Just catching-up on your thread. Very nice pool and what appears to be exceptionally nice water. Good video post as well. You did a superb job in/under those steps. After reading everything, I would add the following:
- In most cases, we always add liquid chemicals near the return jet(s) - slowly. This allows the pump and returning water to push the chems outwards and assimilate better. Never add directly to the skimmer. Whenever you have a chemical to add, you will find how best to add that product on the "Recommended Chemicals" page for each item. I also can't tell from the video about any damage from pouring around the perimeter, but in the video your pool looks very nice.
- In one of your earliest posts, you mentioned the FC being at 25+ (or more I guess). So I would simply say from this point forward, don't exceed the FC anymore than by about 2 ppm or so as required on the CYA chart. In TFP terms, more is not always better. In fact it's usually a waste as the sun will burn that extra FC faster making you think something is wrong. I learned that from personal experience.
- The dark substance in your video looks borderline between dirt, tree debris, or algae. Based on your personal effort to maintain the FC and keep that pool so pristine, I'm hoping that it's just debris that's settled. As you may already know, an OCLT can often times confirm if it's algae.
My pool is also in full sun, and I'm out in the country. My water temp is almost always over 90, and at one point this year it was 94-96. A perfect environment for algae if not careful. My biggest suggestion right now .... be "absolutely sure" about your CYA. Everything about algae control hinges on the CYA to ensure you can match-up the proper FC from there. I'm assuming you know all the CYA testing tricks, but just in case:
Proper lighting is critical for the CYA test, so you want to test for CYA outside on a bright sunny day. Taylor recommends standing outside with your back to the sun and the view tube in the shade of your body. Use the mixing bottle to combine/gently mix the required amounts of pool water and R-0013 reagent, let sit for 30 seconds, then gently mix again. Then, while holding the skinny tube with the black dot at waist level, begin squirting the mixed solution into the skinny tube. Watch the black dot until it completely disappears. Once it disappears, record the CYA reading. After the first test, you can pour the mixed solution from the skinny view tube back to the mixing bottle, shake, and do the same test a second, third, or fourth time to instill consistency in your technique, become more comfortable with the testing, and validate the CYA reading.
Sometimes my eyes give me a fit, so I call in reinforcements (wife and son) to have them compare my CYA tube reading. From there I adjust my FC as required. If you are preparing for another OCLT later, don't overshoot the FC after dark. Example - if your CYA is 50 and your SLAM FC is 20, don't over-shoot FC to 30. You can lose more FC that way. (Another personal experience).
You shouldn't have such erratic FC drops each day. Anything more than a drop of 4 FC in 24 hours is alarming. Shoot, I don't remember what kind of filter you have. (Please update your sig). We may have a tip or two there later. But remain consistent with the FC "if" you go back to SLAM mode.
We'll watch y our thread for updates. Have a nice weekend.
So maintain that until you pass all 3 criteria, then you can increase FC to MA levels for 24 hours. Good luck, and have a nice day.
