Need aeration? How fast to raise CH?

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T

Toddunder

Member
Jul 19, 2019
16
Pittsburgh
folks,

i'm new to this pool (had one previously, but let the pros take care of it; this time i'm trying to do most of it for myself). This forum is great and I think I'm heading in the right direction but could use some oversight.

the basics: 20k gallons in ground with pebble finish. SWG. taylor 2006 test kit currently showing:

pH 7
TA 80
CH 200
CYA ~30 (just added 4 lbs CYA so should be closer to 70 soon)
FC 14 (!)
CC ~0 (but the CYA was v. v. close to 0 until a few days ago).
Salt ~3200
Pool has a cover and there was work going on nearby so it's been covered during the day most of the days recently.

So, my questions:

1) the pH was 8 or so about 2 weeks ago and I've been adding muriatic acid slowly to bring it down. But I may have overdone it. I understand that aeration is a way to raise it but i don't have anything to do said aeration. Suggestions? I'm open to solar powered floating things since that would be the least effort.

2) the FC is sky high! I was using test strips that were showing FC in the 1-3 range, but they're obviously useless. I have had the SWG turned off for 3-4 days but it hasn't really come down (probably due to being covered). Any way to estimate how much time it's going to take to get down to 3-4? Are there any problems with turning off the SWG for an extended period of time?

Thanks!
 
Todd,

Your pH will come up to 7.2, or above, pretty quickly, so I would just leave it alone..

You need to uncover the pool for several hours each day to get the FC to come down... that said, since you increased your CYA to 70, an FC of 14 is not all that high and safe to swim in..

I would increase your CH soon, but it is not an emergency..

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
These are great replies. I have some calcium chloride arriving today and i'll start to increase the calcium level.

The pool is uncovered today and it's sunny, so i'll test when i get home.

I don't have a great aeration plan. I don't fancy leaving a sump pump running all the time. Anyone have solar fountain suggestions?

Thanks!
 
As mentioned - retest pH when your FC is below 10 before taking any action on the pH. For aeration, perhaps you could aim the return jet eyeballs up toward the surface to roil it around a bit that way? I don't think you need to go to any lengths to aerate if the pH is indeed 7 - it will come up quickly enough on its own, IMO.
 
OK, fantastic. I'll let it bake in the sun today, leave the SWG off, re-test tonight (including re-testing CYA to see what the overall impact of the addition worked out to be) and start adding the calcium chloride today.

Any harm in leaving the SWG off for a while?
 

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Evening update:

FC 9
CC 0.5
CYA 80
PH 7.2
TA 90
CH 180

So the FC came down, which is great. The pH is better and the CYA is right where I wanted it.
Well, maybe a little high.

Next up tracking the CH. I added 12.5 lbs calcium chloride tonight and will test tomorrow.

Thanks, everyone.

T
 
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