Calcium at 1,200 ppm

[dwendell]

PROBLEM SOLVED. My bad and very embarrassing, especially for a 10-year pool vet.

Thanks for all your replies, and a special shout out to mknauss.

 

[Texas Splash]

We have a few people that regularly maintain a CH of 800 or more. If accurate, 1,200 is up there, but you can hang on. The key is to keep that pH and TA as low as you can to compensate.

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

Welcome d,

Didn't you guys get record rainfall amounts up there...we sure did here. I lost about 35% of my pool water to fresh rain water. I'm guessing there's some type of testing error. Confirm your sample sizes (10mL vs 25mL) and multiplier (10 ppm per drop vs 25 ppm per drop).

 

[proavia]

Are you using a SpeedStir or other stirring device?
If not, seriously consider getting one. It makes the testing easier and more consistent.

Adding one drop about every second?
Bottle held perfectly vertical?
Allowing the drops to fully form on the bottle tip and not forcing them off?

 

[ALK753]

Need a full set of parameters to effectively help you, but here is my suggestion.

First order is to get your TA to 60 (do likely several rounds of acid to reach pH=7.0, let pH rise to 7.8, repeat acid dose, do until TA=60), then maintain 7.8 max. so you are not scaling. Your pH ceiling will be 8.06, so you'll be chasing it a bit.

Long term CH=1200 is not sustainable, so think about several rounds of water release and refill. I'd do 10% at the time, let it intermix nicely, restest CH to see impact and target at least CH=800. Keep TA=60 so you chase the pH as little as possible.

Even then your reasonably sustainable target would be more like CH=600 and TA=60 so you can achieve pH ceiling close to 8.1 and not chase the pH forever. I personally run CH=450 and TA=60 in summer. Winter CH=550 and TA=60.

I understand you might still be under water restrictions, so do what you can to get water reaplaced partially. What's the TA of your fill water? if below your current TA, it will help you get to your goal more easily.

Good luck.

 

[proavia]

Test the pH, TA and CH of your fill water before starting a drain/refill or water exchange.
No use even starting if your fill water CH is thru the roof high.

But first - check your testing method and redo the test.

 

[mknauss]

City of Placerville water reports show the hardness at less than 1 gpg. So really soft. So something strange went on here.

 

[dwendell]

Welcome d,

Didn't you guys get record rainfall amounts up there...we sure did here. I lost about 35% of my pool water to fresh rain water. I'm guessing there's some type of testing error. Confirm your sample sizes (10mL vs 25mL) and multiplier (10 ppm per drop vs 25 ppm per drop).

Problem solved. Thanks for your input.

 

[dwendell]

City of Placerville water reports show the hardness at less than 1 gpg. So really soft. So something strange went on here.

 

[mknauss]

I use 25 mL size with a multiplier of 10 -- it is taking 12 drops.

That indicates a CH of 120 ppm. That is realistic.

 

[dwendell]

Are you using a SpeedStir or other stirring device?
If not, seriously consider getting one. It makes the testing easier and more consistent.

Adding one drop about every second?
Bottle held perfectly vertical?
Allowing the drops to fully form on the bottle tip and not forcing them off?

Problem solved. Thanks for your response. I am using SpeedStir. The only way to go, along with the volume manager.

 

[dwendell]

That indicates a CH of 120 ppm. That is realistic.

THANK YOU! I AM SO EMBARRESSED! As I said, I've been doing this for 10 years and how I crapped out so bad I don't know. Getting old?

Thanks again.

 

[dwendell]

PROBLEM SOLVED. Thank you everyone. My bad. I'll leave it at that. Very embarrassing for a 10-year veteran.

Thanks to you all, and a special shout out to mknauss.

 

[proavia]

CH of 120 ppm is low for a plaster type surface. If it's sprayed on to look like rock, chances are it has some plaster in it.

Be sure to select "Plaster"

What Are My Ideal Pool Levels?

Use our tool to find ideal chemical levels for any swimming pool. Check TFP recommended levels on pH, free chlorine, cyanuric acid, and more.

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[dwendell]

CH of 120 ppm is low for a plaster type surface. If it's sprayed on to look like rock, chances are it has some plaster in it.

Be sure to select "Plaster"

What Are My Ideal Pool Levels?

Use our tool to find ideal chemical levels for any swimming pool. Check TFP recommended levels on pH, free chlorine, cyanuric acid, and more.

www.troublefreepool.com

I think what you are saying is that I need to raise it to 200-400 ppm, correct? That is what I intend to do now that I have gotten over my brain fart.

I looked at the link and printed out. Will be raising the calcium now that my brain is working again.

 

[newdude]

My bad and very embarrassing

I always say I'd rather for free, then be smart and it costs me a bunch of money/effort.

Take the win.

 

[proavia]

If that's the worst you've done today, you're ahead of the game.
What's an extra '0' between friends.

Yes, increase the CH some
What is the CH of your fill water?
Does the CH of the fill water vary much during the year?

Remember, CH will only leave the pool via splashout or draining. As the pool water evaporates, the CH stays behind and will increase over time. Here in AZ - with a fill water of 225-250 ppm and a high evap rate - my CH rises by at least 250 ppm per year with unsoftened tap water. That's why I plumbed my autofill to my water softener.

 

[dwendell]

If that's the worst you've done today, you're ahead of the game.
What's an extra '0' between friends.

Yes, increase the CH some
What is the CH of your fill water?
Does the CH of the fill water vary much during the year?

Remember, CH will only leave the pool via splashout or draining. As the pool water evaporates, the CH stays behind and will increase over time. Here in AZ - with a fill water of 225-250 ppm and a high evap rate - my CH rises by at least 250 ppm per year with unsoftened tap water. That's why I plumbed my autofill to my water softener.

The City water is constant at about 200 ppm calcium and is fairly constant, but can decrease in the winter. There was a lot of rain this winter which is why it got down to 120 (!) ppm, mainly from direct precipitation into the pool. I'm going to add some calcium as soon as I get off the computer.

 

[proavia]

Yeah - I heard you guys got a lot of rain.
Pick a target CH that works best for your normal evap and summer time CH expectation. You can easily adjust it higher - lower, not so much.