swiching from synergy to bbb - NJPoolGuy

[frustratedpoolmom]

Split off from a conversation originally started in this topic. JasonLion

you are doing something wrong then. I use Synergy and have no cloudy water issues. You should not have to add anything. Do you have a auto chlorinator?? Run it wide open and add 1 tab per thousand gallons. I also add 1/2 to 1 cupful of Calcium Hypochlorite( diluted ) once a week if it is extremely hot, other wise I do not add it. Are you adding the clear??. Doing all this once a week has kept my pool almost perfect all summer. Are you using a solar cover?? I did have a algea problem when the water temp got to near 90 and I left the solar cover on, i added a little power 60, shocked and ran the filter 24hrs and it was clear in a day. Since I have taken the cover off I have had no issues. It sounds like all you need to do is add a little shock once a week with you daily routine, doing this should solve your problem.. One more question are you filtering enough??, you should be filtering 10-12 hrs a day if not more.

After reading the BBB system it is interesting, but I am too impressed with synergy at the moment to switch. If I should start to have a problem with it, I will give BBB a shot but not till then.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you have only used it 2 months or less. The OP has run with it for 2 years. Eventually the products build up the CYA too high and that leads to problems if you don't run with a corrsponding high enough FC level. See the chart. Running with the chlorinator "wide open" will only add more CYA and further aggrevate the already too high CYA situation.

 

[NJpoolguy]

Re: swiching from synergy to bbb

you are doing something wrong then. I use Synergy and have no cloudy water issues. You should not have to add anything. Do you have a auto chlorinator?? Run it wide open and add 1 tab per thousand gallons. I also add 1/2 to 1 cupful of Calcium Hypochlorite( diluted ) once a week if it is extremely hot, other wise I do not add it. Are you adding the clear??. Doing all this once a week has kept my pool almost perfect all summer. Are you using a solar cover?? I did have a algea problem when the water temp got to near 90 and I left the solar cover on, i added a little power 60, shocked and ran the filter 24hrs and it was clear in a day. Since I have taken the cover off I have had no issues. It sounds like all you need to do is add a little shock once a week with you daily routine, doing this should solve your problem.. One more question are you filtering enough??, you should be filtering 10-12 hrs a day if not more.

After reading the BBB system it is interesting, but I am too impressed with synergy at the moment to switch. If I should start to have a problem with it, I will give BBB a shot but not till then.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you have only used it 2 months or less. The OP has run with it for 2 years. Eventually the products build up the CYA too high and that leads to problems if you don't run with a corrsponding high enough FC level. See the chart. Running with the chlorinator "wide open" will only add more CYA and further aggrevate the already too high CYA situation.

OK I can already see that it is your way and that is the only way..Sorry but there are other pool systems that work. The OP is not getting enough of the tablets, his chorinator is set at one in the peak of the summer, something should say there is something wrong. The tablets should not dissolve that fast, they are slow release tablets. I replace mine once a week and there are usually a few left. His problem is he is not getting enough chlorine in his or her pool. You should have your chorlonator checked and cleaned. The reason I am running my chorinator wide open is due to the hot and humid conditions we have had here. I will adjust as the conditons change.

 

[Guest]

Re: swiching from synergy to bbb

]OK I can already see that it is your way and that is the only way..Sorry but there are other pool systems that work. The OP is not getting enough of the tablets, his chorinator is set at one in the peak of the summer, something should say there is something wrong. The tablets should not dissolve that fast, they are slow release tablets. I replace mine once a week and there are usually a few left. His problem is he is not getting enough chlorine in his or her pool. You should have your chorlonator checked and cleaned. The reason I am running my chorinator wide open is due to the hot and humid conditions we have had here. I will adjust as the conditons change.

No, that is not the case at all. We just know what works over the long haul and what doesn't. You are using stabilized chlorine. For every 10 ppm FC you add you are adding 6 ppm CYA. Your pool WILL overstabilize and then you will start having problems. BTW, I work in the industry both in ratail pool/spa product sales and also in commercial pool maintenance so I know just a bit about this. Synergy, or any trichlor system will work for a while but you will reach a point where you reach 'critical mass'. How soon that happens depends on how long your swim season is, whether you winterize the pool, and the type of filter you have.

There is nothing magic about BBB. It is just good pool maintenance. The same thing that commercial pool operators do to maintain trouble free pools. It means testing to know WHAT you need to add, WHEN you need to add it, and HOW MUCH to add. It also means knowing which form of chlorine is appropriate to use at a particular time. If you have a new plaster pool trichlor is an excellent short term choice for several reason but it will not work over the long haul unless you actually LIKE doing partial drains and refills to manage your CYA levels.

 

[jugger2500]

Re: swiching from synergy to bbb

OK I can already see that it is your way and that is the only way..Sorry but there are other pool systems that work. The OP is not getting enough of the tablets, his chorinator is set at one in the peak of the summer, something should say there is something wrong. The tablets should not dissolve that fast, they are slow release tablets. I replace mine once a week and there are usually a few left. His problem is he is not getting enough chlorine in his or her pool. You should have your chorlonator checked and cleaned. The reason I am running my chorinator wide open is due to the hot and humid conditions we have had here. I will adjust as the conditons change.

I may be mistaken, but I don't believe anybody said that other systems don't work at all. Some stabilized chlorine systems may work very well, but that is usually short lived. The problem is that once your CYA level reaches a peak then the amount of chlorine that the system releases won't be enough to prevent algae, then necessitating the need for more chlorine and if that chlorine source is stabilized then you are adding more CYA which in turn requires even more chlorine. It's just a vicious cycle.

If you've only been using this system for a short period of time your CYA levels aren't to the point that they will cause you problems. But at some point it's extremely likely they will (unless you replace a significant portion of your pool water every season).

 

[NJpoolguy]

Re: swiching from synergy to bbb

]OK I can already see that it is your way and that is the only way..Sorry but there are other pool systems that work. The OP is not getting enough of the tablets, his chorinator is set at one in the peak of the summer, something should say there is something wrong. The tablets should not dissolve that fast, they are slow release tablets. I replace mine once a week and there are usually a few left. His problem is he is not getting enough chlorine in his or her pool. You should have your chorlonator checked and cleaned. The reason I am running my chorinator wide open is due to the hot and humid conditions we have had here. I will adjust as the conditons change.

No, that is not the case at all. We just know what works over the long haul and what doesn't. You are using stabilized chlorine. For every 10 ppm FC you add you are adding 6 ppm CYA. Your pool WILL overstabilize and then you will start having problems. BTW, I work in the industry both in ratail pool/spa product sales and also in commercial pool maintenance so I know just a bit about this. Synergy, or any trichlor system will work for a while but you will reach a point where you reach 'critical mass'. How soon that happens depends on how long your swim season is, whether you winterize the pool, and the type of filter you have.

There is nothing magic about BBB. It is just good pool maintenance. The same thing that commercial pool operators do to maintain trouble free pools. It means testing to know WHAT you need to add, WHEN you need to add it, and HOW MUCH to add. It also means knowing which form of chlorine is appropriate to use at a particular time. If you have a new plaster pool trichlor is an excellent short term choice for several reason but it will not work over the long haul unless you actually LIKE doing partial drains and refills to manage your CYA levels.

Well to start off I am not a pool expert just a sceptic. I am not a newb to pool care, just a newb to my own pool in my own home. I grew up with a pool at my parents house and have been around a pool for about three decades.

As far as the BBB system goes, in post five I said that I am interested in the BBB pool care system, but at the moment I am happy with the system I am using. I mean someone says that this system is the way to go, but another person swears by another, so which is right?? I would just like to read up on it a little more and find out if it is a safe reliable way to maintain your pool. To some, pouring bleach into your pool and then adding a little borax sounds a little crazy, but I know different, because I have heard this and been recommended from others about using these types of household chemicals. So my first question would be, if you are using a synergy type system now in your pool, what would be the first thing to do to convert to a BBB pool. Do you wait till next season or can you start adding these chemicals now?? Second question would be, what are the main ingredients?. Is is just borax, baking soda and Clorox bleach?? Is this it, or is there more to do??? Three would you still need a chlorinator or could you just take it off??. Thanks for any advice.

 

[JasonLion]

Re: swiching from synergy to bbb

Synergy can work wonderfully as long as your CYA level doesn't get too high. So the first thing to do is test your water and find out what your CYA level is. If your CYA level is reasonable there is nothing wrong with continuing to use Synergy for now.

The key to BBB isn't any particular chemical. Rather it centers around being aware of what your levels are and using simple and inexpensive chemicals to keep those levels in appropriate ranges. If Synergy is simple and inexpensive and it keeps your levels where you want them then go for it.

For a good introduction to the BBB method of pool care read my BBB for Beginners article in the May 2008 TFP newsletter, it is the first article, just below the Meet the Members announcement.