA. I have found that when I get the pH into range, my TA is too low so I add Baking Soda. That raises my pH and I seem to get into a death spiral.

I seem to be stuck on what to do. Do I just keep adding acid and forget about TA?

FC 4
CC 0.5
CH 260
TA 80
pH 8.0
CYA 35
Salt 0 (Chlorine Pool)
Borate 0

 

[jblizzle]

Stop raising the TA and the pH will not go up as fast. Aeration will also drive the pH up.

Mine is down around 50ppm and the pH seems to almost be stable at 7.8.

In reality just adding, the baking soda should have almost no impact on the pH. But the higher TA, will make the pH go up faster.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

What pH are you targeting when you add acid to your pool?

What sources of aeration are you running? I see you have a water slide but are you running it all the time?

 

[Windcrest]

I haven't run the waterfall or the slide so there is no aeration. I try to get the pH to 7.4-7.6 but I would have to add acid every day to maintain this. I typically add 3/4 of a gallon once a week and let it drift up throughout the week.

I am using bleach as my chlorine source.

 

[jblizzle]

I would just ignore the TA for awhile and see what happens to your pH.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Based on your current water test results and with a pH no lower than 7.6, you can easily let your TA drop to 50ppm and still be fine.

So, as jblizzle suggests, stop trying to hold your TA at 80ppm and just target a pH of no lower than 7.6. Do not lower your pH until it rises above 7.8. See how that works out for you.

Is your plaster new by any chance?

 

[Windcrest]

My plaster was refinished in 2014. I will ignore TA for now and just focus on keeping the pH correct. Thanks!