How to do you guys go about measuring Muriatic Acid for your spas? Being that my spa is 330 gallons, in doing the math it looks like I'll be looking at about 2 tps to drop from 8 to 7.2 pH. I haven't filled up the tub yet — more or less just getting prepared with what I'll need. Acid comes in 1 gallon jugs and we're working with such small amounts that it's a little tricky. Do you have some kind of special device you like to use? I did some searching, but the only thing I came up with lead to a dead link for a product. Also, do you folks use some kind of respirator mask when working with this?
Measuring Muriatic Acid
- Thread starter Acuity
- Start date
Yeah, your quantities are miniscule. Just to make it easy to work with, I would use dry acid.
I haven't filled up the spa with water yet. I'm trying to plan ahead and get what I need based off of the how-to guide. Being that I only have experience working with the pool and pH tends to dip over time (with pools), I don't have much experience in working with acid and it's a little more tricky than just dumping baking soda into a 15k gallon pool.
This makes sense. A lot of people seem to be fans of Muriatic Acid here, but it's such a small amount out of such a big bottle. I was just curious in how people were doing it since working with acid isn't as easy as other things.
You can always measure your tap water to figure out your TA. When I just filled mine using the TFP method I ended up adding about 1 ounce at a time since my TA was almost 300 my PH was rising so fast while running blowers that it didn't matter for the first couple additions and then I slowed way down. Also bought a measuring cup for 2 stroke oil mixing and it only goes to 5 ounces. I can measure to about .25 ounces with it pretty easily.
Ahh good idea.
I was thinking about funneling the acid into some kind of a squeeze bottle dispenser so it would be easier to work with. In reading here, it seems there are a lot of people that prefer Muriatic Acid — I just didn't know if there was some trick of the trade I wasn't aware of.
I couldn't find dry acid anywhere around me which is why I went with the muriatic acid in a liquid form. If you have access to dry it would probably be easier
Take a small plastic container, measure out some water and use a marker to make marks. Use that to measure your acid.
Yeah, but that doesn't really apply much in your case. For a pool, using dry acid is not as favorable because of the steady accumulation of sulfites. In a hot tub, you will dump the water often enough to render that issue irrelevant. Use dry acid.
This works well for me. I have a 200 gallon tub.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071DCS935/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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Remember acid into water. Otherwise it will create a smelly reaction, or worse.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071DCS935/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
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Remember acid into water. Otherwise it will create a smelly reaction, or worse.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,896
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Tsk, tsk. No glass near a pool or spa. Murphy's Law: if it's plastic, you'll never drop it. If it's glass, it'll shoot right out of your hand!! There's only one way to get all the shards of broken glass out of a pool or spa, full or empty: with your feet!! Very reliable method, though it can take years.
Wonder how many have had to completely drain their pool and then get the wet/dry vac out, and scour every inch of the bottom. Rinse and vac, rinse and vac. Just because your neighbor or friend had one two many Kiltlifters (my choice 
) in a bottle and whoops. Pool party over folks. Everyone out of the pool. 
...
One of my 3 pool rules. If you prefer to BYOB, NO GLASS!!!!
I'm sure you can guess the other two.
Stay away from my pool equipment pad. FAR AWAY. That's why it's on the other side of that 5' stem wall AND.
Of course, dry off, and use the bathroom you lazy *&%$**
) in a bottle and whoops. Pool party over folks. Everyone out of the pool. ...One of my 3 pool rules. If you prefer to BYOB, NO GLASS!!!!
I'm sure you can guess the other two.
Stay away from my pool equipment pad. FAR AWAY. That's why it's on the other side of that 5' stem wall AND.
Of course, dry off, and use the bathroom you lazy *&%$**
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,896
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Your over thinking this. I have had a -500 gallon hot tub for over 5 years and I use a 1 ounce plastic measuring container and pour right out of the gallon acid container into the 1 ounce measuring cup. Just do it over the hot tub, no big deal if you spill a couple drops. Been doing this for years with zero issues.
Of course you could always measure the acid away from the pool into a plastic container like I do
My tub is 200 gallons. I often add a teaspoon when topping off or making small adjustments. The big dropper is way easier than trying to pour into a teaspoon.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,896
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Of course you could always measure the acid away from the pool into a plastic container like I do
Yep, that's exactly how I spilled acid on my deck, carrying such a plastic container from where I measured it out to where I dumped it in. And I was being so careful, until I wasn't. As Lykly described, I've now taken to measuring out acid over the water. Additionally, I carry the chemical jugs to and from the pool in a bucket (which I learned from my acid-using stone guy). That way, if you get a dribble running down the jug, it's captured in the bucket, and can't get to the deck. The trick is to bring the bucket to the pool's/spa's edge and set it overhanging the water a little. Lift the jug out of the bucket directly over the water, so that it is never over the deck. Measure over the water. Then put the jug and the measuring device back into the bucket, again, without ever passing over the deck or coping.
Overkill? Maybe. But it's going to cost me at least a day of hard labor to get rid of those few acid stains (which bug me every time I see them). Using the bucket and other cautious procedures is nothing compared to that.
Which MA are you using? In this part of the country, pretty much every hardware store carries "swimming pool" muriatic acid, which is a 14.5%, has little odor and much easier to handle. Plus you would be using larger quantities so easier to measure out. That's what I use on my pool, even though it ends up costing more -- I just HATE the fumes of the stronger MA.
That being said, +1 on using the dry acid in your situation.
That being said, +1 on using the dry acid in your situation.
I use trichlor pucks for acid.
I bust em up into small chunks, then add it to a floater that's dialed way back for slow release.
It takes a while to dissolve and lower the PH, but seems to work fine for me.
I bust em up into small chunks, then add it to a floater that's dialed way back for slow release.
It takes a while to dissolve and lower the PH, but seems to work fine for me.
- Nov 12, 2017
- 11,896
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Me? I use 31%. And I hate the fumes, too. Big time. I solved that issue another way (two other ways, actually). But they don't apply to the OP's challenge of measuring tiny amounts...