Got the TF-100 and the results....!

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robstar said:
anything other than liquid chlorine brings CYA with it, which is not what you want right now. the dry stuff is shelf-stable; leave it out of this.

do all your FC measuring with the FAS-DPD test (the powder that turns water pink, then drops to return it to clear, swirling between each drop (i love the speedstir, btw)); nothing else will give precise numbers, or any info above about 5ppm.

with liquid, chlorine additions should change the FC level within 30min with the pump running.

i am not a chemist or a doctor, but i'm pretty confident that adding 2-3 gallons of chlorine is fine.

really, i think the key is to start with pH between 7.2 and 7.5 (aim for the 7.2 end of that range), then get the FC up to at least what the CYA/FC table says your shock level should be (aim for a number that assumes your CYA measurement is off by a little -- so since 30CYA->12FC, assume you really have 40CYA and aim for 16FC). run the pump continuously and check the FC every 4 daylight hours, adding liquid chlorine to bring it back up. if the FC is falling fast, especially overnight, that's _good_ because it means it's getting used up _doing_ something. (daylight FC loss is at least partly UV breakdown). don't be too eager to call the SLAM complete. don't run out of liquid chlorine. even once the FC isn't _falling_ fast anymore, keep running the filter and topping off the chlorine until your water is clear. (brush, backwash, clean the filter, etc, as necessary)

also, as the slam page says, high FC makes all the other tests pretty unreliable, which is nice b/c you can simply not think about them while slamming. other than knowing your CYA and setting your pH to 7.2 before starting, they really don't matter.

the goal of the shock is for your water to have nothing organic left in it and very little else other than H2O and some compounds involving Cl, N, O, H, and Na (maybe some B if you're into that)
Click to expand...

Thanks Rob and others!

Something still doesn't seem to add up for me.
1. According to PoolMath my pool size is 29,100 gallons. It is an 18 x 36 pool with 3 on the shallow end and 9 on the deep end. Let us say pool size is 30,000 gallons.
2. According to PoolMath, a gallon of 12.5% LC should increase my FC by 4.2.
3. Since this afternoon, I poured in 6 gallons of 12.5% LC. Technically this should have raised the FC by 25.2 (MY CYA is about 30 so I only need about 12 to 14 FC).
4. I just measured the FC and it is at 5 (took 10 drops on the drop test to clear. I use TF-100 kit and the magnetic stir). Unless the LC takes long to mix (Been an hour plus since the last mix), the FC is not raising at all.

This makes me wonder,
1. The LC from Ocean state is watered down. It is not at 12.5% as they claim. https://www.oceanstatejoblot.com/pool-shock-1-gal/product/97194
2. Or it takes too long for it to mix and show in tests. By the time I measure next, it will spike up like crazy.
3. Either the PoolMath or my pool size calculations are wrong. I need to be adding way more chlorine to the mix.
4. Maybe there is too much organic stuff in my pool that is eating up the chlorine? I cant see the bottom as it is still cloudy but I vacuumed and brushed the pool floor so many times there may not be that many sediments (or dead bodies I hope!)
5. Or, I am clueless and I have no idea what I am doing?

I am little frustrated now as the FC is not raising and I couldn't figure out why. Can someone please point out what I am doing wrong?

Thanks for the help guys.
Andy
 
At the start of a SLAM Process the pool can consume chlorine pretty rapidly.

I assume we are not dealing with ammonia. Did this pool start as a swamp?
 
mknauss said:
At the start of a SLAM Process the pool can consume chlorine pretty rapidly.

I assume we are not dealing with ammonia. Did this pool start as a swamp?
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Mike,
The pool did start out as a swamp but that was about 2 weeks ago. I have been adding gallons of chlorine for the last 2 weeks. Probably around 12 to 15 gallons of 12.5% LC in the pool already though the FC readings dont reflect that. (15 gallons of LC plus 6 bags/lbs of Cal-Hypo at 73% Chlorine before that, so a lot of chlorine went into that pool). Almost double what I put in last year (or even more).

It might be possible that I have some ammonia in the pool. Before I found this forum, on my initial opening (about 2 weeks ago), I added 1 qt of PoolMate Algaecide as well as 1/2 qt of Leslie UltraBright Pool Clarifier. PoolMate Algaecide has ammonia in it (https://www.oceanstatejoblot.com/pool-mate-algaecide-1-qt/product/97196). Leslie's pool clarifier (Leslie's Ultra Bright Pool Clarifier) says it has "poly (diallyldimethylammonium chloride)" though it doesn't say how much.

I am ok to continue to add 12.5% LC until I hit the SLAM level. But getting a little nervous as nothing showed up after 6 gallons of LC today (and probably about 15 gallons overall in the last 2 weeks). Is that normal?

Thanks
Andy
 
With ammonia, yes. Say you had 5 ppm ammonia (due to swamp and what you added), you would need to add 50 ppm chlorine before it will start to hold. That would be about 12 gallons of 12.5% in your pool.

Keep adding enough LC to get to 10 ppm, circulate the pool for 30 minutes, test FC, if 5 or below, dose back to 10 ppm, repeat. Once you get greater than 5 ppm after a 30 minute circulation, you are ready to go into SLAM
 
mknauss said:
With ammonia, yes. Say you had 5 ppm ammonia (due to swamp and what you added), you would need to add 50 ppm chlorine before it will start to hold. That would be about 12 gallons of 12.5% in your pool.

Keep adding enough LC to get to 10 ppm, circulate the pool for 30 minutes, test FC, if 5 or below, dose back to 10 ppm, repeat. Once you get greater than 5 ppm after a 30 minute circulation, you are ready to go into SLAM
Click to expand...
Great. Now that makes sense. Thanks! Just picked up another 8 gallons of 12.5% LC. At this rate, I am pretty much cleaning the store :)

BTW, should I worry about measuring ammonia to see where it is? TF-100 doesn't give an option.
 
At the start of the thread you said you raised FC to 14 and a few hours later it was 12 and then 11 next morning. Few days later said you passed an oclt. That means you didn't have ammonia when you started.

Maybe it was quite some pool party you had...and still in the recovery phase. Either way the cure is more chlorine.

What is the date code on the 6 gallons of LC you added that hardly had any effect?
 
Poolzzz said:
At the start of the thread you said you raised FC to 14 and a few hours later it was 12 and then 11 next morning. Few days later said you passed an oclt. That means you didn't have ammonia when you started.

Maybe it was quite some pool party you had...and still in the recovery phase. Either way the cure is more chlorine.

What is the date code on the 6 gallons of LC you added that hardly had any effect?
Click to expand...

Hey,
There is no date code on the LC from Ocean State. I checked the box and bottles multiple times.

I will respond to your other comments in a separate response as I was making too many "rookie mistakes." The first step in a cure is to admit you have a problem as they say! I will post detailed info on my SLAM process mistakes and hope it will help the next rookie that comes along :)

As far as the party, it was great. Had about 10 kids using the pool for a few hours. Hope they didn't introduce any ammonia :)
 
I am kinda close on my second SLAM, yet no cigar! The water looks much clearer and blue now. Hopefully will be ready by tomorrow.
BTW, My FC is stable now (for the most part) around 14, CC is 0.5 but haven't done the OCLT test yet as the water is not still clear. Should I wait for crystal clear water, or is it ok to do it when I see the bottom on the deep end? (which I can now)
20180706_195409.jpg
 

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TFP Clear means you can toss a quarter in the deep end and call heads or tails from the deck. Or just glancing at the main drain and being able to tell if they're slotted or phillips screws holding the cover on.

For a SLAM, I'd settle for seeing the drain clearly.
 
Finally, my pool is back in operation with crystal clear water! It took longer than excepted and kids were unhappy with sizzling heat in northeast for a couple of weeks now. Lesson learned with adding clarifier and Algecide to the pool. The ammonia slowed down the SLAM process considerably.

Thanks so much for all your help! I truly appreciate it. Would have never believed it that a pool water can be crystal clear just with chlorine alone (without Algecide, Clarifier, Phosphate Free, Perfect Weekly blah.) But here I am living thru it to tell a story :)

Quick question, though the water is blue & crystal clear now I am noticing a lot of stains (left behind by Algae I would assume). How do I get rid of that? If I go the pool store I know what they will say :). I am curious if there is another way to remove it. Multiple stain spots (brushing doesnt seem to remove it completely). Also, a few algae spots where there is a penny size (or smaller) algae that doesnt come off by brushing.

The SLAM process did complete with crystal clear water, FC doesn't drop more than 1 ppm overnight, and CC is near 0.

Any advise is appreciated. The above is not that bad, but given that the pool is so clear it is very visible now :)

Pool.jpg

Thanks again for the help
Andy
 
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