Cant keep Chlorine!

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deanWesterburg

0
May 10, 2015
22
West Chester / Ohio
I have a 25,000 gallon 18' x 36' pool with a Chlorine generator and a 2 HP pump that runs continuously. I just opened the pool 2 weeks ago and can't keep chlorine.

The water was cloudy but not green when I opened it and phosphates were above 2500. I added over $150 worth of phos-free products and it hasn't dropped. I also added algaecide as specified in the opening chemical kit. After reading here that phosphates dont matter, I'm going to stop throwing that money away in the pool!

The water is clear with a soapy or almost bial like foam on top in the corners and I can not keep chlorine.

My current water test (Taken with a Leslie's FAS-DPD kit #81329 as suggested) are:

FC = .6
CC = .3
PH = 7.2
TA = 130 ppm
CH = 260 ppm
CYA = 40 ppm.

Salt = 3200 ppm (200ppm lower then the chlorine gen considers optimal)

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I feel a little lost and am sick of the pool stores playing "trial and error" with my money!

Thanks,

Dean.
 
Welcome to TFP. I would say the foam is probably from the algaecide used. You need to get the FC up using 8.25% bleach, no easy pour splash less or scents.

My pool was cloudy and not green too. I SLAMmed it following the SLAM process exactly. I usually even over shot my FC target. It took me 13 days, but it is pretty now. There is a link with pics in my signature.
 
Thanks AZgirl! I was planning on doing just that now that I have a test kit that I can measure FC. I know every pool is different, but I have no idea how much bleach to start with. 1 bottle? 5 bottles? Do you have a suggestion on how much to try in the first wave? Thanks again! I really appreciate it. -Dean
 
Tim5055, I understand that I am trying to hold a level, however I'm not going to stand over the pool and check it every 5 min! It states to check it between 2 and 24 times a day. SO, The first time am I starting with 1 gallon jug or a 55 gallon jug? I'm just looking for a starting point to give me an idea how much to have on hand.

A box full, or a shed full of bleach?
 
I would have at least 10-15 on hand to get you started. Your pool is pretty big.

- - - Updated - - -

In the beginning if you are able to check levels every 2 hours it will help. If not then at least check morning and evening.
 
Sounds like you may not have discovered PoolMath yet. That will calculate and tell you how much bleach you have to add to reach a given target FC level.

With a CYA of 40ppm, you need to maintain a FC level of 16ppm.
If you are starting at basically 0 FC, it will take 603 oz of 8.25% bleach to reach 16ppm ... about 5 of the 121oz bottles. Or 498oz of 10% ... almost 4 gallons.
After that you should not have to add as much each time as the FC will not likely be 0.
 
Quick tip, dean.
It you start out frequently testing and bringing it back up on the weekend, your whole slam will move faster ;)

Think of it this way: every minute that it is below 16 means algae can outstrip the bleach/chlorine. So if you dose to 16, go back in 2 hours, and its at 12, then a good portion of those two hours are actually below slam level.

But after the first while, the time and amount it drops will improve. So for the first bit, its worth the babysitting on the front end to make it quicker on the back end ;)

It will also help to dose it to a few ppm higher than your target...that will help it spend more time killing" at target.

Hope that helps you turn the corner quickly! Memorial weekend awaits ;)
Cheers to clear.
 

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What a difference even 1 day has made!

Prior to SLAM @ 7pm
TC=.6
CC=.4

Begin SLAM @ 5/15/15 8:30 PM
TC=16.5
CC = 1
Added 60 oz Bleach for expected reading of 18.1 if no loss on next round

5/15/15 @ 10 pm
TC= 16.5
CC = 1
Drop of 1.6 from post CL add @ 7pm. Added 60 oz = TC of 19.7

5/15/15 @ 11:30 pm
TC = 19
CC= 1
Loss of only .7 Adding 121 oz to get through the night. 22.2 new total

5/16/15 @ 7am
TC= 23
CC= .5

I gained .8 TC overnight because my SWG is on. Should I have the SWG on during this process? If so, what setting? I'm guessing I should disable it for the overnight test otherwise I'm not finding the true loss overnight. Is it just me or do I sound like I'm not too far off my stopping point?

Thanks for the help!
 
Generally we advise to turn the SWG off during a SLAM. You are adding so much chlorine manually that there is no need to use it. The cell has a finite life, so,save it for after the SLAM.

How does the water look? I would turn off the SWG, continue the SLAM today and do an OCLT tonight. My guess is you will pass.
 
One other thing that looks like it was not brought up and with numbers like .8. What size sample are you using? The 10ml test is accurate enough and should only give you a whole number or .5. It will also save on you testing regents.
 
Thanks Tim. After I posed the question about the SWG I turned it off. I got thinking about the OCLT and thought I'm never going to get an accurate reading if I'm constantly adding to it!

I was thinking the same thing you were. Continue today and see how much I lose tonight. Thanks for confirming the decision.

Water was a little cloudy last night. I vacuumed the entire pool by hand last night and again this morning and have brushed all the side walls twice i the last 12 hours. The water looks pretty clear right now. Pump pressure is up a few PSI but still well below the point of needing to backwash.


Thanks for everyones help. I feel so much less enslaved to the pool store with your help and the results I am already seeing! Wish I had checked here about $300-$400 of chemicals ago! :)
 
deanWesterburg said:
Thanks for everyones help. I feel so much less enslaved to the pool store with your help and the results I am already seeing! Wish I had checked here about $300-$400 of chemicals ago! :)
Click to expand...
Well, if you or anyone who feels the forum has added value to them would like to,the site accepts donations to keep the lights on and electrons flowing.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/144-CLICK-HERE-to-Become-a-TroubleFreePool-com-Supporter!

Heck, it's lees than a normal trip to the pool store.
 
jcowart said:
One other thing that looks like it was not brought up and with numbers like .8. What size sample are you using? The 10ml test is accurate enough and should only give you a whole number or .5. It will also save on you testing regents.
Click to expand...

Yea, I switch to the 10ml sample after when I realized I'm going to run out of reagents before I finish my SLAM! More than half the R-0871 (FAS-DPD Titrating Reagent) is gone as well as half the R-0013 (Cyanuric acid reagent) and I just bought the kit Friday! Just ordered more on Amazon. Thanks for the tip!
 

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