Need help adjusting

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I will try to be short and sweet, but I have several issues.
First of all, drained and acid washed due to staining in the spring. Pool looked great till about 2 weeks ago and now I have the same staining, which looks like sand on the bottom of the pool but does not sweep up.
I have been trying to follow BBB but it's difficult - as my pool (in Arizona) gets burning sun all day it eats up the chlorine. So, I am adding a bunch of chlorine daily (4 cups minimum). Then the PH spikes and I am adding a bunch of acid. According to my independent pool guy, the type of chlorine I am using is what is causing the ph to spike. It is not unusual for the PH to go from 7.5 to 8.0 in a day. Because of the high use of acid I now have very low TA -
Please please direct me. If I miss 1 day with my pool it goes crazy. So I need to know how to stay balanced and how to remove these stains!
FC 5.0
PH 7.6
TA 40
CYA is about 50
 
The quart of chlorine is a minimum, and it's usually a lot more than that. I am using Haasa Chlorine and acid.
I am testing with my Taylor test kit, not strips.
Is the low TA aggravating the PH spike and what do I do about stains?
 
I bet the stains are actually Calcium scale. Phoenix is notorious for hard water and lots of evaporation. And you didn't list the CH test results. Does it look anything like this?
file.php


I use HASA 12.5% chlorine and muriatic acid with no problems. I keep TA about 50 to compensate for my high CH - 825 this morning. My scale is lifting (intentionally), and I use a lot of acid to keep pH down. Probably a cup a day average use. If I knock pH down to 7.2, it will be above 7.5 in 3 days if I haven't added any acid. TA will climb 10 ppm in the same time frame.

What I'm assuming happens (I'm no chemist) is that the low TA and pH dissolve scale, which adds TA to the water and makes pH rise. It also makes CH rise, which is what I'm hoping for; off the wall and into solution where I can pump it out to water the lawn and replace it with lower CH water.

Try the CH test. I recommend the 10 ml sample size, because your number will be high. 10 drops of R-0010, 3 drops R-0011, and each drop of R-0012 equals 25 ppm.

If it's astronomical, you're in luck, because Phoenix is one of the few areas of the country where reverse osmosis is available.
 
But I just emptied and refilled about 3 months ago. Could I really have calcium scale that quickly? I will do the CH test and repost.
Are you saying that keeping the TA low and the PH low will reduce the scale in the pool? I don't know how to keep PH low enough without checking 3 times a day. It rises that fast. I tested one night at 7.4 and 2 nights later it was 8.0.
And yes, my pool looks like the pic you posted --
 
Posting again because I still need some help with this.
I cannot imagine that within 3 months or so I could have that much calcium buildup.
I cannot keep the PH steady. Last night when I went to bed it was 7.4 - about 15 hours later it is at 7.6-7.7. I am at a total loss at this point. I cannot get it to stay steady a
My staining is not improving - possibly getting worse. Here are my latest test results.
PH 7.6 - 7.7
FC 0 (already added)
TA 40
CH 820
CYA 40
 
gemphx said:
Posting again because I still need some help with this.
I cannot imagine that within 3 months or so I could have that much calcium buildup.
I cannot keep the PH steady. Last night when I went to bed it was 7.4 - about 15 hours later it is at 7.6-7.7. I am at a total loss at this point. I cannot get it to stay steady a
My staining is not improving - possibly getting worse. Here are my latest test results.
PH 7.6 - 7.7
FC 0 (already added)
TA 40
CH 820
CYA 40
Click to expand...
There's why.

There's two different outfits in Phoenix area that offer reverse osmosis, that's the only way to really get rid of the Calcium. Check this thread: reverse-osmosis-t45297.html
 
Unless you start keeping the pH down around 7.2, the scaling is not surprising with the high CH.

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So, you are saying that it's possible to get this much scaling in 3 months time? Seriously?
It took 9 years to get this way previously.
I cannot keep my PH at 7.2 - it jumps too fast -
Please comment on the TA - is it too low? Is this why I am having PH problems?
My husband just read on another site about lowering calcium in the pool by doing something and it wasn't reverse osmosis. It was adding soda ash I believe. They gave the whole process, but don't know if I trust any of this stuff.
 
Soda ash only raises pH ... nothing to do with calcium.

Not uncommon to have to adjust pH every few days ... especially if you have a lot of aeration.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 

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I am not adjusting pH every few days - I am adjusting DAILY, and not a small amount.As I said in my previous post, I had the PH at 7.4 last evening and was very happy - by noon today it was up to 7.6 - I cannot check and adjust 2 times a day, it's not possible and at this rate I cannot keep PH at a decent level.
Please advise if this is because of the alkalinity.
 
High TA causes pH to rise, not low TA. Although low TA can cause pH to swing more rapidly due to other chemical additions. TA is a buffer for pH.

You could try raising it to 60 or so, but I am not sure if it will help or not. It will be lowered again as you keep adding acid due to the pH rise.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 
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