I'm having trouble getting pH and alkalinity balanced. Right now alkalinity is ok (80) and pH is high (8.4). If I add pH down, both will go down. If I add alkalinity increaser or baking soda, both go up. According to some websites, alkalinity increaser should raise alkalinity without affecting pH, but that's not what I'm seeing. Any tips? Thanks.
Can't get pH and Alkalinity balanced
- Thread starter ben45677
- Start date
Hey there Ben.... welcome to TFP
The answer is for you to use MA to drop your pH (which may drop your TA some) and then if you need to raise your TA again you can use baking soda. Take a gander at our PoolMath app (link found at top of page) and it will help guide your quantities. You definitely need to get that pH down. How low are you looking to take it?
Best not to use pH Down products if you have a plaster pool or a salt water chlorine cell as the sulphates it leaves behind are not good for them.
Maddie
The answer is for you to use MA to drop your pH (which may drop your TA some) and then if you need to raise your TA again you can use baking soda. Take a gander at our PoolMath app (link found at top of page) and it will help guide your quantities. You definitely need to get that pH down. How low are you looking to take it?
Best not to use pH Down products if you have a plaster pool or a salt water chlorine cell as the sulphates it leaves behind are not good for them.
Maddie
Ben,
Welcome to TFP... A Great resource for all your pool water chemistry questions...
Unfortunately, you need to tell us much more for us to help you with your issue. We need a full set of the following test results:
FC
CC
pH
TA
CH
CYA
We also need to know how you are testing and how you are chlorinating your pool. A lot of the above tests are interrelated, so knowing all of the results makes our answers more accurate.
A good example is that if your FC is higher than 10 ppm, then your pH test is no longer accurate.
We also need to know more about your pool.. Do you have any water features or a Spa spillover than run all the time? Aeration caused by water features can cause a constant increase in your pH.
The more you can tell us the better we can help..
Thanks for posting,
Jim R.
Welcome to TFP... A Great resource for all your pool water chemistry questions...
Unfortunately, you need to tell us much more for us to help you with your issue. We need a full set of the following test results:
FC
CC
pH
TA
CH
CYA
We also need to know how you are testing and how you are chlorinating your pool. A lot of the above tests are interrelated, so knowing all of the results makes our answers more accurate.
A good example is that if your FC is higher than 10 ppm, then your pH test is no longer accurate.
We also need to know more about your pool.. Do you have any water features or a Spa spillover than run all the time? Aeration caused by water features can cause a constant increase in your pH.
The more you can tell us the better we can help..
Thanks for posting,
Jim R.
This is what I do. If the PH is higher than 7.8, I chlorinate with dichlor, if my PH is lower than 7.8 I chlorinate with bleach. It's been years since I tested for alkalinity.
My PH stays stable this way.
My PH stays stable this way.
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