Got complacent--now paying the price

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rickyjanet

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Jun 25, 2012
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Had a sparking pool for quite a while and got lazy about testing...now I have a green pool :( Started the process yesterday.

Came home today and pool is still green..my numbers:
TC - 25
PH - 7.5
CYA - 25 (was 70 yesterday)
TA - 130

Yesterday,I treated the pool based on my CYA as 70 (my chlorine was close to 0) Today as you can see,the CYA has dropped. How much does my CYA need to be so that I'll know what my shock # is?

Looks like if the CYA needs to be 50, I would need to add 17 oz stabalizer; then I would need to lower the TA by reducing the PH & aerate. After all that, since my TC is 25, I wouldn't need to add any more bleach???
 
It is highly odd that you would have a 65% drop in CYA overnight ... unless you replaced that much water. So, kind of hard to decide a path forward with that uncertain term.

If you believe the 25ppm, you can certainly continue the chock process at the lower level (or maybe raise it up to 30ppm or so) When you complete that shock process, you can then raise the CYA up a little more not over 50ppm.

The pH test can be inaccurate when FC > 10ppm, so ignore that for now. Also, ignore TA and focus on maintaining FC levels.

Later you can worry about adjusting TA, or just let is naturally find equilibrium by keeping the pH in range.
 
Something is wrong with your testing unless you replaced water. You cannot experience that type of drop with CYA.

Retest and confirm your CYA before you go any further. A retest doesn't need to be perfect but it needs to be a heck of a lot closer than that
 
Just rechecked--made sure I was using the correct Agents, etc... Was closer to 30. Rechecked again just to make sure.

Just to clarify...yesterday my CYA was almost nil,so per the Calculator, I added 20 oz of stabalizer in a sock (2 separate batches). So maybe when I checked it last eve, it was too soon???

Anyway now I can say the CYA is 30, my shock number would be 12 correct?
 
So to be totally clear:
Yesterday you tested close to 0 CYA, and then added 20oz in a sock, and then tested 70ppm (likely a bad test)
And now today you are reading 30ppm.

Usually we say to wait a week to test the CYA after it has dissolved ... 20oz should have raised your CYA by ~28ppm, so depending on how low you really started, you are probably between 30-50ppm (since your low reading could have really been close to 20ppm). Test it again in a week.

Since you are above shock level already, just keep an eye on it as it drops and then add more to keep it at shock level.
 
You got it Jason!!

I'm just not clear now about what to do next...I have "stirred" up the pool and it's really green. My thought is that I need more bleach in order to kill the algae. I'm waiting on "white" water... Am I wrong???
 
If the green is algae, your high FC should be dropping pretty quickly. Maintaining FC well above shock value is not recommended as it can damage the vinyl.

Just keep an eye on the FC and maintain shock level when it drops to it.
 

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Checked the pool before heading out the door to go to work hoping I would see a different color of green--no luck--same dark green color...I'm not making any headway and my shock level is still above what it should be...
Since I wanted a clear pool for the holiday weekend, I'm thinking I should partially drain and refill... What are your thoughts?
 
rickyjanet said:
Checked the pool before heading out the door to go to work hoping I would see a different color of green--no luck--same dark green color...I'm not making any headway and my shock level is still above what it should be...
Since I wanted a clear pool for the holiday weekend, I'm thinking I should partially drain and refill... What are your thoughts?
Click to expand...

Can you post some test results? What has the FC been doing overnight or during the day between checks? Is it rapidly disappearing? How often do you have to add more to keep it up? Are you brushing - if so how often? Is your pressure rising on the filter? If so how quickly and when you backwash (if you have yet) does it drop back down?

Can you add skimmer socks and or return slime bags to add more filtration? Have you added DE to the sand filter? There's an article about that in Pool School. Sand is slow to clean up algae - DE may help or the other added filtration options may help also.
 
OK, got hubby to do a few of the tests while I'm at work:
TC - 22
PH - 7.5
CYA - 40
From reading the previous post, it looks like I won't get a true reading of my CYA (after adding stabalizer Sunday) for about a week. My guess is that it's really a lot higher than it is reflecting in the tests and that is why I am unable to get the shock level up to where it needs to be to kill the algae....does that make sense???
 
rickyjanet said:
My guess is that it's really a lot higher than it is reflecting in the tests and that is why I am unable to get the shock level up to where it needs to be to kill the algae....does that make sense???
Click to expand...
Yep it makes perfect sense. Without knowing what the true CYA number is, you may not be at a shock level. If you dont bring your pool up to that level and hold it, you will never turn the corner.

Any idea on what your CC number is?
 
If the weekend is important and water is available at reasonable prices, I'd strongly consider draining. No doubt you can clear the pool, but not sure you can in the time frame you want it in - especially since you are somewhat shooting in the dark at your CYA. If you want to keep clearing it, recap when you filled the pool and what forms of chlorine you've added (containing cya??) and how much stabilizer you've added. If you know that info, you can probably come pretty close to your true cya and carry on at a proper shock level. Even then, I'd guess sparkly pool is iffy by the weekend. If you are going to drain, do it early enough in the week it can warm up for the weekend. Good luck!
 
Draining now...completely ran out of the Agent to measure the CYA. I reordered yesterday and its on its way. I've really learned a valuable lesson concerning the CYA--not to expect immediate results and that it could take up to a week to get a "true" number. I don't know why my results were so skewed. I'm wondering if maybe I left the Agent out in the sun and it was "bad"??? I don't have a clue as to the wide range....from 70 to 25, then 30 , then last test 40 (all within a 2 day period)...
 
rickyjanet said:
I've really learned a valuable lesson concerning the CYA--not to expect immediate results and that it could take up to a week to get a "true" number.
Click to expand...

Just to be clear: once you refill, calculate your gallons and add the amount of cya to get to 30 or whatever your goal cya is. Put it in a sock and let it dissolve - you can massage the sock once it is saturated to speed up the process. My understanding is that 24 hours after the cya has dissolved, you should assume it is "in there" and dose with bleach accordingly using the FC/CYA chart. In the meantime, just keep it at 2 or 3 FC and you should be fine. The cya can take up to a week to register on the test, so in that sense you don't get an "immediate result" BUT it is functioning and stabilizing and needs corresponding FC before it shows up on the test -- so pretty quick results.

Best wishes for a great pool party!! :party:
 
Actually I would read the pool school article on temporary pools since it explains how to use dichlor to get CYA in the pool and get jump started quickly from a refill.
 
Dichlor works. That said, I much much much prefer doing the bleach and cya separately (which it sounds like rickyjanet already owns, unless they used the whole jar). Especially for someone (no offense intended to rickyjanet) who is still getting into the swing of the testing and chemical additions. I think it is very easy to pour in some bleach and add a sock of cya day one. Then bleach only from that point on (unless pH issues arise). For me, so much simpler than using Dichlor. Again, either works.
 

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