treat ph or ta first

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H

Hannah M

0
Jun 26, 2011
62
Lakewood, NJ
opened pool yesterday ph above 8.2. Lowered it to 8.0. Midday added muriatic acid approx 15 oz. tested a little later it was down to the yellow range. So i added 152 oz borax. An hour later the ph is back up to 8.2.
Measured TA at 50. Should i address TA now with baking soda before getting back to regulating ph.

Ph 8.2
TA 50
CYA 0 (will slowly add in sock, rainy the next few days)


Thanks
 
I assume your 15oz of MA is a typo because that would do very little to a 22k gallon pool.
Are you using PoolMath to calculate dosages? Do you have your NOW pH and TA values entered?

Really does not matter, I would lower the pH and then raise the TA a little.
 
It sounds like you have a pretty good grasp of what's going on. :goodjob:

Double check your pool volume, and also pay attention to what the Baking Soda does to TA. If you're constantly overshooting, your pool may not be as big as the builder claims. So lower the volume 500 or a thousand gallons and pay attention whether you over or undershoot on things. Eventually, maybe in a month or two, you'll have fine-tuned the volume within a hundred gallons. and by then, everything will be so smooth anyway it will just make things almost no chore at all.
 
I've been using bbb for 3 years now. Excellent instructions clear and concise made for smooth pool seasons. Thank you

Gallons in pool determined by Jason lion. This Is my first season with such challenging numbers. The test results are current. Now that i know the process I'm anxious to get the ph in check so i can begin shocking. How quick to test after adding acid.
 
added 30 oz muriatic acid 1.5 hrs ago. ph is now 8.2, only slightly lighter shade of pink. i used the pool calculator to get from 8.2 to 7.6.

I'm at a loss. do you think that my reagents are old? I did not buy them this year.

I'll go out tomorrow and get a fresh phenol red.
 
If the PH reagent is from last year and was stored in a dark cool (but not freezing) place most of the time it should still be fine. If it is older than that, it could well be going bad.

On the other hand, there is nothing in what you wrote that really makes me think the PH reagent is bad. You said "So i added 152 oz borax", which would have raised the PH quite a bit. If you actually added that much borax everything more or less makes sense. You need to continue adding acid until you get the PH down to something reasonable.

In general, try going a bit more gently on the chemical additions that change PH. Make changes in slightly smaller steps, wait, retest, and continue adjusting from there.
 
I added 30 oz muriatic acid, tested the water 40 min later
one water sample was near the return where I had added the acid and the ph tested yellow below 6.8. I took two more samples from other areas in the pool adn the ph tested 8.2.
what do you suggest? wait till tomorrow and get some new phenol red or add more acid?
 
Did you have the pump running? Did you allow 30 minutes for the acid addition to mix in to the rest of the pool water before testing?

Always run the pump during and for at least 30 minutes after adding acid.
 

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Might brush the pool as it sounds like you're not getting good water circulation with that wide a pH range after 30+ mins. You shouldn't get anywhere near that wide a range in one pool after 30+ mins of adding MA. Do you feel water flowing from the returns? See water in the pump? something is up. How's filter pressure?
 

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