First Test with TF-100 kit...

[duxthaman]

Ok so I got my kit and did my first round of tests this morning. Below are the results.

The water is very clear

FC- 6
CC-0
Ph- 7.9
TA- 150
CH- 350
CYA- 80-85

I tested the CYA twice and both times it came out really high. The calculator says to replace 50% of my water? Yikes...I had a pool guy put some stabilizer in the pool back in the middle of May, but since then nothing.

 

[max2k]

Ok so I got my kit and did my first round of tests this morning. Below are the results.

The water is very clear

FC- 6
CC-0
Ph- 7.9
TA- 150
CH- 350
CYA- 80-85

I tested the CYA twice and both times it came out really high. The calculator says to replace 50% of my water? Yikes...I had a pool guy put some stabilizer in the pool back in the middle of May, but since then nothing.

if you use any type of 'solid' chlorine it would raise CYA as a side effect, you can use calculator at the bottom of PoolMath page to find out by how much. That's why TFP uses liquid chlorine instead as it affects FC only.

You can live with that CYA level if you switch to liquid chlorine immediately and completely - it very slowly drops on its own + it gets lost during filter back wash. You prob want to increase your FC to 9 ppm as it is currently at the min level for your CYA concentration.

 

[duxthaman]

if you use any type of 'solid' chlorine it would raise CYA as a side effect, you can use calculator at the bottom of PoolMath page to find out by how much. That's why TFP uses liquid chlorine instead as it affects FC only.

You can live with that CYA level if you switch to liquid chlorine immediately and completely - it very slowly drops on its own + it gets lost during filter back wash.

Gotcha, and thank you. Today is the day I'm switching to bleach so the trichlor is coming out of the pool immediately.

 

[duxthaman]

The calculator is saying to put in 9.1oz of 31.45 muriatic acid.

If my TA is 150, is that enough??

 

[Mike1162]

50% drain would put your cya around 40, that might be on the low side for Texas. Wait for some recommendations for some of the members from southern states.
For now you can start by getting the PH down a few points & bring the chlorine up a little.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/128-chlorine-cya-chart-slam-shock
Do the overnight chlorine loss test tonight & post your results tomorrow.

 

[duxthaman]

The calculator is saying to put in 9.1oz of 31.45 muriatic acid.

If my TA is 150, is that enough??

Ah...figured it out. Had to go back into the calculator and set my goal pH to 7.1. Says 59 oz now...I have two waterfalls going for aeration purposes.

 

[max2k]

Ah...figured it out. Had to go back into the calculator and set my goal pH to 7.1. Says 59 oz now...I have two waterfalls going for aeration purposes.

take it easy with pH, is is very hard to predict precisely. I'd add half of that first, mix, test my pH and then decide what I want to do next. I usually recheck at the bottom of that page where it says effect of adding ... in your case it would drop pH by 1.xx which is below 7.0. It seems you need only 20 oz to drop to 7.4, that's what I'd do actually. It's much easier to add more than other way around.

 

[duxthaman]

I just retested and the pH is now 7.2 and TA is 120. I have spillover and waterfall aerating pool.

my question now is on the FC...its at 5.5...but with CYA at ~85 does that mean my FC should be up around 9?

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Actually I'd consider it CYA 90, so you want to maintain your FC at about 10, with the absolute minimum being 7.

How's your water look??

Your numbers look good:
FC 10
TA 120
CH 350
CYA 90
pH 7.2 give you a CSI of -0.14

For a plaster pool you want to monitor your CSI and keep it between +3 to -3. The closer to zero the better

 

[robertmee]

Yes raise your fc to 9 minimum of 6. Over time with back washes and splash out and using only bleach your Cya will fall. As it does you can adjust your FC back down.

 

[duxthaman]

Ok, thanks I'll use the calculator to figure out how much bleach to put in to get to the right level.

The water is very clear

ive pulled the trichlor tabs out already. Officially doing this the TFP way

 

[duxthaman]

Thanks for the help...

fc-8
pH- 7.6

the aerating worked well. I didn't retest the TA or CYA. Will add more bleach tonight and retest in morning. Will also try to add for MA tomorrow to help bring the TA down a little more.

 

[max2k]

Thanks for the help...

fc-8
pH- 7.6

the aerating worked well. I didn't retest the TA or CYA. Will add more bleach tonight and retest in morning. Will also try to add for MA tomorrow to help bring the TA down a little more.

you might find out over next few days that things don't really change that quickly once you balance your water so you don't have to do drastic adjustments moving forward. It helps if you start writing down your test results and your adjustments so you will be able to look back and analyze how it 'behaved'. This kind of log helps to start 'feeling' your pool, how its water parameters change and how much chemicals does it take to bring them back to balance. Soon you'll know this without looking anywhere .

 

[duxthaman]

Thanks, Max!

I've been documenting what I put in and will continue doing so. looking forward to getting to that point you mentioned....where I just "know".