Pool magnet at closing?

[Rich D]

Here is the recommendation I received from my pool closing company.

We recommend adding scale inhibitor prior to the closing, AND/ OR Pool Magnet if you will be adding well water.

I do use well water However being in new england mother nature takes care of most of my fill requirements. I think I added 3"-4" twice this year. My well water had a very low iron content when last tested so I do not think I would need the pool magnet and not sure what a the scale inhibitor would do for me.

My CH was low (lots of rain here lately) so I was thinking about bringing up to 275 for the closing.

Thoughts??

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Chemical Addition 10-20-2018 @ 06:39 PM
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+ 10 Pounds of CalciumChloride


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Test Results 10-20-2018 @ 06:36 PM
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Free Chlorine: 2.5
Combined Chlorine: 0.0
pH: 7.7
Total Alkalinity: 70
Calcium Hardness: 225
CYA: 40
Temperature: 57°F
CSI: -0.37


Thanks for any input... Rich..

Edit..

Forgot to mention the closing will be mid November so I do not think polyquat will be necessary.

 

[Texas Splash]

Some will use a scale inhibitor, but it's reliability is subject to personal opinion. Maintaining the proper pH, TA, and CH will have a more of a direct impact on scale. If you do decide to use a scale inhibitor, be advised they tend to use up a little chlorine as well. Is your pool new and still curing? If so, monitoring the pH periodically if possible is probably a good move just to ensure it doesn't skyrocket. That should be your best protection against scaling. Closing later works in your favor as well.

If you're confident iron content is low and you don't want to do the magnet, that's certainly one option. Or you could always consider adding a sequestrant just in case.

 

[Rich D]

Some will use a scale inhibitor, but it's reliability is subject to personal opinion. Maintaining the proper pH, TA, and CH will have a more of a direct impact on scale. If you do decide to use a scale inhibitor, be advised they tend to use up a little chlorine as well. Is your pool new and still curing? If so, monitoring the pH periodically if possible is probably a good move just to ensure it doesn't skyrocket. That should be your best protection against scaling. Closing later works in your favor as well.

If you're confident iron content is low and you don't want to do the magnet, that's certainly one option. Or you could always consider adding a sequestrant just in case.

Thanks for the advice..

I do not mind spending a few bucks on a little insurance. As long as it will not have any negative affects. I did read that high FC levels will affect these types of products and I was planning on a slam a week prior to the closing. So my concern would be still having a high FC level when they put the chemicals in at the closing. Would I be better to slam now and let it drift all the way back down before closing? We will be opening as early as possible so I do not think algae will be issue.

This will be the second winter for the pool. I was very new to a plaster pool last at last year's closing and had not come on board with TFP at that point in time. The pool was plastered in September so it was still curing and I most likely did not have things well balanced at closing (I assumed the PB would be taking care of all that). The pool went uncovered all winter and I did nothing as far as testing or balancing over the winter. This spring I had what some pool professionals called considerable mottling. Depending on who you ask you will get many different reasons why this might have occurred but I have come to terms with the fact that it is something that will happen with plaster and will be far more noticeable in darker plaster. From all my research I believe it does have more to do with the way the plaster is mixed and applied then any other factor. In any case would like to be as proactive as possible to prevent any more accelerated mottling over the winter.

I will certainly keep a eye on the PH this winter and adjust if possible. I was adding about 1/2 gal of acid per week +/- (we do run the water fall daily) during the summer.

So my target levels be for closing will be

FC - a slam a week before the closing
CC -0
Ph - 7.5
TA - 70
CH- 275
CYA 40
I would expect the Temps to be 50-55 ish at this point.

The PB will be covering the pool this winter as well with a tarp style cover.


Thoughts ??