First test; lots of questions

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Danjones0212

0
Jun 7, 2015
16
Sarasota, FL
Been doing my research and decided to start testing my own water. Here are the results I came up with (First timer)...
:testkit:

FC .6
CC .2
PH 7.8
TA 80
CH 375
CYA 60

So I added about 60 oz of 8.25% chlorine (pool calculator recommended 64 oz) and about 3oz of muriatic acid to bring down the PH. Tested after about 2 hrs and got a reading of 6.3 FC. and PH is up to 8! :(

I have made a sprinkler and connected it to my only return line to try and cool the pool down. (Currently 90*) Its more like a 1-1/2" pipe coming out of the water at a 45* angle. I know this will effect PH levels due to aeration. But didn't expect it to make the PH increase after adding acid....

One other issue I am having. When vacuuming the pool and I vac a dead algae spot on the floor of the pool (been fighting algae recently) I notice that I see it flowing back into the pool through the return line. It almost looks like dirty water coming back in. The filter started out with 10-12 psi when I replaced the filter. After cleaning the filter now its clocking 15 psi. I'm thinking its about time for a new filter even though this one is only about a month old. But should I be seeing the dead algae coming back into the pool via the return line despite the condition of the filter??


Just a side note, I am really new to all this and I'm sure some of this is stupid noobish nonsense... Please bear with me as I try to figure out what the heck I'm doing. :scratch:

Thanks!
Dan
 
Hello! Congrats on testing your own water, it will make a difference! The aeration of the water plus the small addition of MA could have possibly resulted in a net increase in pH. I really don't think I would worry about bringing a pH of 7.8 down...It is a normal level. The issue I see is FC = 0.6 + Dead Algae ( Dead or not it needs to be gone). Maintaining your FC is vital. I can't give you advice on your cartridge filter as I use a sand filter. Someone should be along to help shortly!
 
With a CYA of 60ppm your MINIMUM FC level is 5ppm. You should never let it go below that, which you have.

If this was my pool I would immediately SLAM it. Can you drain & refill 25-40% of the water to get your CYA down a bit? It will help with the SLAM.

Dom
 
Thanks Jaduck! Yeah I bought a cheap test kit to keep an eye on my chlorine levels but apparently it wasnt woorth the time effort or money I spent on it! Just got my Taylor K2006 test kit in yesterday. What a difference!

As for the addition of MA, I thought it would lower my PH? Am I wrong?
 
Dom,
Thanks for the help! At this point I am going to just go with the CYA level thats there. I expect it to go down with the start of the hurricane season here. (Lots of rain is on the way). As for slamming the pool, Ill be glad to have someone walk me through it.
 
Hi and welcome to TFP
first thing is to change to 10ml water sample to double how long your test kit will last
Extended Test Kit Directions
adding muriatic acid should have lowered your ph
but a cheap test kit is a cheap test kit so who knows how accurate it is
Pool School - Test Kits Compared
most people use the tf100
i use the 2006 as well
only trust results from your taylor kit
nothing should be passing through your filter
just check the cartridge is seated properly and there are no holes in it
also check your multi port valve you may be set on recirculate which bypasses the filter
 
Welcome to TFP!

Yes, adding muriatic acid will lower your PH. I prefer to lower PH to 7.2 when it gets to 7.8. Especially if your PH will continue to rise above 7.8. 7.2-7.8 is the ideal range.

CYA of 60 is manageable. Make sure to maintain sufficient chlorine for your CYA on the Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart

Here is some readinf to get you started.
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
Pool School - Recommended Levels
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
Pool School - SLAM - Shock Level And Maintain
 
There is no recirculate on mine. Water comes into the pump, out to the filter and then I have the option of turning the solar heater off. there's not even a cutoff valve to restrict the flow on suction side!

I have my work cut out for me...

Think Ill just change out the filter with a new one and see what happens.
 
Danjones0212 said:
Thanks Jaduck! Yeah I bought a cheap test kit to keep an eye on my chlorine levels but apparently it wasnt woorth the time effort or money I spent on it! Just got my Taylor K2006 test kit in yesterday. What a difference!

As for the addition of MA, I thought it would lower my PH? Am I wrong?
Click to expand...

It will lower your pH...However, you attached an aeration device which caused a net increase in your pH. It could be testing error as well. I absolutely hate color comparison pH testing.
 
Thank you for the useful links! I have read over some of those already but a person can only take in so much knowledge at a time...

About SLAMing the pool, not sure if this needs to be done though. The only issue I have had is the water is just a little cloudy.

Is SLAMing the pool necessary at this point?
 

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Danjones0212 said:
Thank you for the useful links! I have read over some of those already but a person can only take in so much knowledge at a time...

About SLAMing the pool, not sure if this needs to be done though. The only issue I have had is the water is just a little cloudy.

Is SLAMing the pool necessary at this point?
Click to expand...

Dead algae, cloudy, Free Chlorine = 0.6 = SLAM! Your pool should be so clear that you could toss a quarter in the deep-end and tell if it's heads or tails. You may not have to SLAM, but going by what we already know it might be just the thing. Have you performed an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test? If not, please read about performing the test in Pool School. Report back your results and we will know how to proceed.

To perform the overnight FC loss test:

1. If you have an SWG, tablet chlorinator, or other chlorine feeder, shut it off completely.
2. After the sun goes down, and at least 30 minutes after your last chemical addition of the day, test your water for FC using the FAS-DPD test.
3. Record that result. Do not put any more chlorine in your pool.
4. The next morning, as early as practical and definitely before there is any direct sunlight on the pool, perform the FAS-DPD FC test again and record the results.

If your FC level remained the same, or went down by 1.0 or less, the water is clean. There isn't any living algae or other organic contamination in the pool.

If you lost more than 1.0 ppm of FC, then there is something in the water that needs to be removed and you should SLAM, or continue SLAMing, the pool.
 
Danjones0212 said:
Thank you for the useful links! I have read over some of those already but a person can only take in so much knowledge at a time...

About SLAMing the pool, not sure if this needs to be done though. The only issue I have had is the water is just a little cloudy.

Is SLAMing the pool necessary at this point?
Click to expand...

Yep, I had to read them 30 or 40 times before it sunk in. I still have them printed out in a folder with my test kit.

Agree that Performing the Overnight FC Loss Test (OCLT) is a good idea to see if you need to SLAM.
 
I believe some of my numbers may have been off yesterday. Here's the latest numbers as of 930 am. I will use this as my starting point.
FC 5.6
CC 0
PH 7.8-8.0 (Cant distinguish between the 2 colors)
TA 75
CH 300
CYA 50

Yes the sun was up when these numbers were taken. But not very high in the sky.. I am going to plug these numbers into the pool calculator to raise my FC up to about 10. Overnight the water has turned remarkably clear and pool temp is down to 86!

I will study up on this OCLT test and see what its about so I can at least pretend I know what the heck I'm doing! Lol:cool:
 
LOL! Good plan!

Add muriatic acid to lower PH to 7.2-7.4. It is important to maintain PH between 7.2 and7.8. Especially when your FC is below 10. The PH test is invalid when FC is above 10.

Good news that the pool is clearing up!
 
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