Frustrated

[Maggiekeltz]

I am having trouble balancing Ph and Alkalinity in my fiberglass SWG hot tub.
Borate is 45. I am maintaining Ph at 7.8 with Alkalinity of 30. When I raise alkalinity with baking soda Ph rises. Lowering Ph lowers Alkalinity. Any suggestions?

 

[duraleigh]

When I raise alkalinity with baking soda Ph rises

But not much, right? Baking Soda should have little affect on pH

 

[Mdragger88]

Only Raise ta to 50 with baking soda.
Be careful its easy to overdo baking soda in a small tub. Just add 1/2 the amount
PoolMath calls for & recheck after 30 minutes.
Then just keep ph in line with small acid additions. Not big jumps. Ph in the Mid to high 7’s is fine.
Check your ph when the jets have been off. When the tub has been at rest to get a truer idea of your ph.
Aeration increases ph.
Ensure your water level is sufficient so when the pumps come on its not too turbulent. This will help moderate standby ph rise.
Are you adding any dichlor or mps to the tub? They are also acidic & will lower both ph & ta.

 

[phonedave]

Do not worry too much about dialing in an exact TA in a hot tub. The tub will find a natural balance where your pH is in range and your TA is acceptable, and both are relatively stable.

 

[Maggiekeltz]

I am having trouble balancing Ph and Alkalinity in my fiberglass SWG hot tub.
Borate is 45. I am maintaining Ph at 7.8 with Alkalinity of 30. When I raise alkalinity with baking soda Ph rises. Lowering Ph lowers Alkalinity. Any suggestions?

Only Raise ta to 50 with baking soda.
Be careful its easy to overdo baking soda in a small tub. Just add 1/2 the amount
PoolMath calls for & recheck after 30 minutes.
Then just keep ph in line with small acid additions. Not big jumps. Ph in the Mid to high 7’s is fine.
Check your ph when the jets have been off. When the tub has been at rest to get a truer idea of your ph.
Aeration increases ph.
Ensure your water level is sufficient so when the pumps come on its not too turbulent. This will help moderate standby ph rise.
Are you adding any dichlor or mps to the tub? They are also acidic & will lower both ph & ta.

Thanks. I will try adding small amts of baking soda and muriatic acid as needed. I am not using any chlorine stabilizers as hot tub is always covered during the day, only used at night.

 

[Mdragger88]

Thanks. I will try adding small amts of baking soda and muriatic acid as needed. I am not using any chlorine stabilizers as hot tub is always covered during the day, only used at night.

It is recommended to have around 30ppm of cya in a covered tub - not for uv protection but to moderate the harshness of the necessary amounts of fc on bathers, equipment, & surfaces (like the cover/pillows).
Without cya any fc over 3 or 4ppm can be quite harsh but 2 bathers can obliterate 3 or 4 ppm fc in just 30 minutes leaving the tub with zero sanitation allowing nasties to proliferate quickly.
FC/CYA Levels

How do I use Chlorine in my Spa (or pool)?

If you have a question about any information within this Sticky, please start a new thread for yourself where you will receive very quick responses to your specific questions. Thank you! Introduction There are two main things to consider when maintaining your hot tub water, Water Balance and...

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