I have a feeling I need to activate the bromide bank in my pool because I’ve gone through a month’s worth of bromine tabs in just two weeks and the tests are coming up clear. I only see pink when I test directly at the return nozzle. What should I use to reactivate the bromine and in what quantity? I believe my pool is 40,000 gallons. Thanks!
Bromine pool eating tabs but test comes up clear
- Thread starter znelson
- Start date
- May 23, 2015
- 25,724
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
If you edit your signature and add the following information we can better frame our answers to you.
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Information in your signature will show up each time you post and it makes advice more accurate as we know what equipment we are dealing with.
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- What test kit you use to test your water
- The size of your pool in gallons
- If your pool is an AG (above ground) or IG (in ground)
- If it's IG, tell us if it's vinyl, plaster/pebble, or fiberglass
- The type filter you have (sand, DE, cartridge)
- If you know, tell us the make and model of your pump and filter.
- List any other equipment you have: SWG, second pump, etc.
- Please mention if you fill the pool from a well or are currently on water restrictions
Information in your signature will show up each time you post and it makes advice more accurate as we know what equipment we are dealing with.
Does these reno costs look reasonable to you?
45K gallon pool w/spa, 45'x25', depth 3' to 9' Replacing 14 year old french grey plaster Philadelphia metro area Wet Edge: $48K - Replace tile, reinstall coping stone, drain/pressure-check, install Wet Edge Signature Matrix (cadet blue, carribean, tahoe, etc). +$4,500 - same as above but...
www.troublefreepool.com
Did you do the renovation?
The reagent might be bleaching out.
Can you describe the test procedure?
When is the last time the pool was drained and refilled and how many pounds of bromine tablets have been used since the refill?
Thanks I updated the signature. I should mention that although this DPD test comes out clear, I did have a little R0870 powder and tested with that, and it turned pink. So perhaps the R0001 or R0002 liquid is old/expired? It’s one maybe two years old whereas the powder I had is three years old and I didn’t have enough to do a full measurement.
No I never did the reno. I tested with a Leslie’s DPD liquid test and it’s clear. But I had a little DPD powder left and was curious to see if it would turn pink, it did. I’ve ordered a replacement so I can do a proper powder test.Does these reno costs look reasonable to you?
45K gallon pool w/spa, 45'x25', depth 3' to 9' Replacing 14 year old french grey plaster Philadelphia metro area Wet Edge: $48K - Replace tile, reinstall coping stone, drain/pressure-check, install Wet Edge Signature Matrix (cadet blue, carribean, tahoe, etc). +$4,500 - same as above but...
Did you do the renovation?
The reagent might be bleaching out.
Can you describe the test procedure?
When is the last time the pool was drained and refilled and how many pounds of bromine tablets have been used since the refill?
We bought the house three years ago, not sure if or when it was ever completely drained, my guess is never. I usually go through a 50lb bucket of 1" bromine tabs in about 3.5-4 weeks and I now burn through them in as many days.
I should mention, the burn rate is due to the plumbing being rerouted for the bromine dispenser. It was formerly tapped into the plumbing right before it turned back towards the pool and was a somewhat whacky setup that lead to almost never having enough bromine in the pool at all, it just wouldn't dissolve properly due to lack of pressure. So I had the plumbing fixed and now it's almost too much pressure into the dispenser but I can dial that back. Still, with all the tabs I've put in there, about 75lbs so far in a month, I thought I'd surely see off-the-scale DPD results but it's the exact opposite.
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I suspect that the bromine is probably super high and bleaching out the test reagents.
I would drain and refill and get away from bromine.
The pool is probably saturated with DMH, which is analogous to cyanuric acid in a chlorine pool.
Note that draining should only be done if you're sure that it can be done safely without damaging the pool.
Consult with a local professional expert before draining to make sure that the pool won't float or otherwise be damaged by draining.
I would drain and refill and get away from bromine.
The pool is probably saturated with DMH, which is analogous to cyanuric acid in a chlorine pool.
Note that draining should only be done if you're sure that it can be done safely without damaging the pool.
Consult with a local professional expert before draining to make sure that the pool won't float or otherwise be damaged by draining.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,724
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
If you have the yellow OTO test around you can see if it is super-high bromine levels as the reagent will turn orange/brown at very high levels.
But I agree with @JamesW - bromine is a terrible choice for an outdoor pool sanitizer. Chlorine is much easier to deal with.
But I agree with @JamesW - bromine is a terrible choice for an outdoor pool sanitizer. Chlorine is much easier to deal with.
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OTO is a good idea. If you don't have any handy, it's available at any place that sells supplies even WalMart or Home Depot.
Switch to chlorine and get a TF-100 test kit.
Switch to chlorine and get a TF-100 test kit.
We didn't pick bromine, the original owners did. Draining/switching isn't an option right now. I just want to A) figure out what's going on, and B) correct/tolerate it as much as possible.
In my opinion, it's not a manageable situation.
I would drain and refill if you can do it safely.
I would drain and refill if you can do it safely.
- May 23, 2015
- 25,724
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
If you are using 50lbs of tabs in under a month then your water easily has over 150ppm of DMH (dimethylhydantoin) in it. That doesn’t include all the excess DMH that’s been built up over the years. DMH acts a lot line CYA in a chlorine in pool in that a high concentration of it will lower the effectiveness of the bromine. It’s called overstabilization. Once that happens, there will never be enough sanitizing bromine in the water capable of stopping algae. What’s happening in your pool most likely is that you have the beginnings of a nascent algae bloom and it’s consuming all of the bromine. Eventually your pool will turn green and it will be very costly to fix.
You have to stop using bromine tablets and switch to chlorine to reactivate bromine from all the spent bromide in the water, that is your main problem. Running a bromine pool is a lot more complicated than a chlorine pool.
Do you have access to liquid chlorine, either regular laundry bleach (no additives) or pool chlorinating liquid (basically 10% bleach)?
You have to stop using bromine tablets and switch to chlorine to reactivate bromine from all the spent bromide in the water, that is your main problem. Running a bromine pool is a lot more complicated than a chlorine pool.
Do you have access to liquid chlorine, either regular laundry bleach (no additives) or pool chlorinating liquid (basically 10% bleach)?
We don't know what the level of DMH is but I suspect that it's very high.
It's similar to trying to operate a chlorine pool with a cyanuric acid level above 500.
It's not possible to maintain a reliably sanitized pool.
It's hazardous and should not be done, in my opinion.
Also, I suspect that the bromine level is currently super high and bleaching out the reagent.
In my opinion, the pool should be drained and refilled or closed.
Consult with a local professional expert before draining to make sure that it's safe to do so.
Here is a different thread with some relevant information.
www.troublefreepool.com
It's similar to trying to operate a chlorine pool with a cyanuric acid level above 500.
It's not possible to maintain a reliably sanitized pool.
It's hazardous and should not be done, in my opinion.
Also, I suspect that the bromine level is currently super high and bleaching out the reagent.
In my opinion, the pool should be drained and refilled or closed.
Consult with a local professional expert before draining to make sure that it's safe to do so.
Here is a different thread with some relevant information.
Couple questions about fecal accident response
I was going over the state codes for Fecal Accident Response where I live and I had a few questions. Our indoor pool uses bromine and the state asks for the free chlorine to be raised to 20ppm and maintain for 13 hours in the event, it makes no mention of bromine levels. Is there a...
www.troublefreepool.com
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I got some new R-0870 powder and tested. The water turned pink as expected but very cloudy. I used a 25ml sample so ideally it would have taken 6 drops of R-0872 to turn the water clear, but it only took 1 drop to achieve that. I ran it twice, same results.
What could this indicate? What about sodium thiosulfate or letting the bromine off-gas for days?
Is the water safe enough to be in? The family spent two hours in it yesterday and now I'm panicking.
What could this indicate? What about sodium thiosulfate or letting the bromine off-gas for days?
Is the water safe enough to be in? The family spent two hours in it yesterday and now I'm panicking.
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- May 23, 2015
- 25,724
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Based on those results it's probably ok, but you have almost no sanitizer in your water and so it's really not safe from a health perspective to be in there. Disease transmission is highly possible and you probably have an algae bloom that's about to ramp up.
As @JamesW and I have both said, your pool is very likely over stabilized with too much DMH in it from all the tabs you have been using. Bromine pools are NOT easy to manage and require very careful use and cataloguing of how much solid brominating product is going into it (because there is no chemical test for DMH like there is for CYA in a chlorine pool). It's highly likely that you are going to need to drain a significant amount of that water to get the pool back under control.
AT this point your only option is to switch to chlorinating liquid to activate the bromine and stop using the tabs. When you add chlorine to a pool with bromide ions in it, the bromide gets instantly converted to sanitizing bromine and the chlorine turns into chloride (Cl-). You probably need to shock the pool by raising the total bromine levels up to 20ppm and holding it there as best you can for 24 to 48 hours to see if the levels come back to normal and hold. If the bromine drops from shock level and just goes back to zero or one drop on your test, then there's no way around it, the pool has to be drained.
You're in a very precarious situation and it is not recommended that you let people swim. You have no idea what your sanitizer level is and no way to know for sure if it will hold up while people are swimming. Bromine tends to hide pool problems because it is very good at killing algae off but not necessarily good enough to prevent the transmission of bacterial or viral pathogens. SO the water may look clear and seem safe, but diseases can easily pass (think of kid with a dirty bottom jumping in the water and then all of that fecal matter adding to the pool water...).
It's your call and your pool, but I would get rid of that bromine water as soon as possible.
As @JamesW and I have both said, your pool is very likely over stabilized with too much DMH in it from all the tabs you have been using. Bromine pools are NOT easy to manage and require very careful use and cataloguing of how much solid brominating product is going into it (because there is no chemical test for DMH like there is for CYA in a chlorine pool). It's highly likely that you are going to need to drain a significant amount of that water to get the pool back under control.
AT this point your only option is to switch to chlorinating liquid to activate the bromine and stop using the tabs. When you add chlorine to a pool with bromide ions in it, the bromide gets instantly converted to sanitizing bromine and the chlorine turns into chloride (Cl-). You probably need to shock the pool by raising the total bromine levels up to 20ppm and holding it there as best you can for 24 to 48 hours to see if the levels come back to normal and hold. If the bromine drops from shock level and just goes back to zero or one drop on your test, then there's no way around it, the pool has to be drained.
You're in a very precarious situation and it is not recommended that you let people swim. You have no idea what your sanitizer level is and no way to know for sure if it will hold up while people are swimming. Bromine tends to hide pool problems because it is very good at killing algae off but not necessarily good enough to prevent the transmission of bacterial or viral pathogens. SO the water may look clear and seem safe, but diseases can easily pass (think of kid with a dirty bottom jumping in the water and then all of that fecal matter adding to the pool water...).
It's your call and your pool, but I would get rid of that bromine water as soon as possible.
I would be interested to see what the OTO reagent shows.
I'm still not convinced that the bromine is really low.
Try using 3 scoops of powder for the test to see if that makes any difference.
Do the CC part of the test to see if anything shows up.
In my opinion, the water is not safe.
It's unfortunate, but it is what it is.
I'm still not convinced that the bromine is really low.
Try using 3 scoops of powder for the test to see if that makes any difference.
Do the CC part of the test to see if anything shows up.
In my opinion, the water is not safe.
It's unfortunate, but it is what it is.
Believe me I’d love to get rid of it. I have no idea why the original homeowners chose bromine but they made dozens of dumb decisions that we’re still paying for years later. I have a call into my pool pro and will ask him to test all the various angles.
I also believe the pool is over brominated due to all those tabs. But one thing I’ve always wondered is... since bromine never really “goes away”, why do we need to keep pumping tabs in there every year? Why not just reactivate it via chlorine every week? Or is the idea that bromine pools are meant to be drained after the solution reaches a saturation point?
Would it make sense for the short term to keep the brominator turned off and just shock every week? This kind of goes with my question above. I did drop 4lbs of 68% Calcium Hypochlorite shock in three weeks ago and then another 3lbs two weeks ago. This was just after opening and done in attempt to get the water clear which it did.
Thanks!
What does the water look like now?
Does it smell bad or does it have any noticeable smell?
Try the OTO and the CC test.
Does it smell bad or does it have any noticeable smell?
Try the OTO and the CC test.
It looks crystal clear, no bad smells. No sight of algae anywhere in the slightest (I looked all around while in it). The family had a typical bromine “pool” smell after two hours in it but that was normal.
As far as kits I only have a Leslie’s DPD liquid and a Taylor FAS-DPD. Can I do what you’re recommending with those? I’m not familiar with OTO and CC to be honest.
Go to WalMart or Home Depot etc and get a simple OTO chlorine and ph test kit.
It's just a cheap, quick test where you put the OTO reagent drops in the test vial and match the yellow color.
What is the pH and TA?
It's just a cheap, quick test where you put the OTO reagent drops in the test vial and match the yellow color.
What is the pH and TA?