Puck feeder chucked, hello LQ

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That's not really a dumb question at all. It's not clear to begin with.

Here's how I do it. I open the flow valve all the way and then pour a jug in and wait till the level lowers and pour another in. Repeat till it's full to the point where the funnel connects to the down tube. You can actually pour it in pretty fast that way. Just don't forget to return the valve to the proper flow after filling the LQ.
 
That's along the lines of what hubby and I were thinking. We thought to kind of hold the in float valve closed and open the flow valve to sort of drain some water down then add chlorine. I assume this process would be useful when trying to empty the bin at season end or for cleaning during the season. Hmmm...I wonder if I could/should just put a shut off valve on the In line too...
Darn you TFP...you've really created a monster here.

For the lurkers wondering, I'm really liking this gadget. I've tested the water again a couple times and it's still keeping 6-7 steady. So I opened it to where the black ball is closer to 2. I'd like to see FC sit closer to 8 or 9. I'm just trying to wrap my head around the idea that I'm not going to go through 8 gallons of bleach in a day's time if I open the valve more!!

I don't mind dumping jugs, but wow...it sure was nice last night to just do our thing and not have to remember to add bleach. And I wasn't about to be up too early to do it this morning lol...

Thanks for the input everyone, and if there's more filling/adding ideas, I'm open for them.
Special thanks to Sal at poolservicestech...I can't go on enough about how helpful and friendly he is.

Oh, and dingy me....I had just enough bleach on hand to fill this thing yesterday. Do you think I had the forethought to save 6 lousy ounces aside for the hot tub? Nope. Had to put dichlor in.... :hammer:
 
poolgirl22 said:
As the chlorine bed lowers, more pool water goes in and keeps the fluid line consistent...so then, how does one 'make room' for more chlorine. That sounds like such a dumb question...
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I installed a second valve on the IN side. After a few minutes with the valve off, the water level lowers enough to get almost 2.5 gallons in one pour. lYou can use a bungie to hold the IN float up, just be careful, because if you put too much upward force on the float you could damage the seat/nipple.
 
Things went great this weekend. How nice not to have to dose the pool or worry about how much each bather was using, adding through the day, etc.
Still trying to find the sweet spot on the flow...

I was a consistent 7ppm..increased some and yesterday was at 9ppm. I like it there for our usage so I left it be. Just checked it and it's FC 11...dialed it back down some. I truly think I could shock the pool with this thing!

I'm still getting water above the black ball. I try to bleed the line as Sal instructed, and I still get it. I tightened the fittings on either side of the flow indicator and that seemed to help the bubbles in the lines past the indicator, so maybe as it settles it will equal out.

Do you all try to maintain the FC at your high end or do you find you can be ok in the mid range since it's constantly dosing? I just don't want to waste chlorine if the high end isn't necessary.
 
I would maintain it mid-range or perhaps even on the low end. There has been some discussion here that LQ acts more like an SWG than manually dosing so a few (me) treated it more like an SWG and lowered FC down pretty much. I wasn't willing to raise my CYA because it's too hard to switch back, but I was able to operate pretty succesfully at FC 2-4 and CYA @ 50. Do so with caution, tho, because I was not able to do this long enough to really prove anything....just the possibility that somewhat lower FC might work.

The second reason I posted is to commend you on how quickly you have mastered BBB. You are obviously in command of your pool and have gone from a troublesome pool to a troublefreepool pool.....VERY nice work!! :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Thanks Dave. I couldn't have done it without the support of TFP and its members. I really think this site is the best thing around for pool owners. I just wish it wasn't so hard to convince others to just TRY it this way. As it is, I will do my best to educate folks who join the board and give back a bit of what I've received.

I've turned the LQ off today while the pump is running to get a bit of a drop from FC 11. Will test this evening to see where it is and restart my adjustments. My FC range is 4-8 so I'm going to try for 6ish and see how it does. If I don't end up with any problems the rest of this month and through vacation, I may see in August how running 4 or 5 will pan out.
 
Good for you to be up and running and maintaining your FC level :goodjob: I had a ton of family (mostly kids) in the pool yesterday, and I turned mine up to 5 as well. The pool is crystal clear this morning (I haven't checked chems yet), and I can't say that I have ever had that before with any other dosing system I have had.

The air will stay in the flow meter, as the ball sits at the top of the water elevation. If the flow meter was to fill completely up, the ball would always go to the top (the ball isn't anything special, it is just a ball for a visual indication of the flow). The flow meter will not allow for air to be drawn in to your pump if the meter is not completely full, so don't let that bother you. Unless you are needing to peg your ball all the time (which it doesn't look like you need to!) then just set it where you need it, let the water pass through (think of it like your skimmer; it isn't full to the top and it doesn't draw air) and enjoy the results!

Great work :cheers: Now, go have a Happy 5th of July :cool:
 
poolgirl22 said:
Thanks Bruce!

Really fantastic product you get to distribute and the personal service you all provide is equally fantastic. Wish there were more like you out in our section of the country!
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You're welcome! Sal and I are both happy to help, and we get a kick out of it.

I agree that the LQ has its place as a contender for maintaining chlorine (bleach) levels in a pool. The upgrade kit makes it much more viable, and I really don't understand why HASA does not just ditch the stuff they are using and make the switch to the better products. I think they would sell a lot more units, and it seems to me that that is what business is all about!

Thank you for the kind words! We just enjoy what we do, so I don't think either one of us think we are doing anything spectacular in how we work, but it is nice to hear!
 

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Poolgirl22,

Thanks for the kudos. Please keep us updated on the check valves and their performance. We have two pools with solar and the check valves are working out great!!!!
 
When you add more chlorine to The Liquidator, you are pouring slowly through a tube having the chlorine go to the bottom which fills up from the bottom raising the line between the chlorine and the water. The water on top flows out of The Liquidator thereby making more room for the chlorine. It's the opposite of what happens as the chlorine gets used up where extra water flowing in fills in for whatever chlorine is lost as the line separating them drops as the chlorine gets used.

The actual chlorine getting into the pool is that which diffuses across the layer between the denser chlorine on the bottom and the lighter water on top. With no water flow if you waited long enough the chlorine and water would all mix, but it could take quite a long time and that's the basic principle that makes it work -- if it diffused too quickly you couldn't use the more concentrated chlorine that mostly stays at the bottom. The water flow in the top layer helps remove the chlorine that has diffused into the water and this accelerates that diffusion process which is why a faster water flow rate through The Liquidator results in more chlorine in the pool.
 
OK, in my best Fonzie voice (for those of you old enough to remember!): I was wwr; I was wwrrooonnn; I was wwrrroonnnggggg! The ball does not sit at the top of the water; it is held up in place by the water pressure (flow) itself. More flow creates more pressure which raises the ball. Mine actually sits in the middle of the water (at 3) currently. However, there is still air in the chamber and it is not drawing in to the pump.

I had to go out and look to be sure. I checked my FC this morning and I was at 9.5 ppm after all the activity yesterday (I had it turned all the way open yesterday though). I did notice that I had quite a bit of WS in my lines and in my flow meter. I took it all apart and poured some acid in the flow meter and it is all good now! I have just recently started using the 12.5% chlorine, as I was seeing quite a bit of WS starting to "build" on my floats. I wonder if the cheaper (6%, been getting it at Wally World) bleach has a tendency to have/produce more WS than the heavier concentration? I am going to try and monitor it and see if I can find a correlation.

I had to report back on the ball and water elevation. Did not want to be giving out bad information :oops:
 
Ok Bruce. Mine does the same thing...the black ball is in the middle of the water most of the time. Sometimes when I've been fiddling with it, it is on top. Anyway.... So all is well. We'll just move on... :-D

Trying not to get all OCD on this thing which isn't easy for a person like me.

Thanks chemgeek...that makes sense.
 
x3 for my ball floating in the middle and there being air space at the top. The float (ball) is made of a material that doesn't float. The chambers are designed so that the more flow through the device the faster the water flows through it therefore causing the float to move farther up the tube. On this particular model there is a variable slit between the tubes to enhance the efect. Since the outlet and inlet port is on the same level it doesn't matter if there is some air in the top of it.
 
Be careful about over tightening the fittings on the flow indicator, or using too much teflon tape. The flowmeter can crack along the seams (mine did). The threads aren't made that well, so it is a likely spot for air leaks, but a better choice would be to use a little pipe compound or thread sealer.
 
What causes air in the tube leading FROM the flow meter to the drain plug on the pump?? I dont think it is the check valve between the pump and flow meter and I feel sure I dont have air seeping in at the fittings.

The one thing i didnt do was to change the hole drilled into the PVC when I changed to 3/8" set up. I left a short 4-inch section of 1/4" tubing from the PVC and added a conversion fitting. But this is on the IN side of the LQ so shouldnt be an issue

When I had the original 1/4" tubing, I didnt have this problem. Flow rate is good; pump doesnt seem to have problems IF it is taking in a bit of air, so I am not too concerned. But certainly am curious

(Sorry to be posting this here in another topic but i see knowledgeable people are monitoring)
 
Air in the outlet tubing is caused by a leak in either the tubing or the fittings. Most likely it's the threaded fittings. I'd use teflon pipe paste on them and I also use zip ties (without the tails snipped ;) ) on the barbed fittings to help seal them off a little better.
 
Hello TFPers...just posting with a little update. It's been over a month and I'm still loving the LQ. :cheers:

I had a total of 5 children and 4 adults for four straight days splashing about and enjoying the pool from after breakfast to bedtime snack time recently and I only supplemental dosed a couple times to keep ahead of the 'stuff'. Never a cloudy or dingy (that's DIN GEE, not Ding-E) looking pool. I've backwashed a couple times at most and added water here and there.

I have noticed over the last couple weeks (sauna like conditions) that my FC was dropping quite a bit during the day but not at night and no CCs even when I had the troops here giving the thing a real workout with sunblocks, etc. (Despite increasing the flow on the LQ.) At first I just attributed it to the weather as this is truly the hottest, most humid we've had in my recent memory....

It used to be that if I opened it up fully on I could test 10, 11, 12 on the FC...with 6% Bleach!!! Well she was on almost full flow and I was getting 4s 5s and sometimes 6...hmmm...something not good.
I was getting up in the middle of the night to make sure the darn timer was set to shut off because I was refilling LQ way too often the last couple weeks.

So yesterday I got a 4.5 FC straight from the return, added a gallon of bleach directly to keep at max level for my CYA of 40, refilled LQ AGAIN, check the ONFCL and got no loss overnight, O CCs. LQ at a hair less than fully on. Tested today and have 7 FC..which is good but a totally full LQ on full flow should be a 10 or 11...And let me just say you will blow through 8 gallons of bleach faster than you imagine on full flow. So I got fed up and decided to test CYA...

:party: :party: :party:
CYA was down to MAYBE 25 from 40-45. I say maybe 25...it was awfully close to 20. So sun sun Mr Golden Sun has been literally sucking cash out of my pocket for a couple weeks. I know its been at least a month since I checked CYA and my usage pattern shows that splash out is definitely to blame..my deck was constantly soaked during the long weekend party... So the socks are danglin' in front of the return with 2lbs of CYA in them.

So...here's a code for ya...

XY CYA PDQ if FC WHOOSH....

LQ is turned down to its normal 2-3 and we'll see what happens after the CYA gets added.
 
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