Calcium Deposits on New Pool - HELP PLEASE!!

[ssummer]

I had my pool built just about a year ago, and just reopened it to find the entire thing covered in Calcium Deposits!!! I'm kind of freaking out after reading a few posts on here about having to acid wash or sand the pool in order to get rid of them. The guy who closed and opened my pool though insists that it's a normal thing, especially for new pools and that just keeping the pH in check and brushing will take care of it.

I'm hoping he's right, but some advice from some of the people on here sure would help calm me down. I have noticed with daily brushing over the last 2 days that the visible deposits are decreasing drammatically, however the surface still feels very rough...almost like sandpaper, whereas before the finish was as smooth as silk which is one of the things I loved about my pool!

Will these deposits go away with pH control and daily brushing? What is the most likely cause of the deposits? Is it something that my pool guy did or didn't do on closing?

Thanks for all the help!! I've learned so much reading through this site the last few weeks!!

 

[duraleigh]

Welcome to the forum. :lol:. Pool water management is the culprit. Your pH, TA and CH all must be kept within the guidelines we suggest to prevent calcium scale. Do you have some current test results for us to look at?

 

[BoDarville]

ssummer:

Welcome to TFP

We like test results here, so please post some when you can. You may want to test the CH of your fill water as well.

A pool's CH can creep up over time, even when no calcium-based products are added to the water. When water evaporates from the pool, it does not take the calcium with it. Since most fill water contains calcium (in varying degrees), when you top off the pool with fill water, calcium is added. Evaporation continues, you top off, and the cycle repeats. A good rain is your pool's best friend since rainwater does not contain calcium. Thus, rainwater will dilute the calcium level.

Calcium can be managed by paying close attention to pH and TA. The brushing will help, but you will not see results overnight. When I bought our current house, the pool and spa had a calcium ring at the water line. After almost 2 years of managing the water using BBB principles, the calcium ring around the pool has disappeared and the ring in the spa has faded dramatically.

 

[ssummer]

These results are off of a test strip...My TF-100 kit is arriving today and will be running those tests tomorrow.

Results from a test strip from yesterday are:

FC - 0.5 (working on adjusting chlorine)
CC - 0.5
pH - 7.6 (tested this morning and it was 8.2 so I added more muriatic and will retest later)
TA - 80
CH - 100

Also, as another note, it appears that the calcium deposits are on the full pool...as in everywhere, not just at the water line.

 

[BoDarville]

on selecting the TF-100. When the TF-100 arrives, use that and discard the test strips.

Also, as another note, it appears that the calcium deposits are on the full pool...as in everywhere, not just at the water line.

Entirely normal. The ring is usually the most visible sign, but the calcium is usually found throughout the pool surface.

Here's a thread showing how one of our expert members has managed calcium scaling despite having very high CH in the fill water: http://www.troublefreepool.com/progress-on-scale-t38568.html?hilit=progress on calcium scale He has employed some rather creative techniques in addition to properly managing the pH & TA of the water.

 

[ssummer]

Thanks BoDarville...definately plan on getting rid of them. I'll check out the other post and read through it.

We had a lot of rain here over the winter months, so there wan't much fill water that was used on opening and my CH numbers aren't very high at all. The only thing really out of whack is the pH, which was through the roof when opened. It was in line with where it should have been at closing though. Should I have been checking pH and adjusting throughout the winter? Is high pH the culprit?

Thanks for the help!

 

[BoDarville]

Should I have been checking pH and adjusting throughout the winter?

I do, but I never close my pool here in TX. Although it's too cold to swim in during winter, I still check & maintain the FC, pH and TA during the off-season as proper water balance extends the life of the pool surface and equipment. And high pH has no impact on the calcium level, but it provides a more favorable environment for the calcium that is in the pool to deposit on surfaces.

If you completely winterize and close your pool for the winter, there's not much you can do since you would not be able to run the pump with a properly winterized pool. If that's the case, just make sure the pH and TA are in line before you winterize / close. If your pool was not covered during winter, the rain may have elevated your pH a little through aeration (the impact of raindrops splashing causing pool water to come in contact with air). But again, at least rainwater is calcium free!

 

[ssummer]

The pool is covered in the winter with a mesh safety cover.

I spoke with my pool builder yesterday, and he basically told me the same thing that the guy who opened/closed the pool told me. The fact that they both have the same story gives me some hope that they aren't just feeding me a line of bull. He said that with new concrete pools in our area, especially with the swg, the calcium build up over the winter months is very common. Told me that once I got my chemicals in check and kept them there for a week or two, the stuff would loosen up and be fairly easy to brush off. In the event that it's not, he suggested a product called ScaleTec that they said they've had a lot of success with.

After reading some reviews on the ScaleTec, I'm thinking of just skipping straight to that...otherwise I'm giving it 2 weeks or so to try to do just by brushing and then adding the ScaleTec which they say takes a month or so to work. I figure just go right to the ScaleTec and see if it works...if not I have a feeling I'll be draining the pool.

I'll repost later with some updated chemical test results with the TF-100 I received yesterday.

 

[ssummer]

OK, so I received my TF-100 kit (awesome kit by the way!) and here are my new numbers:

TC - 3.5
CC - 0
pH - 8.2 (I added some more muriatic acid to bring it down...I've added about 1.5 gallons so far since Tuesday!!)
TA - 120
CYA - 20
CH - Around 360 (I say 'around' because the solution never turned blue like it says it should in the instructions, but it did turn clear at around drop 36 or so...I was looking for blue so I'm not exactly sure)

Any further suggestion given this information? Any information as to whether the ScaleTec is worth trying?

Thanks!!

 

[msgtdan]

Keep your PH down and test your fill water, you need to know what your putting into the pool. If you have high CH in your fill water you'll need to stay on top of your CSI, but as Richard has proven it can be done.

 

[ssummer]

Gotcha...

I saw some stuff at BJs when I was there today...Robelle Super Mineral and Stain Erase. Any body have any experience with this stuff?