Chlorine test results show no chlorine

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Saltman-David

0
Jun 1, 2015
33
toronto
Hi- I had my SWG at 80% for about 14 hours overnight, I tested the water this afternoon using the Test kit, added 5 drops of liquid 1 as instructed and the colour was clear which if I am reading things right means I have no CL in the pool. I am starting to grow algae on the stairs and thus will switch the SWG to super chlorinate overnight to see if it make any difference. I am not sure how to find out if the SWG is actually generating, I have taken off the cell, cleaned it, did an acid wash and put it back. Any ideas and temporary fixes?

P.S pool is 58,000+galons and SWG is a T15 40k Hayward Cell.
 
What test kit? The one we recommend uses powder to turn the water pink in the presence of chlorine.

But, of now I would get some liquid chlorine in the water.

A full set of test results would help

FC
CC
pH
TA
CH
CYA

That salt cell is way undersized for that pool and I don't know if it will ever be able to keep up. We generally recommend sizing it for double the size of the pool.
 
You can take a water sample straight from the return while the SWG is running and see if that gives you any yellow. If it is still clear then you may have a problem with your SWG.

Either way you will need to supplement your SWG with liquid chlorine, either in the form of regular unscented bleach or higher strength liquid chlorine if you can get some at a reasonable price. Running your SWG in superchlorinate is not especially good for the cell and slowly adds chlorine, for algae you will want to bring up your level quickly.

For visible algae a SLAM - Shock Level And Maintain is in order. However you will need test results that are more advanced than your current one can read. The only kit that I know of available in Canada that has all of the required tests is the k-2006. This includes a CYA test, which will let you know what FC you need to properly SLAM, as well as an FAS-DPD test that will give you accurate FC and CC readings.

You are fairly new, have you done any reading in the Pool School yet? Here are a couple important topics you will need to understand what we are talking about going forward:
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
Pool School - PoolMath
 
YippeeSkippy said:
Don't forget to brush stairs well to compensate for the lowered circulation there. You want the chlorine to meet up with those corners and crevices often.
Click to expand...

Thanks for everyone's reply, in regards to the SWG being undersized, I agree and I am not sure why the previous owner installed a 40k swg for a pool of this size, I'll have to buy some liquid chlorine in the meantime to compensate but totally defeats the purpose of having a saltwater pool, I am disappointed to say the least. In regards to what test kit I am using, its a Pentair Rainbow 78HR test kit, picture below. it has 4 dispensers (seems to be missing solution #3?) and your supposed to fill the chlorine tube and add5 drops, stir and check results. Do you guys recommend the Taylor T100 or K2006? I assume my current test kit is no good.
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eh0tvk.jpg

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We generally do not recommend "color match" test kits because they are not a precise as we like. The two recommended kits are the TF-100 (best value) and the K-2006. Both kits use reagents made by Taylor. Being north of the border you are somwhat restricted because one company has an exclusive sales agreement with Taylor for all sales in Canada. For that reason the K2006 is hard to find and expensive to you.

We would,really like to see you using one of those kits as that is the basis of our pool,care recommendations, accurate reliable and repeatable testing.
 
Ok first things first. You should have some chlorine if the SWG is working. As noted above, take a sample directly from the return with the SWG running.

Next, normally we would check for algae using an OCLT. OCLT Directions This is not needed as you said you have algae growing on the steps. You will fail this test then, but run it if you wish.

So now we come to the most important part. TAKE YOUR POOL BACK! In the process learn the methods here, and never go back to the pool store again! Think of all the money you will save!

First you need to spend some though. This is the most important step, and many are reluctant to do so. You will never succeed at these methods without a proper test kit. Especially when we start to SLAM, this is absolutely needed.

Here are the Recommended Test Kits. I highly recommend the TF-100 with the XL option. The XL option will give you 2x the amount of the reagents you will go through a lot of during your SLAM. The XL will also bump your total past free shipping.

Next, prepare for the SLAM. Read this, and once you get your kit, do not waver from it. SLAM Directions The reason you need this kit so much is first you need accurate CYA numbers. The pool store may give you highly inaccurate results if you have them test it. Next, you need to be able to test your FC accurately at higher numbers than your test kit is capable of. Only a DPD-FAS Chlorine test is capable of this.

While you wait for your kit to come in, go to Pool School.! Read these articles over and over until you understand them well.



Edit: Didn't notice you were in Canada. Still you really need to get the kit.
 
I have a question! I put pure generic household bleach into the vile and tested it with 5 drops, it still shows almost clear, only very slightly yellow, i.e if it was a 1 of out 10 scale it would be a 0.5... could this mean that the solution has gone bad? also tested the water coming right out of the swg and still almost entirely clear.
 

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That or perhaps you have bad bleach. There should be a date on the bleach bottle to see if it's old. As for your reagents, it they are old or were left exposed to any heat or sunlight, they certainly could be bad. Other TFP'ers may have additional comments to add.
 
I am gonna go pick up a cheap test kit in the meantime just to test the Chlorine level, the solution is cloudy so I assume its expired. Will also pick up liquid chlorine and test that with the new and old test kit. thanks for the input everyone!
 
I bought two test kits, one was the strip kind and the other was two solution drips, one measured chlorine and the other PH. Both methods indicated that the PH was high and there was little to no chlorine in the water. I also called hayward and they said there was nothing with the cell but if the PH was over 8 the cell would not be able to produce any chlorine. according to the muatric acid bottle, I will need 200ml for every 10,000 literes, so i guesstimate there is rougly 150,000 literes of water and I will need 1.5 liters of acid to bring down the PH and 15 literes of liquid chlorine to raise the CL. anything else I need to worry about?
 
BTW, the FAS-DPD test will not work with pure bleach. It bleaches out a some very high point, and will give a 0 reading.

An easier way to test your reagents is to get a 5 gallon bucket and add a teaspoon of 8.25% Bleach. Should come out FC somewhere between 20-30. At a minimum, it should show that there is some amount of chlorine. Or use a bathtub. 2 tablespoons of 8.25% should come out FC between 10-15. That is if you have an average sized bathtub of course, and not something fancy.
 
Thank you for the link, unfortunately my current test kits do not give me measurements for 3 of the requirements. K-2006 test kit is supposed to be here mid July which is quite a long time away. The test strips also don't give an accurate reading.
 
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