Frustrated while SLAMing

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I followed the SLAM process for a good solid month. I work from home so I was able to go out and test/add LC every couple hours. Totally exhausting but it works. Keep at it.

I have the same fine dust type stuff. I was advised it maybe from my sand filter letting in particles of sand. I haven’t sock tested it (I need to) yet.

I vacuum & it comes right back. I changed my filter sand and still have it. Maybe that’s your issue also?
 
Ok so maybe I am done? I was afraid of landing in "maybe" land. I woke up super early to beat the sun and check-i SLAMed to 20 last night
i tested and got 18.5-wow what a punch in the grapes, 37 drops was the worst possible number, but i do it again to confirm and keep getting different numbers. So even though i am low on reagents, i did the test several times and hope my order gets here really soon. here is what i got:

18.5
19.5
18
20
21.5?
20
18

the first time, there was the tiniest bit if CC (barely pink) all of the other times there was 0 CC

I see that there is a 10% margin of error. Unfortunately 10% of 20 is 2, so that could give me a reading of not being done if i really am
I was also swirling by hand this time instead of using the little spatula thing to mix-then at the end i use the spatula thing again
Also, I am using 3 "heaping" spoons of powder instead of 2 since it says to use more at high FC levels

so, maybe i am done? maybe not?
 
I would say you are done. You average in those tests makes the loss 1 ppm or less.

You are using FAR TOO MUCH reagent. 1 scoop is all you need. Your inconsistency of results is puzzling but you are done.
 
Tracey R said:
I followed the SLAM process for a good solid month. I work from home so I was able to go out and test/add LC every couple hours. Totally exhausting but it works. Keep at it.

I have the same fine dust type stuff. I was advised it maybe from my sand filter letting in particles of sand. I haven’t sock tested it (I need to) yet.

I vacuum & it comes right back. I changed my filter sand and still have it. Maybe that’s your issue also?
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Wow never heard anyone else say they had this also

Just curious-you say that the SLAM worked for you, but you still have the dust/particle stuff? Was the SLAM for something else or for that and you just gave up after that long? (I cannot imagine doing this for a month-the $ on LC and running the pump 24/7 for a month!)

I personally did think I had sand but i do not think that anymore because:

1) I went in the pool last week and tried to grab at the particles to see if it was sand and i could grab it. It "poofed" away every time with 0 sand grit feels, even if i went really slow up to it
2) I emailed Hayward and they said my pump and filter are sized fine together
3) I did the sock test either last year or the year before when I saw this and got like a grain or 2 in 4 hours-not nearly enough to make this happen
 
duraleigh said:
I would say you are done. You average in those tests makes the loss 1 ppm or less.

You are using FAR TOO MUCH reagent. 1 scoop is all you need. Your inconsistency of results is puzzling but you are done.
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I was just following the extended test directions. It says to use 2 level dippers, but then later says "At very high FC levels it is likely that you will need to use more than the normal amount. " So if the normal amount is 2, then more than that is at least 3, right?

Does the size of the drops change when the bottle is low? i have like 10% or less of the bottle, but there was no air coming out with the drops
 
duraleigh said:
Please use as many scoops as you like. My experience tells me one scoop is adequate to perform that test correctly. The drop size stays the same until the bottle is empty.
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Going outside to vacuum now. If that stuff comes back, i'll report that-dont know what the next step would be if it does

is it normal to have to SLAM every year? I know pool school recommends SLAMing for opening and closing, but can i expect most (or every) year, this process will be necessary mid season also does this not happen often when you are a seasoned veteran at chemistry?
 
If you can keep your FC levels to the point they never drop below the minimum for your CYA then you shouldn't need to SLAM once the pool is clear.

You likely need to bring up to SLAM levels to close (but that's just a one-time addition of chlorine) and depending on how you winterize you may need to SLAM when you open (if algae could grow before you had a chance to open and re-chlorinate), but you shouldn't need to during the year. If you do, it's likely because the FC got too low.

For powder - if you see anything left after you put it in and swirl the container, even a single grain, then you have enough.

Always swirl. Not sure what you mean by "little spatula thing" - maybe the part of the scoop you're meant to hold? - but you shouldn't be using anything to mix as that can introduce contaminants to the test. Just swirl.
 
TazJMT said:
Does the size of the drops change when the bottle is low? i have like 10% or less of the bottle, but there was no air coming out with the drops.
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duraleigh said:
The drop size stays the same until the bottle is empty.
Click to expand...

The drop size can vary by how hard you squeeze the bottle, how quickly the drops come out, and how you hold the bottle. You should squeeze hard enough so that the drop just hangs off the tip of the bottle before it falls off. About 1 drop per second seems to be a decent speed, don't go any faster. Finally, hold the bottle vertical, not at an angle. Following these 3 will help with consistency in your test results.
 
Vacuumed and brushed about an hour ago. Backwashed also even though i backwashed after vacuuming yesterday (i normally dont like to backwash that often but in case any of the dead stuff was going to recirculate i wanted to blow it out)

So i will check in a couple hours and see-thats plenty of time for it to comeback usually. The only thing i am unsure of with this is if anything i tried to vacuum didnt get sucked up, i feel like it will swirl and get caught again so i wont know if it is old or new

but there was notably less today
 

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TazJMT said:
Wow never heard anyone else say they had this also

Just curious-you say that the SLAM worked for you, but you still have the dust/particle stuff? Was the SLAM for something else or for that and you just gave up after that long? (I cannot imagine doing this for a month-the $ on LC and running the pump 24/7 for a month!)

I personally did think I had sand but i do not think that anymore because:

1) I went in the pool last week and tried to grab at the particles to see if it was sand and i could grab it. It "poofed" away every time with 0 sand grit feels, even if i went really slow up to it
2) I emailed Hayward and they said my pump and filter are sized fine together
3) I did the sock test either last year or the year before when I saw this and got like a grain or 2 in 4 hours-not nearly enough to make this happen
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I SLAMMED bc my pool way horrible ugly thick green. My CYA was up around 190 (I really had no idea what CYA/stabilizer was til this May) so I drained partially a few times & once I got that down I started the process. I spent a ton of $ on LC but it DOES work.
Yes, I can vacuum & within a short period I have a little of that stuff back. My SLAM is done. I meet all the criteria.
This was my pool yesterday. Now I’m only adding about 1 gallon daily. I shoot for FC of 8. My range s/b 4-7.
 

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Why not just drop the scoop part with the powder in it and let it all swirl up together? Do you actually switch ends so the paddle is doing mixing along with the bean?

It rinses the powder off the scoop, then you can rinse it with clean water. The scoop will turn black if you don't rinse it.

I don't test with the scoop in. Too much action for me. :geek:
 
A little update-the last time I added any liquid chlorine was monday night. Yesterday I didn;t even test it because I knew I wasn't going to drop from 20 down under 6 in one day. So I tested tonight 48 hours later and am still getting a reading of 14 (it was cloudy/rainy all day today). Sure I am happy about still being that high, but am surprised that I only dropped from 20-14 in 2 days. Also have to assume if there were anythign organic left, I would have lost more.

As far as that "stuff" in my pool, I am seeing just a little bit here and there now-much less than before. Anytime I see it, I brush it with the pump running to try to get rid of it via the filter. I am assuming (hoping) that it is residual dead algae left over that didn;t get sucked up and is settling. My guess is that if there was still live algae, I would see way more
 
So, the stuff is back. I haven't brushed the pool in a few days (but assume you aren't supposed to have to brush every day when not SLAMing) and the solar cover was on. I just took a peak underneath and see plenty of it again. Last night, I checked the FC and it was 7.5. The last time I added bleach was Monday night to a level or 20 and have lost 3.0 or 3.5 every day until last night it made it back to 7.5-which seems like a "there is non organic stuff in the pool" amount. (levels 20 Monday, 17 Tuesday, 14 Wednesday, 11.5 Thursday, 7.5 Friday), so I was assuming I would finally need to add again tonight for regular maintenance. Also, there is 0 CC all week. I think maybe the tiniest bit of pink one night, looked like much less than .5.

I also checked pH and TA last night. 7.6 and 110 respectively.

I am at a loss at this point
 

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