First test with Taylor K2006 kit

[tm8747a]

So I just did my first test with the my new Taylor kit. Below are my results. I'm using the Pool Match app and trying to make sure I understand this correctly. When I go for FC recommendations, it tells me "add 1490ml or 1.5 liters by volume to reach your target." What do they mean by "by volume"? Should I worry about my pH and CYA? pH is outside ideal range, but not too far off. CYA is outside recommended range, not by a wide margin though. Thanks in advance for the help.

FC = 0.5
pH = 7.9 (very hard time matching the color exactly, it's definitely high though, 7.8-8 range)
TA = 80
CH = 220
CYA = 20

 

[mknauss]

First, get the FC up to a minimum of 3 ppm. Any time below that level is an invitation to algae.

By Volume means using volume instead of weight. Fur us in the USA, 1 gallon of liquid can be different than 128 oz of solid.

Get some more stabilizer in the water. 30 ppm minimum total.

 

[tm8747a]

First, get the FC up to a minimum of 3 ppm. Any time below that level is an invitation to algae.

By Volume means using volume instead of weight. Fur us in the USA, 1 gallon of liquid can be different than 128 oz of solid.

Get some more stabilizer in the water. 30 ppm minimum total.

Will do. One question about CYA, I still have some pucks they gave me with the pool. My understanding is the pucks will raise the CYA, I just don't know how fast. Should I just try to raise the FC by using up the pucks and turning up the dial on the chlorinator (that way I assume more chlorine would be used AND the CYA would rise)? I could keep monitoring and then stop the pucks once I'm around the right CYA level, then if I need more chlorine I can go with liquid bleach. Or would the CYA rise too fast that way?

 

[mknauss]

In your pool volume, each 8 oz puck will raise your FC 6.5 ppm, CYA 4 ppm, and reduce the pH 0.4. This is from Effects of Adding Chemicals in PoolMath

Issue with trying to dissolve the pucks quicker, is the resulting drop in pH. You can quickly turn the pool water into vinegar and destroy the liner.

 

[tm8747a]

In your pool volume, each 8 oz puck will raise your FC 6.5 ppm, CYA 4 ppm, and reduce the pH 0.4. This is from Effects of Adding Chemicals in PoolMath

Issue with trying to dissolve the pucks quicker, is the resulting drop in pH. You can quickly turn the pool water into vinegar and destroy the liner.

Got it. Thanks again for the advice!

 

[tm8747a]

OK, still experiencing some trouble. Here’s a summary as short as I can manage.
First test I did I had no kit and and wasn’t expecting to receive mine for another couple weeks, so I took a sample to my pool store done my water was getting cloudy. The results showed very low FC, like 0.04 and low CYA. They told me that since the CYA would rise over time it was best not to do anything there, which I know won’t be the case one I go with just bleach but at the time I didn’t know when I’d do that since I had no ability to test. They gave me some chemicals to shock the pool. After putting them in, I got my Taylor kit a couple couple days later. When I did the FC test, I noticed that it took a lot of powder for the water to turn pink, and it’s a very faint pink. Then one drop is all it took to get rid of the pink, meaning 0.5 FC at most. I also tested the CYA and I had to fill the tube above all lines for the dot to get a little fainter but not completely disappear. So in the Pool Math app I put zero for CYA and 0.5 for FC, it tells me to add 1.5 liters of 6% bleach to raise FC to 3. I did that, pool got noticeably better, but when I retested still struggled to get the water pink and still one drop only to get back to transparent. I checked the math to see what it would be for the original FC of 0.04, it says 1.8 liters which is not much more, but I added 300ml just in case. Re- rested later, made no different, still getting the same result for FC. So I just absolutely need to get my CYA up before anything else?

 

[mknauss]

When doing the FC test, only use one scoop of powder in a 10 ml sample. If it does not turn pink, the FC is 0.

With little CYA in the water, the FC will disappear very quickly with sun shining on the pool.

Start dissolving 30 ppm CYA worth of stabilizer using the sock method. Continue to add a minimum of 3 ppm FC worth of liquid chlorine each day until the FC stabilizes and the CYA measures above 30 ppm. Then follow the FC/CYA Levels

 

[tm8747a]

Just wanted to post a thank you note. I followed the instructions, got my CYA up and diligently stayed on top of adding liquid chlorine. Today was the first time I got an FC score of 3.5. Still a bit of work to do, but all my values except FC are now in ideal range, just need to get the FC there, which I will very soon. My water is crystal clear. I got a bit lucky because my water was not yet green, just a bit cloudy and I could still see the bottom of the pool. So probably a bit less work than people with disaster scenarios, but bottomline is I used the same tools to remedy. Many thanks again for the advice!