So I know this is talked about a lot, but I can’t make any sense of the cya test. I mixed my solution of water/ reagent and could not really lose the dot until completely filled. I went and bought the 50 ppm baseline solution from tft and have been testing and still can’t get the dot to not be very visible. I have tried in like 5 different areas with sun at my back and waist height. Any ideas?
CYA test not able to read
- Thread starter jasonegreen1978
- Start date
- Jun 1, 2018
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Are u shaking the sample then letting it rest at least 30 seconds & shaking it again before squirting it in the tube?
Also, don’t stare - just glance. If u stare u will eventually make out the dot.
Also, don’t stare - just glance. If u stare u will eventually make out the dot.
- Apr 10, 2018
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I know this may sound obvious, but when you use the standard sample, you still need to use the reagent. The standard sample just replaces the pool water in the test instructions.
I have the standard CYA 50 ppm reagent and in order to have the dot disappear at 50, I have to have my back to the sun, but have the test vial to my side in the sunlight. I have used what others have suggested on here which is to fill the vial to 30, 40 50 etc. and look to see if the dot disappears at each level. This has been the easiest way for me to perform the test.
Finally got the test sample working. Adding 1.5 lbs of cya to my pool as it’s still not showing until just above 30
- Jun 1, 2018
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Rattus Suffocatus
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- Jun 5, 2019
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The CYA test, unfortunately is the most subjective test in the entire kit. It's basically melamine powder in the solution that clumps together in the presence of CYA. CYA is actually a byproduct of Melamine production. Interesting if you read about it. It's also toxic. (The fatal Chinese pet food incidents? Melamine Cyanurate... yeah...) I'll need to be more careful when I dispose of it now...
The way I find that works the best is to do it in bright sunshine at waist high level--indoors I can never get a consistent reading. Fill the bottle to the bottom of the sticker, put the reagent in the bottle to the top of the bottle. Shake. Wait at least a minute (forget 30 seconds). Shake again, wait 30 more seconds.
Put the measuring tube with the black dot at waste level and slowly add the mixture.. when you can't clearly see the black dot outline anymore (I can never get it to completely disappear either at the 30-70 PPM range), then take that reading... it's not very precise, but in reality if you are 10 PPM off, especially if low, you are still good. 15-30 PPM precision is all the test can do. Still beats the heck out of strips.
www.troublefreepool.com
Edit: You need to go more than the Mid test on the Taylor picture. I should add I can even see some black in the final Taylor test picture in the blog article, but you can't really tell there is a dot there... that is what I meant above.. especially in bright sunlight....
The way I find that works the best is to do it in bright sunshine at waist high level--indoors I can never get a consistent reading. Fill the bottle to the bottom of the sticker, put the reagent in the bottle to the top of the bottle. Shake. Wait at least a minute (forget 30 seconds). Shake again, wait 30 more seconds.
Put the measuring tube with the black dot at waste level and slowly add the mixture.. when you can't clearly see the black dot outline anymore (I can never get it to completely disappear either at the 30-70 PPM range), then take that reading... it's not very precise, but in reality if you are 10 PPM off, especially if low, you are still good. 15-30 PPM precision is all the test can do. Still beats the heck out of strips.
CYA - Cyanuric Acid Test
Cyanuric acid (CYA) is the chemical name for the product commonly called “pool water stabilizer” … Read more…
www.troublefreepool.com
Edit: You need to go more than the Mid test on the Taylor picture. I should add I can even see some black in the final Taylor test picture in the blog article, but you can't really tell there is a dot there... that is what I meant above.. especially in bright sunlight....
Yes the dot disappears slightly over the 30 line. When I did my slam we used 30 for my cya. My biggest problem now is even though I pass oclt during the day in sunlight the pool is using 5ish ppm a day
- Dec 13, 2020
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Maybe you have bad CYA test reagent? Was it left in the sun? Frozen? If it was ever hotter than 85F or colder than 36F, it's may be bad.
Thank you so much. Using your testing methods I was finally able to get a much better result and feeling more confident on my testingThe CYA test, unfortunately is the most subjective test in the entire kit. It's basically melamine powder in the solution that clumps together in the presence of CYA. CYA is actually a byproduct of Melamine production. Interesting if you read about it. It's also toxic. (The fatal Chinese pet food incidents? Melamine Cyanurate... yeah...) I'll need to be more careful when I dispose of it now...
The way I find that works the best is to do it in bright sunshine at waist high level--indoors I can never get a consistent reading. Fill the bottle to the bottom of the sticker, put the reagent in the bottle to the top of the bottle. Shake. Wait at least a minute (forget 30 seconds). Shake again, wait 30 more seconds.
Put the measuring tube with the black dot at waste level and slowly add the mixture.. when you can't clearly see the black dot outline anymore (I can never get it to completely disappear either at the 30-70 PPM range), then take that reading... it's not very precise, but in reality if you are 10 PPM off, especially if low, you are still good. 15-30 PPM precision is all the test can do. Still beats the heck out of strips.
CYA - Cyanuric Acid Test
Cyanuric acid (CYA) is the chemical name for the product commonly called “pool water stabilizer” … Read more…
Edit: You need to go more than the Mid test on the Taylor picture. I should add I can even see some black in the final Taylor test picture in the blog article, but you can't really tell there is a dot there... that is what I meant above.. especially in bright sunlight....
Generessler brings up something I didn't think about. I leave test kit on the back porch in a cabinet. Never thought about the heat and the reagents being outside. Is this an issue?
- Jun 1, 2018
- 16,094
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Store the kit indoors in a dark, climate controlled place.
Mine is in my laundry closet.
Mine is in my laundry closet.
Crud...thanks guys for this info. I guess I didn't read the directions well enough to catch the storage instructions. Maybe that is why I was struggling with the CYA test yesterday. I guess I need to buy some more CYA reagents. I wonder what else is jacked up in the kit.
Rattus Suffocatus
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You know, I once was told that telling someone learning how to drive a manual transmission, and use a clutch to think of the clutch pedal as stepping on a grapefruit in reverse. So I started to use that when teaching others.
I acknowledge that my description before was sort of like that. I'd estimate that the clutch description was successful 66% of the time or so. Never got it why. The holding the tube out in the sun at waste level is sort of the same thing. It's just the nature of the test I suppose. Probably the same case here with 66% success. I am glad that helped.
- May 23, 2015
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The CYA reagent is the least susceptible to heat/cold degradation. It's nothing more than a pH stabilized solution of melamine. It's incredibly shelf-stable and not subject to damage from heat, cold, or humidity. The other reagents in your test kit are far more susceptible to damage. Always keep test kits indoors and in a cool, dry, dark cabinet.