Taking over pool

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D

dnh

0
Mar 27, 2015
16
Richardson
HI,

We decided to let our pool service company go last year. I had been using the local pool store for testing all winter. The CYA has been high, so I started doing research on what that was and how it got there and ended up on this site. I just received my TF-100, so trying to get the pool under control. Here are the numbers from the latest pool store, and what I got last night

pool store 3/17
FC 4
TAC 4
CH 260
CYA 80
TA 80
pH 7.4

my test 3/26
FC 3
TAC 3
CH 275-300
CYA 80, around 70-80 when I did the 2:1 diluted test
TA 70-80
pH 7.6

It is a 30,000 gal pool with a waterfall on the spa and three water features. Gray Sunstone quartz aggregate plaster. Dallas, TX with about 30% shade in the summer time.

I am trying to get the FC up, I found some discontinued 10% bleach ot Lowes for $1.25 gallon, it is just over 6 months old (8/14), and it seems to be a little weak based on the pool calculator. We have had some very sunny days with wind blowing leaves in the pool, so not sure how much FC is being lost naturally in the pool yet. I'll dump a whole gallon in tonight and see what the FC looks like first thing in the morning.

A few questions:

I plan on draining the pool next weekend about 1/3 to 1/2 to reduce the CYA. Is the best way to drain it using the backwash with only the main drain turned on?

Is there an easy way to tell when I get it down to about half full? I don't want to take too much out, we have water restrictions here. But I don't want to have to drain it again either. The pool is kind of L shaped, about 4' deep on one end and around 12' deep on the other. I can get out the tape measure and calculate volume if I have to.

Should I be concerned with the ground water level when draining? We had a pool leak fixed last year, and they had to drain a 2-3 feet out to fix it, and it took several hours. Plus we had the pool replastered about 3 years ago without issues.

After I refill the pool, I need some advice on how to rebalance the pool. What needs to be done first (guessing chlorine, Ph level , alkalinity and then calcium)? And how much time do you wait before adjusting each? The water report for our area shows the calcium hardness levels around 100-150 range.


thank you


Don
 
:wave: Welcome to TFP!!!

You NEED to get that FC up! and Always keep it above 6ppm until you drain and replace water to lower the CYA.

I would not recommend draining that much water in backwash mode. If you have a multi-port with a "waste" option that could work if you can isolate to only the floor suction. Otherwise, easier to rent or buy a submersible pump.

If you can estimate the average depth ... maybe 7 feet??? ... then stop when the water drops 3.5 feet.

Doubtful that you have ground water problems there.

After you refill, circulate the water for an hour and retest everything ... based on that we can come up with a plan to rebalance.
 
finally got around to draining pool. I made a lot of measurements, seems the pool is really around 28,000 gallons.
after filling and letting the pool run for a couple of hours, here are my numbers:



FC 0 (I have since added a whole gallon of 10% chlorine)
CH: 250-275
TA: 100
pH: 7.8
CYA: 40 ( I was shooting for 45 after draining, just don't tell the wife I took too much out)

I am surprised everything is so close, considering we had a couple days of stormy weather since draining the pool, and it so cloudy. I have gotten most of the leaves out.

What's my next step?

Thank you.
 
Welcome aboard dnh!

Once you get through this, it will be much easier to keep than you might imagine. You'll see too that future storms really don't affect your pool much. Let us know how we can help I'm your SLAM.
 
The pool was very clear yesterday morning, I checked the chlorine again around 2 pm, and FC was 3 and CC was 1. I added the rest of the one gallon 10% chlorine I had. I re-checked again about 7 pm after the pump had ran another couple of hours, FC was 7.5, CC was 0.5.

Tested again first thing this morning. FC was 8 and CC was 0.5 (checked both twice). For the CC test, the sample was barely pink after adding the R-0003. Is it normal for the chlorine to rise a little over night, or is that just margin of error on my tests? I checked the chlorine level twice last night and this morning, last night took 15 drops of the R-0871 to turn clear, this morning it took 16.

Also, will the pH of the pool vary depending on the time of the day.
 
I won't have time to do the SLAM process until this weekend. I checked the chlorine levels last night after I got home, around 10 pm. Yesterday was a very overcast day, levels were: FC 8 and CC 0.5, (the same as the morning check). The levels this morning were FC 7.5 (I forgot to check CC). We did have a storm blow through last evening, 1/2" of rain and there were some in the pool. nothing was Nothing has been added to the pool since Sunday at 2 pm.

The pool has been clear for two days, the CC is 0.5, and the FC loss has only been 1 ppm for a 36 hour period under overcast conditions.

I haven't shocked the pool since taking over last winter, so I am not opposed to doing it, I just want to know why I am doing it.

thank you
 
You do not need to SLAM if the following conditions are true.
CC is 0.5 or lower
You pass an OCLT (ie overnight FC loss test shows a loss of 1.0 ppm or less)
The water is clear
When all three are true, you can allow the FC to drift down to normal levels
 

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I am very confused now. Do I need to SLAM?

I did one more OCLT last night/this morning, no chlorine had been added for 24 hours. Last night around 9 pm, FC was 6, the CC was 1. I retested this morning at 8 am, FC just over 5 (after 10 drops just barely pink), and the CC was 0. I am confused by this reading.

I also seeing inconsistent readings if I retest (FAS-DPD) the same sample, the number of drops needed to turn the sample clear may vary by 2-4 . How much of the R-0870 powder should I be using?

The two previous OCLT test early this week were CC at 0.5 and FC drop was 1 or less. I have been keeping the FC in the 6-8 range all week. The water has also been perfectly clear all week.

To summarize what I have done: I drained about 1/3 of the water last week to lower the CYA. The FC before draining was around 6. I was not able to restart the pool until a couple of days later (had a couple of stormy days). Once I got the pool started, I checked the FC after a few hours (FAS-DPD), and it measured 0 ( I probably should have checked it with the other test). I added all the bleach that I had on hand (almost two gallons total). The next day the water was clear and the FC was 7.5 The CYA measured around 40, although after reading more, it may be actually be a little lower because I measured it when the water was still a little cloudy from the recent rain storms.

I have tomorrow off, so it would be a perfect day to start the SLAM procedure, if needed, or maybe just in case.

thanks again.
 
Based on all this, I would suggest starting one. Follow procedure, and use one heaping scoop each time. Add drops until the FC test is clear, not barely pink. Also, take the FC reading immediately after sampling. Later tests of the same sample are invalid. This is important for FC as well as pH.
 
Your test results for FC should not be varying that much. 1 drop difference is the worst I've ever gotten.

Make sure you're adding enough powder. A heaping scoop is enough. Adding too much is OK, too little is not.
Make sure you're mixing thoroughly and quickly. The test should be done as quickly as possible. If the test takes too long, your results will be skewed high. If you titrate the sample from pink to clear and let it sit for a minute it will turn pink again. The Speed Stir accessory is great for testing consistency and speed.

At this point it's hard to tell you what to do. You've seen CC levels at 1 and 0.5. CC at 1 or greater means you need to SLAM. However, you've passed the OCLT. The OCLT is typically performed at the SLAM level. What I recommend is to bring the FC up to 16 (the SLAM/shock level for 40 CYA) and perform the OCLT.
 
Ok will start SLAM tomorrow. Ill brush the pool a couple of times to make sure nothing is living on the walls.

Sounds like I am taking too long with my test and not stirring enough. I just watched the Taylor video, To Test (Free and Combined) Chlorine using FAS-DPD [updated 3/5/10], and I am taking much longer than that.
 
Going cloudy is one reason I suggested you do it. Usually, the first sign of a bloom is a sudden haze or cloudiness in the pool. Rain or no rain. If you are going too slow it can skew the results. A speedstir really helps with this and other titrations.
 
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