Borates. Better practices

[Wenglehaupt]

Looking to take the “plunge” so to speak to add borates to my Salt pool. Looking for any better practices/ ideas/ anything to watch for? Have my boric acid from Duda and special test strips for borates en route. Thanks

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Make sure the TA is where you want it to be BEFORE you add the borates.

 

[Wenglehaupt]

Great. Thanks!

 

[Stump]

Great read...

So you want to add borates to your pool--Why and How

A few folks asked for a sticky on this so here it is. If you just want to jump to how without the why look for the blue part of this post below! :wink: Several companies are selling sodium tetraborate pentahydrate as a pool additive under such names as Proteam's Supreme, Bioguard's Optimizer...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[bobhere]

I agree, the article above was very helpful as I was considering adding borates. Early this week I pulled the trigger and added 25lbs of boric acid over a few day span. Based on the test strip I am somewhere between 30-50 borates; it was very simple to add and brush around the pool. I liked the price and free shipping from Duda and that they shipped in 5lb bags. My goal in adding borates was to buffer my PH due to our rock water feature and was hopeful it would mitigate our wasp problem.
I am close to a week in and we went from having countless wasps coming and going all day long for 2 years to zero wasps in the last 2 days. I am hoping this remains true because sharing the pool with wasps has been a pain.

 

[scottts]

I agree, the article above was very helpful as I was considering adding borates. Early this week I pulled the trigger and added 25lbs of boric acid over a few day span. Based on the test strip I am somewhere between 30-50 borates; it was very simple to add and brush around the pool. I liked the price and free shipping from Duda and that they shipped in 5lb bags. My goal in adding borates was to buffer my PH due to our rock water feature and was hopeful it would mitigate our wasp problem.
I am close to a week in and we went from having countless wasps coming and going all day long for 2 years to zero wasps in the last 2 days. I am hoping this remains true because sharing the pool with wasps has been a pain.

Are you still seeing a reduction in wasps? That might convince me to try borates.

 

[setsailsoon]

I added borates a year ago shortly after I changed to salt. I overshot a little to a little over 50 ppm. The test strip is almost as useless to me as other paper strip tests. I've had to drain and refill many times due to the monsoon rains we get here and I'm sure my level is down to 30 ppm or so by now.

My pH has become incredibly more stable but it took several weeks to really stabilize. I thought this would happen immediately. We tend to run higher in the pH range but still under 8.0. I keep a close eye on my CSI calculation and found it easy to stay in TFP ranges. I don't see any of the other less tangible benefits of sparkle or anything like that. Pool was gorgeous before and after we added it and felt great after salt addition and no different after borates.

All in all, I'm very happy with borates and we'll be sticking with them. Duda was great to work with also!

I hope this helps.

Chris

 

[bobhere]

Are you still seeing a reduction in wasps? That might convince me to try borates.

Yes, they were coming and going continuously. Almost a month of having borates, I have seen no more than 5 wasps come to the pool in that time period. I used to have 5 wasps in 10 minutes. Well worth the expense and effort, plus I went down to 5% of my CYA for minimum FC and have zero water issues. The wife noticed how silky the water looks with the borates too!

 

[RMcGirr83]

Are you still seeing a reduction in wasps? That might convince me to try borates.

We still get wasps and, according to the test strips, our borate level is at 50. Granted it's about 10 or so. I attached a flip-flop to the end of a 18" piece of wood and go on a "slapping" spree with a beer in one hand and the flip flop thingy in another. Must have killed a few hundred so far this year. They are the bane of our pool.

 

[Jeff J.]

Are you still seeing a reduction in wasps? That might convince me to try borates.

I have almost no bugs in or around my pool since I added borates. Except pill bugs. I still get dozens of them. Maybe they like borates.

 

[red-beard]

I have what appears to be two Wasps that regularly come in the afternoon to suck up some water. My Borate level is around 30 ppm.

 

[RMcGirr83]

Pffft, that's nothing..all hail the power of the wooden attached flip flop.



Little bastages!

 

[dmattle]

Anyone else notice after adding Borates that their TA doesn't move downward any more after adding MA ? My TA stays around 70. Before Borates I constantly had to add Baking Soda after adding MA. My Borates are currently at 50. Been using them for 3.5 months.

 

[scdaren]

The test strip is almost as useless to me as other paper strip tests.

Glad I'm not the only one, my borates is somewhere between 30 and 50, I think. I basically go by what I put in, then guesstimate the loss over time based on how my CYA and calcium have changed. I was at Leslie's one day to pick up acid and asked if they tested for borates. Their response was, "what are borates?"

 

[setsailsoon]

Glad I'm not the only one, my borates is somewhere between 30 and 50, I think. I basically go by what I put in, then guesstimate the loss over time based on how my CYA and calcium have changed. I was at Leslie's one day to pick up acid and asked if they tested for borates. Their response was, "what are borates?"

Ha! No surprise.