First fill and tested; what do I do next?

[eddiejo]

Hi yall,

I just completed my first fill and test. I have listed my numbers below. Any ideas on what to do next? I am a little concerned about the TA level. I was thinking I would first buy some dry conditioner and add about 4 lbs at first and let it run in a sock in the skimmer basket over night and test the next morning. If the level is not at 30 ppm, I was going to add another pound. But I'm unsure. Any advice would help. Thanks, Eddie Jo

FC = 0
CC = 0
PH = 7.5
CYA = 0
CH = 275
TA = 150
TEMP = 80

 

[mknauss]

Looks like Colorado River water!

TA will come down with time. Check pH every few days and keep in the 7's. Best if you can eventually get your TA down to about 60 or so.

Use PoolMath for how much CYA powder gets you 30 ppm in the water. Start there but you will most likely want to get it to 50 ppm as I assume you will be using liquid chlorine.

Add liquid chlorine now to get 3ppm FC in the water. Then follow the [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] based on your expected CYA level from what you add.

I would not test CYA for a week or more. Just base things off the amount you add -- as long as you are sure of your pool volume.

 

[ajw22]

I was thinking I would first buy some dry conditioner and add about 4 lbs at first and let it run in a sock in the skimmer basket over night

Don't put CYA/Stablizer in a sock in the skimmer basket. Any solid CYA that leaks out of the sock will go right into your filter and could rapidly clog it.

Hang the sock in front of a return. Brush the bottom of the pool is you see any CYA settle to the bottom. Squeeze the sock once in a while.

 

[eddiejo]

Could I use dichlor to keep the FC level at 3ppm to gradually raise the CYA level to 30-50 instead of using dry conditioner? The pool temp is between 70-80 as it is cooling down in the desert. Or, is that not recommended? Of course once I raised the CYA level to 30-50 I would stop using dichlor and switch to liquid chlor. Thoughts? Thanks.

 

[mknauss]

You can, but, until you get 30 ppm CYA into the water the chlorine is being burned off by the sun very fast. So be aware that can leave you susceptible to algae during that time.

 

[Dirk]

I have to disagree with you Allen, sorry bud. Adding dry CYA in a sock in the skimmer is the much safer method. And hanging it as shown in that pic is especially bad for a plaster finish. It'll stain the plaster doing that, where the sock is rubbing against the wall.

In the skimmer, any CYA that leaks out of the sock will, in fact head to the filter, but unless your sock explodes in the skimmer, it's not going to leak out enough to clog a filter, it'll just stop there for a while as it finishes dissolving. Allen, maybe a DE filter might have that issue, but not in the OP's cartridge filter.

Further, you won't be able to get to a pool brush and back to your pool to "sweep up" any leaked or spilled CYA before it permanently stains your new plaster, even if you do happen to see it happen. I'd be happy to show you a picture of my CYA stain if you like. That was only about 20 seconds before I got to it with my brush.

This is what I use for CYA in my skimmer, works great:

Evercare Delicates Wash Bag - Walmart.com

It works faster than a sock, and maybe does let some very fine powder get to the filter, which has never been an issue for me. The trick is to find a bag or sock that has a fine enough mesh to hold the CYA, but loose enough to allow good water flow through it. That Walmart bag seems to be just right. Others use nylons, though I've never tried them myself. I just know the first time I used a sock it was too thick and didn't work well.

Adding CYA directly to the pool will likely get you a test result faster, so if you must hang a sock in front of a return, you need to suspend it from a stick or board or something that suspends it well enough away from touching the plaster. An alternate method is to get in the pool with the sock in your hands and walk around and squeeze it out as you go.

NEVER add CYA, liquid or solid, directly to your pool or skimmer. Solid, in a sock, is the right way!

But based on my experience, and my stain, I'll never let undissolved CYA get anywhere near my pool surface again. In the skimmer it goes.

 

[ajw22]

I have to disagree with you Allen, sorry bud. Adding dry CYA in a sock in the skimmer is the much safer method. And hanging it as shown in that pic is especially bad for a plaster finish. It'll stain the plaster doing that, where the sock is rubbing against the wall.

Sock does not rub against the wall. My pool return water flow holds the sock nicely away from the wall.

unless your sock explodes in the skimmer, it's not going to leak out enough to clog a filter,

We have heard reports here of that happening.

I have never had a CYA staining plaster problem in my pools. You must have extra strength CYA in CA.

 

[Dirk]

Sock does not rub against the wall. My pool return water flow holds the sock nicely away from the wall.

We have heard reports here of that happening.

I have never had a CYA staining plaster problem in my pools. You must have extra strength CYA in CA.

If the sock can touch the wall with the pump off, or leech CYA powder such that it can float down towards the bottom, then you are gambling your plaster finish (one spot of it, anyway), that the pump stays running the entire time (timer goes off? power failure? someone unknowingly shuts if off? etc?). Those are not far-fetched scenarios, at all. If that happens while the sock is in the skimmer, there is a much lower probability that stray CYA will reach the pool bottom in sufficient quantity to stain it.

CYA in sufficient quantity can, in fact, stain plaster (and other finishes too, I believe). The "A" stand for acid, after all, and the format (dry crystals or in undissolved "liquid" form), can make a tidy pile on the bottom of a pool.

I am surely more paranoid about this than most, I'm only suggesting the safer method. Plus, my Walmart bag can dispense 10ppm of CYA into my pool in about an hour, without any squeezing. The sock in front of the return method took overnight when I first tried it, even with regular squeezing.

 

[ajw22]

Those are not far-fetched scenarios, at all.

They are for my pool. Others can evaluate their situation.

I am surely more paranoid about this than most,

Agreed.

I'm only suggesting the safer method. Plus, my Walmart bag can dispense 10ppm of CYA into my pool in about an hour, without any squeezing. The sock in front of the return method took overnight when I first tried it, even with regular squeezing.

Don't let Walmart know what you are using it for or they will relabel it, put it in the pool aisle, and triple the price.

I will recycle my old socks for this use and save a few pennies. Glad to hear you can live big.

 

[Dirk]

Don't let Walmart know what you are using it for or they will relabel it, put it in the pool aisle, and triple the price.

Truth!

The vast majority of pool owners manage to add CYA to their pools without incident. No doubt about that. Even those that "do it wrong."

I know what works for me, is all...