Filling up pool for the 1st time

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Yes, that could be a good solution for adding CYA. Use the tablets with CYA until you can measure CYA at the correct amount for your pool, then stop using the tablets and switch to liquid chlorine. Go back to the tablets if your CYA drops below the desired level. If you only use the tablets, you'll eventually end up with too much CYA, which is just as bad as not having any (for different reasons, of course).
 
ellislo said:
but can't find the following, so I think I have to make do without both of these chemicals.
1. cyanuric acid
2. borates
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ellislo said:
I have spoken to a pool store, was told that the chlorine tablet that they are selling content cyanuric acid. So I think I will have to use the tablet for its cyanuric acid together with my SWG. Need some experiment, trial and error to dial in on the SWG setting and also the tablet chlorine dosage in order to get enough of FC and CYA in the pool.
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If you ask for cyanuric acid or CYA at the business or pool store, they may not know what you're talking about. CYA is sold as "chlorine stabilizer" or "pool conditioner."

If tablets will be your only source of CYA, you can use Pool Math (scroll down to "Effects of adding chemicals") to determine how much each tablet, (usually around 8 oz for a 3" tab) will increase your CYA level. The tablets will likely be composed of "trichlor." In a pool of 55K liters, each tab will increase CYA by about 2.3 ppm.
 
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you can find CYA on Amazon pretty cheap and 2 day shipping...can't beat it. I ended up getting several chemicals there because of the price.I will note though that most are sold in somewhat bulk amounts so I also went and got some buckets from lowes to store the extra for next year.
 
The construction of the concrete pool base and shade sail have finally completed. I am planning to setup my pool this weekend. But before that, i plan to order the following pool chemicals, any comments?

1. Acidity/ Basicity:
- Hydrochloric Acid (25 litre) x 1 bottle
- Soda Ash (50kg/bag) x 1 bag

2. Total Alkalinity
- Baking soda (Sodium bicarbonate) (25kg) x 1 bag

3. Calcium Hardness:
- Calcium Chloride (25kg/bag) x 1 bag

4. Cyanuric Acid CYA
- Neo-Chlor 90T 200gm (Trichloroisocyanuric Acid) x ??

5. Salt:
- Pool Startup: 13 bags (25kg/bag) for 55,000 litre pool with SWG manufacturer recommended target salt 5900
- Maintenance: 2 bags


Now my concern is the target CYA of 80, which i plan to achieve by using trichlor tablet, as i can't get cyanuric acid locally.

From Pool Math:
Adding 200g tablet of Trichlor will:
1. raise FC by 3.3
2. rasie CYA by 2.0
3. lwer pH by 0.2
4. raise salt by 2.7

for my 55,000 litre pool, with target CYA 80ppm, i will need 40 tablets. The 40 tablets will:
1. rasie FC by 132 - very much higher than the recommended FC 4-6ppm? @Rancho Cost-a-Lotta
2. raise CYA by 80 - target CYA
2. lower pH by 8 - too much?
4. raise Salt to 108 - not a concern as i need salt level of 5900
 
5. Are you sure about that 5900 salt level for your SWG? That's nearly double what some SWGs need.

Be sure not to turn on your SWG until the salt is well mixed in, or you could damage it. At least 24 hours and personally I'd wait at least 48. From the sound of your CYA-from-tabs plan, you might not need to turn it on for quite a while anyway, but just make sure you keep it offline (even unplugged) until you're sure of your salt level and that it is well distributed.

Regarding the "raise FC by 132," just don't do it all at once. Use the tabs in a normal way, to maintain your normal, target FC, until you reach your target CYA, then stop using tabs and switch on the SWG. Going forward, test for CYA periodically and when it drops, repeat the process: switch off SWG, go back to tabs for a while, etc.
 
Reading the literature on that SWCG it appears you need a salinity level of 4000 ppm. Then, though I doubt it is needed, they say to add 'minerals'.
 

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Salt builds up in a pool, as it doesn’t leave with evaporation. Chlorine, acids and humans all leave salt in their wake. The only way to rid a pool of the excess salt is to replace some water. So my strategy was to put in only enough salt to make my SWG happy, as its eventually going to increase on its own to the optimum level, and then continue to build up until its level is too high, requiring a water exchange. Theoretically that means I can put off the inevitable water exchange for a bit longer, because I didn’t put in any more than was necessary.
 
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Do I pour in all the salt right away or only after I have achieved the desire CYA level from the Trichlor tablet, since the SWG will not be turned on until I have the correct CYA? Will the salt in the pool cause any issue to the pool chemical balance if the SWG is not running initially?


Dirk said:
5. Are you sure about that 5900 salt level for your SWG? That's nearly double what some SWGs need.

Be sure not to turn on your SWG until the salt is well mixed in, or you could damage it. At least 24 hours and personally I'd wait at least 48. From the sound of your CYA-from-tabs plan, you might not need to turn it on for quite a while anyway, but just make sure you keep it offline (even unplugged) until you're sure of your salt level and that it is well distributed.

Regarding the "raise FC by 132," just don't do it all at once. Use the tabs in a normal way, to maintain your normal, target FC, until you reach your target CYA, then stop using tabs and switch on the SWG. Going forward, test for CYA periodically and when it drops, repeat the process: switch off SWG, go back to tabs for a while, etc.
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You might as well wait on adding salt until you are ready to turn on the SWG. Salt will not interact with any chemicals, but you will lose salt with any draining or splash out. No reason to put in salt then lose it.
 
I would wait on the salt, especially if you have a plaster or pebble finish as those need to cure for 30 days before you put in salt.
 
Great question. Yes, wait on the salt, for the reasons others gave you and this one: the stuff you're adding now: chlorine and acid and tabs, etc, will contribute to your salt level. So if you add all the salt you need now, by the time you're ready to turn on the SWG, you'll have a bit more salt than you need. Remember, ideally you want to start with just enough salt to keep your SWG happy. So just run a fresh water pool for now, and when your CYA gets to the right level, add the salt. Let it mix in well for a few days, then stop using tabs and start up the SWG.

When it's time, use Pool Math to calculate how many bags to add to reach your target level. But don't forget to test your salt level first, so you can back that amount off. Don't assume you have zero salt. There might be some in your fill water, and like I said, you'll have some from the other chemicals you'll be using.

You're doing great, by the way!
 
Dirk said:
Great question. Yes, wait on the salt, for the reasons others gave you and this one: the stuff you're adding now: chlorine and acid and tabs, etc, will contribute to your salt level. So if you add all the salt you need now, by the time you're ready to turn on the SWG, you'll have a bit more salt than you need. Remember, ideally you want to start with just enough salt to keep your SWG happy. So just run a fresh water pool for now, and when your CYA gets to the right level, add the salt. Let it mix in well for a few days, then stop using tabs and start up the SWG.

When it's time, use Pool Math to calculate how many bags to add to reach your target level. But don't forget to test your salt level first, so you can back that amount off. Don't assume you have zero salt. There might be some in your fill water, and like I said, you'll have some from the other chemicals you'll be using.

You're doing great, by the way!
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Thanks for your advise!
I will definitely hold on for the salt, as my LaMotte 7022 and 3156 test kits will only arrive mid February. (The local supplier needs two months to get the test kits to me lol!). So for the time being, I will just use the locally avail email 4 in 1 test kit with the trichlor tablet.
 

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