....and ummm...I don't think my water has ever looked cleaner! It seems to get cleaner and cleaner the more I look at it. 
Starting my Baqucrap conversion this weekend!
- Thread starter hokey71
- Start date
MikeInNH
0
It's amazing how much cleaner it is than Baq. I switched this year too. Wait until you feel the water. 
So it looks like my test kit should come in the mail today. I'm not exactly sure what I need to do at this point. I have been putting bleach in the pool at night and checking it in the morning and it is holding some but not much. Probably around 5ppm at this point. Do I need to be putting bleach in during the day? I work so it is hard for me to do that. When I get the test kit should I just continue putting it in at night and getting it to 15ppm and checking again in the morning to see if it's held that before I move on?
The more often you put the bleach in the faster you will oxidize the bigaunide in your water.
Yes, go ahead and test TA and Ph when your kit arrives. Let us know what you find out.
Coty
Coty
Adding bleach during the day does speed the whole process up, but it gets to be inefficient after the first couple of days. As the oxidization of the baquacil slows down you lose more and more of your chlorine to sunlight. How much bleach to add during the day depends on how important finishing quickly is vs how tired you are of buying/carrying bleach bottles.
For now, you only want to test the PH when FC is fairly low. Given that, you might as well test your PH, TA, and CH levels. You will of course be testing FC and CC frequently. Don't worry about, or test, CYA until your FC level remains the same overnight and you have replaced the filter media.
For now, you only want to test the PH when FC is fairly low. Given that, you might as well test your PH, TA, and CH levels. You will of course be testing FC and CC frequently. Don't worry about, or test, CYA until your FC level remains the same overnight and you have replaced the filter media.
I'm not so much as tired of carrying around bleach as I am worried that the police are going to show up at my door wondering why Ive been to every store in my neighborhood buying all the bleach up! The girl at Fred's asked me what I needed all the bleach for and I looked at her and smiled and wanted to say, "I heard it can clean blood out of carpet!", but thought better and just told her for my pool. :lol:
So I received my test kit yesterday. I tested the FC and it was really low so I added bleach to it and checked the FC an hour later and it was at 14.5ppm. I woke up this morning and tested it again and it was at 13.5ppm. I also tested the pH which was high at 8.2ppm and TA which was 180. Do I need to worry about pH and TA being that high while the FC level is so high? Am I ready to change the sand in the filter now?
My plan is to get the FC level up to 15ppm tonight again and see how it is tomorrow morning and then change the sand in the filter if it holds. If that makes sense that I will plan on that for tomorrow.
My plan is to get the FC level up to 15ppm tonight again and see how it is tomorrow morning and then change the sand in the filter if it holds. If that makes sense that I will plan on that for tomorrow.
PH tests are not completely reliable when the FC level is high. When you have a moment when the FC level is low, probably in the late afternoon or early evening, test the PH again. If the PH is still high then, adjust the PH before adding chlorine again for the evening.
It sounds like you are really close to maintaining the same FC level overnight. Do that test again tonight and if it is again that close or even closer to the same overnight you can change your filter media and then start adding CYA.
It sounds like you are really close to maintaining the same FC level overnight. Do that test again tonight and if it is again that close or even closer to the same overnight you can change your filter media and then start adding CYA.
I tested my pH again when I got home from work when the FC level was about 5ppm and it was 7.8 so I added muriatic acid to lower to about 7.4 and then added more bleach and left it at 15.5ppm when I went to bed. When I woke up and tested the FC level was 15ppm so it seems to be holding very good now. I started to tackle the job of changing the sand which I was dreading and now I know why. What a pain in the rump! Luckily I talked to the guy at the pool store about doing it and found that I was able to set my multiport valve to recirculate so I didn't have to drain my water or use any plugs so that I started off on a good note with that.
I grabbed my shop vac and started sucking out that baquacrap sand. Wow, it took my like 3 hours with my crappy shop vac to get it all out and get the filter clean. I made sure I got every grain of sand out too! Of course nothing is ever as smooth at it should be. When I got my filter cleaned and lifted it up I realized the plastic base was cracked. I remember the pool store where I bought it had some problems with them and when I called they said they would replace it for free. Well that means I can't put the sand in the filter and move forward until I get the base. They only have one in their store about an hour south of here. I am having dinner with a relative down that way so I will get it when I go down there in a few minutes here.
Luckily I was able to partially put the filter together and set the pump on recirculate on low so the water is at least circulating. I added some more bleach since the FC level was low. It will have to recirculate overnight and I will put it together tomorrow morning.
Do you think I should get the FC level to 15ppm again tonight? Should I add CYA before the sand is in the filter? I will be adding the sand first thing in the morning.
I can't friggin wait to get in this water. It is soooo Dang clear! My wife made a comment about it to me yesterday that the sun was shining on it in the afternoon and she couldn't believe how clear it was. I think she is sold on the idea now for sure! I know I am! :-D
I grabbed my shop vac and started sucking out that baquacrap sand. Wow, it took my like 3 hours with my crappy shop vac to get it all out and get the filter clean. I made sure I got every grain of sand out too! Of course nothing is ever as smooth at it should be. When I got my filter cleaned and lifted it up I realized the plastic base was cracked. I remember the pool store where I bought it had some problems with them and when I called they said they would replace it for free. Well that means I can't put the sand in the filter and move forward until I get the base. They only have one in their store about an hour south of here. I am having dinner with a relative down that way so I will get it when I go down there in a few minutes here.
Luckily I was able to partially put the filter together and set the pump on recirculate on low so the water is at least circulating. I added some more bleach since the FC level was low. It will have to recirculate overnight and I will put it together tomorrow morning.
Do you think I should get the FC level to 15ppm again tonight? Should I add CYA before the sand is in the filter? I will be adding the sand first thing in the morning.
I can't friggin wait to get in this water. It is soooo Dang clear! My wife made a comment about it to me yesterday that the sun was shining on it in the afternoon and she couldn't believe how clear it was. I think she is sold on the idea now for sure! I know I am! :-D
hokey,
If you put the CYA in now, which is fine, be sure to put it in a sock so it doesn't get dispersed all over the pool floor.
Typically, the sand will catch it and hold it 'til it dissolves but you don't have that option.
Nice work on the conversion :lol: :lol:
If you put the CYA in now, which is fine, be sure to put it in a sock so it doesn't get dispersed all over the pool floor.
Typically, the sand will catch it and hold it 'til it dissolves but you don't have that option.
Nice work on the conversion :lol: :lol:
