Help. First time pool owner in Nassau County, NY.

[George D]

Ok. I ordered a 25lb container of CH increaser (calcium chloride) which should bring my CH level up to 140. I'll add 13 lbs. first and 12 lbs. the next day.
Once the CH is settled and I add the Metal Magic, should that clear up the excess metals remaining in the heater?

 

[Pool Amateur]

Once the CH is settled and I add the Metal Magic, should that clear up the excess metals remaining in the heater?

My thoughts are, since there are no external bypass valves I could see in the pictures, is that the heater may have an internal bypass. From what I read these are usually based on flow rate, but since you had it unplugged perhaps the bypass was closed and needed to have electricity to open it. The good news then would be anything you did before was not passing through the exchanger, the bad news is whatever was left in the heater either had algae or copper in it (I agree probably copper) and is the green you saw coming out of returns when you turned the heater on. I would assume (and you know what that does ) that once you ran for a while with heater on, it flushed all leaching copper out of system and once you sequester, filter and backwash it out it will be gone. By the way blonde hair turning green is an indication copper is in the water.

 

[Swampwoman]

George, sequestrant is the best shot at protecting from trace amounts of copper, and together, calcium and sequestrant should help protect the heat exchanger a bit better. Sequestrant doesn't remove copper...it holds it in suspension so that its less likely to stain.

Long term, there's not really any way to predict the lifespan of the exchanger - you will just need to keep an eye on it for any leaking, at which time you'll find it more cost effective to invest in a new heater. But you might get years out of it yet.

Mine was forclosed and ravaged and I got another 5 years out of it before it leaked

And I'd had no bypass and before TFP was bombing my pool. So your odds are good, don't worry

 

[Pool Amateur]

Sequestrant doesn't remove copper...it holds it in suspension so that its less likely to stain.

Thanks Swampwoman, just learned something new, I thought it was filtered out after sequestered.

 

[Swampwoman]

Manufacturers like to believe their products cause the metals to bind and ultimately be filtered out but TFP experience/wisdom suggests otherwise. YMMV.
I believe a bit of both, meaning I believe some does get backwashed from filter, but as product wears down if not replenished periodically, its pretty obvious the majority stays in suspension. That's why metals are a pain.

 

[George D]

Just received the Pro Team Metal Magic. Waiting on the Calcium Chloride. Just to confirm, I will add about 13 lbs of CH increaser then add another 12 lbs the next day. Then take the CH test about 2 days after that and add the metal magic?

 

[Swampwoman]

You don't have to wait that long if you don't want to...eg. Two batches of ch 6 hours apart would be fine, then let it mix overnight and add the sequestrant the next day.

Before you add the ch though, do the test one more time to confirm you're as low as it read. One thing another guide brought up in our educational sessions is that many people read the first blush of blue as the reading and stop. In actual fact, you're supposed to keep adding drops until the blue stops deepening in tone...so you subtract the drop that didnt change the blue further. Make sense?

So instead of 20, you might be at 30 or 40...in which case you'd just use PoolMath to calculate the amount to add to get to 200 or a bit less.

 

[George D]

Yes, it makes sense. I will retest before adding CH increaser.
Thanks for the tip.

 

[George D]

When I'll go away for a few days I may use the chlorinator. So I checked it and it seemed like it was working. There is something toward the bottom that you can turn but it does not move. Should the chlorinator be off?
The bigger problem is that after I closed the chlorinator, the waste port was leaking. I went back and added lube to the O-ring and closed it but it still leaks. The leak stops after I turn off the pump but that would probably happen with any leak issue.
Anything else I'm missing?

 

[Fingaling]

Instead of the chlorinater, you can get a floating puck dispenser for when you're away... Its hard to get leftover tablets out of the chlorinater when you get back without gassing yourself...

Leaking waste port sounds like a spider gasket on the multi port.

 

[Pool Amateur]

agree with Fingaling, leaking from Waste port would indicate bad spider gasket, the chlorinator should have no effect on waste.

 

[George D]

Ok, Thanks guys. I ordered a replacement spider gasket. I thought it might be a coincidence that the leak started when I checked the chlorinator.

 

[Pool Amateur]

Is the gasket free standing so you can just buy the gasket or integrated into the seal assembly?

 

[George D]

I spoke to a Pentair rep directly last week with questions about my filter. He said the gasket is purchased separately. No need to purchase a new multiport valve.

I went to Leslie's and they had the part. I also inquired about unions because my filter piping is held together with couplings. The pool rep said that even with unions, I would still need to glue the parts together and he gave me a 1 1/2 in. union with no threads. I attached a photo.
I thought that if you attach threaded unions, there would be no need for glue. He also said that I should buy the Hayward unions instead of unions from Home Depot because they work better in high pressure.
Is this accurate? So I bought two after I made sure I can return them if not needed.

 

[Pool Amateur]

He also said that I should buy the Hayward unions instead of unions from Home Depot because they work better in high pressure. Is this accurate?

It is my understanding that schedule 40 grade unions are the standard for pools but again not an expert in this area.

I also inquired about unions because my filter piping is held together with couplings. The pool rep said that even with unions, I would still need to glue the parts together and he gave me a 1 1/2 in. union with no threads.

When installing the unions you need to glue the back of the fitting to the pipe, after you install you now can take apart and put back together with no glue, makes it much easier to do routine maintenance.

When I'll go away for a few days I may use the chlorinator. So I checked it and it seemed like it was working. There is something toward the bottom that you can turn but it does not move. Should the chlorinator be off?

I keep mine at the plus side of the setting I know will keep my FC relatively stable while gone. So when I return it is usually a little higher than normal but I figure higher better than below minimum. I do not see any side affects when it runs out of leaving it set to that same setting. Anyone else have see something different?

 

[George D]

Thanks Pool Amateur.
Do you know if the unions need to be threaded?

Good news on the Spider Gasket...no more leaking out of the waste port.
When I removed the top of the Multiport valve, I examined the old gasket and it looked to be in good shape except for a small part that was not seated correctly. It was sticking out slightly. After reading a few threads of how much of a pain it is to remove I figured I'll just gently put this little piece back and add lube all around.
After I closed the Multiport valve I turned the valve to Filter and turned the pump on. It worked. Amazing how just a tiny portion of the gasket being out of place can cause such a problem.

 

[Pool Amateur]

Do you know if the unions need to be threaded?

Not sure I understand your question, you need a male threaded section on one side and a female on the other side so you can screw them together, the female is sort of a large collar that screws onto the male. The back side of each gets glued to the pipe. Does this answer your question or are you asking if you need the unions at all. I do not know how to get into the the filter other than cutting pipes open the way you did when you changed 2 of the laterals, if you have the unions it makes it simple.

 

[George D]

The unions I purchased from Leslie's are not threaded, there are no lines at the openings where they connect to the pipe.
I thought the main advantage of having unions instead of couplings is, no need to cut the pipes in order to disconnect the valve assembly, in case you want to do a deep cleaning of the filter.
Is this accurate?

I received the CH Increaser but it came in a plastic bag inside a box. Should I return it and only trust one in a container that clearly indicates CH Increaser?

 

[Catanzaro]

The unions I purchased from Leslie's are not threaded, there are no lines at the openings where they connect to the pipe.

The unions you show in your previous post come apart. This is what you will need. There is a female and male part to the union, where they assemble and disassemble. You may want to purchase extra gaskets and keep them around for the future.

 

[George D]

Ok, Thanks. Will I still need to cut the pipes to open the valve assembly?
I have an extra gasket just in case.

I also read that an old or faulty spring can also be responsible for a leak at the waste port and is difficult to replace. Is there a circumstance where purchasing a new valve assembly makes more sense?