Borax question

[jessicafuson13]

My PH was just a little low and I wanted to address it before shocking/slam.

PH was around 7.2-7.4
Poolmath suggested adding 12 oz of borax to reach target of 7.6 so that’s exactly what I added. It’s been a few hours and I tested ph now it’s reading way high 8+ I’m wondering if it takes awhile to level out after adding it? Is it normal to read really high right after adding it? or if 12 oz was too much?

 

[Sunnydaze]

Ph should be 7.2 - 7.5 before beginning a SLAM so you would have been perfect if you left it. SLAM Process

Did you already begin the SLAM before checking pH again? FC over 10ppm will interfere with the pH test.

If not, I'd brush the pool to mix the water well and retest. It shouldn't have gone up that much.

 

[Mdragger88]

What is your ta?
A ph of 7.2 is what u want to be at before beginning SLAM Process as outlined in the article.
There was no reason to add borax if ph was in the 7’s. It’s possible your pool volume is off (smaller than 6000 gal)
Use PoolMath & add enough acid to go from 8.2 to 7.6 then retest in 30 minutes to see where u are. If it’s still above a readable ph repeat the process
As stated above ph test is invalid at fc levels above 10ppm

 

[jessicafuson13]

The only reason I even bothered addressing it is because when entering my test results it suggested adding borax to get to a ph of 7.6. In retrospect I should’ve just left it but wanted to be sure the ph was in the ideal range before starting a slam. I haven’t begun the slam and my TA is 110. I also wasn’t sure if testing 2 hours after adding it would give that much of an inaccurate reading. I wanted to be sure that something went wrong before trying to address it. Is it possible that after 24 hours it will drop down?

 

[Sunnydaze]

The only reason I even bothered addressing it is because when entering my test results it suggested adding borax to get to a ph of 7.6. In retrospect I should’ve just left it but wanted to be sure the ph was in the ideal range before starting a slam. I haven’t begun the slam and my TA is 110. I also wasn’t sure if testing 2 hours after adding it would give that much of an inaccurate reading. I wanted to be sure that something went wrong before trying to address it. Is it possible that after 24 hours it will drop down?

If the pump has been on, 2 hours should be plenty of time to mix it in thoroughly. Perhaps test again. 12 ounces wouldn't have increased the ph a full point unless the pool is much less than 6000 gallons. Something doesn't add up. And no, ph won't go down on its own. You will need muriatic acid to lower it.

 

[jessicafuson13]

I’m just super confused because even if the pool volume is only like 5,500 instead of 6,000 pool math still says it would only raise the ph .3.

 

[Mdragger88]

12 oz of powder is really hard to measure exactly unless u are using a scale. It’s possible its a little bit of overdosing as well as pool volume being off.
At any rate you will need to add acid to reduce ph. Do as I described in the post above - once u get a readable ph aim for 7.4 to be conservative incase the volume is wrong.

 

[jessicafuson13]

Added 7.5 oz of sodium bisulfate and this is what ph test look like after 4 hours. I read it can take longer to work than liquid acid but it seems more purple than it should be any thoughts?

 

[Mdragger88]

Put 8.0 as current in poolmath (as this is as high as your test can read) & 7.6 as target - add the amount it suggests & retest in 30 minutes or so. You continue to do this until u get a readable ph. Then adjust ph the final time to 7.4 .