The method works!

[paaccc]

I found the TFPC method last year when trying to open a veritable swamp. It took about two weeks, but the results were amazing and it was pretty smooth sailing for the rest of the season. I also referred to the pool closing method when putting it up for the winter last year.

Fast forward to this spring. I tried to get the pool going a few weeks ago, but the pump had died. I finally got that straightened out, but was fearful that I'd be in for a mess because of the warm weather we've been having in middle TN. Once the water level would allow for it, I turned the pump on and poured a couple gallons of 8 month old bleach under the tarp. I just let it cycle overnight and this morning when I pulled the tarp off, the water was crystal clear! Except for a few leaves that got by me when I closed it, it looked ready for swimmers!

I tested the water and it looks WAY better than I ever imagined it would be at this point in the year:

Ch 8
PH 7.5-7.8 (between the two)
TA 150
CYA 25

I'd like to lower my TA closer to 100, but I'm not at all worried about calcium hardness and my PH is only marginally high, so I'll likely just throw some muriatic acid in and see where that takes me.

Question time: The CYA is low, but I have a standby supply of pucks that help with that. This will also help keep my chlorine up while the sun starts to do it's dirty work, but I do find that I have a difficult time keeping my CYA level up above 40. Are the trichlor pucks part of my problem? I used them quite a bit last year and still struggled with CYA (I did use shock a couple times as well, but still the same problem). I am in the process of transitioning from sand to a cartridge filter, so I hope not doing back flushes will help. Any other advice?

 

[Richard320]

I found the TFPC method last year when trying to open a veritable swamp. It took about two weeks, but the results were amazing and it was pretty smooth sailing for the rest of the season. I also referred to the pool closing method when putting it up for the winter last year.

Fast forward to this spring. I tried to get the pool going a few weeks ago, but the pump had died. I finally got that straightened out, but was fearful that I'd be in for a mess because of the warm weather we've been having in middle TN. Once the water level would allow for it, I turned the pump on and poured a couple gallons of 8 month old bleach under the tarp. I just let it cycle overnight and this morning when I pulled the tarp off, the water was crystal clear! Except for a few leaves that got by me when I closed it, it looked ready for swimmers!

I tested the water and it looks WAY better than I ever imagined it would be at this point in the year:

Ch 8
PH 7.5-7.8 (between the two)
TA 150
CYA 25

I'd like to lower my TA closer to 100, but I'm not at all worried about calcium hardness and my PH is only marginally high, so I'll likely just throw some muriatic acid in and see where that takes me.

Question time: The CYA is low, but I have a standby supply of pucks that help with that. This will also help keep my chlorine up while the sun starts to do it's dirty work, but I do find that I have a difficult time keeping my CYA level up above 40. Are the trichlor pucks part of my problem? I used them quite a bit last year and still struggled with CYA (I did use shock a couple times as well, but still the same problem). I am in the process of transitioning from sand to a cartridge filter, so I hope not doing back flushes will help. Any other advice?

Pucks are fine for what you propose. We're not entirely against trichlor - we're just opposed to people blindly using them without knowing the side effects. Since you want the side effects, trichlor is a good choice. Check out Effects of Adding Chemicals at the bottom of Poolmath. It will tell you how much FC, CYA, and estimated pH change each 8 oz puck will have on your water.

 

[kimkats]

This is an awesome post to read! You have learned so much and it has paid off this Spring! NICE!

Kim:cat:

 

[paaccc]

Pucks are fine for what you propose. We're not entirely against trichlor - we're just opposed to people blindly using them without knowing the side effects. Since you want the side effects, trichlor is a good choice. Check out Effects of Adding Chemicals at the bottom of Poolmath. It will tell you how much FC, CYA, and estimated pH change each 8 oz puck will have on your water.

I've seen people talk about the info tool at the bottom of PoolMath before, but I had no idea it included so many options. If I'm using it properly, it looks like each puck (8oz) will only contribute about 2.5 points. I may go ahead and get some actual stabilizer to get it up quicker. I also found out that my pool holds much less water than I thought. The calculator comes up with like 13,500 gallons. This chart shows 17,000 gallons, but if you do the math they include at the bottom, their figures for a 24' pool are wrong! This will all help going forward, especially with getting my chemicals properly metered.

Any thoughts on keeping my CYA from tanking all the time? Thanks!

 

[pooldv]

Nice work! You are getting good at this!

On your TA. If your PH is rising and you need to add acid every week to lower it that will also lower your TA. Often, after a period of weeks or a month or two, your PH and TA will reach equilibrium and you will need to add less and less acid. This usually occurs between 60 and 80 ppm of TA. If you want to lower TA faster then do this, Pool School - Lower Total Alkalinity