Getting the hang - But Still Learning - Looking for Confirmation on Chemistry

[kvoigt]

I canceled my service company a few months ago and have been learning how to do the maintenance myself. Definitely still figuring things out, but it's starting to come into focus! lol

Wanted to check in with the forums and see if I could get some feedback on my recent tests

Free Chlorine - 3.0ppm
pH - 8.0 (maybe a touch over 8 given the color seemed a bit darker than the 8)
Alkalinity - 80 ppm
Calcium - 250
CYA - 75
Salt - 2200 ppm
Temp - 51 / CSI -0.20

FC - Now that the temps have dropped, I've turned off the chlorinator and this is the first time I've seen the FC drop to a point where Pool Math is recommending adding liquid chlorine. Pool Math is recommending adding 62 oz to raise the FC to 5.0ppm. I looked on Amazon and saw BioGuard Chlorinating Liquid in gallon sizes - Is this the correct product?

pH - The pH has consistently been high - A couple of weeks ago, I added dry acid to lower the pH and achieved the 7.6 target - It's now back up to 8.0+. I've read that the pH will regulate itself. Is that correct, or should I continue adding the dry acid to keep it around 7.6?

Alkalinity - 80ppm - this good?
CYA - 75 - good?
Calcium - 250ppm seems on the lower range of recommended, but given the plaster, I've been told this should be fine. Is that correct?

Salt - 2200 - not sure what my salt levels should be. Seems like this is somewhat of a preference? Any thoughts here would be welcomed.

Thanks again for the help with this!

 

[Jimrahbe]

K,

This time a year, it is not a big deal, due the water being cold, but in general you always want your FC to be at or above your Target range.. You really don't want to try and keep your FC between your minimum and your target.. Doing that is just asking for trouble in the summer...

I would never buy anything labeled 'BioGuard' ... Just go to Lowes, Home Depot, or your local pool store and buy 'Liquid Chlorine' that has no magic additives.

Keep in mind that this time of year the FC consumption will be a lot less than in the summer.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Mdragger88]

I canceled my service company a few months ago and have been learning how to do the maintenance myself. Definitely still figuring things out, but it's starting to come into focus! lol

Great

Wanted to check in with the forums and see if I could get some feedback on my recent tests

Free Chlorine - 3.0ppm
pH - 8.0 (maybe a touch over 8 given the color seemed a bit darker than the 8)
Alkalinity - 80 ppm
Calcium - 250
CYA - 75
Salt - 2200 ppm
Temp - 51 / CSI -0.20

I’ll try to answer about each thing

FC - Now that the temps have dropped, I've turned off the chlorinator and this is the first time I've seen the FC drop to a point where Pool Math is recommending adding liquid chlorine. Pool Math is recommending adding 62 oz to raise the FC to 5.0ppm. I looked on Amazon and saw BioGuard Chlorinating Liquid in gallon sizes - Is this the correct product?

Thats is pretty expensive- you can get dedicated liquid chlorine for pools at lowes, home depot, Walmart, ace hardware etc. usually 10% strength. If you’re unable to find the dedicated pool stuff use plain unadulterated household bleach - usually 6-7% - no cloromax, scents or fabric enhancers. Chloralen and hdx brand are pretty safe bets - just read the labels.
Now that you’re manually dosing use the liquid chlorine chart.
A cya of 75 counts as 80 for chlorination purposes so you want to stay above 6ppm at all times.

pH - The pH has consistently been high - A couple of weeks ago, I added dry acid to lower the pH and achieved the 7.6 target - It's now back up to 8.0+. I've read that the pH will regulate itself. Is that correct, or should I continue adding the dry acid to keep it around 7.6?

We recommend using muriatic acid instead of the dry stuff since it adds sulfates which aren’t good for your swcg or your plaster. When you run out buy muriatic acid.
You may need to check your ph more frequently - at least once a week, maybe more. If your plaster is newer (less than a few years old) you will have an increased ph rise rate.

Alkalinity - 80ppm - this good?

Its fine, as you manage your ph in the 7’s the ta will fall. Usually once it’s in the 50/60 range the ph rise tends to slow down more. Some people might say “stabilize” but ph will always still rise in a plaster pool especially if your fill water has a higher ta.

CYA - 75 - good?

It is fine- it will probably fall some over the winter which is also fine just chlorinate accordingly

Calcium - 250ppm seems on the lower range of recommended, but given the plaster, I've been told this should be fine. Is that correct?

You should test your fill water. Its likely you will continue to add calcium via the fill water and if so no need to increase ch further.
You want to maintain a neutral or slightly negative csi which can be calculated in
PoolMath

Salt - 2200 - not sure what my salt levels should be. Seems like this is somewhat of a preference? Any thoughts here would be welcomed.

Thanks again for the help with this!

Your unit’s ideal salt level is between 2700-3400ppm
Since you’re done using the swcg for the winter you can adjust in the spring before turning it back on.
If adding more than a bag or so you want to let the pool run for 24 hours after adding salt before turning the swcg on.

 

[kvoigt]

Great

I’ll try to answer about each thing

Thats is pretty expensive- you can get dedicated liquid chlorine for pools at lowes, home depot, Walmart, ace hardware etc. usually 10% strength. If you’re unable to find the dedicated pool stuff use plain unadulterated household bleach - usually 6-7% - no cloromax, scents or fabric enhancers. Chloralen and hdx brand are pretty safe bets - just read the labels.
Now that you’re manually dosing use the liquid chlorine chart.
A cya of 75 counts as 80 for chlorination purposes so you want to stay above 6ppm at all times.
View attachment 620080

We recommend using muriatic acid instead of the dry stuff since it adds sulfates which aren’t good for your swcg or your plaster. When you run out buy muriatic acid.
You may need to check your ph more frequently - at least once a week, maybe more. If your plaster is newer (less than a few years old) you will have an increased ph rise rate.

Its fine, as you manage your ph in the 7’s the ta will fall. Usually once it’s in the 50/60 range the ph rise tends to slow down more. Some people might say “stabilize” but ph will always still rise in a plaster pool especially if your fill water has a higher ta.

It is fine- it will probably fall some over the winter which is also fine just chlorinate accordingly

You should test your fill water. Its likely you will continue to add calcium via the fill water and if so no need to increase ch further.
You want to maintain a neutral or slightly negative csi which can be calculated in
PoolMath

Your unit’s ideal salt level is between 2700-3400ppm
Since you’re done using the swcg for the winter you can adjust in the spring before turning it back on.
If adding more than a bag or so you want to let the pool run for 24 hours after adding salt before turning the swcg on.

Thanks! Forgot to mention that we do use the attached spa over the winter. Didn't know if that would impact the answers given we'll still be in the water.

 

[Mdragger88]

Thanks! Forgot to mention that we do use the attached spa over the winter. Didn't know if that would impact the answers given we'll still be in the water.

You’ll need to maintain all the other parameters aside from not adding cya or salt right now. As mentioned if your fill water adds ch you probably don’t need to worry about adding any more right now either as it will increase overtime as you add water to replace what has evaporated.
Will you be mixing the two bodies of water or maintaining them separately over the winter?

 

[kvoigt]

You’ll need to maintain all the other parameters aside from not adding cya or salt right now. As mentioned if your fill water adds ch you probably don’t need to worry about adding any more right now either as it will increase overtime as you add water to replace what has evaporated.
Will you be mixing the two bodies of water or maintaining them separately over the winter

Thanks! I'll test the hose water tomorrow for the CH. Is that the only test I need to make on the fill water?

I was planning on continuing the to run the spillover twice a day to mix the water. Do you think it makes more sense to maintain them separately?

 

[Jimrahbe]

Do you think it makes more sense to maintain them separately?

K,

No... the spa never gets any fresh water unless you run the spillover..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Mdragger88]

Thanks! I'll test the hose water tomorrow for the CH. Is that the only test I need to make on the fill water?

Go ahead and Test the ph & ta too.
Keep a note of them somewhere as a reference.

 

[Rocket J Squirrel]

Go ahead and Test the ph & ta too.
Keep a note of them somewhere as a reference.

I keep my full set of fill water measurements in PoolMath as a fake pool.

 

[kvoigt]

I keep my full set of fill water measurements in PoolMath as a fake pool.

I tested my fill water - here's the results:

Free Chlorine - 2.0ppm
pH - 8.5+ (estimating given how dark the shade was)
Alkalinity - 80 ppm
Calcium - 20
CYA - 0

Given the Calcium is only 20, should I add to the pool to get it over 250? Any other insights on the fill water results?

Thanks!!
Kris

 

[Mdragger88]

Given the Calcium is only 20, should I add to the pool to get it over 250?

Sure if you wish. No need to go crazy with it. Around 350ppm is fine.
Turn on csi tracking in
PoolMath to ensure you are maintaining a neutral to slightly negative csi. You can play around with the csi tab to see how different parameter’s levels affect the calculation. like what it will be like in the spring/summer with warmer water & the correct amount of salt.
be aware that some people have noticed some fc reduction when adding ch increaser so keep an eye on that afterwards and make up for it with liquid chlorine if needed. It doesn’t happen to everyone.

Any other insights on the fill water results?

The ph is a bit high so you may notice an effect there when adding lots of water at once.