Hey, I am Fabien and I moved from Toronto, Ontario to the South Shore of Montreal about 2 years ago, where I bought a house with an 81,000 L pool, that's a little over 21,000 gallons. I knew nothing about pools before moving into this house. I learned a lot from TFP, I have pool math installed on my iphone. Your website has helped me understand so much! Thank you. I had, however and until now, never considered posting on this forum. So here I am.
I also made a friend at a local pool store (he works there as a technician). Super knowledgeable and he's taught me a lot. These past 3 seasons have taught me so much about the world of pools and hot tubs! I am curious by nature and I like to understand how things work, so that I can properly address issues when they arise.
In terms of things that I have done to my pool... I replaced the old, 2007 single speed Pentair pump that I came with the house, with a Pentair Whisperflow Variable Speed pump. This new pump is essentially about to pay for itself in I predict ~3 years because it uses so much less electricity. My hydro bills are down 30%. When I replaced the pump, I also changed the plumbing quite a bit and made it more efficient and sturdier. I also installed better quality valves.
I also just recently replaced my 17-yr old Hayward SWG, with a new Hayward S3 S340 system. I went with an S340 cell because my previous cell was a T-15 (40k gallons) and I figured, if the old (oversized) system lasted this long, I should probably oversize the new system too.
I have always had crystal clear water. Lately though, with that new SWG, I have been experiencing a lot of white flaking coming out of the jets. I pick up a pretty good amount of white flakes in the cleaning robot. I am just starting to realize that I need to be on top of my pH, a lot more than what I thought. I don't really know why this has just started to be an issue, I assume that it's because the new SWG inverts its polarity throughout the day and sheds off the calcium that gets stuck to the cell's plates. The old cell didn't do any of that (but also the old cell was barely working).
I just acquired an Apera PH60 Ph tester (thank you for the recommendation TFP) and I realize that my pool eats acid like there's no tomorrow. When I get the pH in check, the water is unbelievably clear though. I suspect that a properly Ph'ed pool will reduce my SWG flaking issue.
My TA has always been in the 120ppm zone. I have a vinyl liner and I am not sure that I need to keep my TA this high. I need to test my calcium more frequently, my fill water is supposedly high. I do have to maintain high Ca levels because of my heat pump. It is a Nirvana heat pump that produces 120,000 BTUs and keeps the water at 82F. That way I can open the pool in April, use the pool from May through September, and close the pool at the end of October.
So, back to the pH being hard to maintain at ~7.6. I can either be a slave to my pool (more so that I already am) and dump acid in it every other day until Fall comes to my rescue and I can finally close the pool, OR, I can figure this out. The latter is more me.
I am considering two options at the moment and I feel like I am going to have to talk to experts on this forum. Two different approaches:
- control pH increases with borates: I can't find boric acid here in Canada. I feel like it's regulated somehow. The Eastern provinces have regulated pesticides quite a lot in the past few years. However I can buy all of the Borax and Muriatic Acid that I want at my local Canadian Tire hardware store...
- Sense and Dispense from Hayward, + a Hayward AQL-CHEM-3 - has anyone used a system like this? I like the idea of plumbing in an acid dispenser that's controlled through a pH probe.
I may not install anything yet this year since we are approaching the end of the season, but I will most definitely consider this as next season's project.
I also made a friend at a local pool store (he works there as a technician). Super knowledgeable and he's taught me a lot. These past 3 seasons have taught me so much about the world of pools and hot tubs! I am curious by nature and I like to understand how things work, so that I can properly address issues when they arise.
In terms of things that I have done to my pool... I replaced the old, 2007 single speed Pentair pump that I came with the house, with a Pentair Whisperflow Variable Speed pump. This new pump is essentially about to pay for itself in I predict ~3 years because it uses so much less electricity. My hydro bills are down 30%. When I replaced the pump, I also changed the plumbing quite a bit and made it more efficient and sturdier. I also installed better quality valves.
I also just recently replaced my 17-yr old Hayward SWG, with a new Hayward S3 S340 system. I went with an S340 cell because my previous cell was a T-15 (40k gallons) and I figured, if the old (oversized) system lasted this long, I should probably oversize the new system too.
I have always had crystal clear water. Lately though, with that new SWG, I have been experiencing a lot of white flaking coming out of the jets. I pick up a pretty good amount of white flakes in the cleaning robot. I am just starting to realize that I need to be on top of my pH, a lot more than what I thought. I don't really know why this has just started to be an issue, I assume that it's because the new SWG inverts its polarity throughout the day and sheds off the calcium that gets stuck to the cell's plates. The old cell didn't do any of that (but also the old cell was barely working).
I just acquired an Apera PH60 Ph tester (thank you for the recommendation TFP) and I realize that my pool eats acid like there's no tomorrow. When I get the pH in check, the water is unbelievably clear though. I suspect that a properly Ph'ed pool will reduce my SWG flaking issue.
My TA has always been in the 120ppm zone. I have a vinyl liner and I am not sure that I need to keep my TA this high. I need to test my calcium more frequently, my fill water is supposedly high. I do have to maintain high Ca levels because of my heat pump. It is a Nirvana heat pump that produces 120,000 BTUs and keeps the water at 82F. That way I can open the pool in April, use the pool from May through September, and close the pool at the end of October.
So, back to the pH being hard to maintain at ~7.6. I can either be a slave to my pool (more so that I already am) and dump acid in it every other day until Fall comes to my rescue and I can finally close the pool, OR, I can figure this out. The latter is more me.
I am considering two options at the moment and I feel like I am going to have to talk to experts on this forum. Two different approaches:
- control pH increases with borates: I can't find boric acid here in Canada. I feel like it's regulated somehow. The Eastern provinces have regulated pesticides quite a lot in the past few years. However I can buy all of the Borax and Muriatic Acid that I want at my local Canadian Tire hardware store...
- Sense and Dispense from Hayward, + a Hayward AQL-CHEM-3 - has anyone used a system like this? I like the idea of plumbing in an acid dispenser that's controlled through a pH probe.
I may not install anything yet this year since we are approaching the end of the season, but I will most definitely consider this as next season's project.
Before you add anything else to the water (i.e. borates), get the TA down. A TA of 120 is allowing your pH to skyrocket quickly. Using muriatic acid, dose the pH with a swing goal from say 8.2 down to 7.2. Each time you do that it will pull the TA down a little. Keep doing that as much as you can now. Get the TA down to about 60 and the pH should be much more stable. Only then consider borates (if needed). If you jump on this quickly, you might make good gains before having to close.