You have organics in your pool. Sounds like it was mostly being kept in check by the SWG but as soon as the CL hit zero it grew unhindered. Once you finish SLAMing and pass the OCLT all of those organics will be dead. At that point the SWG should be able to keep up since.alphadog said:
Low FC - can't figure out why
- Thread starter alphadog
- Start date
Sounds like you are making progress. I wonder if you have ammonia in the pool from the organic waste? Ammonia really consumes FC.
It sounds like if you keep your FC up with bleach until it holds using just the SWG, you should be good.
It sounds like if you keep your FC up with bleach until it holds using just the SWG, you should be good.
Using just a 5ml sample my FC dropped to around 15 - but it is 90 degrees and sunny, but my CC is reading 0 now - at least doing a course test. I am going to check everything at dusk with at least a 10ml sample and see what the level is in the morning. I keep underestimating the amount of Liquid CL i am going to need as i never really compared night to day usage. But FC is now back up around 27 - I just don't want to run out of the titrant reagent before i am done.
Sounds like the SLAM is doing it's job, even for a hot sunny day that is a significant loss so it's reacting to something. The sun is probably helping burn off the CCs too. You've got the plan down right for the OCLT testing, but if you are worried about saving reagent you might want to save that until tomorrow night. Losing 12-15 FC in a few hours is pretty high, I don't think you will be done by tonight. You may want to consider just continuing the SLAM another day and trying the OCLT tomorrow night.
Thanks for the advice... I have one gallon left - that is good for about 6ppm in my quick math - Guess i better go get some more.
I have been adding chlorine for days. My garage looks like a bottle wasteland. Yesterday morning I brought the cl level up to 34 using the 10ml 0.5 FAS DPD concentration. I had been doing it with 5ml sample so each drop was 1ppm as I only have so much titrant.
It rained yesterday and my salt level has increased from 3000 to 3300 due to all the NaHCl. I tested this am and I have 22ppm FC. The pool is clear and my CC has been zero or near zero the entire week, but I can't seem to get an overnight test to not drop.
Any other suggestions? I have put in over 20 gallons of 12.5% since I started the SLAM.
It rained yesterday and my salt level has increased from 3000 to 3300 due to all the NaHCl. I tested this am and I have 22ppm FC. The pool is clear and my CC has been zero or near zero the entire week, but I can't seem to get an overnight test to not drop.
Any other suggestions? I have put in over 20 gallons of 12.5% since I started the SLAM.
I would keep going until you can pass the OCLT test. Don't want to go backwards, unless somebody else can give a better reason why it won't pass.
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Keep the faith. Others have had to consume a LOT more to get that overnight depletion to stop. Keep on SLAMin' :lol:
Ok. Problem now is I am out of reagent. I guess I will just add 2 gals morning and night until I get more reagent. So it could take days more? I will probably have to drain water to get salt level down.
Unless your SWG is unhappy about the salt content, I would leave it alone.....it'll drift back down on it's own.
That's why the OCLT exists, the pool can be clear but lots of microscopic things are in there just waiting for the chlorine to drop and start spreading again. If you haven't yet I would say run your SWG during the day, not on superchlorinate or boost but just regular to help keep the FC level up. Shut it down at night so you can do the OCLT.
I know right now you are pretty much running on blind faith and it's being shaken, but look over the forum. There are a lot of people who have had chronic problems for years and after SLAMing, sometimes for weeks, the problems went away for good. There are also the people who ignored the OCLT or CC requirements and stopped too early, only to fall right back to square one in a couple of weeks. Persistence will win the day and you will reap the reward of a clearer, easier to care for pool.
I know right now you are pretty much running on blind faith and it's being shaken, but look over the forum. There are a lot of people who have had chronic problems for years and after SLAMing, sometimes for weeks, the problems went away for good. There are also the people who ignored the OCLT or CC requirements and stopped too early, only to fall right back to square one in a couple of weeks. Persistence will win the day and you will reap the reward of a clearer, easier to care for pool.
I buy into it. It makes 100% sense. I just had no idea it could take so long. And with all the added salt, I wonder if I will just be draining a large amount of water anyway.
I know that based on my FC drop that my SWG will never keep up so liquid CL is my only option for now. And based on the large drops, I still have stuff living.
I am also thinking how to prevent this next year. Knowing I will probably have 10 lbs of worms in the pool when I open.
I know that based on my FC drop that my SWG will never keep up so liquid CL is my only option for now. And based on the large drops, I still have stuff living.
I am also thinking how to prevent this next year. Knowing I will probably have 10 lbs of worms in the pool when I open.
I do have a light niche. What am I looking for? Some kind of solid material growing in there?
Many of us have found black gunky stuff in there.......you will know if something is there that does not belong. If there is, brush it out and expose the fixture to SLAM levels.alphadog said:
If you open and SLAM while your water temp is below 70 it goes much faster. Other than that I have an above ground so I don't know much about worm issues, but make sure if you have problems at that time to ask here, somebody will have a good answer!alphadog said:
The pool opened and cleaned up easily so I thought I was home free. But I didn't slam and the temps were cool. It was the hot weather that really set this off..
BTW - pulled the light and the niche was full of organics. Time to get more chlorine!
BTW - pulled the light and the niche was full of organics. Time to get more chlorine!
Light niches seem to be the number one cause of long term failures of OCLT. Clean out the niche, bump your FC.
I have heard some people leave the cleaned light out of the niche for a couple days to let the FC get into the niche and finish the cleanup before reinstalling the light
I have heard some people leave the cleaned light out of the niche for a couple days to let the FC get into the niche and finish the cleanup before reinstalling the light
Yeah, I am going to leave mine out for now. Maybe even leave it out when I winterize.
Woohoo!
Significant progress after cleaning out the light niche. At 9pm I was at 26 and added a bottle of CL - my napkin math estimates 6ppm per bottle. This am I was sitting at 30 ppm. Chlorinator was 100% overnight, but I am getting closer. Previously my overnight drops were huge - with or without the SWG running.
Significant progress after cleaning out the light niche. At 9pm I was at 26 and added a bottle of CL - my napkin math estimates 6ppm per bottle. This am I was sitting at 30 ppm. Chlorinator was 100% overnight, but I am getting closer. Previously my overnight drops were huge - with or without the SWG running.