Needing guidance on going without trichlor but maintaining chlorine

[ajcoxfamily]

Hello! Last November we drained our pool because of CYA at 160 and took over maintaining the pool ourselves. I have the Taylor 2006K test kit and have been taking care of it up to now by adding liquid chlorine a few times a week and using one trichlor tab a week. Now it is getting warmer here in Houston (high 80's-90 degrees) and my CYA is up to 50 (which accoridng the to cya-chlorine chart I need my FC at 6-8 and no lower than 4), so I want to stop using the tabs to prevent the cya from climbig, but this past week I was testing the water daily and finding my FC was 2-2.5ppm each day and I am adding 65-80 ounces a day of liquid chlorine (17K gal gunite inground pool). The water is clear and there is no algae but I want to know if I am doing this right and is it normal for it to get so low in one day. I know liquid chlorine is gone after 24 hours, so how am I supposed to maintain chlorine levels of 4-8 without tabs? Is there a shock product that is preferred that will help the pool not loose chlorine so I can prevent algae from growing this summer that doesn't affect calcium or cya? A friend said they run their pool all night on low rpms and shock after sunset, but I would prefer to not run it at night to save on electricity.

 

[JamesW]

You should get a SWG.

 

[mknauss]

If your FC is going to low, you need to add more chlorine. Or get a SWCG.

 

[Donldson]

I know liquid chlorine is gone after 24 hours

What?? I don't know where you heard that, but it's not a thing. Chlorine is chlorine, doesn't matter the source once it's in the water it is all the same. There's no magic product out there that makes "better" chlorine.

You are allowing your FC to drop below the minimum. You need to add enough chlorine that when you check the next day it is not below the minimum. Because you have been letting the FC drop too low consistently you may have something growing, so performing an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test might be a good idea.

I had maintained an 18k gallon pool for 13 years using TFPC and almost exclusively liquid chlorine. I never kept pucks in unless I was going away or needed a CYA boost. It works great, but if a less manual method is preferred then an SWG is an option.

 

[Newdude]

+1. If you lose 4ppm a day to UV, it needs to be replaced to remain free and clear above minimum by the next test/add. Its literally that simple and by testing regularly, your pool will tell you exactly what it needs. You have a healthy UV demand in TX and will need more chlorine than I do in NY.

 

[SecoSteve]

+1 on the Salt Water Chlorine Generator! I've been feeling guilty the last week or so, because I have done so little work on my pool, because it is in balance and the SWG has been making enough Chlorine. I still check it daily and empty the skimmers, but other than that, just waiting for the weather to warm up enough to swim.

How about raising your CYA(2 more pucks) a little higher to help hold the Chlorine?

 

[pjt]

how am I supposed to maintain chlorine levels of 4-8 without tabs?

Daily LC additions (manually or Stenner pump) or SWG.

Is there a shock product that is preferred that will help the pool not loose chlorine so I can prevent algae from growing this summer that doesn't affect calcium or cya?

Maintain FC at or above target for your CYA level. You'll never have to shock. You'll never have algae.

I would prefer to not run it at night to save on electricity

What kind of pump do you have? Fill out your signature when you have a minute.

 

[Katygreys]

Hello! Last November we drained our pool because of CYA at 160 and took over maintaining the pool ourselves. I have the Taylor 2006K test kit and have been taking care of it up to now by adding liquid chlorine a few times a week and using one trichlor tab a week. Now it is getting warmer here in Houston (high 80's-90 degrees) and my CYA is up to 50 (which accoridng the to cya-chlorine chart I need my FC at 6-8 and no lower than 4), so I want to stop using the tabs to prevent the cya from climbig, but this past week I was testing the water daily and finding my FC was 2-2.5ppm each day and I am adding 65-80 ounces a day of liquid chlorine (17K gal gunite inground pool). The water is clear and there is no algae but I want to know if I am doing this right and is it normal for it to get so low in one day. I know liquid chlorine is gone after 24 hours, so how am I supposed to maintain chlorine levels of 4-8 without tabs? Is there a shock product that is preferred that will help the pool not loose chlorine so I can prevent algae from growing this summer that doesn't affect calcium or cya? A friend said they run their pool all night on low rpms and shock after sunset, but I would prefer to not run it at night to save on electricity.

When we get to the peak of summer you may want to consider bumping CYA higher to 60. I break the rules a bit and for the hottest couple months (technically, highest UV months) I bump CYA to 70. This reduces my FC loss noticeably in my no shade blazing hot Katy back yard. The risk with this is that if I get lazy and let FC drop below minimum and have to do a SLAM, the SLAM is gonna take a lot more chlorine than it would if cya was at 50.

One thing to note: the minimum FC value that TFP recommends based on your CYA level is the ABSOLUTE MINIMUM. I try not to even flirt with the minimum. And, the target range is not hard and fast. So, bump that FC to a couple points above max target. Then, when you lose FC during the day and test at night, you should be safely above the minimum. Play around with with it and see you much Fc you lose daily and as the seasons evolve. Err on the side of exceeding max target range as opposed to getting close to min. I swim in 11 FC all the time and it is glorious.

But as someone mentioned, you have fallen below minimum so definitely do an OCLT. If you fail, don’t fret. SLAM immediately.

I buy my chlorine from pinch a penny on Gaston in 2.5 gal jugs.

 

[clambert1273]

You will def need more CYA as summer moves along. With my swg, here in AZ im already pushing 80 cya and before my swg I rode at least 70 but made sure I was adding LC multiple times a day usually a run hot dose in AM & another in PM

 

[duraleigh]

CYA above 80 can be problematic. I would consider 80 ppm to be the max under any circumstances

 

[clambert1273]

CYA above 80 can be problematic. I would consider 80 ppm to be the max under any circumstances

Yup that's my own limit & sadly I need every bit of it here