What to keep in stock

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HammerGeek

HammerGeek

0
In The Industry
Aug 15, 2016
18
Wichita Falls, TX
Using the TFP way, what chemicals do you recommend keeping in stock? And his much of each? I have a 20,000 gal pool in Texas.

In the past (Pool Store way) I always kept tabs, Algecide, and shock (burnout 73) on hand. Sometime a BioGuard balance pack.
 
Hammer,

The only thing that I think makes sense to "keep in stock" would be liquid Chlorine/bleach and Muriatic Acid. I have a SWG so don't normally keep much bleach, but in the winter I buy three or four jugs and a box with two jugs of MA.

If I find I need anything else, I just get it as I need it.

Jim R.
 
No swg. I keep between 1-3 cases of 12.5% on hand during the heat of summer. I go as high as 3 when the date code shows it is less than a week old. Otherwise, I carry less. I have 3/4G of MA, but I haven't touched it in 2+years as my TA is perfect for my pool and I have borates. I also have dichlor granules that I use if I ever need to adjust my CYA.
 

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It really depends on the pool, local conditions, etc. Some people go through gallons of acid per week, others like myself probably have not used a gallon of acid in the last 5 years. (the truth is I have mostly switched back to dry acid because the muriatic acid bottles get brittle and fall apart after a couple of years).


As to what I personally keep on hand,: (keep in mind I have an indoor pool)

A few gallons of bleach (I have a metering pump connected to a 15 gallon drum which I refill) typical bleach use is about 1 quart per day

about 10-15 pounds of MPS (only used after big pool parties for supplemental oxidation)

a container or two of pH up and pH down from Lowes again my pH is very stable and rarely need adjustment and while I could use the grocery store options (borax, washing soda, etc.) I like the moisture proof screw top containers even if they do cost a little more.

I also keep some chlor out chlorine remover on hand, being an indoor pool it takes forever for FC to drop if something happens and I need to boost up to SLAM level, or remove chlorine to do an ascorbic acid stain treatment.

I also tend to keep about 10 pounds of granular CYA stalibizer on hand to tweak CYA when needed plus I have a tub of trichlor pucks, still 75% full and 6 years old, and a couple of cases of 1 pound bags of dichlor that I acquired for free a couple of years ago. This is all a bit redundant for various FC/CYA tweaks, but gives me flexibility.

It may sound like a lot to have on hand, but the nearest store that has year round pool supplies is 30 miles away (Lowe's) and sometimes they are out of this or that, and the second closest is 50 miles away in a different direction.

Ike

p.s. my pool has a vinyl liner so no CH increaser needed even though we have very soft water (50-60 ppm CH from well water depending on the season)
 
Isaac-1, tell me more about this metering pump. Does it control chlorine added to the pool (like a little at a time to maintain a level)? I'd like to know more about it, how it works, how durable it is if it is handling chlorine, how much it costs, where to get one, etc.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I am using an LMI metering pump, it is a diaphragm pump that injects a tiny amount of liquid chlorine with each stroke, (stroke length and frequency are both adjustable). Timing is adjustable between about 1 stroke every 2 minutes, then halvings of that up to several strokes per second. Max flow on mine is rated at .58 gallons per hour. As to maintenance I find I must replace the rubber (or rubber like) components including the diaphragm about once per year (I use 8.25% bleach, ware might be faster with 12%), there is a pump rebuild kit available with new rubber parts, new balls and springs for the inline check valves, etc. Kit cost is about $60 I bought my LMI pump cheap off ebay (new old stock shelf worn open box) for $100 or so. Model was in the P141 series (I think, may be A141) which retails for around $400 depending on the exact sub model online.

There are several people on here doing basicly the same thing but using a peristaltic pump which likely have a lower overall cost, and lower cost of operation, however I think he tubes in them may need to be changed more often. Also many peristaltic pumps require an external timer so while the pumps themselves are about half the price of metering pumps, you must add the cost of a timer.

Here is a random article online comparing the 2 types of pumps http://www.waterworld.com/articles/iww/print/volume-8/issue-2/features/peristaltic-or-diaphragm-metering-pump-.html I have no idea which side it comes down on, but at quick glance seems to cover the differences.

Ike

p.s. I find that I only have issue with outgasing if I use a short stroke length, so it is better to set a long stroke a fewer clicks per minute than a short stroke and more clicks per minute I also suspect but don't know that peristaltic pumps may be quieter. My LMI pump is probably about as loud as someone dropping a small coin on a wood floor from waist height each time it fires off a stroke.
 
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