HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND!!! & Questions ;)

[melsteph]

Pool is looking awesome! I love my Speedstirer thingy! Thanks for the tip there! New reagents and here are todays #'s:
ph - 8 (likes to run a little high, I know to add MA)
FC - 1.4 (running SWG at 80% for 6 hours) Hasn't been too hot in Texas yet. ***
TA - 90
CH - 320
CYA - 70
Temp 80

??? I add a little bleach but not getting FC up high as I want it. Do I need to add MORE bleach like Pool Math recommends or is it more of a timing issue with my SWG? Pool will be a year old soon but this was my first spring to start it while it has been relatively cool.

??? Also I like to vacuum! I have the Dolphin and it works great, but misses some spots like corners and behind bar stools. Will any of the manual vacuums (maintenance kits at Walmart) work fine or is there something special I need to look for with plaster? Pool Max Blaster didn't work well for me in the AG intex years ago.

Thanks again!
Melissa

 

[Chungus]

I am a rookie at this but with a SWG you really shouldn’t have to add bleach unless you are SLAMing your pool. The whole purpose of the SWG is to make the chlorine for you so you don’t have to buy it. I would adjust your SWG percentage or run time until your FC levels get them to where you want them to be. Adding bleach certainly will do the trick and won’t hurt anything but I would accomplish the goal by adjusting the SWG.

 

[Texas Splash]

Melissa, welcome back to another TFP season. Definitely increase the FC right away. I'd use liquid chlorine/bleach to get the FC to about 6-8 right away. I suspect the water can use it because algae is not too far away. Lucky for you the water temp is only 80. Mine just crossed over 90. Once you have the FC increased, brush the pool really well. Even if you can't vacuum around a small area, brushing it will work since you'll kick that stuff somewhere else the cleaner can get to.

Lastly, start keeping good notes about your FC production. It sounds like you should be cranking out a good amount of FC. An IC40 at 80% for 6 hrs should be doing pretty well. For the FC to not hold means one of 3 things: 1- The SWG needs cleaning or is going bad; 2 - The CYA is too low (below 70); 3 - you have algae. Since your CYA is already 70, let's hope it's #3.

So increase the FC right away and considering keeping it elevated all day today. Perhaps do an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test this evening (SWG off) to see if there is any excess FC consumption. Then you'll know if you need to perform a SLAM Process.

 

[Ribbod]

I personally would add a little bleach per Pool Math, as you want at least FC of 3 with a CYA of 70 with a SWG... Your SWG wont generate enough to bring it up to that level, and its meant to maintain once you get FC up.