Some questions

[AV8TOR]

With our new home and pool we are sure counting the days because it looks so inviting. I have come across a couple of questions if you can help.

With regards to chlorine - Our pool had a steady diet from the previous owners of pucks of Trichlor and our high CYA numbers are proof. We are now using the BBB method and I plan on a partial water change to bring down the CYA to 40-50 in the near pre-season. I read that it is advised to test and add your chlorine in the evening. My pump cycle is off then. Is it okay to add bleach to the pool without the pumps running or should I change the cycle to be running then? I take it you add the bleach after all swimming is done for the day or is it okay to swim right after?

Filter - How long are you running your pumps/filer in the off season and in the season and what daytime schedule are you using? How long do you have your cleaning robot run?

Thanks in advance.

 

[chem geek]

It is recommended to add most chemicals when the circulation pump is running. Most chemicals are added over a return flow, usually at the deep end. If you have a vinyl pool or an above-ground with no floor drain, then lightly brushing the side and bottom of the pool to ensure thorough mixing is recommended. You can set your pump to run around the time that you normally add chlorine. If you can't easily access your pool (say, due to a cover that's hard to get on and off), then chlorinating liquid or bleach can be slowly added to the skimmer with the pump running (though you should NEVER do that with acid), though personally I'd prefer adding it to the bulk pool water.

As for adding it at night, that's mostly so that your pool has the higher level of chlorine for the longest period of time (i.e. overnight). If you were to add chlorine in the morning, its level would drop during the day from exposure to sunlight (unless you had a pool cover) and the overnight time would have the lowest chlorine level.

You can swim shortly after you add the chlorine. How long depends on your circulation, but a half hour is quite safe. In my own pool which has very good circulation I'd feel fine swimming 10 minutes after adding chlorine, but I've done dye tests as well as multi-point FC measurements to see how quickly it gets mixed and dispersed.

Everyone's filter times and schedule will be a bit different. In my 16,000 gallon pool during the 7-month swim season, I have the pump on for 8 hours during the day from 9 AM to 5 PM, but that's because I have solar heating so that's the best time for that (about 4-6 hours typically has the solar on at 48 GPM while it's 26 GPM when the solar is off). I have my pool sweep on for 2 hours every day at 15 GPM from 7 to 9 PM. During the 5-month off-season, I have the pump on for 4 hours every day from 9 AM to 1 PM at 26 GPM. I have my pool sweep on for 2 hours on Monday only from 9 AM to 11 AM at 15 GPM. I have an opaque electric safety cover so my pool doesn't get very dirty, especially in the off-season when the cover is infrequently opened.

Roughly speaking, I have 1.1 to 1.3 turnovers per day during the swim season (not counting the 0.1 turnover from the pool sweep) and about 0.4 turnovers per day during the off-season. That's probably a bit higher than I need.

Richard

 

[AV8TOR]

Thanks Richard, so with your pump going off at 5PM are you adding your chlorine right before it goes off then?
I understand why adding it at night makes sense now so the sun does not quickly break it down.


Another question please - do most people leave in the pool the cleaning robot when they swim (on or off)?

 

[TizMe]

Its best to wait until the sun sets or is setting to add your chlorine to your pool. As for your pool cleaner, I would take it out while people are swimming that way there is no risk of accidents happening or the cleaner getting damaged.

 

[JasonLion]

You want to add chlorine 30 minutes to an hour before the pump goes off. Given that the pump goes off at 5 PM, adding chlorine at 4 PM would be fine. Depending on what the various constraints on when the pump can run are and what times are most convenient for you to add chlorine, it might make more sense to change the pump run time so you can add chlorine a bit later in the day, but that is certainly not essential.

 

[chem geek]

In my case, because I have an opaque electric safety cover, I sometimes add the chlorine in the morning instead of evening, but then close the cover back up. Because the chlorine demand is low even in the summer mostly due to the cover (about 1 ppm FC per day) it's not really a big deal when I add chlorine. I only add chlorine twice a week during the summer and about once every 2-3 weeks during the winter. If I didn't have the opaque cover, I'd try to add it before the pump went off in the late afternoon or if I had to add it at night after work, I'd turn on the pump and run it for a short while after adding the chlorine. Everyone's pool is a bit different.

 

[Johnny B]

Jason: "You want to add chlorine 30 minutes to an hour before the pump goes off."

Because of AV8TOR's timing predicament, or
because its best to get just about that long of circulation then it "sits uncirculating all night", or
you are relating it to sun/dark hours?

Thanks

Please let me know if this is a hijack, seems sensical to ask it here but I am new here.

 

[TizMe]

I think what Jason meant was to add your chlorine to your pool making sure there was ample time if your filter is on a timmer that will allow enough circulation of the chlorine before the pump shuts off.

You should always be adding your chlorine after the sun sets (unless your in the middle of fighting an algae bloom) that way the chlorine can do what it is supposed to do and not be consumed by the sunlight....

 

[Guest]

If your pump is on a timer why not just set another hour long cycle at sundown for adding chlorine. If you have an electronic time clock it should allow for multiple cycles. If you have a manual time clock that uses on/off tripper dogs be aware that additional dogs are available (usually in on/off pairs) for only a few dollars! Intermatic ones can even be found in most hardware and big box stores by the outdoor lighting!

 

[TizMe]

Waterbear I didnt know you could get more pegs for a manual time clock. I will be looking into that because I have always wanted more time running for my filter but didnt want it to run 24/7 unless problems arise .