15.7% Muriatic Acid

[christianday]

Hey everyone,

I found this 15.7% Muriatic Acid at Lowes but when I clicked "specifications" it says "no" next to "Compatible with Salt Pools," yet other muriatic acids are. Why would a lower dilution not work with an SWG? That's kinda weird.

Not sure if the link to the product is a no no but I thought it might help.

 

[christianday]

A lot of these green muriatic acids seem to have trade secret ingredients. Does anyone know if the Kem-Tech 14.5% Muriatic Acid is just MA and water? I don't want to be adding anything weird to my pool. Also, is the 31.5% really just MA and water? I look at the MSDS and they say the hazardous ingredient is Hydrochloric Acid but that may not mean it's the only ingredient.

 

[pooldv]

Kemtek probably is, they make lots of pool chemicals. Don't know about the green one, I wouldn't use it. There is no reason I am aware of why it would be compatible with pools, but not saltwater. And no, 31.45% MA does not add other stuff to your pool. I have put many, many gallons in my pool for years.

 

[chiefwej]

Since you can buy the stronger 31% for the same price, I don't know why anyone would buy the weaker acid.

 

[UN1017]

Kemtek is fine but not the always the best value. Lowe's typically does not stock 31.45% the way Home Depot does. If you don't want to go the pool store..HD is usually the best value. They sell it in a twin pack for 6.49/gal. It looks like all the New Orleans location carry it.

 

[pooldv]

It must depend on what location you are in. I buy most of my 31.45% MA in 2pk boxes at Lowes in the pool section near the garden section.

 

[UN1017]

It must depend on what location you are in. I buy most of my 31.45% MA in 2pk boxes at Lowes in the pool section near the garden section.

I'm not surprised...we are weird here in CA.

 

[jojoman]

Around the New Orleans area both Lowes and HD carry the 31.45% MA for the same price and it's out by all the pool stuff in both stores. Never see 14.5% out by the pool stuff. I like the HD brand a little more only for the fact that I get less splash from the HD brand. I can also tell you that they are fresh because a pallet of it will not last very long in either store around here. Of course I'm getting a two pack every other week to keep my Ph down.

 

[Sandra B]

I accidentally picked up a bottle of this at Lowes. They were out of MA in the pool area, so I headed to the paint section and picked up this one. Didn't realize until I got home that it was the weaker version. Curious why it would say it's not salt water compatible....I haven't used it yet though so can't say if it has adverse affects, but I remember buying it in the paint section before when I was new to all this and didn't know it mattered, so have probably used it before. Strange...Now I have to research!

 

[christianday]

jojoman: that explains a lot. My pH keeps going up. Do you also have an SWG pool? Is it a thing to do with this area? It's like a never-ending battle. The pool builders made it sound like we probably wouldn't have to adjust anything but every six months or so and even that would maybe be shocking or super-chlorinating with the SWG. Boy was that wrong.

chiefwej: even with a makeshift facemask of cloth and layers of paper towels, I could still smell the fumes. 15% muriatic acid could be five times as much and I'd probably still buy it. This stuff gives me headaches, soreness, you name it. It might be an allergic thing. Who knows. But before I use any of this after tonight, I'm getting the best chemical filter mask and goggles I can find at Lowes and hopefully some of the diluted stuff that doesn't have "green" additives" like Chem-Tek. If not, I'll use the wretched 31.5% but not without a hazmat suit.

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jojoman: if you ever see the 14.5 or 15% without additives (chem-tek or other brand), let me know. The Jasco and others have proprietary formulas added that I can't imagine are very good to swim in.

 

[chiefwej]

When I pour acid I put the jug half in the water and tip it so that a small steam flows out the few inches from the top of the jug and the surface of the water. This way there is very little exposure to the air and the fumes are contained. If the fumes are really a problem for you go to Harbor Freight and buy an air purifying respirator. They are only about $10-15. That way you can use the standard 31% MA to lower the TA. It saves money time and you know exactly what you are putting in there.

 

[christianday]

chiefwej: that's what I actually tried though I might have let the stream get out too much and now I have this awful headache. Hopefully the hardcore respirator will help. At this point, jojoman's reverse osmosis trick is looking mighty palatable as a way to remove the sulfites of dry acid. Either that, or I'm just hiring a pool boy just to add the chemicals. I am not smelling that stuff again.

 

[christianday]

I found a local pool service company. They use muriatic acid for pH reduction. I may just use them weekly if I must use MA since I've decided it's not for me and I don't want to chance adding sulfates to the pool.

 

[christianday]

Got a great 3M vapor mask with cartridges specifically designed to filter acid fumes and the googles to match. This was the first time I could not smell that horrid stuff and now I feel a little better using it

This is the 3M 60923 filter to use. They had a mask at Lowes with those cartridges in it but I can't seem to find it on their site to link. But the filters are pretty interchangeable with the masks from what I could see.

 

[jojoman]

From my understanding the SWG makes a little Ph rise but spillover spa, tanning ledge bubblers and almost daily use of the spa jets make my Ph rise a lot. I like the sound of water moving when i'm by the pool. Plus, cutting back on these things did not slow my Ph rise that much. If your pool is less than a year old then the plaster is still in the cure stage and adding to you Ph rise also.
Sorry, i haven't seen any of the 14.5 or 15% MA anywhere so far. Haven't looked at the paint isle but as you say with some proprietary formulas added to them, i'm positive you do not want in your pool.
I have used the dry Ph down a few times. The brand at Lowes was like 9 bucks for a 4 lbs can and Wally World has a 4 lbs. can for about 11 bucks. Not the best way price wise but safe and easy to do with the same results.

 

[smackdab]

Since you have the gas mask it would probably be cheaper to use the 31.45% muriatic acid.

 

[christianday]

jojoman: our pH rises every time we use the swim jets just to swim. They're heavily aerated. So it's always rising, but I do think I've nearly got it under control. I've been using the 31.5% with a great 3M organic AND acid vapor mask and some goggles from Lowes. I didn't smell ANY of it. Of course I may have put too much because the pH is down to roughly 7.0 (just a smidgen more orange than 6.8 on the testing vial). But the TA is finally down to 70 from a high of 140 (swg recommended being 60 - 80).

I am guessing you may be right about the plaster because I tested our tap water at about 170CH, 140TA and =>8.2pH (yikes!) and the CH in the pool is up to about 425CH (down from 500 the week before). Since I'm told the CH doesn't evaporate, it probably doesn't come down with the rain so I'm guessing it's all that brushing the pool builder did to the plaster while it was in the early curing stages. All of that was brushed into the filter intake so I'm quite sure it's dissolved into the pool. Since low CH leaches calcium from plaster, that tells me that the plaster is filled with calcium and that's probably had a hand in spiking both the pH and the CH. Still, with the TA at 70, I should be able to get some control over it and maybe it won't spike as much. Have you found that to be the case at all?​

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@smackdab: I agree and that's what I'm using and I bought 5gallon plastic pails for the bottles.

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There's a place in Baton Rouge that does the reverse osmosis water treatment and services New Orleans. I'm probably going to do that in November and order all new salt and everything.

 

[Michael1]

Just picked up some Kem-Tek muriatic acid at Home Depot (So Cal). I was disappointed to find out it was 14.5%. I needed it on short notice so had to buy it, but I need to find a source for 31%.

 

[gilbee]

jojoman: our pH rises every time we use the swim jets just to swim. They're heavily aerated. So it's always rising, but I do think I've nearly got it under control. I've been using the 31.5% with a great 3M organic AND acid vapor mask and some goggles from Lowes. I didn't smell ANY of it. Of course I may have put too much because the pH is down to roughly 7.0 (just a smidgen more orange than 6.8 on the testing vial). But the TA is finally down to 70 from a high of 140 (swg recommended being 60 - 80).

I am guessing you may be right about the plaster because I tested our tap water at about 170CH, 140TA and =>8.2pH (yikes!) and the CH in the pool is up to about 425CH (down from 500 the week before). Since I'm told the CH doesn't evaporate, it probably doesn't come down with the rain so I'm guessing it's all that brushing the pool builder did to the plaster while it was in the early curing stages. All of that was brushed into the filter intake so I'm quite sure it's dissolved into the pool. Since low CH leaches calcium from plaster, that tells me that the plaster is filled with calcium and that's probably had a hand in spiking both the pH and the CH. Still, with the TA at 70, I should be able to get some control over it and maybe it won't spike as much. Have you found that to be the case at all?​

- - - Updated - - -

@smackdab: I agree and that's what I'm using and I bought 5gallon plastic pails for the bottles.

- - - Updated - - -

There's a place in Baton Rouge that does the reverse osmosis water treatment and services New Orleans. I'm probably going to do that in November and order all new salt and everything.

Care to share the reverse osmosis service in Baton Rouge? I don't need it now, but would be nice to put in my back pocket...

 

[jmastron]

Just picked up some Kem-Tek muriatic acid at Home Depot (So Cal). I was disappointed to find out it was 14.5%. I needed it on short notice so had to buy it, but I need to find a source for 31%.

In NorCal, in the HDs I've been in the 31% is usually right next to the 14%, the difference being red vs black lettering and something like "Contractor Strength" on the 31%, and "Pool" on the 14% -- but both show swimming pools on the box. At $1 more per box, I used it as a math example for my kids of why the higher price may be a better value. Incidentally, the higher concentration was 29% until recently; the one I just bought yesterday says 31.45% (and some of the others in the pile said 29%), so they may be changing it a bit.

But truth be told, the time I accidentally bought 14% it was noticeably nicer to deal with fume-wise, so I don't begrudge anyone making a conscious choice to spend what probably amounts to a couple dollars a week more to have a pleasant acid-adding experience.