Taylor K2006 Test Kit Question

[Dixie Rider]

Hi ya'll, like the site a lot and learned a lot from it. I got burned by my pool builder who abandoned the job at the end and one of the things I had to learn on my own was pool school which lead me to here. I have a few questions on the kit which I can't seem to clarify on my own.
When I take the FC sample, the kit directions say for each drop multiply by 0.5ppm. If I have, say 60 drops to get my color change, that would make my ppm 30. That's 30ppm, not 3ppm like the same pool sample reading that the pool store says it is. Is it 30ppm or is it 3ppm? The pool water both smells and tastes good so I have to believe it is 3 and not the higher number.
My second question relates to the CYA readings. When I mix the water and the regents and pour into the comparator tube and watch the black dot disappear it doesn't reach any of the numbers on the side of the tube and it's never equal to the pool store numbers. Are the pool store numbers off this much? Never having got any hands on training from the experts has me wondering. Thanks.

Numbers:
Clarity clear
Temperature 88 F
Salt 3150
FC 3ppm or 30ppm?
PH 7.7
TA 150
CA 250
CYA 50 I think

 

[duraleigh]

Welcome to the forum.

If you used 60 drops of R-0871, your FC is 30 (thirty)ppm.

Your CYA questions is hard for me to understand. Does the black dot disappear before you ever get the tube filled up to ANY of the numbers? Rephrase it a little and we'll get you a good answer.

PS - disregard all pool store numbers.....they will not be as accurate as yours.

 

[Butterfly]

Welcome

Here's a link to the visual for the CYA test that has helped lots of us:

http://www.taylortechnologies.com/Chemi ... ntentID=44

 

[Richard320]

Hi ya'll, like the site a lot and learned a lot from it. I got burned by my pool builder who abandoned the job at the end and one of the things I had to learn on my own was pool school which lead me to here. I have a few questions on the kit which I can't seem to clarify on my own.
When I take the FC sample, the kit directions say for each drop multiply by 0.5ppm. If I have, say 60 drops to get my color change, that would make my ppm 30. That's 30ppm, not 3ppm like the same pool sample reading that the pool store says it is. Is it 30ppm or is it 3ppm? The pool water both smells and tastes good so I have to believe it is 3 and not the higher number.
My second question relates to the CYA readings. When I mix the water and the regents and pour into the comparator tube and watch the black dot disappear it doesn't reach any of the numbers on the side of the tube and it's never equal to the pool store numbers. Are the pool store numbers off this much? Never having got any hands on training from the experts has me wondering. Thanks.

Numbers:
Clarity clear
Temperature 88 F
Salt 3150
FC 3ppm or 30ppm?
PH 7.7
TA 150
CA 250
CYA 50 I think

The FC depends on your sample size. Are you using 10ml of water or 25 ml? The factor is .5 for 10 and .2 for 25. If you're using the larger sample, same as for CH and TA, then your FC is 12, a more reasonable number.

If the CYA test blots out the dot before you even get to 100, your CYA is above 100. That's likely if you've been using solid chlorine pucks or sticks. Try diluting the water sample 50-50 then mix it with the CYA reagent, take your reading and then double it.

 

[Bama Rambler]

When performing the CYA test if the dot disappears between two numbers (i.e. between 40 & 50) then consider it the higher number (i.e. 50). if it never disappears it means you don't have any CYA and if it disappears as soon as you pour a few drops of the sample in it means you have 100+ ppm CYA.

 

[Dixie Rider]

Thanks for the replies, to answer some of the questions...duraleigh-on the CYA test the dot disappears before I reach any numbers so I assumed my CYA was up over 100. Richard 320- No chlorine has ever been added, only bleach. And the FC reading is the same regardless of the sample size but I do use the 10ml sample size. We find it confusing since the typical difficulties associated with high chlorine (smell, hair coloring, clothes fading, eyes burning) haven't happened at all. Thanks for your patience.

 

[zea3]

Since the dot disappears before you reach the numbers on the vial the CYA is over 100. That is why you can have 30 ppm of FC and not be overwhelmed by a bleach smell.
Odds are that pool store test does not go above 3 ppm. Many pool stores use very basic kits or strips that do not read above the industry standard recommendations. That being said, industry recommendations are for a "perfect world" pool that does not take pool surface or regional conditions like high cH into account, nor do they consider the consequences of using stabilized chlorine for an extended period of time.
Same goes for the CYA test. Most pool stores will test for CYA with a strip that is read either by the tester or a computer. Too many factors affect the integrity of a test strip rendering them unreliable.

Trust your testing. You do not need an expert to teach you how to follow the written directions included with the kit. Perform the tests as directed and you will have results you can trust. Keep the kit in a cool, dry place and the reagents will be good for at least a year. The thread Extended test kit directions has information about conditions that may affect test results and how to tell when a reagent has gone bad.

Keep your test results in a log and you will be able to look back and track any trends in your pool over time.

FYI- Bleach is liquid chlorine. Are you using the SWG to chlorinate your pool?

 

[Dixie Rider]

I understand that bleach is chlorine, what I meant is I don't add liquid or powder chlorine if that matters.
I use the SWG as my source for chlorine.
With my water out of balance what do you recommend?

 

[anonapersona]

I've got a question.... with a salt system for chlorination, and you never add anything like powder chlorine sources (like cal-hypo or dichlor) and I assume you have no automatic-tab feeder for chlorinating since you have the SWG.... how did the CYA get that high?