Do i use tested TA or corrected TA

JohnWillis

Gold Supporter
Jun 25, 2021
6
Commerce twp MI
Pool Size
13500
Surface
Fiberglass
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
I'm getting ready to put 30 plus pounds or Boric Acid in my pool and a caution us to have my readings close before doing so. I'm working on getting my TA down to 70, but what 70? Do I use the 70 directly from my test kit or do I use 70 from the cya correction. Currently at 100 from test kit with a cya of 75 and ph of 7.2. Yes I know ph is a bit low but that's due to acid & aerate process I'm going thru know.
 
John,

Why are you adding Boric Acid to your pool?

With a TA of 100, why are you trying to lower it?

As long as your pH is relatively stable, any TA over 50 will work just fine.

Over time the TA will come down on its own.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
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John,

Why are you adding Boric Acid to your pool?

With a TA of 100, why are you trying to lower it?

As long as your pH is relatively stable, any TA over 50 will work just fine.

Over time the TA will come down on its own.

Thanks,

Jim R.
Adding Boric Acid as I've read some good things on here about its addition in terms of algea control, silky smooth water, more stable ph. Or as my wife says, our pool is crystal clear, do you just have more money and time than you do brains.
 
John,


Looking at your avatar, I'd say your wife is correct... :mrgreen:

If you have a saltwater pool, I'd think your water is already pretty silky.

It is your pool, and you can do what you want, they are just not needed in most cases.

I think Matt uses borates.. Let's see what he has to say about it. Calling @JoyfulNoise

I was just curious,

Jim R.
 
Just use tested TA.

If you want to use boric acid, just add it when the pH is about 7.8.

In my opinion, there is no reason to wait until the TA is lower to add boric acid.

In my opinion, it actually works better to add it when the TA is higher.
 
The TA of your fill water is very high so I don’t see borates adding any benefit for pH control unless you can somehow manage to not use the fill water you have. When you add fill water, you are adding lots of alkalinity which is going to drive the pH up. Going from 250ppm to 100ppm is a lot but it’s not going to stay that low. Every time you add fill water you’ll be raising your alkalinity back up.

The only benefit to adding borates will be for your SWG cell. Adding borates reduces the pH rise inside the cell when it’s running and so there’s less chance of scaling. But if you can keep your CH low, then there won’t be much scaling to begin with.

You can add what you’ve purchased and see if it has any benefit. If it doesn’t, then no harm as it will go away after a couple of seasons with rain/snow-melt dilution and open/closing the pool.
 
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