Hello world! New pool owner with test results and questions

[friesarecurly]

Hey everyone! I'm a new pool owner with a swamp in my pool

Pool specs: 18x33 oval // ~14,000 gallons

I tested at Leslies before my TF-Pro arrived and their chart showed a CYA of 250 so the pool was drained halfway and refilled twice. The first drain showed CYA of 120 so I drained it again.
Now the TF-Pro results as follows

• TA - 50
• pH - 8.2+(?) I have red/green colorblindness so its hard to tell. Attached photo below
• CYA - ~25 (Black dot is faintly visible at 30)
• Chlorine - 0 or Undetectable with FAS/DPD test
• Calcium - 75

Before proceeding, i'd like some opinions on my thought process.

1. SLAM
2. Increase TA to 100 with 10 lbs of Baking Soda (Generic baking soda from grocery store)
3. Decrease pH to 7.6 with pH Down by adding ~2lbs (I bought the Clorox 5lb version)
4. Increase FC to 16 with 2 gallons of 10% liquid chlorine (going to get this at Home Depot as its close by)
5. Increase CYA to 30-40 with 2-3 pucks of Clorox Trichlor (have some left from previous owner and might as well add some extra FC to SLAM?)
6. Calcium - leave it alone since I have vinyl?

Some questions/comments I have:

• All above additions were from Pool Math
• Whats the minimum wait time before adding pH Down after adding my Baking Soda?
  In one of Swim University's videos, it stated wait a minimum of 20 mins after each addition, but other articles say different numbers (1hr, 6hrs, etc)
• Is there a ballpark of how much TA/pH increases and decreases with each other? Seems like this is a battle when they're on the opposite ends of each other.
• Anything I should note or look out for while SLAM'ing?

Thanks for your time everyone!

 

[pjt]

I tested at Leslies before my TF-Pro arrived

Now that you have the Rolls-Royce of testing kits, stay away from the pool store.

TA - 50

Are you continuing to add drops until there's no additional color change?

pH - 8.2+(?) I have red/green colorblindness so its hard to tell. Attached photo below

I would say high 7s.

PH Test

PH testing with Taylor kit. Should I do in sunlight? Indoors? In shade? Should I put it to the sky? Should I put it toward a white background? The colors all look different! What is most accurate way to view?

www.troublefreepool.com

CYA - ~25 (Black dot is faintly visible at 30)

Outside, back to the sun, waist level, quick glance at the dot?

Calcium - 75

Do you have a heater or any mortar (such as between waterline tiles)?

SLAM

Yes. Follow the steps like a checklist. If you're not quite at CYA 30, add a whisper of CYA to get you to 30.

Increase TA to 100 with 10 lbs of Baking Soda (Generic baking soda from grocery store)

No. TA of 50 is perfectly fine. Test again and keep adding drops until there's no additional color change.

Decrease pH to 7.6 with pH Down by adding ~2lbs (I bought the Clorox 5lb version)

Use muriatic acid, not pH down. Any pH in the 7s is fine for normal operations. Before starting the SLAM, lower the pH to 7.2 - 7.5 (bring the pH down with a few small doses so you don't overshoot).

Increase FC to 16

For CYA 30, SLAM FC is 12.

All above additions were from Pool Math

PoolMath is just a calculator. It will tell you how to achieve the target it's given. Don't blindly follow its output.

Anything I should note or look out for while SLAM'ing?

Follow the procedure like a checklist. Don't take any shortcuts. At the beginning of the SLAM, you'll need to check and top up the FC more frequently.

 

[friesarecurly]

Are you continuing to add drops until there's no additional color change?
- I think I added 1-2 drops extra. I was more excited I could see a color difference between the green -> red haha

Outside, back to the sun, waist level, quick glance at the dot?
- Negative, I performed all tests inside. Will try again as mentioned.

Do you have a heater or any mortar (such as between waterline tiles)?
- No mortar. There is a pool heater installed, but the last owner said it hasn't been used in years. I don't plan on using it, but will pull specs if necessary.

No. TA of 50 is perfectly fine. Test again and keep adding drops until there's no additional color change.
- Will do

Use muriatic acid, not pH down. Any pH in the 7s is fine for normal operations. Before starting the SLAM, lower the pH to 7.2 - 7.5 (bring the pH down with a few small doses so you don't overshoot).
- Is there a reason Muratic Acid is preferred? Just curious.

Thank you for the helpful advice!

 

[mknauss]

- Is there a reason Muratic Acid is preferred? Just curious.

Welcome to the forum.

Acid - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[pjt]

I think I added 1-2 drops extra. I was more excited I could see a color difference between the green -> red haha

Let us know the actual TA level you measured. Keep going until there's no additional color change.

There is a pool heater installed, but the last owner said it hasn't been used in years. I don't plan on using it, but will pull specs if necessary.

If the heater is functional, bump up the CH to 200 after the SLAM.

 

[friesarecurly]

Let us know the actual TA level you measured. Keep going until there's no additional color change.

TA was measured correctly at 50.

I've begun SLAMing balanced my numbers as below

• pH - 7.2-7.4
• TA - 90 (Added baking soda as i saw MA would drop TA.)
• CYA - ~25 (seems unchanged)
• CH - 75
• Above numbers are all before adding chlorine
• FC - 7 (4 bags of Trichlor shock was added last night instead of liquid. Thought process was it should have CYA in it so might as well raise it that way?)

I've added 1 gallon of Liquid Chlorine this morning, aiming to reach/maintain 12ppm until its clear.
It might be hard to tell, but its definitely getting clearer at the top. Walls and floors have been brushed.
I never realized how physically exhausting it is brush a pool... I might have to do some stretches before next time haha.

 

[TKpoolOH]

• CYA - ~25 (seems unchanged)

Use this as 30. For CYA, it’s either 20 or 30, so if it is between the two you will always round up to 30. The test isn’t designed to give you an exact reading.

Good luck with the rest of the SLAM. Glad you can see progress. Remember, a SLAM can take a couple weeks. Don’t get frustrated if it’s not TFP clear by the end of the week. It doesn’t take a day or two to get green and it won’t take a day or two to get clear. Keep following the process .

 

[pjt]

TA - 90 (Added baking soda as i saw MA would drop TA.)

That wasn't needed. High TA will raise the pH, which you'll counter with MA. Under normal circumstances, a non-trichlor pool should never need baking soda.

CYA - ~25 (seems unchanged)

Round up to 30. Your SLAM FC will be 12.

aiming to reach/maintain 12ppm until its clear.

At least at the start of the SLAM, after you add LC, let it mix a few minutes and then test FC to verify you're achieving your SLAM target. There all many variables (LC strength/age, volume uncertainty, etc.) that could result in falling short of your SLAM FC.

It might be hard to tell, but its definitely getting clearer at the top.

I can see improvement already. You can take a photo at the same time everyday from the same place and see your progress.

4 bags of Trichlor shock was added last night instead of liquid.

Use LC exclusively for the rest of the SLAM.

 

[friesarecurly]

Day 3 of SLAM.
FC @ 8am - 8ppm (added ~70oz of LC)
FC @ 12pm - 11ppm

Water is looking better, but now its a battle with my DE filter...
With a "fresh" coating it seems to be around 14psi., but after an hour, it'll climb up to 20psi then 25psi with reduced flow rate.
I can bump it back down to 14-16, but this repeats throughout the day.
Even if I backwash and refill with 80% of DE capacity, its the same situation as above.

At this point, should I take apart the filter and manually clean the fingers with a hose every 3-4 backwashes to remove as much algae from the fingers?
More often? Less often?