Two main questions relating to the SLAM process:
). I tested the water and FC was 0. Oops.
I spent 30-45 minutes with the net, going after all of the piles of leaves I could see. It was getting dark and and the more I scooped out leaves, the more I stirred things up and the murkier the water got. I know there's still a lot of leaves and debris in there, so I have more scooping (and eventually vacuuming) ahead of me tomorrow. Before heading inside I made sure the skimmer and intake were clean and upped the FC to 12 (based on Pool Math App recommendation for my CYA level which I verified was at 30 before I started). I checked the FC level about 3 hours later after the kids went to bed and it hadn't dropped any. Will check again and adjust in the morning before work, and then spend the evening tomorrow cleaning out as much debris as I can before dark.
My only real questions at this point are about pH and how the colder water (60F) may affect the SLAM process. I just looked up the SLAM procedures to get a refresher since I read them several times before we set the pool up over the summer, but I've never had to use them. They said to test and adjust pH to 7.2-7.5 BEFORE starting the SLAM. During the season, my pH stayed pretty consistent between 7.5-7.8 so I got used to only checking it every 3-4 days and aerating for a day or so when needed to bring it back up a bit. Since we quit swimming, I hadn't really been checking it consistently at all. Last check was about 2 weeks ago and it was 7.6. I assume it's probably higher than that now, but I don't really know. I'm just curious how a lower or higher pH might affect my SLAMming efforts? The SLAM instructions say that the pH test isn't reliable during a SLAM, so I assume I'm stuck with whatever it is (and not knowing).
Anyway, all guidance and thoughts are welcome and appreciated. Didn't mean for the post to be so long, just documenting everything so I can refer back to my post history in the future if I ever need to.
(Also, maybe this is weird, but I'm actually kind of glad this happened. I'm happy to get the experience dealing with a SLAM and getting the water back to clear when it's not swimming season and my kids are mad at me that they can't swim!)
- How important is the 7.2-7.5 pH level during a SLAM?
- Does water temperature affect the SLAM process? (Water temp just hit 60F last night/today)
). I tested the water and FC was 0. Oops.I spent 30-45 minutes with the net, going after all of the piles of leaves I could see. It was getting dark and and the more I scooped out leaves, the more I stirred things up and the murkier the water got. I know there's still a lot of leaves and debris in there, so I have more scooping (and eventually vacuuming) ahead of me tomorrow. Before heading inside I made sure the skimmer and intake were clean and upped the FC to 12 (based on Pool Math App recommendation for my CYA level which I verified was at 30 before I started). I checked the FC level about 3 hours later after the kids went to bed and it hadn't dropped any. Will check again and adjust in the morning before work, and then spend the evening tomorrow cleaning out as much debris as I can before dark.
My only real questions at this point are about pH and how the colder water (60F) may affect the SLAM process. I just looked up the SLAM procedures to get a refresher since I read them several times before we set the pool up over the summer, but I've never had to use them. They said to test and adjust pH to 7.2-7.5 BEFORE starting the SLAM. During the season, my pH stayed pretty consistent between 7.5-7.8 so I got used to only checking it every 3-4 days and aerating for a day or so when needed to bring it back up a bit. Since we quit swimming, I hadn't really been checking it consistently at all. Last check was about 2 weeks ago and it was 7.6. I assume it's probably higher than that now, but I don't really know. I'm just curious how a lower or higher pH might affect my SLAMming efforts? The SLAM instructions say that the pH test isn't reliable during a SLAM, so I assume I'm stuck with whatever it is (and not knowing).
Anyway, all guidance and thoughts are welcome and appreciated. Didn't mean for the post to be so long, just documenting everything so I can refer back to my post history in the future if I ever need to.
(Also, maybe this is weird, but I'm actually kind of glad this happened. I'm happy to get the experience dealing with a SLAM and getting the water back to clear when it's not swimming season and my kids are mad at me that they can't swim!
)
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