Do I Really Need to add close to a gallon of Chlorine daily?

[TKMellowYellow]

Hello,

I can't believe how much I've learned on this forum already. This place is an amazing resource!!

I just bought a new home in a So Cal suburb that came with a 30K gallon swimming pool. The pool water hadn't been changed for decades apparently and the dissolved solids and CYA were off the charts. We did a full drain and refill and my most recent readings were as follows:

FC 1.0
TC 1.4
pH 8.2
TA 167
CH 156
CYA 24

I've been adding a gallon of 10% bleach three times a week, but I don't think that's enough because at the end of day 2, my FC reading goes well below 2...almost at zero. After working with the pool calculator for a bit, it looks like I need to add approximately 1.3 gallons to get it up to the recommended level of 5 PPM. And based on the daily FC loss I've been experiencing, I will need to add just under one gallon on a daily basis. That really seems like a lot. And if I really want to adhere to the minimums, I should probably divide up my chlorine treatments to twice a day so that I never get below 2 PPM.

Am I on the right track? Will raising my CYA decrease my daily FC treatment requirement?

My buddy who lives close by and has a larger pool than I get by with adding 2 gallons just once a week. Is he headed toward trouble? I know he SLAMs his pool every once in a long while, but I like the idea of never having to SLAM by maintaining recommended FC at all times.

Thanks!

 

[Texas Splash]

Welcome to TFP! We typically say here at TFP that with the exception of a pool party or something unusual, you shouldn't lose more than 4 ppm of FC in a 24 hr period. If you do it can mean there is a large organic demand (algae) and/or not enough stabilizer (CYA) to protect the chlorine. Not sure what test kit you are using, but a CYA below 30 in the summer is not enough protection. FYI, one gallon of 10% strength liquid chlorine increases the FC by just over 3 ppm in your 30K pool. So adding one gallon per day is a reasonable demand. But confirm for us how you test your CYA and/or consider increasing your CYA to at least 40, maybe even 50.

I will also caution you that your FC is/has fallen too low at times. You may already have algae. If in doubt, you should consider doing an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test to confirm. Also be sure to lower your pH down to under 7.8 to help prevent scale.

Pool Care Basics

 

[TKMellowYellow]

Welcome to TFP! We typically say here at TFP that with the exception of a pool party or something unusual, you shouldn't lose more than 4 ppm of FC in a 24 hr period. If you do it can mean there is a large organic demand (algae) and/or not enough stabilizer (CYA) to protect the chlorine. Not sure what test kit you are using, but a CYA below 30 in the summer is not enough protection. FYI, one gallon of 10% strength liquid chlorine increases the FC by just over 3 ppm in your 30K pool. So adding one gallon per day is a reasonable demand. But confirm for us how you test your CYA and/or consider increasing your CYA to at least 40, maybe even 50.

I will also caution you that your FC is/has fallen too low at times. You may already have algae. If in doubt, you should consider doing an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test to confirm. Also be sure to lower your pH down to under 7.8 to help prevent scale.

Pool Care Basics

Eh, I must admit that I got my water tested at Leslies and before that, I was using test strips on an ongoing basis. This was all of course, before I really started to delve into the topics here at TFP.

So I guess the next steps (in addition to performing an overnight test) are to get a proper test kit and if my CYA is indeed at 24, I should carefully raise the level to 40-50. Thanks and will keep you posted on how things progress!

I did buy a nice expensive bucket of dry acid for the pH, along with the Leslie's weekly perfect which appears to be really popular here on TFP for a cool $100. Oh man, the test kits I could have bought with that money...what a waste!

 

[Texas Splash]

You can use the dry acid for now, but in the future we recommend muriatic acid. The dry stuff adds sulfates which can become problematic over time. We don't recommend Leslie's Perfect Weekly product, just maintaining the proper FC level to the CYA as noted on the FC/CYA Levels. But yes, most definitely try to get either the TF-100 (link in my signature) or Taylor K-2006C. The proper test kit is vitally important. If you have any other questions please let us know.

 

[borjis]

Get the cya in order first. Adding it will lower the pH a bit.

 

[Bperry]

Maybe update the thread title as well. Probably do need to add water every day. (Fixed it..)

 

[Bigtymetexan]

Hello,

I can't believe how much I've learned on this forum already. This place is an amazing resource!!

I just bought a new home in a So Cal suburb that came with a 30K gallon swimming pool. The pool water hadn't been changed for decades apparently and the dissolved solids and CYA were off the charts. We did a full drain and refill and my most recent readings were as follows:

FC 1.0
TC 1.4
pH 8.2
TA 167
CH 156
CYA 24

I've been adding a gallon of 10% bleach three times a week, but I don't think that's enough because at the end of day 2, my FC reading goes well below 2...almost at zero. After working with the pool calculator for a bit, it looks like I need to add approximately 1.3 gallons to get it up to the recommended level of 5 PPM. And based on the daily FC loss I've been experiencing, I will need to add just under one gallon on a daily basis. That really seems like a lot. And if I really want to adhere to the minimums, I should probably divide up my chlorine treatments to twice a day so that I never get below 2 PPM.

Am I on the right track? Will raising my CYA decrease my daily FC treatment requirement?

My buddy who lives close by and has a larger pool than I get by with adding 2 gallons just once a week. Is he headed toward trouble? I know he SLAMs his pool every once in a long while, but I like the idea of never having to SLAM by maintaining recommended FC at all times.

Thanks!

One thing not to forget, check the filter. I have a 2-year-old pool and have to rinse the filters (4 in my filter) every year so I can imagine one that was ignored may look pretty bad. The filters can be cleaned but if they are dried out, broken, worn to the point of uselessness, I would replace them.

Moreover, once you get the pool looking just right, check the filter again. If the solids and neglect are sizeable, the filter will catch it and become dirty (again).

Good luck with the new pool and congrats!!

 

[TKMellowYellow]

Thanks everyone for your input!!

I do have a pool guy that comes by every week for $170/month and I believe he cleaned out the filter a few times. He also wanted to use pucks to supplement his weekly liquid chlorine additions. I told him that I don't want pucks and that I would take care of the chlorine additions while he takes care of everything else, like brushing, vacumming and cleaning the filter, etc. As soon as I get comfortable cleaning the filter, I might stop using him. But I feel obligated to keep him for a while because he did a good amount of work draining, sanitizing the walls with chlorine and then refilling the pool without charging me any extra.

The pool actually looks beautiful now, but just want to make sure it stays that way. I didn't get my water bill yet, but I'm sure it's going to be pretty high as it took 3 days of continuous water to refill the pool. And this isn't even mentioning that I live in an area that's currently under extreme drought. After going through something like that, I'd like to be sure I can really enjoy the pool.

 

[Mdragger88]

Get yourself one of the recommended kits
*K2006c or tf100/pro post haste.
*Run all the tests
*Get fc to high target for your cya asap FC/CYA Levels
*Do an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test BEFORE raising cya.

*If u pass oclt - keep dosing to high target for your cya or a scootch more - whatever it takes to steer clear of minimum for your cya & ensure u don’t fall below before the next dose.

*If u fail —-> SLAM Process

 

[Mdragger88]

Eh, I must admit that I got my water tested at Leslies and before that, I was using test strips on an ongoing basis. This was all of course, before I really started to delve into the topics here at TFP.

So I guess the next steps (in addition to performing an overnight test) are to get a proper test kit and if my CYA is indeed at 24, I should carefully raise the level to 40-50. Thanks and will keep you posted on how things progress!

I did buy a nice expensive bucket of dry acid for the pH, along with the Leslie's weekly perfect which appears to be really popular here on TFP for a cool $100. Oh man, the test kits I could have bought with that money...what a waste!

Can u return it? Exchange it for liquid chlorine?

 

[TKMellowYellow]

Can u return it? Exchange it for liquid chlorine?

Wish I could. Unfortunately, I used some of it.

 

[proavia]

Do you happen to have a whole house water softener?
Do they even allow those in California these days?

Most likely, with your relatively hard water, your CH will continue to rise. Using softened water for refill/autofill will greatly limit the CH rise in your pool.

Having one of the recommended test kits is paramount in caring for your pool. Pool store results have been proven to be inconsistent and inaccurate. Test Kits Compared
The TFPro and/or TF100 are a better value than the K2006C for the residential pool owner.

Post some pics of your pool and pool equipment from different angle and we can help identify what you have.

 

[TKMellowYellow]

Do you happen to have a whole house water softener?
Do they even allow those in California these days?

Most likely, with your relatively hard water, your CH will continue to rise. Using softened water for refill/autofill will greatly limit the CH rise in your pool.

Having one of the recommended test kits is paramount in caring for your pool. Pool store results have been proven to be inconsistent and inaccurate. Test Kits Compared
The TFPro and/or TF100 are a better value than the K2006C for the residential pool owner.

Post some pics of your pool and pool equipment from different angle and we can help identify what you have.

Thank you good sir. Will definitely do that soon!

So I think my CYA is definitely low. This is what the vial looks like when filled almost to the brim which. It's hard to see the black dot, but it's definitely still visible if you look hard. So at best, I my CYA is 20, but most likely lower, I believe.

My test strips actually turned out to be MORE ACCURATE than the test done at Leslies when bringing a water sample in because the test strips were registering a very low number also, but Leslies came back with 25.

Looks like I'll need to do some work to bring it up to around 50. I'm tempted to just use Trichlor tablets till my CYA reaches the proper level, but I guess the TFP way is to use either granular CYA or liquid conditioner.

I also did the OCLT, albeit using strips, but there was no chlorine loss.

 

[BoringDamo]

I’d say the TFP way is less “use this or use that” more “know what is happening in your pool (do your own testing with a recommended test kit), know what you are putting into your pool and exactly what it will do, learn how *your* pool likes things.
(Ps I used dichlor at the start of the season to up my CYA as I knew what it added and what the effect would be)

 

[Mdragger88]

Thank you good sir. Will definitely do that soon!

So I think my CYA is definitely low. This is what the vial looks like when filled almost to the brim which. It's hard to see the black dot, but it's definitely still visible if you look hard. So at best, I my CYA is 20, but most likely lower, I believe.

My test strips actually turned out to be MORE ACCURATE than the test done at Leslies when bringing a water sample in because the test strips were registering a very low number also, but Leslies came back with 25.

Looks like I'll need to do some work to bring it up to around 50. I'm tempted to just use Trichlor tablets till my CYA reaches the proper level, but I guess the TFP way is to use either granular CYA or liquid conditioner.

I also did the OCLT, albeit using strips, but there was no chlorine loss.

View attachment 442544

U need to do the Overnight Chlorine Loss Test @ target fc levels for your cya FC/CYA Levels
with the fas/dpd test - the strips just don’t have the accuracy
Don’t raise cya higher than 30-40 until u pass oclt.
U can use tablets if u wish but they will take a while to dissolve which is why separate stabilizer/cya is recommended. Blind use of trichlor (or any product) is what isn’t recommended here. The idea here is to test & add what your pool needs (nothing more/ nothing less) & to know/ take into consideration the effects of everything you put in your water while also testing accurately to confirm the results.

 

[TKMellowYellow]

As a update, I added 4 lbs dry stabilizer and brought my cya from 20 to 40. (Pool math was spot on). I now definitely notice a reduction in the amount of chlorine I lose daily because now I'm able to maintain a good FC level with just half a gallon per day! Every evening my FC is at 5 and I add about a half gallon which brings the level to 7.

I was initially planning to bring the level to either 50 or 60, but I think I'm fine with how things are going at 40.

 

[wireform]

Before you do any damage to your agenda it would be beneficial for you to do the OCLT so we all know if there is an algae problem or that you were lucky and caught in time. From there let us guide you. So it seems you have the kit can you post all the levels required to make the right choices.

 

[TKMellowYellow]

Before you do any damage to your agenda it would be beneficial for you to do the OCLT so we all know if there is an algae problem or that you were lucky and caught in time. From there let us guide you. So it seems you have the kit can you post all the levels required to make the right choices.

Appreciate the advice. Looks like I neglected to mention that I did perform an OCLT as one of my first steps after starting this thread and there was minimal chlorine loss.

Will do a full test soon and post the results.

 

[Getitrite]

I also did the OCLT, albeit using strips, but there was no chlorine loss.

Looks like I neglected to mention that I did perform an OCLT as one of my first steps after starting this thread and there was minimal chlorine loss.

( OCLT using strips is questionable . . . )

 

[proavia]

What test kit did you use to perform the Overnight Chlorine Loss Test?
Test Kits Compared

Post some pictures of your equipment pad and closeups of any labels on the equipment. With those pics, we dan help you in knowing what equipment you have and in filling out your signature.