winter check cause it was nice out today

[jimim]

ok here are the facts:

we closed on 10/27 i tested on 11/11 so 2 weeks.

my FC was 18 today it was 11. down 7 in 2 weeks. not cool.

my ph was 7.4 today it was 9.1 on my digital meter. drops were off the chart so it was deff above 8.2.


well i dropped 102 oz of chlorine. got it back to 17.5. don't know what my gallon size is now cause of the water level being low, but after 2 hours of mixing with a sump pump on the floor of deep and and a hose swishing around underwater hooked up to it that's what i got.

i measured in the deep end and the low end. they matched.


so i should be good right? meaning no chlorine should be sitting on the floor that can cause damage or sitting up against the walls. it was liquid. pure in over the pump. i brushed in deep end and low end to move the water more also. i had some good waves going.


i'm doing acid now. this the one that has me worried cause i have heard mixed things about it, but it was 9 people! i had to do something. i poured it in over pump. did the brush thing again. will let it mix for next 2 hours. and measure.


what do you guys think. comments? concerns? no way the acid ca mark the plaster floor where i poured right? or get ring around the pool plaster if i readings show it dropped down to about 7.4 wish i'm thinking by guessing. i put in 54 ounces.

jim


edit. app is working again. had to install it again after deleting it.

my numbers for chemicals in weren't too off. i'll be safe. so my csi was over .87 but don't know exactly what cause at ph of 9.0 it's .87 but as soon as i put in a number greater than 9 the app gets wonky and i suddenly get a -1.0 now so something isn't right there? should be positive 1.0 i'm assuming? right.

anyway once i knock it down i'll be in range again. with a water temp of 50 my happy place is 7.5-8.7 to be in the .6 window. no way i'm going to be able to stay in the .3 window this winter.

again comments concerns.

 

[jimim]

i just measured ph. has been mixing for 1 hr. deep end reading where pump is is down to 7.6. so back in safe range. for now! this is going to be a long winter. i just don't want to mess up what was perfect all summer.

still going to let it mix for 2 hours though.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Neither your R-0004 drops nor the pH probe are going to be accurate when the FC is above 10ppm. A well calibrated, laboratory grade pH probe could probably make an accurate measurement but not the cheaper ones usually sold for pools. The standard pH drop test with the TF-100 or K-2006 will give false-high readings when the FC is above 10ppm due to the chlorine attacking the phenol red indicator.

My advice to you would be to simply adjust your pH and FC one more time and then close the pool and forget about it. Chances are very low that any significant amounts of algae will grow with water below 60F. Your CSI is fine fir the winter as cold water has much greater solubility for calcium than warm water. Even if you get a little bit of calcium scale over the winter, it can be dealt with when you open the pool in the spring.

Trying to do chemical management of a cold and half closed pool is more likely to cause accidental damage from pouring in concentrated chemicals with poor mixing then it is to help the pool. Simply close the pool and wait until next spring.

That’s my advice to you, take it as you will.

 

[jimim]

Neither your R-0004 drops nor the pH probe are going to be accurate when the FC is above 10ppm. A well calibrated, laboratory grade pH probe could probably make an accurate measurement but not the cheaper ones usually sold for pools. The standard pH drop test with the TF-100 or K-2006 will give false-high readings when the FC is above 10ppm due to the chlorine attacking the phenol red indicator.

My advice to you would be to simply adjust your pH and FC one more time and then close the pool and forget about it. Chances are very low that any significant amounts of algae will grow with water below 60F. Your CSI is fine fir the winter as cold water has much greater solubility for calcium than warm water. Even if you get a little bit of calcium scale over the winter, it can be dealt with when you open the pool in the spring.

Trying to do chemical management of a cold and half closed pool is more likely to cause accidental damage from pouring in concentrated chemicals with poor mixing then it is to help the pool. Simply close the pool and wait until next spring.

That’s my advice to you, take it as you will.

ok that’s kinda what I needed to hear. So if I got a fc reading in the low end and deep end that match after 2 hrs of mixing that mean I’m safe that it’s all mixed?

i didn’t realize the ph readings would be off with a free chlorine reading between 11 to 17. I added 53 oz so not a lot of acid so I would assume I’m ok amount wise. Again if I mixed for 2 hours and my reading match in low and deep end. Mixed enough that nothing is sitting when I poured in. I poured right over the pump and hose so it acted like pouring in front of a return and I used my whale brush for a few mins to wave up the water.

what do you think?

pool is staying closed now. I will leave it and forget about it now.

Thanks,
jim

 

[JoyfulNoise]

It’s sounds to me like you have everything set. Open up early in the spring when the water is still below 60F and there’s no more freezing weather and your pool will be fine. Enjoy the time off not thinking about it.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

My two cents --> ditch the digital meter and use a drop based test from now on anyway. Just far more reliable. And only believe your results if FC <10 like it says in Pool School.

Ooops- Winter Homework Reading!! Cozy up with a nice warm beverage and settle in for some pool School

Maddie

Addendum: Jimim, I don't know if I missed your pool build or what but I just saw it....FABULOUS!! And your wiring skills are phenomenal. I can't get Skippy to wire up our new receiver after my beloved BOSE theater system was shocked and killed by mutant stray lightening and YOU have color coded cables and cabinets and pull out thingies.....well... I am SERIOUSLY impressed!! How did you learn to do all that??

 

[jimim]

It’s sounds to me like you have everything set. Open up early in the spring when the water is still below 60F and there’s no more freezing weather and your pool will be fine. Enjoy the time off not thinking about it.

I totally wasn’t for going to check yesterday but I was putting up Xmas lights and I kept saying I should check it’s nice out. Ya maybe I shouldn’t have checked. Lol

thanks a lot though. I appreciate it so much.

Jim

 

[jimim]

My two cents --> ditch the digital meter and use a drop based test from now on anyway. Just far more reliable. And only believe your results if FC <10 like it says in Pool School.

Ooops- Winter Homework Reading!! Cozy up with a nice warm beverage and settle in for some pool School

Maddie

Addendum: Jimim, I don't know if I missed your pool build or what but I just saw it....FABULOUS!! And your wiring skills are phenomenal. I can't get Skippy to wire up our new receiver after my beloved BOSE theater system was shocked and killed by mutant stray lightening and YOU have color coded cables and cabinets and pull out thingies.....well... I am SERIOUSLY impressed!! How did you learn to do all that??

i bought the digital meter this summer cause I was having problems reading color diff but stopped using it once the water started to get colder cause I noticed it was getting wonky.

Thanks for the compliments about my build. It’s simple the pool but our builder was great cause he is local and small. All in all positive. Everything else was friends and family.

My wire management is good cause one of my closest friend owns a home theatre company and I actually design and do some installation when needed. I do most of his programming of larger more complex automation. It’s my side thing.

I deff learned a ton here this summer and last year. Still learning but the ph with lower temps and fc high was new to me. I know at slam levels ph is off but didn’t know at above 10.

 

[Donzi 18]

Something I have done for many years is after closing I drop a fish tank pump in the pool and let it run 24/7, its rated to move about 60 gph I check weekly and add liquid chlorine when needed, my numbers yesterday where. FC 4.5 CC 0 PH 7.3 ALK 70 CYA 40 CH 150, I have vinyl lined pool and have battled iron stains so I try and keep my FC & PH at the lower ranges. I decent fish tank pump has done wonders for me over the years.

 

[jimim]

that's pretty much what i did yesterday. sump pump with a 4' hose connected to it with the metal end cut off so it doesn't hit the plaster. I put the pump in deep end and let the hose whip around. after 2 hrs it seems to mix the chemicals well.

i'm going to let it go like advised and not check again till my builder wants me to later in the winter once the temp starts to come up again.