Chemical Help

[heykerrdog]

Got numbers and Pool Math. How do I share it to get help ?

 

[sande005]

I think you figured it out. When I hover over your username in the above post, I see the box for "PoolMath Logs".

Clicking on that, and I can see that "Nina's Obsession" salt level might be a bit low (but the brand of SWCG is unknown), the CYA level is very low, the FC level is flirting with danger, and pH is out of range.

Your CSI is a bit high, so over time you may get build up on your SWCG cell and your heat pump core, reducing their lives. Get your pH down to 7.6 routinely, and that will eliminate the potential.

Add stabilizer, to get it to about 60, and turn up the SWCG to keep the pool Cl around 8 or 9.

 

[heykerrdog]

Ok. Thank you. I included all info in my profile. Guessing it doesn’t readily show. So, updated signature block.

SWG is Pentair Inellichlor IC-40

 

[heykerrdog]

Question on the Pool Math calculator….

Shows “add 7.1oz or 7oz by volume” (of 7.55% bleach). Can I add some bleach if I have a SWG ?

I notice the SWG is set at 80% and is likely a July 2018 birthday, so 6.5 years old and I have not inspected it yet.

 

[Newdude]

Can I add some bleach if I have a SWG ?

Yes and it's preferred anytime the FC is lower. The cell will take up to a day to replenish today's lost FC, bleach takes 5 mins of mixing. Waiting for the cell to raise the FC significantly may gift you a swamp.

I notice the SWG is set at 80% and is likely a July 2018 birthday, so 6.5 years old and I have not inspected it yet.

What's the context ?

Is the water still clear ? Loosing too much FC / unable to produce enough daily ?


The Overnight Chlorine Loss Test is always the first step. Prove we have time to fiddle with anything else, and we won't be worried about a swamp in the mean time.

 

[ajw22]

I notice the SWG is set at 80% and is likely a July 2018 birthday, so 6.5 years old and I have not inspected it yet.

What is your pump daily runtime?

 

[wireform]

With an IC40 as the signature shows something is off. There's lots of FC power.

 

[heykerrdog]

What is your pump daily runtime?

Thanks for the reply and I'll check the schedule in the morning. I fooled around with the schedule and set it up for flow rates since the heat pump is running and I'm trying to keep it at 93 degrees F. (until I get my first electric bill )

I was able to get the Paramount PV3 Floor Cleaning system up and running. (8 pop-ups and a water valve module.) Now I'm seeing lots of debris in the water. Seems like white scale and sand.

I'll be shopping for chemicals tomorrow.

 

[heykerrdog]

Pump schedule:
0400-0600 70GPM
0600-1000 50GPM
1000-1600 30GPM
1600-1800 70GPM
1800-2200 30GPM
Total run time: 18 hours

Chlorinator schedule:
0430-2230

I haven’t fiddled with the chlorinator clock, but can tell with the pump timing that I programmed, it’s missing half an hour capability on the front from 0400-0430, and wasted on-time from 2200-2230 when the pump is off.

I set up the pump schedule based on the info from the AquaCal SQ166R heat pump. It shows Min 30, Max 70 flow rates in the literature. I want a warm pool at 0600 when I’m up, and in the evenings around 1800 when work is generally over.

I’m using the pool every day for 2-4 hours. My Labrador Retriever is using the pool every day, in and out 4-8 hours.

 

[sande005]

Never run the SWCG when the pump isn't moving water. It can accumulate hydrogen gas, and a mini-Hindenberg you do not want. You may be being saved by the flow sensor in the SWCG, that shuts it off if there is no flow, but that is not a primary control to count on.

Something is not working. Running 18 hrs, your SWCG should be raising the Cl by 12 ppm a day. Your last FC reading was 2.5. With the enclosure, and the sun amounts this time of year, no way are you burning through 10 ppm per day...(not even due to the Lab acting like a giant sponge and taking a lot of water out of the pool a bazillion times a day!)
Maybe the cell needs cleaning (avoid acid if you can), or maybe it is end of life....

 

[Newdude]

Or alage is chewing through whatever FC the cell is making.

Step 1 with low production is always an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test. (SWG off).

Step two is an overnight *gain* test.


If you're not losing FC to algae, and the cell is producing as it should, then we raise the CYA. (Which is borderline at the moment).

A great many of us realize we need more CYA when the cell suddenly can't keep up. But your cell is real old too, so that could always be it as well. Meh. Start testing and we can start ruling things out.

 

[heykerrdog]

Added chemicals last night. New numbers posted.
Chlorine went way up, although I did not add any. Bright orange on the Comparator Block. Time to throw dirty dog in the pool and give it some digestibles.
I thought I read somewhere that Chlorine would go up because of one of the other chemicals but can't recall which one.

I added muriatic acid, cyanuric acid, and calcium hardness increaser (pool time doesn't say what it is on bag)

 

[Newdude]

I read somewhere that Chlorine would go up because of one of the other chemicals but can't recall which one.

Trichlor / dichlor / powdered shock / tabs / pucks.

I added muriatic acid, cyanuric acid, and calcium hardness increaser

None of these add FC. Your cell must have kicked on for the FC to spike.

 

[sande005]

CYA jumped more that predicted by your add and the last reading. You might want to test again, just to see. High, but not outrageous. But it will mean needing to keep you Cl up in the 10-12 range, and the pH test will be meaningless with Cl that high.

 

[heykerrdog]

I did not have access to a scale, so I was using a measuring cup. I didn't think about it at the time. Probably messed up measuring by volume, not weight.

 

[heykerrdog]

Trichlor / dichlor / powdered shock / tabs / pucks.



None of these add FC. Your cell must have kicked on for the FC to spike.

Here’s what I was recalling. Wondering if my SWG took advantage of the Cl- ions from the muriatic acid.

Muriatic Acid in Pool Water Increases Salinity​

Every gallon of muriatic acid (31.45%) adds ~36ppm of chloride ions to 10,000 gallons of pool water. Hydrochloric acid is hydrogen chloride or HCl. When hydrogen chloride is added to water, it completely dissociates -[1]

HCl ---> H+ + Cl-

The hydrogen ion adds to the acidity of the water and lowers pH while the chloride ion adds to the measured "salt" level of the water. The K-1766 salt test kit measures chloride ion (Cl-) directly and then reports it's answer in units of NaCl concentration. Your SWG creates sanitizing chlorine from chloride ions.

 

[Newdude]

Wondering if my SWG took advantage of the Cl- ions from the muriatic acid.

You're trying too hard.

The cell simply came on as it should, and produced FC. Your previous 3k salinity and warm water were both well within spec for cell production.