Slam questions I can't seem to find answers to....

[dapeople]

Well thanks to everyone here I've never had to slam my pool since I acquired it with the purchase of my home.

However I do have a few questions that after reading and reading I still don't have a clear understanding of. From what I read the OCLT should be done with the FC at shock levels. If my pool is sparkling clear, with a CC of .5 or less how much daily FC consumption is considered "normal". Right now i'm loosing approx. 1 ppm a day, and I know that's acceptable, but I don't have a problem to sneak up on me in the future. I test daily, and just was wondering what was the early "warning" signs to look for when your water looks right, but its about to go back.

Thanks in advance!

 

[jblizzle]

Normal loss is usually 2-3ppm.

 

[pooldv]

As long as you maintain at least min chlorine level for your cya level your pool will stay good forever. Chlorine CYA Chart We are cranking up swim season 4 with no slam/shock ever.

 

[dapeople]

Thanks! I have a CYA of 50 and I keep the FC at 5 to try to stay in the middle of the recommendations.

 

[tim5055]

Thanks! I have a CYA of 50 and I keep the FC at 5 to try to stay in the middle of the recommendations.

The chart really isn't a range, like 4 - 6 it's really target 6, so the FC will never go below 4. If you set it at 5 on a bright sunny day you may loose 2 ppm bringing you down below your absolute minimum of 4. Some areas of the country (or individual pools depending on the amount of sun they get) may need to bump that target up a little.

The goal is to never go below the minimum, in you case 4.

 

[DHoover85]

you're well on your way, if 5 works for you, stick with it. seeing your sig doesn't mention how you add your chlorine, I am guessing it is a bleach only thing? if that is the case check your CYA anytime you have a significant rise or lowering in pool water level, but otherwise it should be steady.

 

[dapeople]

ah, didn't think of it that way. I'll make the changes.

- - - Updated - - -

Yep, Im just pouring in bleach by hand as needed. I've checked the CYA several times since obtaining the pool because the previous owner used pucks, and that also all I knew until I found this site about 2 months ago. Each time I've checked it its pretty much been 50. Should I lower that? Each night I raise my FC to 5 ppm, and the next evening its always 4.0- to 4.2. I've never seen it go lower that that in about 2 months, even with a week of straight rains.

 

[tim5055]

ah, didn't think of it that way. I'll make the changes.

- - - Updated - - -

Yep, Im just pouring in bleach by hand as needed. I've checked the CYA several times since obtaining the pool because the previous owner used pucks, and that also all I knew until I found this site about 2 months ago. Each time I've checked it its pretty much been 50. Should I lower that? Each night I raise my FC to 5 ppm, and the next evening its always 4.0- to 4.2. I've never seen it go lower that that in about 2 months, even with a week of straight rains.

50 is good for now. It's probably not the rain that is going to get you, it's the sun. The UV rays get the chlorine.

You comment is confusing me, you adjust to 5 in the evening and the very next morning it's 4.0 - 4.2? During the night the only thing consuming chlorine is organics.

Di sI just misunderstand?

 

[dapeople]

Yea, sorry. I test each evening, so from say 6pm one day to 6pm the next it loose on average about 1 ppm

 

[tim5055]

Yea, sorry. I test each evening, so from say 6pm one day to 6pm the next it loose on average about 1 ppm

Got it. Make me feel better. If you are only loosing 1ppm per day 6 is a good target for now. Remember in the heat of the summer with the sun overhead you will loose a little more each day.

 

[dapeople]

thanks a ton, I'm OCD about the pool after swimming in tons of bad pools. I like my hair color, and my eyes! I have a friend who has a lot smaller pool by approx. 20,000 gallons who has spent double to get their pool clear than I have. I try to explain to them but for some reason "bleach" scares people.

I am about to become a supporter of this site, as soon as I get home to where I left my wallet, it is awesome.

 

[pooldv]

Yes, as summer heats up and you do more swimming chlorine use will increase. And you are fine to go above 6 if you need to maintain min of 4. Any number below shock level is safe to swim. So, 8 or 10 is fine. The key number is never dropping below 4.

 

[Akronstax]

The OCLT test is to see if you are losing chlorine to killing organics, not sunlight. So the first test should be done after sunset and the next test before sunrise - that way you eliminate the impact on sunlight on the results. Like others have stated, you never really have to worry about that unless your FC drops below the minimum target for your CYA level. You'll quickly learn how much CL you pool loses to sun, swimmer load, etc on a daily basis and you'll easily be able to keep it where you want it. I am going into my 3rd season using this method from when the pool was filled with water and have never had to SLAM.