Correct alkalinity level

[JoyfulNoise]

My problem has been low alkalinity (lower than 80, but now I'm finding out that 40-50 is actually okay) and high pH (8.0, 8.2).
Boric acid was suggested here for lowering pH.
Spa Down is what I had been using for lowering pH.

I don't know where it says boric acid should be used to lower pH because that is not right. Boric acid is a weak acid and will only lower pH very slightly. Boric acid is used to add borate anions to the water to act as an additional pH buffer which suppresses the tendency of water to raise its pH through the process of outgassing dissolved CO2.

Just to be clear - boric acid and borax are NOT the sane thing. They are both chemical species that contain the borate anion but one is a weak acid while the other is strong base. They can both be used to add borates to a body of water but one must choose whether to use the acid or base form. Typically using boric acid is a lot less complicated.

 

[pooldv]

Adding borates was suggested to reduce pH rise.

 

[Sjde]

So I guess I misunderstood-when I said I'm already having trouble keeping the pH under 8 with an alkalinity reading of 40, it was suggested I add borates. I really don't know why the pH is generally high except my tap water is about that.