We purchased our house last summer and only had the pool open for about a month. This is my first experience with a pool of any sort, so I had the pool company over to 'show me the ropes'. Basically, they had me replacing the trichlor pucks and backwashing occasionally.
Towards the end of the summer (pool season is 4 months here) the pool started to eat through Chlorine [tri-chlor granules] ... crazy amounts. We figured something was up but it was time to close the pool. CYA showed high on the test strips but the pool company said not to be concerned about CYA.
Of course, I joined TFP over the winter and have been reading up on what could have caused the Chlorine consumption. I purchased a Taylor kit and CYA was off the charts. Before opening the pool this year I decided to drain it out and fill it - I would estimate I did about a 50% drain.
After opening it (I had them 'shock' it too - they used liquid chlorine) I finally have my first full readings:
FC: 7.2
PH: 7.8
TA: 260
CYA: 320
Yes, 320! No wonder it was eating Chlorine for breakfast.
I think the only option at this point is to drain it and refill again. At 320 PoolMath says to drain about 80%. Here are my questions:
- Is it safe to drain down to 20%? Inground plaster pool, ~ 22000 gal
- We are planning a memorial day party (5 days) - my plan is to do the draining after that. Assuming we keep up with Chlorine until then, is it safe to swim in with the high CYA?
- I will measure CYA again to confirm that number as I expect it is so high to be 'off the charts', but does shocking the pool cause CYA to be inaccurate?
Thanks for your help, I plan to stick around here to help others escape the chemical peddlers' grips!
Towards the end of the summer (pool season is 4 months here) the pool started to eat through Chlorine [tri-chlor granules] ... crazy amounts. We figured something was up but it was time to close the pool. CYA showed high on the test strips but the pool company said not to be concerned about CYA.
Of course, I joined TFP over the winter and have been reading up on what could have caused the Chlorine consumption. I purchased a Taylor kit and CYA was off the charts. Before opening the pool this year I decided to drain it out and fill it - I would estimate I did about a 50% drain.
After opening it (I had them 'shock' it too - they used liquid chlorine) I finally have my first full readings:
FC: 7.2
PH: 7.8
TA: 260
CYA: 320
Yes, 320! No wonder it was eating Chlorine for breakfast.
I think the only option at this point is to drain it and refill again. At 320 PoolMath says to drain about 80%. Here are my questions:
- Is it safe to drain down to 20%? Inground plaster pool, ~ 22000 gal
- We are planning a memorial day party (5 days) - my plan is to do the draining after that. Assuming we keep up with Chlorine until then, is it safe to swim in with the high CYA?
- I will measure CYA again to confirm that number as I expect it is so high to be 'off the charts', but does shocking the pool cause CYA to be inaccurate?
Thanks for your help, I plan to stick around here to help others escape the chemical peddlers' grips!