New pool owner in Dallas

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seanol

seanol

0
Dec 8, 2014
8
Garland, TX
Hey guys!
I have been reading the site and just purchased a home in Garland, TX. We have a 24,000 gallon pool and I bought the TFT100 test kit. Today is the first chance I have had to test the water aand I have the following results:
PH 7.2
FC 19
CC .5
CH 1500
TA 110
CYA over 100 (I could not get to the 100 line before I lost sight of the dot)

From reading it looks like I may have to replace my water. I also need to stop using the automatic chlorine feeder as it uses tablets. My question is, can I do anything besides changing the water? Reading tells me no as the CYA is accumulative but I figured I wuld ask. Water is very clear and no chlorine smell I can detect but swiming is out of the question right now!

One other question, mu cleaner pump will not come on by itself. It is tied to the pool pump through the timer. When the timer comes on so does the cleaner pump. I can't manually turn it on. When freeze protection comes on, the cleaner pump does not come on but will turn on manually. Is this proper operation?
Thanks in advance,
Sean
 
Welcome to TFP !
Good job on getting the TF 100 kit. You won't regret it.
Your correct about water replacement for lowering your CYA level. The CYA test only reads to 100 so your probably higher. Take a look here at Extended Test Kit Directions. Do the dilution test for your CYA to get a better idea where that level is. Then use Pool Math to figure out how much water needs to be replaced. You want that level to be in the 30-50 range.
Your CH is really high. Your going to have to be very diligent in keeping a close eye on your PH to keep from scaling on your pool surfaces. When it gets up to 8 lower it. What's the CH of your fill water ? Hopefully it's not that high and water replacement will help there also.
I suggest you get a SpeedStir for your CH testing. It can help with that test a lot by not having to manually swirl. Your CH may not be the 1500, it could be lower. Some have seen a 200 ppm drop in the CH test using it. A better test on that will tell the story.
What's your plan going forward for chlorination ?
I'm not sure about your cleaner pump question.
Keep doing your home work in Pool School.
ABC'S Of Pool Water Chemistry
How To Chlorinate Your Pool
 
Jeff,
I have the speed stir and used it for this test. I just found the directions for the extended test and will try to do that today. One thing I did not do was wait till water was room temp. Will that skew results badly?
As for chlorination, I turned the auto feeder down to its lowest level and will add bleach once I get the CYA under control. We have water restrictions here in garland so I have reached out to a company that may be able to recycle the water. Waiting to see what that costs.
I am going to retest today with room temp water as it is about 40 degree water right now.
Thank you for the quick response!
Regards,
Sean
 
The water temp can throw it off some, but not enough to make a huge difference. Let it come to room temp and retest with the dilution test.
Again good job on the SpeedStir. That is some seriously high CH. Watch that PH !
Keep us posted on the water recycle.
 
Welcome to the forum Seanol!

I know there is an outfit in DFW that does pool RO treatment and based on your numbers and water restrictions that would be a good option for you. Even if it is expensive you could use it if those numbers are pretty close. Seriously high CH there. Good job on keeping the pH down there, so keep up the good work on that. I'd want it in that range myself just for good meausure with the TA and CH where it is. Let us know how it goes and what the RO treating company says. Glad you joined the forum, good to have you here.
 
Thanks guys for the warm welcome!
I redid the tests a number of times as well as tested my fill water (tap)
I came up with:

Fill Pool
TC .5 5+
PH 7.8 7.2
FC .5 20
CC 1 .5
CH 300 675
TA 110 80
CYA 0 200 (used extended method)

Still learning so I appreciate any insight into these numbers. My previous numbers were first pass, I have my technique better sorted and it seems very repeatable now.
Thanks again,
Sean
 
Your CYA is thru the roof. That has to come down. With your CYA that high your going to have very hard time keeping your FC in range. I think you already realize this. Check into the RO treatment.
Your CH test has changed a lot. Was the first test a testing error ?
 
Jeff,
First test was user error. I let the sample sit and tested multiple times to ensure repeatable results. The results are above. I learned a lot but may be refilling my chemicals a little quicker that I thought!
Thanks,
Sean
 
The good news is,
the weather is cold so having your FC in range isnt a biggie right now, like it would be if the weather were warm. The algae is not going any place soon in these temps.

Gives you a little time to work on the CYA problem.
 
Well, the Cya can be lowered from dilution, as can all the mineral constituents, but I am glad to see the CH down, and hopefully that's a good number. Much better than 1500 for sure.

If water restrictions will prohibit you from re-filling, you want to look into the RO treatment to bring it down. The 200 PPM level is going to lead to significant problems.

You have a little time as Dave said, but once the water temp remains North of 50, Algae can begin to start. Seeing numbers like these is why we get so frustrated with stores and services, as they allow people to get into these situations.
 

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Patrick,
Thanks for the analysis. I believe the numbers got this way due to the automatic feeder and chlorine tablets. Couple that with a homeowner looking to sell, nt swim, and the CYA can climb pretty quickly as I have learned here in pool school. I am waiting on a quote on the RO treatment and will let everyone know the results. Other than that, I will just be performing routine monitoring and keeping levels where they need to be in the hopes I can geteverything done by swim season.
Thanks for the advice and warm welcome,
Sean
 
Good deal Sean. Just make sure you keep pH in line. There's little doubt how that happened and again, PBs services or stores never educate people on the dangers of using those. It's a shame really, but to be fair, pool stores and the like survive because many are simply not interested in learning some basics like we teach here. Quite often, they get frustrated with poor results and wind up here. Glad to have them though, I enjoy seeing people learn and take control themselves, and then get fantastic results. It's fun actually.

Let us know how it goes with the bid. If I could get that service, I'd have them out here tomorrow. We have nightmare hard water out here.
 
Patrick,
Thanks! I have a friend in Vegas (where I moved from) that is a pool guy. I told him about TFP and he just wasn't interested. He bought a $2000 tool to measure CYA so he knows when to tell customers to change ther water. I can only imagine the change to his business model should he do the basic research any pool owner should do with such a costly investment. I was going to go with a pool service for the convenience but after browsing here it does not make sense to spend money on a service that I can do for pennies a week and get results that are sustainable.
I am very glad I came across this site and can't wait to share my results as I go along this journey.
Thank you all again,
Sen
 
He's not the first. I had a prospective PB say the exact thing. Change out the water when Cya gets high. Right. It's not that easy and it's downright unethical if you ask me. What a waste of water. One day, that will not be an option. As for spending 2k on a Cya test, well...that speaks for itself. Totally bizzare.

Good to have you here Sean. You'll do well with this and your pool will be the better for it.
 
Sean,
Welcome to TFP! You came to the right place!

Indeed it's mind boggling that the "pros" don't understand their own products, and don't care to learn. :scratch:
smh

You'll find that with your own test kit, and following the basics, your pool will be sparkling clear and indeed TroubleFree with minimal expense and effort.
 
seanol said:
Patrick,
I was going to go with a pool service for the convenience but after browsing here it does not make sense to spend money on a service that I can do for pennies a week and get results that are sustainable.
Sen
Click to expand...

Another problem with a "professional" pool service is that they often don't really know what they're doing and use much less test equipment than the average user of this forum. Finally, they have many homes to visit daily and don't spend enough time at your pool to do it right even though it really doesn't take that long.
 
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