Clouded water

[poolintern]

Hi everyone!
Wondering if anyone has any idea what might have happened in my spa today. I have been using the Bullfrog FrogEase chlorination system for about 6 months without any issues. Relatively expensive, but truly easy and works. Well, I put in a new Smartchlor cartridge about 2 weeks ago, but didn't notice a crack in the cartridge. Fast forward to today - the spa is sparkling clear, but pH is 3.3 and I find the Smartchlor is already empty!

Figured I should bring pH up with soda ash. Tried to measure TA with the TFT kit - solution was already red, which I assumed meant TA of zero. Calculated the amount of soda ash I would need (13 Oz), but then decided to only add less than half the calculation - 5 Oz (just in case). After I added the soda ash and circulated for a while, pH was up to 7.8 (despite adding much less than PoolMath suggested) AND the water started to turn cloudy. The water is now fully opaque, almost like skim milk.

I suspect I'll just have to drain and restart, but I'm just curious if anyone here has any idea what happened and if it can be reversed.
Thanks!

 

[Texas Splash]

You seem to have some unusual chemistry going on, and we know clear water doesn't mean sanitary or safe either. But let's confirm some things first:
- Your profile/signature are showing two different locations and info (Arcadia and Henderson). Can you confirm plz?
- Is this a stand alone hot tub or plaster spa? Is it separate from the pool?
- How did you determine the pH was 3.3?
- Any idea how the pH and TA could fall so low? Have you been adding acid?

You might want to review the thread below that @JoyfulNoise participated in. Very good info.

Has anyone used the Smartchlor system?

I'm looking to get feedback on the new-ish Smartchlor system. Apparently it knows how much chlorine to add. TIA.

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[poolintern]

You seem to have some unusual chemistry going on, and we know clear water doesn't mean sanitary or safe either. But let's confirm some things first:
- Your profile/signature are showing two different locations and info (Arcadia and Henderson). Can you confirm plz?
- Is this a stand alone hot tub or plaster spa? Is it separate from the pool?
- How did you determine the pH was 3.3?
- Any idea how the pH and TA could fall so low? Have you been adding acid?

You might want to review the thread below that @JoyfulNoise participated in. Very good info.

Has anyone used the Smartchlor system?

I'm looking to get feedback on the new-ish Smartchlor system. Apparently it knows how much chlorine to add. TIA.

www.troublefreepool.com

Thanks for your response!

I am referring to a stand alone hot tub in Arcadia, CA. No pool at this site.
First tried to measure pH with the standard Taylor test kit (K1000, I think). Color was way off the scale acidic, so I switched to my electronic pH meter and got 3.3. I have not been adding acid. In fact, lately I've had to add a bit of soda ash every few weeks to bring the pH up to my target of 7.6. The only thing different was that a new Smartchlor cartridge was completely empty.

I did check out the thread you referenced - I gather the Smartchlor system does tend to acidify, which is consistent with what I'm dealing with.

Here's an update though - was planning on changing the water today, but found it had mostly cleared up again (not back to crystal clear, but almost).
Took another set of measurements to see where I'm at:
Cl 1 ppm
pH 8.0 (same with test kit and meter)
TA 100
CH 125

I dunno - seems like the system has almost corrected itself. Thoughts?

 

[Texas Splash]

I would ensure you keep a little higher FC level. Then continue to monitor. If you do exchange water in teh future, consider an Ahh-Some purge.