New pool, new to pools, chemistry is off. Help!?

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SiriusDoggy

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Jun 16, 2017
24
Nevada
Hey guys, first post here. We just had a pool built last year at the end of the season and it's just now getting warm enough to swim. Over the winter I checked the pool about every two weeks and everything seemed to stay balanced. As soon as it started heating up here in the desert it just went crazy off. We had an algae bloom and shocked it and we've put acid in at the recommendation of the local pool supply place but the PH and ALK levels are still off the charts and chlorine is a bit off. Using the Rainbow Pentair 5-way test strips here's my readings.
FCI - 0
TCI - 1
ALK - 240
PH - 9
TH - 700

Suggestions? Pool details are in my signature. FYI - I'm currently running the salt generator at 100% and the pump is running 12hrs/day.

Thanks

Greg ~
 
Whoa - an IC40 on a 3300 gallon pool!? That is more overkill than mine! You need to SLAM as Aimee says. Your SWCG is just getting used up and not doing any good.

Good luck.
 
Hiya Greg, welcome to TFP.

First off I would like to confirm your pool is really 33K gallons and not 3.3K?? Right??? If so 33k, that IC40 is undersized for your pool. We recommend getting SWG that are 2x your pool size.

Going on the assumption that its actually 33K, you need to order a decent test kit of your own. Store testing stinks on a good day.... Guess Strips are no better. We avoid having folks use either so they are in charge of their pools and know *exactly* what is in there and what is not! I have to question how you got a 9 for pH when the test kits only go up to 8.4?

Since you live in NV I would suggest going to : Pool Supplies, Spa Supplies and Parts and ordering the TF-100 test kit, about $70 but will save you bundles of money and time. They ship from CA so its closest to you.

Then run a full set of tests and tell us:
FC
CC
pH
TA
CH
CYA

If you don't know what these are, please read: ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry

And more reading--> Pool School - Pool Chemistry

Maddie :flower:
 
YippeeSkippy said:
First off I would like to confirm your pool is really 33K gallons and not 3.3K?? Right???
Click to expand...
Nope, it's 3,300 gallons. It's just a really big spa in reality.

YippeeSkippy said:
Since you live in NV I would suggest going to : Pool Supplies, Spa Supplies and Parts and ordering the TF-100 test kit, about $70 but will save you bundles of money and time. They ship from CA so its closest to you.
Click to expand...

Thanks, the TF-100 kit is on order.
I'll report the results when it comes in.
 
Ok guys, At the recommendation here I ordered the TF-100 kit and it just arrived last night. So first thing this morning I ran all the test and it's not good. I've spent over $200 in chemicals in the past month to try and get things in order and nothing seems to be changing. I'm at my wits end because every time I bring a water sample into the local pool supply spot they just sell me more chemicals to dump in but nothing seems to be changing. I'm totally new to this and just have no idea what to do. This all started as soon as it started warming up this summer. As a reminder, the spool is brand new, just completed last November so this is really the first swim season for it. Here's the results of the complete test.

FC = 0
CC = 0
pH = 8.2
TA = 250
CH = 500
CYA = 60
 
AftonJeeper,
The water looks perfectly clear and clean.
Thanks. I was told by the pool supply place to put 5oz muriatic once a week and that's what I started doing. The pH is just not moving so I started putting 5oz in each day starting 4 days ago and still no movement.
 
SiriusDoggy said:
AftonJeeper,
Thanks. I was told by the pool supply place to put 5oz muriatic once a week and that's what I started doing. The pH is just not moving so I started putting 5oz in each day starting 4 days ago and still no movement.
Click to expand...
No, you won't, not with that tiny dose. Especially not if the plaster is still curing. That high TA will also drive the pH up in a real hurry, especially if there's a lot of aeration, which I suspect you have if it's more spa-like.

Plugging numbers into poolmath, I see you needing 22 ounces of acid to get to 7.2 pH. And that might not be enough. Your pH could be 9, but just reading at the max.

Start with that. Actually.... what is the strength of the acid? I;m assuming 31.45%. If it's the weaker low-fuming stuff it'll take a lot more.

Give that acid half an hour to mix and add a quart of bleach. In another half hour, check pH and TA again and see where you are.
 
Richard320 said:
Especially not if the plaster is still curing. That high TA will also drive the pH up in a real hurry, especially if there's a lot of aeration, which I suspect you have if it's more spa-like.
Click to expand...
Richard320, Thanks for helping. Is it possible for the plaster to still be curing 8 months later?
Not a lot of aeration because we've rarely turned the spa jets portion on. Here's what the pool looks like.
i-qCBfGNc-S.jpg

Richard320 said:
.. what is the strength of the acid? I;m assuming 31.45%. If it's the weaker low-fuming stuff it'll take a lot more.
Click to expand...
The gallon container says 29% acid.
Richard320 said:
Give that acid half an hour to mix and add a quart of bleach. In another half hour, check pH and TA again and see where you are.
Click to expand...
Bleach is one thing I have not purchased. Silly question but is it the the same bleach used for laundry?
 

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SiriusDoggy said:
Richard320, Thanks for helping. Is it possible for the plaster to still be curing 8 months later?
Not a lot of aeration because we've rarely turned the spa jets portion on. Here's what the pool looks like.
View attachment 64648


The gallon container says 29% acid.

Bleach is one thing I have not purchased. Silly question but is it the the same bleach used for laundry?
Click to expand...
Yes. Plain stuff. Not splashless, not scented.

Your SWG should be able to maintain FC, but at the moment it seems overwhelmed. That's when you add bleach.
 
IlTrace said:
No one has asked yet what your salt level is and are the indicator lights on the Intellichlor saying it's functioning properly.
Click to expand...

Whether or not it's functioning properly I'm not sure but the indicator lights seems to say it is.
i-75BCMgz-XL.jpg
Salt level indicator - solid green (good)
Cell Status indicator - solid green (good)
Flow - green (good)
Output level at 100%. It was set to 60% by the builder but I raised it to 100% at the recommendation of the local pool supply place.
That seems over kill to me as it's rated for a 40,000 gallon pool and I only have 3,300 gallons but I assumed that was just to get the levels normal and then I could lower it.
 
Last night the pH was 7.8 so I added 22oz of acid. This morning the pH is 7.5 so I added 6 more oz of acid. Hopefully this is going to get my pH in line?
What about my other numbers? The TA doesn't seem to be moving and the CH is still off the chart at 525. The math calc says to replace 53% of the pool water? Really?
 
Test your fill water for TA and CH. If they are both lower (at least 50%) of your pool numbers a water replacement might be a good idea. You've got a tiny pool, wouldn't be that painful.

You probably have hard water, so you will probably have to live with the CH. For the TA, you are going to need lots of acid and aeration.
 

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