CYA on a hot day - More the better??

[big_g]

Hey guys, just drained my pool. Going to swim in it for the first time tomorrow!

I dumped a gallon of 10% chlorine in it this morning before work, and here are my test results when I got home tonight:

FC: 4 (QUESTION: The drop-test showed 5-10+ range (color was orange-ish), but FAS/DPD showed 4.5ppm... Is my Taylor test kit I just got with my TF-100 kit bad?)
pH: 7.8
T/A: 120
CYA: 30-40
Temp: 76 degrees

So, my question is mostly that I live in Tucson, Arizona, where it gets HOT in the summer. Would having a higher CYA be to my benefit?

*My pool is more like 12,000 gallons. I need to fix my sig...

 

[JasonLion]

Higher CYA is good up to a point. As the CYA gets higher you have more trouble if you get algae, but otherwise use less chlorine. In practice CYA at 50 is a good maximum for most people, perhaps 60 if you get an especially large amount of direct sunlight.

 

[big_g]

Ok, thanks. Mine gets a lot of morning sun and about half the pool is shaded all afternoon. So ~40 CYA is probably pretty good for me then.

Random question, can I dump the test chemicals back into the pool?

 

[Bama Rambler]

That's not recommended. Some of those reagents are not good for you and shouldn't be put in the pool water.

 

[big_g]

Yeah I suppose that makes sense. I've seen other people throw them back in the pool and I always thought that seemed a little weird... To the ground they go.

 

[Swimgirl]

I live in Tucson myself. (Well, a suburb.) Yeah, with the amount of sunlight we get, a fairly high CYA works well. I keep mine about 40. I have let it go up to about 60, but when you do that, you do have to keep the chlorine up. I find that with staying with the recommended chlorine levels to the CYA levels I have little problems with algae, even during monsoons. In fact, I think the only algae problems I've had is when the chlorine drops a little low. Now, if I could find a way to keep the dust out...