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Cacro06

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Feb 24, 2016
18
Bonaire, Ga
So I've been reading posts on here since shortly after my pool was built. Now that I've survived the first season of the pool I bought my TF100 and am ready to get away from the trichlor auto chlorinator and do this myself. I did my tests this afternoon to prepare for the season and here are my results.

FC: 0
CC: 0
PH: 7.0
TA: 70
CYA: 35

I bought some 10% bleach and stabilizer but wanted to check to see if there is anything I missed. Is there a particular order I need to add everything? Thanks in advance guys.
 
Hello and welcome to TFP! :wave: At this point, adding the bleach right away would be #1. If we round-up your CYA to 40, the your FC should be between 5-7, and never below 3. Your pH is a tad low, but if you have a way to make some aeration, that will help if climb back up a little.

Nice to have you with us on the forum.
 
You need to get some chlorine in there pronto.... how does your water look at the moment? How long have you gone without chlorine especially since its so warm here and algae is probably ready to take off and green up your pool?

Use pool math to guide you: make sure you enter your pool volume at the top, then go down to the bottom and select that you want to use "bleach" and take advice from "TroubleFreePool.com" and that your surface is vinyl.
Then enter your numbers into pool math on the far left "Now" column, and you'll see some suggested range goals in the same area. Input your desired goal in the "Target" column and it will tell you exactly what to add to get there.

This needs to be done TODAY! :whip: if you want to avoid algae. Consider your CYA to be 40ppm, as there are no "half ways" with this reading. Anything showing over 30ppm is read as 40ppm.

Holler back with any questions :)

Yippee :flower:

addendum: Good morning Pat! I see we were both typing at the same tiime :goodjob:
 
That's the weird thing, the water is crystal clear. I was finishing the trichlor through the chlorinator and it is virtually empty now. I'm pretty sure I did the test correctly but the chlorine test stayed clear. The DPD test stayed clear as well. I input my number and was prepared to add the bleach but wanted to double check first. Thanks for the help.
 
Now that you have 10% bleach, you should see an immediate change in the test. Use the Poolmath calculator to verify the correct dosage and watch it closely. Maybe test again about 30 min or so to ensure the FC is holding. As long as you have that CYA in the water to protect the bleach (FC) from the sun, it should appear in the test and hold for a while.
 
So I added the 99oz per the PC. I got a slight change and FC was .5 when I measured an hour later. Ran the test again yesterday and it was back to zero. PC suggested 99oz again of 10%. Knowing that this didn't work last time I went ahead and put in 256oz and tested an hour or so later and it was around 3. I checked again about 3 hours later and was down to zero. These test were done with the K-1000. When doing the drop test it was showing CC of .5. The water is still crystal clear. Is a large quantity of LC needed to get me to the higher FC level? What do you recommend?
 
256oz of 10% would be a lot of dosage :) something tells me that there are some numbers off in Pool Calculator.. can you give us a screen shot of the pool calculator with the numbers you are using?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
256oz of 10% would increase FC to about 12 in a 17K pool - just under the SLAM level for an CYA of 40. Since it's safe, I'm not so much worried about the amount at the moment, but more curious about the testing method and how often (consistency) dosed.
 
I use the K-1000 just to get a quick check on chlorine. Twice I have run the DPD test and the water stayed clear (no chlorine). Today is the third day that I've had the kit but I only get to test in the afternoon. Kinda hard to go test at 4:00 in the morning before I leave for work.
 

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So I got home and broke out the Speed Stir for the drop test. It never turned pink (no chlorine). One thing that I forgot to mention and is possibly a big mistake is that my calculations were wrong and I added stabilizer the night before last and CYA is now between 60 and 70. But shouldn't I still have FC? PH is still showing 6.8 so it could be lower. I turned the return jet upwards as suggested to aerate the water and get the PH up. Let the criticism and suggestions begin!!!
 
Let the criticism and suggestions begin!!!
Click to expand...
Bwaaahaahaa!
So we know you don't need to add anymore stabilizer. We might as well round-up to 70 unless you tell us later it is definitely lower. The FAS-DPD drop test is the way to go. :goodjob: No pink = no chlorine. Time to get some bleach in there ASAP. Add with pump on and let mix for about 20-30 minutes then test again to confirm the FC has increased. Because your FC has been low for so long I'm more concerned with algae trying to brew. So increase FC to about 8-10. A pool with a CYA of 70 should never let the FC below 5. So do that now and monitor every few hours to ensure FC is holding relatively well. If you experience any huge FC losses, let us know.

PH below 7.2 can be an issue, but aeration will help. Slow, but better than nothing. A little Borax or Soda Ash can also raise it, but use your good judgment there. If the pH doesn't budge from aeration, it may need a little help with either of those items from the local grocery store. :)

Keep us posted!
 
Pool Math is showing 196oz. Slowly poor that in then test again? That is almost exactly what I did last night and it only went up to a FC of 3. But I am at your mercy and will attempt again. I'm confident that once it gets in line for the pool season that it will be easier to maintain. Thanks Tex.
 
Your pool is slightly smaller than mine, but not by much. I know a 1/2 gallon of regular 8.25% bleach (i.e. Wal-Mart's Great Value) raises my FC by about 2.5. So one full gallon raises my FC by about 5. Yours should be fairly close to that. Since your FC was zero (not showing any pink), I would add TWO gallons of regular 8.25% bleach (slowly) near a return jet(s). Have your pool brush nearby and feel free to give the bottom an extra sweep or two just to help everything along. Pump on high to help as well. Check again in about 30 min. You should definitely have something between 8-10 by then. Let us know please. If the FC doesn't show as expect, we'll discuss some more.
 
Well maybe I am making some progress. Another test and now FC is 13. I only put in 196oz of 10% since I didn't have 8.25. It was a slight (and I mean slight) pink so it took one drop of r-0003 and it went back to clear. CC is <.5 I assume. I'll test again in about 2 hours and see where we are.
 
Just ran another test and FC is now at 11. CC is still <.5. I didn't think that I would lose that much in that short of time. I'll try to run another test in an hour or two. Since the sun has set I'll do my best to get a sample in the morning for an OCLT.
 
I tested again at 10:15 and FC was 9, CC was .5. So I tested first thing this morning around 4:30 and FC was 7 with CC still at .5. With CYA at 70 my chlorine should stay in the 8-10 range. What could be causing me to lose FC so rapidly?
 

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