How long should I wait to test the water after adding borates and/or calcium.

wellsnlisa · Mar 30, 2019

I did several searches but not finding the exact information I'm looking for. Getting my pool in tip top shape for the season. I have a 19,000 gallon pool. My borates were at 22 and I wanted to raise them to 50. Pool Math said I should add a little over 10 boxes, I added 9 and 3 gallons of acid. (Divided in 3 applications.) This weekend I'm tackling calcium. My calcium is at 127 and I'm attempting to raise it to 250. Pool Math says 22 lbs. of calcium chloride. I plan on adding the 16 I have on hand and then retesting before buying and adding any additional. Question is, how long after adding borates and calcium should I wait to retest to get the most accurate result. I seem to recall it takes about a week for everything to fully dissolve for the test to be accurate.

JoyfulNoise · Mar 30, 2019

Why increase calcium? You live in TX, your water should be fairly hard. Have you tested your fill water for CH?

You should add borates first. Why not use boric acid instead of borax? Boric acid is a weak acid that will have minimal impact on pH and you can add your dose all at once without needing any muriatic acid as when one uses borax. I only use boric acid and I’ve never had a problem.

wellsnlisa · Mar 30, 2019

JoyfulNoise said:
Why increase calcium? You live in TX, your water should be fairly hard. Have you tested your fill water for CH?

You should add borates first. Why not use boric acid instead of borax? Boric acid is a weak acid that will have minimal impact on pH and you can add your dose all at once without needing any muriatic acid as when one uses borax. I only use boric acid and I’ve never had a problem.

I live in a mud district that has softened water. My fill water is even lower in hardness than the 127 I currently have. I have to add calcium every spring or the water begins leaching calcium and leaving white streaks on our natural stone.

wellsnlisa · Mar 30, 2019

JoyfulNoise said:
Why increase calcium? You live in TX, your water should be fairly hard. Have you tested your fill water for CH?

You should add borates first. Why not use boric acid instead of borax? Boric acid is a weak acid that will have minimal impact on pH and you can add your dose all at once without needing any muriatic acid as when one uses borax. I only use boric acid and I’ve never had a problem.

I already added the borax last weekend. I planned to do that first before the calcium. It is just more economical and readily available where I live. I searched for a Boric Acid source but couldn't find anything that wasn't more expensive than the Borax and muriatic acid. Do you have a suggestion for a source?

wellsnlisa · Mar 30, 2019

wellsnlisa said:
I live in a mud district that has softened water. My fill water is even lower in hardness than the 127 I currently have. I have to add calcium every spring or the water begins leaching calcium and leaving white streaks on our natural stone.

JoyfulNoise said:
Why increase calcium? You live in TX, your water should be fairly hard. Have you tested your fill water for CH?

You should add borates first. Why not use boric acid instead of borax? Boric acid is a weak acid that will have minimal impact on pH and you can add your dose all at once without needing any muriatic acid as when one uses borax. I only use boric acid and I’ve never had a problem.

Just wanted to note I have been in the group since 2014. I'm well aware of what the calcium is in my fill water.

JoyfulNoise said:
Why increase calcium? You live in TX, your water should be fairly hard. Have you tested your fill water for CH?

You should add borates first. Why not use boric acid instead of borax? Boric acid is a weak acid that will have minimal impact on pH and you can add your dose all at once without needing any muriatic acid as when one uses borax. I only use boric acid and I’ve never had a problem.

My fill water calcium is 60 ppm. That is why my calcium levels keep dropping and I have to add it each spring. I like to start out about 250 at the beginning of the season. By the following spring it usually drops to about where it is now.

JoyfulNoise · Mar 30, 2019

Duda Energy (formerly Duda Diesel) sells boric acid in 55lb containers and other sizes -

Granular Boric Acid, 55 lb [boric55] | DudaDiesel Biodiesel Supplies

When you factor in the shipping cost plus not having to buy muriatic acid to offset the pH rise from using borax, the cost difference is negligible. And, because boric acid is a weak acid, there is very little drop in pH. One can typically add all the boric acid needed to go from 0 to 55ppm with nothing more than brushing the granular material around until it dissolves. The time and effort saved is well worth any cost difference in my opinion.