TF-100 Kit Arrived!!...Im READY with my FIRST RESULTS...Please take a PEEK

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fudgebar

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Jul 25, 2010
180
North Bergen, NJ
Ok everyone, thank you so much for your help along the way with a few of my other posts to help guide me along the way to understanding the importance of water chemistry and prioritizing the 4-5 different main components.

With that said, along with my own reading of the Pool School articles and recommended kits to use, I picked up my first TF-100 Kit ( I was using the Pool Master 22270 )

First thing I want to say is that, doing a side by side comparison between the readings from the 2 kits, I have to admit, the PoolMaster kit actually excelled in the pH and Total Alkalinity tests/Acid Demand tests...they were pretty much spot on with the TF100. But the Free Chlorine test is pretty much useless on the Poolmaster. All readings come up at about at the same yellow shaded 2.0 Cl....which is useless and inaccurate...imo


Now back to my tests with the Tf100.

TF100 Results
-------------
pH 7.2
Free Cl 12
Combine Cl 1.0
Total Cl 13
TA 140
CYA 50
CH 300

My Pool
-------
approx 11,000gal 14x26 Rectangle
Vinyl lined pool
IC 20 Salt Water Generator
2 wide mouth skimmers
3 returns
1 side pressure cleaner dedicated return
400 btu Pentair Heater
Pentair DE Filter Plus
3HP VS Pentair Pump


My Settings
-----------
SWG at 50% output
Pump is sheduled at 6am to 10pm running at 1700 speed/ RPM @ 7/days a week
Pentair Kreepy Krawler Racer side pressure cleaner is scheduled to run at 2200 speed on seperate booster pump from 8am-10am @ 7 days a week


Currently I have 2 white tube socks with about 1.5 scoops each of CYA (Stabilizer) stuffed in each of my skimmer baskets...I give a friendly squeeze to each in the am.


Ok folks, what are your thoughts about the numbers, what I should do next...and do I need to change any schedules/settings and or provide more info?

Thank you so much for being here to help me out!!...Im a little nervous on what to do
 
Congrats on using your TF-100! It will be your pool's best friend. A couple tings that caught my eye:
1 - Be careful with your stabilizer. You're at 50 now which is in a pretty good range, but you have two socks soaking which will take a week or so to register on your levels. You don't want it too high.
2 - Watch your combined chlorine level closely. I wouldn't think you would want combined chlorine to be over .5 which might indicate you have something brewing. Read-up on the CYA/chlorine chart in case you have to SLAM in the near future. How does your water look?
3 - I noticed you describe the pool as appx 11,000 gal, but your signature shows 7,500. Might want to correct one. :)
Keep-up the good work!
 
Thnx for quick response...the total size of my pool is still a little confusing to me as Im not sure I exactly know so maybe someone here can help me with the math:

my pool is 14x26 but I also have 3 steel entry steps that go completely 14 feet across the shallow end of the pool similar to something you would see in a Roman bathhouse. We wanted steps to go all the way across the the shallow end of the pool.

The depth of my shallow end is 3ft and the deep end is 5feet 11 inches

But because my pool is a vinyl kit pool it has your typical angled slopes on each side of the deep end that meet flat in the center of the deep end. so I assume that between these steel steps and the sloped/angled walls in the deep end, that I may be off on my math calculations...so whatever help someone could provide would be appreciated.

I think I want to test the CC levels again...this was my first time using the advanced Chlorine test (Im usually used to using the basic dropper Cl test in my old Poolmaster kit) So I think i will retest to be sure

Also, Any strategies/comments on my pump schedule and settings?

Is 1700 a good speed to run at continuously?.....and should I lower my SWG output down to 40% or leave it at 50%?

My water clarity is clear...and has a nice rainbow/sparkly reflective shimmer under water when I have the jets on a little higher moving the water around. Im not sure if that helps describe the water clarity. I can see objects under the water all the way on the deep end clearly.

The CYA that I mentioned that was in the socks is already completely saturated ( I added it a few days ago...but my test numbers are from today) Should I remove the socks?

Are these FC numbers very high?...if so, what should I do?......and is it safe to swim
 
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I would hold-off on adding any more stabilizer for a few days to let the readings adjust. As for your FC and CC, HERE is the chart that shows you what your chlorine levels should be compared to your CYA. You are a little high right now on FC, but the fact that your CC is over .5 might indicate something is trying to bloom. On your next water test, keep a close eye on the CC. If it's still high (over .5) you might want to consider SLAMming until you pass the overnight chlorine loss test. As for the volume of your pool, there's a calculator or link somewhere I've seen that can help. I'll see if I can find it, or someone else might chime-in shortly.

HERE is one link I found to assist with pool size calculating.
 
fudgebar said:
The CYA that I mentioned that was in the socks is already completely saturated ( I added it a few days ago...but my test numbers are from today) Should I remove the socks?
Click to expand...
You mentioned that you added 1.5 scoops of CYA to each sock (3 scoops total). Scoops vary in sizes, so we don't know how many ounces you added which is our standard measurement unit for granular CYA. In addition, granular CYA can come in varying strengths/concentration with 95-100% being the most common (and preferred) concentrations. But some products have considerably less than that. Plus, keep in mind that it can take up to a week for newly-added CYA to appear in test results. You can use Pool Math to determine how much CYA (or any chemical that we recommend) that you need to add to reach a target.

fudgebar said:
Are these FC numbers very high?...if so, what should I do?......and is it safe to swim
Click to expand...
At 50 ppm CYA, an FC of 12 is a bit higher than what we recommend, but it is certainly safe to swim in. Just let it come down to the recommended range for your CYA as defined in PoolMath and the Chlorine CYA Chart
 
My water clarity is clear...When the sun is out , it has a nice rainbow/sparkly reflective shimmer under water when I have the jets on a little higher moving the water around. Im not sure if that helps describe the water clarity. I can see objects under the water all the way on the deep end clearly.
 
Some other things I've noticed....in my house on the hardwood floors, I now notice what appears to be dried salt blotches....something very similar to what I used to see in the winter in the front inside entrance of my entry door which was dried up rock salt used to melt the snow that was tracked in from my boots......Is this something that would indicate high salt or is it just normal for a salt pool to have to deal with?...I've also noticed these little dried up salt stain/blotches on my solid green chair cushions in the back yard as well.

The pool guy said my Salt reading was 3800ppm but when I looked in the DIAGNOSTIC section of my Pentair Easy Touch under Chlorination. It said the Salt was 4750ppm. So I dont know what to believe.

How often should I backwash my DE filter?...........This is something Im not familiar with. The pressure is either just under 20psi. I notice that when I increase the pump to a higher RPM like 2800 or 3100 it drives the pressure up into the 30-40psi section that says to CLEAN. Is this normal behavior of a VS pump and the way it impacts the PSI of a DE filter?

Also can someone please look at my schedule and pump speed to let me know if I am on an optimal setting to get good flow and filtration thru my pool?

thanks for all your help
 
Also another quick question......Are there any dangers of swimming in my pool with Free CL level at 12??

I also read that using MPS (Monpersulfate) to shock the pool would lower the Free Chlorine levels......is this true and what are your thoughts on this?

Why is my Free Chlorine so high?

Please help me out....thanks!
 

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Folks Im feeling alot better and the sense of accomplishment is starting to flush my cheeks!...Finally, Finally, Im starting to see things come together.

Today was an extremely hot day and I came home from work to find a bunch of meaty 18-19 yr old 6teenagers (6 to be exact) belly floppin and cannonballin' into my small 14x26 pool splashing water every where!

My first knee gut reaction was to start screamin at my dumb son to get his hoodlum friends out of our backyard...but then, I a revelation hit me...like a cloudy sky breaking way to let the sun in, ....I think I actually heard a quartet of angels hum in my ear, and thought, wait a second.....these goons are gonna help me balance my chemistry out by aerating my pH upward and lowering my Free Chlorine levels tremendously with their sweaty dirty bodies!.....and there aggressive olympic style flop failures are going help me empty out the excess salt water in my pool!!

I pleasantly smiled and walked back into the house laughing to myself....Low and behold, after about 3 hours of this, I kicked them out and ran my tests!.....All I can see is things are lookin' good Billy Ray!

My pH is now @ 7.6
My TA is now at 120
My FC is now down to 9

I shut the pump....and dumped in about another 20oz of dry acid into the deep end, waited about 30mins, fired up the pump at 2600 RPM and let it run for a few hours at that speed while I swept up the deep end corners for any piled up acid

Tommorow morning, I bet Im gonna find a TA reading close to 110, and a pH of about 7.2 if all goes according to plan....you guys rock!!

Btw, I now have my SWG running at 35% while the pump runs at 1700 RPM for about 14hrs a day....thoughts?
 
fudgebar said:
Some other things I've noticed....in my house on the hardwood floors, I now notice what appears to be dried salt blotches....something very similar to what I used to see in the winter in the front inside entrance of my entry door which was dried up rock salt used to melt the snow that was tracked in from my boots......Is this something that would indicate high salt or is it just normal for a salt pool to have to deal with?...I've also noticed these little dried up salt stain/blotches on my solid green chair cushions in the back yard as well.

The pool guy said my Salt reading was 3800ppm but when I looked in the DIAGNOSTIC section of my Pentair Easy Touch under Chlorination. It said the Salt was 4750ppm. So I dont know what to believe.

How often should I backwash my DE filter?...........This is something Im not familiar with. The pressure is either just under 20psi. I notice that when I increase the pump to a higher RPM like 2800 or 3100 it drives the pressure up into the 30-40psi section that says to CLEAN. Is this normal behavior of a VS pump and the way it impacts the PSI of a DE filter?

Also can someone please look at my schedule and pump speed to let me know if I am on an optimal setting to get good flow and filtration thru my pool?

thanks for all your help
Click to expand...

If your SWG is happy, making chlorine and not reporting high or low salt error then do not worry about salt.

Backwash your filter when pressure rises 20-25% over the clean pressure. Yes, that is normal. Always check filter pressure at the same high rpm setting like 3100 or so.
 
fudgebar said:
Folks Im feeling alot better and the sense of accomplishment is starting to flush my cheeks!...Finally, Finally, Im starting to see things come together.

Today was an extremely hot day and I came home from work to find a bunch of meaty 18-19 yr old 6teenagers (6 to be exact) belly floppin and cannonballin' into my small 14x26 pool splashing water every where!

My first knee gut reaction was to start screamin at my dumb son to get his hoodlum friends out of our backyard...but then, I a revelation hit me...like a cloudy sky breaking way to let the sun in, ....I think I actually heard a quartet of angels hum in my ear, and thought, wait a second.....these goons are gonna help me balance my chemistry out by aerating my pH upward and lowering my Free Chlorine levels tremendously with their sweaty dirty bodies!.....and there aggressive olympic style flop failures are going help me empty out the excess salt water in my pool!!

I pleasantly smiled and walked back into the house laughing to myself....Low and behold, after about 3 hours of this, I kicked them out and ran my tests!.....All I can see is things are lookin' good Billy Ray!

My pH is now @ 7.6
My TA is now at 120
My FC is now down to 9

I shut the pump....and dumped in about another 20oz of dry acid into the deep end, waited about 30mins, fired up the pump at 2600 RPM and let it run for a few hours at that speed while I swept up the deep end corners for any piled up acid

Tommorow morning, I bet Im gonna find a TA reading close to 110, and a pH of about 7.2 if all goes according to plan....you guys rock!!

Btw, I now have my SWG running at 35% while the pump runs at 1700 RPM for about 14hrs a day....thoughts?
Click to expand...

Looks like you are getting the hang of things. That speed and run time is pretty good. Might want to try running less RPM and time and see if you still get good skimming and enough flow to run the SWG. Maybe try 8 hours and turn up the SWG% to compensate. But, if you are happy with what you have that is OK too.
 
The intellichlor gives high salt warning at 4500ppm and Pentair recommends draining to dilute salt if above that. But, at 4750ppm I would not bother, splash out and rain will probably lower it soon enough. Pentair Intellichlor is one of the few SWCGs that will continue to produce chlorine in high salt condition.
 
folks thanks for all your help...I've gotten this under control, and I want to share with you images of my pool......I think I can handle this! Its time to fire the weekly pool guy :)
 

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