Cloudy Pool

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foosboy2 said:
Okay wife checked at 8:30 and measured 6.5 FC and added another half gallon of liquid chlorine.

I got home about 10:30 and measured the following:

11.5 FC
2.5 CC
210 TA
390 CH
25 CYA
7.5 PH

Going to check the pool calculator now but looking for comments before adding.
Update Pool Calculator only told me to add a little chlorine. It also said stabilizer but I think we want to hold on that. Comments?
Mitch
Michigan
8000 gal, IG, Fiberglass, Jandy CS 200 Cartridge Filter, new filter August 2011
Free chlorine 11.5 ppm
Total chlorine 14.0 ppm
Combined chlorine 2.5 ppm
pH 7.5
Hardness 390 ppm
Alkalinity 210 ppm
Cyanuric acid 25 ppm
Measured 5/21/12 @ 10:45 PM
Click to expand...

Fabulous! Great to see that FC number! Still got some CC's. That was expected. Either you did add some muratic acid to lower PH or the test is inaccurate at high FC. Did you add some? Save your CYA test now for if & when you want to bump it up a bit. But don't do it till the shock process is over. You'd just have to add more chlorine. If it were my pool, I'd add enough chlorine to get to 14 or so & see how it drops in the AM. It will surely drop some & I'd bump it up again just abit higher than the 12, (the sun depletes chlorine also). You've got to be excited!
 
Since you lost about 3 ppm FC in 2 hours. I would probably overshoot a bit for the nighttime maybe go for 19-20 ppm and hope you still have a good amount in the morning. The organics in your pool are consuming a lot of chlorine so therefore you are either need to test more often or overdose higher (you'll be fine up at Mustard Algae level which poolcalculator says is 19 for cya of 30 ppm).
 
I am cautiously excited. Right now its just numbers that people tell me mean something. I hope to be a preacher and supporter one day soon. :)

Ok I added almost another half gallon to get the numbers up overnight. I also did not feel comfortable with my wife handling the acid so I had her add the little little bit of ProTeam ph down powder I had.

Should I be concerned with any of my other numbers? Such as TA and hardness?

I also thought I notice the "hotel pool smell" when I went to get the water. I thought that was bad.

Mitch
 
The powder PH down is fine.
During the Shock process, don't worry about the TA & Hardness (CH). As you add acid to keep the PH in check, your TA will come down naturally with it, bit by bit. The hardness is a bit harder to control. My fill water is near what yours is as far as TA & CH, so I don't add anything that is usually in the powdered form to add to it. The only way to lower it is by water change (if your fill water is lower, of course), or by reverse osmosis. That's the beauty of the Pool Calculator, I can tune for a bit lower PH, for example to counter the effects.
The "hotel pool smell" is the cc's in the air as the chlorine works on the organics (it's working). They will go away when your cc's get little to none.
 
Just to add...while you are above 10 ppm FC do not adjust ph, it reads high at that FC level. 7.5 (your last reading you posted while being under 10 ppm FC) is fine, so keep your FC above 12 and don't worry about anything else for now until you pass all three shocking criteria (see my sig)!
 
This morning measured 10.5 FC and 2.0 CC.

I guess the routine is to monitor and keep it up around 14 FC until CC is less than 0.5 ppm, 2. An OCLT shows a loss of 1.0 ppm or less and, 3. The water is crystal clear?

Mitch
 
3.5 hours since I added chlorine and now the FC is rising and CC is dropping. Just tested and now it is 12 FC and 1.5 CC.

Pool calculator says 17oz of chlorine to take it from 12FC to 14FC. Do I really want to keep going? Or should I maintain and just measure later. Why do I want it at so high if the CC is coming down? Especially since ultimately we want a FC around 6.

Mitch
 
You're getting ahead of the algae now. :) That's good! :goodjob:

You want it "that high" to STAY ahead of it..so nothing has a chance to reproduce while you're killing the last of it. You want to keep it at that level until you pass the 3 steps of being done shocking. Once shocking is done, simply don't add any more chlorine for 1-2 days, and it'll come right back down to 6 quite happily. Won't take long at all. :)

From there on, just maintain it daily. :)
 
foosboy2 said:
3.5 hours since I added chlorine and now the FC is rising and CC is dropping. Just tested and now it is 12 FC and 1.5 CC.

Pool calculator says 17oz of chlorine to take it from 12FC to 14FC. Do I really want to keep going? Or should I maintain and just measure later. Why do I want it at so high if the CC is coming down? Especially since ultimately we want a FC around 6.
Click to expand...
Just to reaffirm what Gordon said...you absolutely want to keep it above 12 ppm at all times for now! Once your CC level is below 0.5 ppm, then you can think about doing the OCLT while still staying above 12 ppm.

The fact that your CC is lessening shows progress but in no way guarantees that the organics are dead. You still have organics and must pass all three criteria before lowering your FC below 12 ppm.

Many pool's have algae with no measurable CC.
 

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WE CAN SEE THE BOTTOM OF OUR POOL!

But I celebrated too early. I checked at 6:30 and I had 13 FC and 1.5 CC. Just checked now and I had 8.5 FC and 2.0 CC and 7.5 PH and about 25-30 CYA.

Going to add Chlorine now.

Mitch

PS-1 Should I add some acid to bring the PH closer to 2?
PS-2 I have a Nature 2 Express hooked up with last years filter because they say not to install the new one till balanced. Will this make a difference? And are these things a waste meaning should I buy the $70 cartridge every year?
PS-3 How soon will we be able to swim after the 3 criteria are met?
 
foosboy2 said:
WE CAN SEE THE BOTTOM OF OUR POOL!
Click to expand...

:party:

But I celebrated too early. I checked at 6:30 and I had 13 FC and 1.5 CC. Just checked now and I had 8.5 FC and 2.0 CC and 7.5 PH and about 25-30 CYA.

Going to add Chlorine now.
Click to expand...

Just keep at it. :) What you're seeing is EXACTLY what's supposed to be happening...Free Chlorine is being converted to Combined Chlorine by the process of killing more and more organics....you have turned a corner now, and are seeing a definite trend in the right direction. Stay on top of it, and just hammer it relentlessly until the shock process is complete.

PS-1 Should I add some acid to bring the PH closer to 2?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't. If it were mine, I'd simply keep an eye on the pH, so as not to let it get out of whack. 7.5 is a FINE number (it is, in fact, exactly what I keep our pool at). If it starts getting toward 7.8 or so, then yeah, might want to knock it back down a bit...

PS-2 I have a Nature 2 Express hooked up with last years filter because they say not to install the new one till balanced. Will this make a difference? And are these things a waste meaning should I buy the $70 cartridge every year?
Click to expand...

I'll defer to others. I have know knowledge or experience about that equipment.

PS-3 How soon will we be able to swim after the 3 criteria are met?
Click to expand...

Presuming pH is reasonable, I'd say same day. :) Once you meet the 3 criteria, we know there's no more organics left in the pool, so it's sanitary, and conventional wisdom on this site is that it's safe to swim in any chlorine level UP TO shock level. Certainly by that afternoon, enough FC will have burned off to bring any worrisome levels down to a more comfortable level. If you're REALLY worried, you could wait for the FC to come down within the "normal" range on the CYA/Chlorine chart, which should take just a day or so.

Experts, as always, let me know if I missed anything :)
 
Gordon's got you covered well.

Try to keep that FC above 12 ppm at all times!

foosboy2 said:
PS-2 I have a Nature 2 Express hooked up with last years filter because they say not to install the new one till balanced. Will this make a difference? And are these things a waste meaning should I buy the $70 cartridge every year?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't use it. It is expensive and not needed and you do not want to be adding copper to the pool. See: http://www.troublefreepool.com/alternative-sanitizers-and-chemical-free-pools-the-truth-t3025.html I believe the Nature2 express is a mineral system.
 
Just to reaffirm,
1) pH is fine where it is. Don't worry about adjusting it.
2) Don't waste your money on something you don't need. Just leave it empty.
3) Right then. As soon as all three criteria are met you should jump in just to show it who's boss! :mrgreen:
 
Update:
7:30 AM 13.5 FC and 2.0 CC
1:00 PM 8.5 FC and 1.5 CC
4:30 PM 10.0 FC and 1.5 CC
9:00 PM 10.0 FC and 2.0 CC

Is this typical for the battle to last this long after getting some stable FC readings? And is that typical to see the CC drift down to 1.5 and then back up to 2.0.

We have almost 12 bottles of liquid chlorine in the pool now.

Regarding the Nature 2 Express, I already had one that I recently bought. Since I have it I think that I should use it. I just wanted to know what to do for next year.

Also, should we continue to keep our automatic chlorinator with the 3in pucks set at 0?

We are getting excited to use the pool.

Thanks for the continueous support and comments.

Mitch
 
It takes as long as it takes :) Keep up the fight.

You are just looking to put junk in the pool huh? Metal from the Nature 2 Express (can you sell it to someone ... with a clear conscience?) and more CYA from the pucks. I would avoid both.
 
Ugh. I just knew those comments were coming, I was afraid to post them. It just kills me to just throw away $70 for that Nature 2 Express and $70 worth of chlorinating pucks. For the chorinating pucks I definitely saw that coming because of reading how it ups the CYA. I will stay away if you say so but I really hate to waste that money.

So for the FC when it is below 12 or 14, is it just the operating level and that 12 or higher is to fight the fight?

Can I put a solar cover on or the heater on or will either or both cause algae to grow? I heard in the past not to put the solar cover on after shocking (with the shocking definition being throwing shock in the pool, not the "troublefreepool" shock or shocking process definition) because it would ruin the solar cover.

My wife does not notice any difference, but I thought that I noticed a slight green tinge to the pool and not the typical blue. I figure that this is because the fight is still on but I thought I would ask. My pool is a white fiberglass color.

Thanks,
Mitch
 

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