High pH after neglecting pool all fall?

[ship of fools]

I have been waiting all fall for my water temp to drop before closing .... the same thing I have done the past four or five years. During this time I get leaves in it and it turns greenish and before closing I get it cleaned up again and have had no issues when opening in the spring. I've never tested pH in the fall but it was fine every time I opened it. This year I tested pH and it was off the charts high (Chlorine was at 9ppm so high but in theory not high enough to impact pH reading).

Does this make sense? Normally my pH is very stable all summer and I may end up adding MA once if at all.

If it's normal does it make sense the pH would drop over the winter? Would the cold temp (54 degrees) make a difference?

In any case I had some MA on hand and added a bit yesterday but didn't want to overdo it

 

[duraleigh]

You should not close with your pH out of the 7's.....not good practice. Bring it down to around 7.5.

I would also test TA and CH before closing and make sure they are in suggested ranges.

 

[ship of fools]

Thanks. Any idea why it would have risen so much?

 

[duraleigh]

I have no idea. When was the last time you tested and what was the result?

 

[ship of fools]

Early September and it was 7.5. I was wondering if the leaf breakdown did it

 

[duraleigh]

I would suggest testing pH weekly. Not suggesting that as a cause but it allows you to make smaller adjustments.