Test results help!

[Hammer31]

Hello everyone thanks for the great forum...I can tell this is the place to get real answers!

I just bought this house with a Salt pool that we just opened last weekend, this was my water test.

FC 3.6
TC 3.9
PH 7.4
TA 80
CYA 20
TDS 4200
TH 160
Iron 0
Copper 0
Nitrate 56
Salt 3500
P-1000

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

As we tell just about every new member:
1. Read Pool School to learn about the chemistry and methods we teach
2. Order yourself one of the recommended test kits. Pool store testing is worth as much as you pay for it.

We never even test or worry about TDS, Nitrate or P (phosphates?)

If those results are to be believed, the only suggestion I would make for a SWG pool would be to increase the CYA (although that is the test that pool stores are notoriously the worst at).

pool-school/recommended_levels
pool-school/water_balance_saltwater_generator

 

[Richard320]

Welcome!

Yeah, what he said. ^

Pool store results are sketchy at best. Recent horror stories include the guy who was advised to drain half his pool to lower CYA and when he brought back a sample after the refill, was told the CYA had gone up 25%!

 

[Isaac-1]

I have the same advise, but wanted to add most people get a LOT more out of pool school the second time around, see the link in the upper right of this page.

Ike

p.s. the best common test for CYA is a turbidity test which really needs correct lighting conditions to get a good reading, the correct lighting for the test is bright sunlight to your back while viewing downward at arms length. Trying to do this indoors under artificial light in a pool store while in a rush is a recipe for crazy readings. There are other types of test for CYA, but they all fail miserably in accuracy.

 

[Jenischmeni]

I have the same advise, but wanted to add most people get a LOT more out of pool school the second time around, see the link in the upper right of this page.

Ike

p.s. the best common test for CYA is a turbidity test which really needs correct lighting conditions to get a good reading, the correct lighting for the test is bright sunlight to your back while viewing downward at arms length. Trying to do this indoors under artificial light in a pool store while in a rush is a recipe for crazy readings. There are other types of test for CYA, but they all fail miserably in accuracy.

That's GREAT advice. I hadn't heard about the lighting being so much of a factor. I had read about your back to sunlight, but I had been doing that test indoors. THANKS!!!!!!!

 

[Hammer31]

Wow just like i thought, I am in the right place!

Thanks for the quick replies...I guess i got some reading to do!