Filling up pool for the 1st time

[kimkats]

kids and their friends=Is this normal for the FC to drop so much?

YES! They added some extra *water* to the pool if you catch my drift In fact count your self lucky it only dropped that much!

My pool never gets covered. We like to look at it and my husband still gets in it after a HOT bath. I just run my robot "Lil' Kim" as needed.

Kim

 

[Dirk]

My kids and their friends (total 8 persons) were in the pool splashing and swimming just now for about 2 hrs. I tested the FC before they got into the pool and the reading was 5, after they finished, i took another reading, which showed FC about 2 (pic attached). The pump was off while the kids were in the pool (hence, no chlorine dosing). Is this normal for the FC to drop so much?

I have been covering my pool (pic attached) all the time whenever i don't use the pool to minimise any bugs/leaves/dirt/bird droppings from getting into the pool. As i am living in a tropical country, this will resulted the water getting warm, will there be an issue? The pool cover also minimised aeration, which can reduce PH (as CO2 cannot outgas? i read some where in TFP). Generally, do you guys always cover the pool?

Well, those testers are not all that accurate between 2 and 5, so maybe you started off with a little less than 5, and ended with a little more than 2? If your CYA is still low, then that could also account for the big swing. Hot out? Maybe a couple kids didn't get out to use the bathroom? There's some more FC. Doesn't really matter, now you're back at 2.

The kids splashing can raise pH. I'm not sure how much that bubbler gizmo is going to help. Some, yes. I believe it's like a bubbler in a fish tank. It's not the bubbles themselves so much that are oxygenating the water, but the bubbles breaking and rippling the surface that increases the oxygen exchange at the surface. So, yes, your bubbler is helping a bit if the bubbles are rippling the surface. You can see in my pic how much water action I used to ruffle up the surface. And I remember having to run my pump a lot to get my pH to move. Can you bring that LED gizmo online? Does that ruffle the surface? Do you happen to have any sort of pump, like a sump pump, that you can put in the pool? Set its output hose to come out of the pool and splash water back into it?

Yes, I think the pool cover will inhibit the pH effect, but then it's also helping to hold your FC from losing to UV? Not super sure about all that, or which is more important at this point. You're challenging your pool by opening it, and allowing swimmers, without the inventory of chemicals you need to keep the water balanced. What can I say?

 

[ellislo]

YES! They added some extra *water* to the pool if you catch my drift In fact count your self lucky it only dropped that much!

My pool never gets covered. We like to look at it and my husband still gets in it after a HOT bath. I just run my robot "Lil' Kim" as needed.

Kim

? I will make sure I warn the kids no ‘extra water’ allow in my pool in the future!

 

[ellislo]

Well, those testers are not all that accurate between 2 and 5, so maybe you started off with a little less than 5, and ended with a little more than 2? If your CYA is still low, then that could also account for the big swing. Hot out? Maybe a couple kids didn't get out to use the bathroom? There's some more FC. Doesn't really matter, now you're back at 2.

The kids splashing can raise pH. I'm not sure how much that bubbler gizmo is going to help. Some, yes. I believe it's like a bubbler in a fish tank. It's not the bubbles themselves so much that are oxygenating the water, but the bubbles breaking and rippling the surface that increases the oxygen exchange at the surface. So, yes, your bubbler is helping a bit if the bubbles are rippling the surface. You can see in my pic how much water action I used to ruffle up the surface. And I remember having to run my pump a lot to get my pH to move. Can you bring that LED gizmo online? Does that ruffle the surface? Do you happen to have any sort of pump, like a sump pump, that you can put in the pool? Set its output hose to come out of the pool and splash water back into it?

Yes, I think the pool cover will inhibit the pH effect, but then it's also helping to hold your FC from losing to UV? Not super sure about all that, or which is more important at this point. You're challenging your pool by opening it, and allowing swimmers, without the inventory of chemicals you need to keep the water balanced. What can I say?

I think for the time being, I will monitor the effectiveness of my return jet aerator for the purpose of lowering down the ph, and make sure the FC stays around 5. I haven’t bought the LED Sprayer ‘gizmo’ yet, will take a second look.

 

[ellislo]

After some trials, the following are my findings:
1. My pool return built in aerator can’t raise PH even I run the pump for 8hrs without covering the pool.

2. I manage to maintain the FC at 5 by running the pump 4hrs (pool covered; no swimmers) on weekdays and 8hrs (pool without cover; swim for 4-5hrs/day) on weekends.

3. Just installed a new Intex skimmer and LED Sprayer (pic). It seems like the sprayer can create more breaking and rippling to the surface. I am currently monitoring the effectiveness of the sprayer on raising the PH. If it doesn’t work, will use soda ash. I just bought a 50kg soda ash ?? I suppose it will last me for quite some times.

4. I very much prefer to have my pool covered during the weekdays as it helps to keep my pool clean, and at the same time conserve my FC. I have run the pool uncovered for a few days before and there are so much debris/dust/dirt floating on the surface and at the pool bed as well.

It has been almost 2 mth and my LaMotte test kit still haven’t arrive yet ??‍. Need to test the rest of the chemical before I switch to SWG. Currently still using Trichlor tablet.

 

[kimkats]

I bet that sprayer is so pretty at night! Well done and fun as well! It will also lower your water temps if you run it at night. I am not sure if that is something you worry about where you are but wanted to throw that out there.

Gurrrrrrrr on the test kit not getting there yet

 

[ellislo]

@kimkats ? with internet, we are truly in a borderless world, but not sure why the local LaMotte needs 2 months for delivery. I have order stuffs from Amazon (US site) before and it only took 2 weeks to get to me....? but too bad not everything can be sent internationally to Malaysia like all the test kits selling there.

The intex spray does look very nice at night. But at my place, all the mosquitoes come out when the sun goes down, and I wouldn’t want to feed the mosquitoes ? with my precious blood? ?.

 

[kimkats]

H! I know ALL about the "Florida State bird" aka mosquitoes! Yeah don't want to feed them any of your precious blood! LOL

 

[ellislo]

Tested my pool pH with Waterco and LaMotte 7022 test kit. The Waterco test kit is using Palintest DPD1 tablet. Waterco test show pH 7.4 white LaMotte show 6.8 (refer attached pic). Now which one should I trust ?.

 

[ellislo]

Did a second test with LaMotte and got the same pH6.8. I will just go along with LaMotte result. Using PoolMath with pH target 7.5, added soda ash and managed to bring pH to 7.5~7.6.

 

[kimkats]

Good move. If either one of then shows a low pH I would push it up a bit. Low pH does more harm than a slightly high pH.

 

[ellislo]

Operating my pump with chlorine (TCCA 90%) dispenser set at Max for 4hrs/day for 2 days have caused my pH to drop from 7.5 - 7.1. Need to quickly switch to SWG once the target CYA is attained, if not I will be forever adding soda ash.

 

[ellislo]

On 18/2, tested my pool water in the evening and found the CYA 30.
On 19/2, with the pool covered and no swimmers, I ran the pump with the chlorine dispenser off, and the CYA dropped to 20.
Is this possible?

interestingly, with the pool covered and the chlorine dispenser off, the FC remained at 8.

 

[kimkats]

Your CYA should not have dropped unless there has been a big water exchange. Have you had a lot of rain? or have you been adding a lot of water recently?

The FC staying is from the cover. It keep the sun from burning any of the FC off.

Kim

 

[ellislo]

no rain and no water exchange.....maybe I should retest CYA..... CYA should be around 30 (as per Pool Math) as I have already used up 3kg of TCCA 90%.

 

[kimkats]

When you test for the CYA make sure you are only GLANCING when you look at the dot. GLANCE then look away. You can do the test as many times as you want. Just pour it back and forth until you find a way of GLANCING at the dot that produces consistent results.

Pour to a line, GLANCE in..........if you see the dot then pour to the next line, GLANCE in.........keep doing this until you can't see the dot at a GLANCE. If you "look" for the dot you will see it LOL (I do NOT like this test but it is what we have so I found the GLANCE method and it is what I found works for me.)


Kim

 

[ellislo]

???‍this is a difficult test for me too, my eyes become blurry after looking at the small dot for a while....

 

[ellislo]

Just did a CYA test..... CYA 20-25 ?.... one thing I noticed is that I need to wait a little while for the CYA tablet to be completely dissolved.

 

[ellislo]

Just tested, with pool under sunlight whole day without pool cover. pH dropped to 5.5 from 8. Is this normal?

 

[mknauss]

Just tested, with pool under sunlight whole day without pool cover. pH dropped to 5.5 from 8. Is this normal?

ph or FC?