Test results, need advice...

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twoolley

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Jun 20, 2011
91
Hi everyone! My test kit got here yesterday and I took a full set of readings:

FC - 12.5
pH - 7.4
TA - 120
CH - 360
CYA - 60

I tried doing the CC test, but after I turned the sample clear I added reagent to make it pink again. All I got was a light pink after 5 drops, is that pink enough? If so, my sample turned pink after 5 drops.

I'm a little worried about my CH, my tap water CH is 210 but for some reason the pool is much higher. The previous owners may have been using Cal-Hypo products... i'm also not 100% sure that the "shock" bags that Leslie's gave me didn't have a lot of calcium in them.

I have already lowered the TA down to 120 from 150 using MA and aeration. Should it be a little lower?

Thanks for all your help, and the speedstir I ordered with my kit is AWESOME!!! :whoot:
 
If you sample turned pink doing the CC test that means there is CC present. You need to count the number of drops to determine if you need to shock your pool. Also now do a FC test overnight and see if it passes. TA needs to come down also.
 
Lets get that CC test right first.
You add the R-0870 powder then drop the R-0871 in to turn it back clear, Then you add 5 drops of the R-0003 to the same sample to turn it pink again. If it does turn any amount of pink then you have some CC's. You then add drops of R-0871 again until it turns clear again and multiply that number by .5 to get your CC's. Sounds like you have .5 CC's or less.

Do you have a swcg? If so you should work on getting your TA down to about 70 or 80. Even a little lower if it makes your pH stable.

Don't worry about the CH right now. Keep your eye on it but it's not a big concern right now. CH won't evaporate so it builds up over time with water additions. Even though your fill water is lower it adds a little each time you add water. Splashout or backwashing is the only thing that gets rid of it and since you have a cart filter you don't have the backwash feature.
 
I will redo the CC test tonight.

I don't have a swcg. Lowering TA shouldn't be much of a problem. I have 2 sheer decents I just don't run them very often. The problem I seem to be having at the moment is that my pH is climbing rapidly in just a day or 2.
 
Test today is:

FC 5.5
CC .5
TC 6
pH 7.8
TA 110
CH 330
CYA 85
Temp 85-90

My problem now is if I lower TA then the pool calc quickly goes to plaster erosion likely!

What's going on here? It seems like lower TA gives me less wiggle room and I go to plaster corrosion more quickly.
 
I get different results.
If I enter the results you show above I get the CSI on the positive side not the negative side. In fact I can go to a TA of 60 before it gets to zero. Even if I move the pH to 7.4 and the TA to 80 I get about -.2 and that's nothing to worry about.
 
You're right... I think i'm just obsessing over it to much. My target numbers will be an FC of 10, pH of 7.5, and TA of 90. Those numbers seem to balance me out the best.

Thanks for the response, Dave!
 
My test results today are 2.5ppm with FC using the powder test. The drop test says it's over 5 though... which do I believe? I performed the powder chlorine test twice.

Also, my pH is still sitting at 7.8 so I added another 42 oz and I will retest in an hour or so.

Lastly, my pump was off for about 2 hours tonight and I just turned it back on and it blew air through the returns. Is that normal? Should my pump be taking in air when it's turned off?

So much to learn so little time!
 
twoolley said:
My test results today are 2.5ppm with FC using the powder test. The drop test says it's over 5 though... which do I believe? I performed the powder chlorine test twice.

Also, my pH is still sitting at 7.8 so I added another 42 oz and I will retest in an hour or so.

Lastly, my pump was off for about 2 hours tonight and I just turned it back on and it blew air through the returns. Is that normal? Should my pump be taking in air when it's turned off?

So much to learn so little time!
Click to expand...
The powder test is much more accurate. If you're using it, don't even bother filling that side of the color block.

pH will always climb with high TA, especially if you run the water features. Once you drive TA down by keeping the pH in range, it will take less and less acid to correct it, less frequently. Be patient.

Air coming out the returns is not good. It means air is getting sucked in from somewhere. First check the water level. You could be getting a vortex in the skimmer if the water is too low. Then see if the flapper in the skimmer is stuck. The next most common source of air leaks is the lid on the pump strainer. For more ideas, use the search feature.
 

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It's not the skimmer. There's no vortex and plenty of water. My skimmer doesn't have flaps, I need to buy some :(

It could be the pump basket. I assume somewhere there's a very small air leak that is allowing the water to drain back down the pipes. Water is not coming out of the system at the equipment pad when the equipment is running. There's no air coming out of the return lines when the system is running either. It's only at start up when the system is first turned on. Like it's loosing prime when off.

If I keep adjusting the pH with MA and keeping it daily at 7.5 will TA come down or do I need to bring it down to 7.2 and aerate with the sheer decents? I have a sheer decent from the spa into the pool that is always running when the filter is on.
 
twoolley said:
It's not the skimmer. There's no vortex and plenty of water. My skimmer doesn't have flaps, I need to buy some :(

It could be the pump basket. I assume somewhere there's a very small air leak that is allowing the water to drain back down the pipes. Water is not coming out of the system at the equipment pad when the equipment is running. There's no air coming out of the return lines when the system is running either. It's only at start up when the system is first turned on. Like it's loosing prime when off.

If I keep adjusting the pH with MA and keeping it daily at 7.5 will TA come down or do I need to bring it down to 7.2 and aerate with the sheer decents? I have a sheer decent from the spa into the pool that is always running when the filter is on.
Click to expand...
Yes.


Either way works. It's just plain old chemistry. Acid neutralizes the alkalinity. It's just the speed that the pH rebounds that's affected by aeration. The total amount of acid needed is the same, aeration only affects the time frame. If you have a weekend to kill, drop pH to 7 and run everything full blast. Check pH every two hours and keep lowering it with acid. You'll eventually see the pH rise slow down. When TA gets where you want, turn off the aeration.

Does your filter have an air bleed? You could have a pocket of compressed air in there that forces the water out when the pump is off, and then you need to refill and compress it again on startup. If you do have an air bleed, start the pump, and when you have some flow, just crack the air bleed and let it hiss until water starts coming out, then close it.
 
Your TA is close enough that you can just keep the pH adjusted and the TA will come down in time.

You're leak could be on the discharge side of the pump or on the filter. It might be wort it to remove the bleed valve and clean and lube it well. There was a topic a while back that had the same problem. The system was fine when it was running but when it was shut off it leaked air in at the filter.

Just make sure that there is no air in the pump basket when it's running.
 
A small bit of air is in the pump basket when it's running... just tiny air bubbles at the top.

I'm hoping it's an O-ring somewhere on the equipment pad that is allowing air to get into the system and the water in the lines drains back into the pool. Then the pump is priming again. I had a local PB replace an O-ring on the pump before I moved in as part of the closing. The O-ring has leaked, not leaked, leaked, not leaked... sometimes it does sometimes not. I suspect it's the most likely suspect. It's the O-ring that is between the pump's motor housing and basket.
 
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