Cloudy water, no CYA? I have no idea what I am doing.

[KarlMarx]

Hello all,

I have an Intext prism frame pool that is running a Intex Krystal Clear 2150 GPH Sand Filter Pump & Saltwater System with E.C.O. The pool is allegedly 3800 gallons or so. I am getting the following readings using the t-100 kit

Salt 3000 ppm
fc- 10
cc- 1
tc- 11
CH- turns blue right away. does this mean that there is no calcium? Is this bad?
TA- 100
CYA-0
PH-7.5

The water is cloudy. It was green, but I used some shock. I can see the bottom of the pool, but not across it if that makes sense. I have pool math but have no idea what to do as I feel like this is a weird situation that warrants some special attention. I have attached some pictures. If anyone could point me in the direction of what i need to do, it would be appreciated. Thank you for your time.

 

[thetekgeek]

You have a good test kit. Good job on that. Start with CYA. Add enough dry acid to get to 30ppm. Use that handy PoolMath app to calculate how much you need. Put the acid in an old sock, or pantyhose and hang it in front of your return. Squeeze the sock every 15 minutes or so to help it dissolve. Without CYA, the 10 ppm FC you have now will likely be gone in a few hours if the sun is shining on the pool. What type of shock did you use and how much? Cal-hypo will add calcium and can also cause short term cloudiness. Di-Chlor will add CYA so you have inadvertently added one of the two to your water (unless you used bleach). Take that into consideration when you calculate how much CYA to add. Since you have a liner, calcium is not a huge deal unless you have a heater but I wouldn't chase calcium until you have CYA in the water and you're maintaining a consistent FC level.

Once you have started dissolving the CYA, maintain your FC at shock level (12 for CYA 30), testing and dosing several times daily according to this chart- Chlorine / CYA Chart - Trouble Free Pool using liquid chlorine/bleach. PoolMath will help you calculate how much to add each time. Do this until you pass the three criteria outlined in this article - SLAM - Shock Level and Maintain - Trouble Free Pool

Also, please read up on the ABC's of Water Chemistry - ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry - Trouble Free Pool

And consider reviewing the entirety of Pool School - Table of Contents - Trouble Free Pool

 

[JJ_Tex]

You have a good test kit. Good job on that. Start with CYA. Add enough dry acid to get to 30ppm. Use that handy PoolMath app to calculate how much you need. Put the acid in an old sock, or pantyhose and hang it in front of your return. Squeeze the sock every 15 minutes or so to help it dissolve. Without CYA, the 10 ppm FC you have now will likely be gone in a few hours if the sun is shining on the pool.

This advice is spot on. Just one item for clarity, "dry acid" mentioned above is CYA or stabilizer. This is not to be confused with PH down or any other dry acid for managing pH.

 

[splashpad]

Hello all,

I have an Intext prism frame pool that is running a Intex Krystal Clear 2150 GPH Sand Filter Pump & Saltwater System with E.C.O. The pool is allegedly 3800 gallons or so. I am getting the following readings using the t-100 kit

Salt 3000 ppm
fc- 10
cc- 1
tc- 11
CH- turns blue right away. does this mean that there is no calcium? Is this bad?
TA- 100
CYA-0
PH-7.5

The water is cloudy. It was green, but I used some shock. I can see the bottom of the pool, but not across it if that makes sense. I have pool math but have no idea what to do as I feel like this is a weird situation that warrants some special attention. I have attached some pictures. If anyone could point me in the direction of what i need to do, it would be appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Salt is good, what is called for in the manual?
You'll need stabilizer ak CYA aka conditioner. Target CYA level of 30-40 to start. FC/CYA Levels
You'll likely need to do a SLAM Process

Start with CYA. Add enough dry acid to get to 30ppm. Use that handy PoolMath app to calculate how much you need

Just to clarify for both: CYA = Stabilizer or Conditioner, not dry acid (those are different things). It is a milld acid, but not dry acid. Dry acid is usually marketed as ALK minus or some such and usually adds sulfates, not desirable!

 

[KarlMarx]

You have a good test kit. Good job on that. Start with CYA. Add enough dry acid to get to 30ppm. Use that handy PoolMath app to calculate how much you need. Put the acid in an old sock, or pantyhose and hang it in front of your return. Squeeze the sock every 15 minutes or so to help it dissolve. Without CYA, the 10 ppm FC you have now will likely be gone in a few hours if the sun is shining on the pool. What type of shock did you use and how much? Cal-hypo will add calcium and can also cause short term cloudiness. Di-Chlor will add CYA so you have inadvertently added one of the two to your water (unless you used bleach). Take that into consideration when you calculate how much CYA to add. Since you have a liner, calcium is not a huge deal unless you have a heater but I wouldn't chase calcium until you have CYA in the water and you're maintaining a consistent FC level.

Once you have started dissolving the CYA, maintain your FC at shock level (12 for CYA 30), testing and dosing several times daily according to this chart- Chlorine / CYA Chart - Trouble Free Pool using liquid chlorine/bleach. PoolMath will help you calculate how much to add each time. Do this until you pass the three criteria outlined in this article - SLAM - Shock Level and Maintain - Trouble Free Pool

Also, please read up on the ABC's of Water Chemistry - ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry - Trouble Free Pool

And consider reviewing the entirety of Pool School - Table of Contents - Trouble Free Pool

I used 4 in 1 shock. Pool essentials? I used one bag and it cleared the algae up, but it’s still cloudy. I think I bleached the bottom of the pool as well. Whoops. I have the stabilizer and I’ve added the recommended dose to get to 30 ppm, which was honestly not that much. I suppose I will see how this plays out.

 

[KarlMarx]

Salt is good, what is called for in the manual?
You'll need stabilizer ak CYA aka conditioner. Target CYA level of 30-40 to start. FC/CYA Levels
You'll likely need to do a SLAM Process

I have started the process. It says optimal level is 3k, so I’m doing something right.



Just to clarify for both: CYA = Stabilizer or Conditioner, not dry acid (those are different things). It is a milld acid, but not dry acid. Dry acid is usually marketed as ALK minus or some such and usually adds sulfates, not desirable!

Thanks for the clarification. I was worried I had the wrong thing, but I have stabilizer. For future reference, so I be using this when opening the pool next year? Also, how do I get the chlorine down to an acceptable level after the slam process

 

[splashpad]

I used 4 in 1 shock. Pool essentials? I used one bag and it cleared the algae up, but it’s still cloudy. I think I bleached the bottom of the pool as well. Whoops. I have the stabilizer and I’ve added the recommended dose to get to 30 ppm, which was honestly not that much. I suppose I will see how this plays out.

That added a small amount of CYA (aka stabilizer). I wouldn't use anymore if your CYA level is 40 already. (Save it for next year).

Thanks for the clarification. I was worried I had the wrong thing, but I have stabilizer. For future reference, so I be using this when opening the pool next year? Also, how do I get the chlorine down to an acceptable level after the slam process

You can use it in the beginning of the season if the CYA level has gone down The chlorine will drift down on it's own Once it's below SLAM level for your CYA and above minimum Target, it's safe to swim! (If you can see the bottom of the pool)

 

[KarlMarx]

That added a small amount of CYA (aka stabilizer). I wouldn't use anymore if your CYA level is 40 already. (Save it for next year).


You can use it in the beginning of the season if the CYA level has gone down The chlorine will drift down on it's own Once it's below SLAM level for your CYA and above minimum Target, it's safe to swim! (If you can see the bottom of the pool)

It says on that handy chart that cya should be 80 for a sw pool? I am I misreading something. Sorry to be such a bother.

 

[splashpad]

It says on that handy chart that cya should be 80 for a sw pool? I am I misreading something. Sorry to be such a bother.

The CYA is used to provide "sunscreen" to the FC from UV rays. If your pool is maintiaining it's Target FC @ CYA/40, you won't need to raise the CYA that high up north

 

[Dtkokay]

Thanks for the clarification. I was worried I had the wrong thing, but I have stabilizer. For future reference, so I be using this when opening the pool next year? Also, how do I get the chlorine down to an acceptable level after the slam process

Chlorine will burn off naturally either from cleansing the pool or from the sun. You will have to add a little chlorine every day and maintain it at the levels recommended on this web site. The amount of chlorine depends on the level of CYA you have.

So the SLAM amount of chlorine you have will naturally decrease if you stop adding chlorine.

 

[KarlMarx]

Chlorine will burn off naturally either from cleansing the pool or from the sun. You will have to add a little chlorine every day and maintain it at the levels recommended on this web site. The amount of chlorine depends on the level of CYA you have.

So the SLAM amount of chlorine you have will naturally decrease if you stop adding chlorine.

The chlorine will go up if I run the saltwater generator, correct? Everything went fine last summer. This year has been a mess so far

 

[splashpad]

The chlorine will go up if I run the saltwater generator, correct? Everything went fine last summer. This year has been a mess so far

You should be able to adjust the output if it is maintaining the FC that high on it's own

 

[KarlMarx]

I just wanted to update with my pic of the pool and new readings.

I’m getting 23.5 tc.

24 fc
.5 cc
Cya is about 56.

The water is clear. Not sure how the cya got so high, but it’s getting better. Any more steps I should take?

 

[thetekgeek]

Looks like you are into SLAM mode. Consider your CYA 60 and follow the FC/CYA chart. Keep FC at SLAM level until the water is clear, CC is .5 or lower and you pass an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test. From there, let FC drift back down to the target zone and maintain. You're doing well!