Understanding My Test Results

[pudintain]

Hi All,

Newbie here and I just got the Taylor test kit. I am a little uncertain of how to proceed any help would be greatly appreciated.

Results:

CH 280
CC 1
FC 4.6
PH 8
TA 160
CYA 70

I drained 80% of the water 3 weeks ago and have added only liq chlorine and some acid. I drained due to very high CH, which I believe was 700 and probably due to the chlorine pucks. I have been using the dip sticks for results previously.

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[linen]

Welcome to tfp, pudintain

Newbie here and I just got the Taylor test kit.

Do you have a saltwater chlorine generator (swg)? If no, then your cya is on the high side. Where do you live? Would it be a big deal for you to drain another 30% and refill?

I drained due to very high CH, which I believe was 700 and probably due to the chlorine pucks.

Do you mean cya here or CH? What type of puck were you using?

 

[Butterfly]

Welcome to the forum

First, lower the pH to the low to mid 7's. Since the CC is 1, we suggest you shock. Follow the guidelines in Pool School.

The CYA is still higher than recommended. Your shock level for the CYA of 70 is about 28.
If you decide to keep the CYA of 70, after you are done shocking, the maintenance FC is between 5 & 8 and never below 5.

How does the pool water look?

What is the CH of the fill water?

What is the TA of the fill water?

 

[pudintain]

Hi Linen,

Thanks for the reply. I do not have SWG, and It was CH that was very high as well as CYA. I live in Pasadena, CA. Socal. It would be doable to drain another 30%. Did I not drain enough, too much chlorine, not enough? Our tap water here is on the hard side.

Hi Butterfly,

Pool water looks fantastic. When I tested the fill water with dip stick strips the CH was 200-250 and TA was 120, but it was from test strips so probably not that accurate.

Thanks!

 

[pudintain]

chemtek 3" pucks

 

[linen]

chemtek 3" pucks

I am fairly certain those are trichlor pucks, so they would have been adding cya. Your high CH is likely from topping off with your higher CH fill water due to evaporation.

 

[Richard320]

chemtek 3" pucks

I am fairly certain those are trichlor pucks, so they would have been adding cya. Your high CH is likely from topping off with your higher CH fill water due to evaporation.

Yep. You're not all that far from me. I figure I gain about 25 CH every week due to evaporation and refill.

 

[pudintain]

Thanks everyone for the help! Should I drain 30%, or is my fill water too hard? And, is CYA 70 manageable?

Thanks

 

[linen]

I would lower it down to 50 ppm (about 30% water change). Your CH will still go down a little as well, which is good.

 

[pudintain]

Hi Linen,

If i do the drain tonight, I would retest after the fill and then add what is needed at that time?

Thanks

 

[pudintain]

Since the original 80% drain 3 weeks ago, I have only added liquid bleach or liquid chlorine and some acid. I have not used any of the pucks. I am trying to figure out what I may have done and prevent it from happening again.

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[Richard320]

Since the original 80% drain 3 weeks ago, I have only added liquid bleach or liquid chlorine and some acid. I have not used any of the pucks. I am trying to figure out what I may have done and prevent it from happening again.

Thanks so much for your help!

When CYA gets near 100 or it's diluted to allow reading above 100, it's not that accurate. Don't worry about that.

As for Calcium... If it was 700 and you changed 80%, you'd think it would now be at 140. Except the fill water is probably higher than that. Let's just say it's 200. (.2*700) + (.8*200) = 300

Don't use pucks to chlorinate, they add CYA. Also don't use any of the powdered chlorine sources, either. They will add Calcium or CYA. There is no powdered chlorine available that doesn't add something else. You're stuck with bleach or buying a saltwater generator. And I'd hold off on the SWG until you've mastered the chemistry without it.

Once you get rid of the excess CYA, that's it. It's gone. If you don't add any, it won't rise. However, each time you add water to replace evaporation, you're adding Calcium. It doesn't evaporate with the water. If your pool is an average of 50" deep and you lose 1" of water to evaporation, your CH will rise 2%. And then you'll add more water that also has Calcium in it.

Edit: after you refill, give it several hours of pump running to thoroughly mix everything before retesting.

 

[pudintain]

Hi Richard,

Thanks for the detailed info. I think I'll re-read the pool school chemistry again. As I mentioned I went cold turkey on the non-liquid chlorine, but I am sure CYA has risen since the drain 3 weeks ago. Any idea how?

Thanks

 

[Richard320]

Hi Richard,

Thanks for the detailed info. I think I'll re-read the pool school chemistry again. As I mentioned I went cold turkey on the non-liquid chlorine, but I am sure CYA has risen since the drain 3 weeks ago. Any idea how?

Thanks

Testing error. CYA is a hard test to master. Lighting is critical. Even after a couple years' worth of tests, I still pour the solution back several times to get a consistent reading.

 

[Butterfly]

FYI CYA test: Extended Test Kit Instructions:
extended-test-kit-directions-t25081.html

and make sure you see the visual from Taylor which has helped lots of us (scroll down for the pics):
http://www.taylortechnologies.com/Chemi ... ntentID=44

 

[pudintain]

Hi Again

I am planning to drain 30% tonight but I am bothered that I will end up with the same result, ie, elevated CYA, PH and CH. I added bleach and liquid chlorine but going by test strip results. In the 3 weeks, I think I added maybe 4-5 gallons of bleach/liquid chlorine and 1/2 gal of acid and that's it.

Thanks again!

 

[duraleigh]

but I am bothered that I will end up with the same result

Almost impossible. Your fill water will have 0 CYA but you should test it for pH and CH and TA so you'll know what to expect.

 

[pudintain]

Drained 30% Of Pool Water

I merged your posts to keep the story together, jblizzle

Hi Everyone,

I posted a question Saturday, "Understanding My Test Results" and it was suggested to drain 30% again for a fresh start. I just finished the drain, it is a lot of work with a 5 gal bucket...lol
I am noticing a white film at previous water level around pool and spa but most prevalent on the south facing areas. I tried a little muriatic acid but it did not do much and I don't think it is calcium as it is new since the 80% drain 3 weeks ago. Any idea what caused this and how to prevent.

Lastly, I am starting to re-fill the pool, should I add any bleach or wait for the pool to be filled up and should I run pump from main drain and turn off skimmer with return from spa as I am refilling?

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[pudintain]

Thanks, I was wondering if I should continue prev post.

 

[jblizzle]

It should only take a day or so to fill up the pool so not HUGE hurry to get bleach in it, you can if you want, but you have to make sure you mis it in well.

Once the water gets above the return jets you could try running the pump if you can isolate the floor drain ... may struggle a bit to prime if too low.