Hey there!
I have an issue with my chlorine testing… this is the second year we’ve had our pool (12x24 Intex with SWG and sand filter), and also the second year I’ve had my TF test kit (TF-100).
The daily chlorine/ph test says something very different from my weekly chlorine drop test.
It’s showing me somewhere between 0.5-2ppm for my chlorine.
The R-0003 chemical says it expires 03/2025, so theoretically it should still be good.
My weekly FAS/DPD chlorine test says that I’m at 15ppm (using the 10ml cell and dividing the amount of drops of R-0871 by 2; so 30 drops to get water clear in the cell.)
The R-0871 and R-0870 for the FAS/DPD test chemicals don’t have expiry dates on them, which leads me to believe that they stay good indefinitely? I store my kit inside out of direct light, but may have left it out a day here or there this season… (I live in the PNW, so the sun/heat isn’t usually too intense.)
Anyway, some details about what’s been going on lately… we developed some algae a few weeks ago, and I performed the SLAM process using my CYA measurements (75ppm; TFTest kit says this is in normal range for a Saltwater system) and poolmath to figure out that my SLAM chlorine levels should be at 29ppm. Ultimately, I ended up adding seven 121oz bottles of 7.5% liquid chlorine to my pool while abstaining from running my SWG. Throughout the process, I ended up backwashing my filter a few times, and I also added about 1 cup of pool grade DE to my sand filter after the first backwash, as I wasn’t sure what kind of algae I was fighting. I suspected it was mustard algae, and wanted to take extra precautions (not to mention to help speed up the process.)
I followed the instructions on TFP for adding the DE to my filter (monitoring filter pressure, and adding 1/4 cup DE mixed with water at a time to my skimmer until the pressure gauge moved up a notch.)
Then I backwashed again a day or two later when the pressure was in the yellow.
I have notes of logs that I was making on my own— they’re sloppy and probably not as thorough as they should’ve been.. but the pool water has been clear with less than 1ppm loss of TC overnight since 9/1. I haven’t run my SWG since I began the SLAM process at the end of August, and have just naturally been letting my TC levels drop.
My theory is that my R-0003 is bad, because when I was testing often during the SLAM process, my CC readings were always zero.
Any thoughts??
Which test should I trust? As I understand it, the FAS/DPD test is more accurate, so that leads me to believe that my current TC is 15, and not 0.5-2ppm as the daily test tells me.
Any help would be appreciated!
I have an issue with my chlorine testing… this is the second year we’ve had our pool (12x24 Intex with SWG and sand filter), and also the second year I’ve had my TF test kit (TF-100).
The daily chlorine/ph test says something very different from my weekly chlorine drop test.
It’s showing me somewhere between 0.5-2ppm for my chlorine.
The R-0003 chemical says it expires 03/2025, so theoretically it should still be good.
My weekly FAS/DPD chlorine test says that I’m at 15ppm (using the 10ml cell and dividing the amount of drops of R-0871 by 2; so 30 drops to get water clear in the cell.)
The R-0871 and R-0870 for the FAS/DPD test chemicals don’t have expiry dates on them, which leads me to believe that they stay good indefinitely? I store my kit inside out of direct light, but may have left it out a day here or there this season… (I live in the PNW, so the sun/heat isn’t usually too intense.)
Anyway, some details about what’s been going on lately… we developed some algae a few weeks ago, and I performed the SLAM process using my CYA measurements (75ppm; TFTest kit says this is in normal range for a Saltwater system) and poolmath to figure out that my SLAM chlorine levels should be at 29ppm. Ultimately, I ended up adding seven 121oz bottles of 7.5% liquid chlorine to my pool while abstaining from running my SWG. Throughout the process, I ended up backwashing my filter a few times, and I also added about 1 cup of pool grade DE to my sand filter after the first backwash, as I wasn’t sure what kind of algae I was fighting. I suspected it was mustard algae, and wanted to take extra precautions (not to mention to help speed up the process.)
I followed the instructions on TFP for adding the DE to my filter (monitoring filter pressure, and adding 1/4 cup DE mixed with water at a time to my skimmer until the pressure gauge moved up a notch.)
Then I backwashed again a day or two later when the pressure was in the yellow.
I have notes of logs that I was making on my own— they’re sloppy and probably not as thorough as they should’ve been.. but the pool water has been clear with less than 1ppm loss of TC overnight since 9/1. I haven’t run my SWG since I began the SLAM process at the end of August, and have just naturally been letting my TC levels drop.
My theory is that my R-0003 is bad, because when I was testing often during the SLAM process, my CC readings were always zero.
Any thoughts??
Which test should I trust? As I understand it, the FAS/DPD test is more accurate, so that leads me to believe that my current TC is 15, and not 0.5-2ppm as the daily test tells me.
Any help would be appreciated!
