Been reading, now need feedback

[Chandra R]

Hello, This is my first post here but I've read the posts here off and on for a couple years. I think after 7 years, I'm finally getting the gist of how all the pool chemicals work, lol. I'm sick of running to the pool store and getting ripped off every time, it feel like, at least. I bought one of the Taylor tests recommend here and now I just need a little bit of guidance to make sure I'm on the right track.

Yesterday, I did a full test on the water:
Water looks clear and sparkly, but some debris brushing up off steps.

Water temp about 60

FC: .8 (It's been cold and I don't think the SWG is consistent)
CC: 0
130 Alkalinity
45 CYA
7.4 pH
230 Calcium hardness


So I poured a gallon of liquid chlorine in and let the filter run a few hours. Tested this morning on select thing and got this:

FC: 4 or 5
pH: 8.0


Ran the test for acid demand and based on the Taylor booklet for lowering TA and pH, I added a gallon of acid (I poured in various spots in the pool and brushed well, and turned on the skimmer). I also poured in about 2 pounds of Stabilizer into the skimmer baskets.

Is there anything else I should do?

I also believe I have an issue with my SWG or electronics, because I get the error codes that tell me to clean the salt cell when the pool is running on low, but not on high. I cleaned the cell a couple weeks ago and all the error codes cleared for a couple days, but then came back on when it's on low. I've had the pool company out multiple times for the same thing and they have installed a new sensor, but now I have to pay for service calls, so I'm hoping to figure something out on our own.

 

[duraleigh]

Welcome to the forum.

Your pH would not have changed from 7.4 to 8.0 overnight. Recheck that test.

 

[Chandra R]

Thanks, I thought the same thing and did retest with my other test kit also. Same. Maybe the 7.4 was the one that was off.

 

[duraleigh]

Precision is a key ingredient to what we teach. Are you saying your pH is 8.0?

 

[pooldv]

Sounds like you are on the right track. My SWCG sometimes acts a little weird at lower temps, giving flow errors when there is no issue with flow or giving low salt when I know it is fine. I wouldn't push the panic button yet. Keep using bleach and wait for the temp to come up some more. Mine was acting weird earlier this spring and it is working fine now, temp is consistently over 70 now.

You did need to add stabilizer because your cya is low. It is better to put it in an old sock and throw that in the skimmer. Just make sure it doesn't clog up your baskets. And wait a week for it to dissolve fully before retesting.

Ph is high at 8, need to lower it pronto.

Here is some handy info to read about how to manage your pool. Just in case you missed any of this great info.
Here is some basic water chemistry info ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry
Here are recommend levels for a saltwater pool. Water Balance for SWCGs
Here is a link to poolmath to help you calculate how much stuff to add to your pool to get to the correct levels. PoolMath

Good job on your first post with location signature and test results!*

 

[Chandra R]

So I'm thinking my 7.4 yesterday and 8.0 today were right. I just retested, just my pH and TA. The pH was 8.0 this morning, TA was 130. I added 1 gal of muriatic acid.

Just now:

7.4 pH
120 TA

Is that too high for TA? If so, how do I lower that without lowering the pH more? I never have a problem with low pH, it always runs high.

It's supposed to warm up here this week, so I'm trying to stay on top of it so I don't get algae when it gets warm suddenly. Also, we live in a heavily wooded area, so there's no shortage of organic material to wreak havoc on the pool!

Thanks for your help!

 

[pooldv]

Yes, TA is too high. Here is an article in Pool School on lowering TA.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/129-how-to-lower-lowering-total-alkalinity

Keep your FC at 4-6 ppm and you will be fine. Use bleach or liquid chlorine until you get your SWCG up and running.

 

[Patrick_B]

So I'm thinking my 7.4 yesterday and 8.0 today were right. I just retested, just my pH and TA. The pH was 8.0 this morning, TA was 130. I added 1 gal of muriatic acid.

Just now:

7.4 pH
120 TA

Is that too high for TA? If so, how do I lower that without lowering the pH more? I never have a problem with low pH, it always runs high.

It's supposed to warm up here this week, so I'm trying to stay on top of it so I don't get algae when it gets warm suddenly. Also, we live in a heavily wooded area, so there's no shortage of organic material to wreak havoc on the pool!
Thanks for your help!

If your pH is 7.4 and the TA 120, it will take some fair amount of time to lower the TA. Quite a bit, because you won't have much room to push the pH down to our suggested 7.2 each time, and this won't do a lot to the TA. I'm a tiny bit skeptical of the 7.4 with the 8.0 mentioned above, but here is what I would suggest:

From this point, although your TA is a little high, don't stress over it at all. Your CH is very manageable and you really aren't under any threat for scaling if you keep the pH reasonable. In reality, you have a good deal of wiggle room here. Even up to 7.8 is fine. High TA causes your pH to rise more quickly as a rule, and create more potential for scaling when combined with high CH. Which, you do not have. These are the main concerns with higher TA, but it shouldn't be a big issue for you. If this were my pool, I would watch and manage the pH, and not worry so much about the TA. In fact, I wish I had this issue. I have to worry all the time about scaling with High TA and high CH.

Do you know what your pool makeup TA is? If not, run a TA and CH on your fill water to see and post the numbers up if you don't mind. It will add a little more perspective on things and we can expand on that some if you wish to do it.