New pool owner in SoCal, lots of issues

[EarlKann]

Hello all,

Been reading here for about a year about new construction because I was planning on having a new pool put in at our home. Well, life changes and we instead decided to move closer to work and we have just closed on a house that already has a pool.

I have MANY issues to work through, and I have only just taken possession of the the home yesterday. Learning from the board, I already have my TF-100 so today I stopped at the house and grabbed a sample of water. Unfortunately it was dark and I was by myself so I couldn't do any measuring to figure out the gallons capacity, but here's what I know.

In-ground gunite / plaster pool and spa.
Jandy AquaPure 1400 salt system with cartridge filter

Issue #1, the Jandy is showing a code #170 Per the previous owner it has been this way for a while, he had no $$$ to have it fixed. He said that the heater was not working, but suspected that it was due to the code and not a problem with the heater. There is a floating thing in the pool so I assume that he has been using pucks since the salt is broken but cannot confirm. I did find an empty bucket of pucks in the garage though.

I think that the pool is about 5-years old, it has the old square salt cell so I suspect that it is bad. Don't know if changing the cell will help clear the #170 code though. I have a Jandy trouble shooting guide but haven't had a chance to go through it yet.


Test results.

K-1000
No apparent chlorine.
PH 8.2

Went to the chlorine drop test. Added one scoop of R870, no color change. Added another, still no change. I guess that I have to assume that there is no chlorine.

TA=100
CH=570
CYA appeared to be greater than 100 to me. Not sure if I'm doing this test right. (level was very low in the sight tube)
Salt 2550ppm

Surprisingly to me, the water is pretty clear. There are a few different appearing problems with the plaster however.
Some areas look like algae to me, especially on the tile grout and the stairs.
Side walls have a dark staining on them. I tried to brush it and it doesn't really come off. Feels rough.
Big spots on the floor that appear shiny bright blue while most of the floor just looks like white plaster.

Some pictures:

I have read though pool school a couple of times, but I think that it didn't really sink in too much since I didn't have a pool or test results to work with.

I'm thinking that I need to get some chlorine in there before I have a full blown algae bloom, but I'm not going to be moving in for two weeks so that limits my ability to properly track/shock the pool.

Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[carlscan26]

Have you closed on the house? Until you do I'd hold off on doing anything to the pool. You are right about he algae and about needing to be there to be able to properly solve it. The roughness looks like scaling and those shiny blue spots like a copper stain maybe? That would most likely be due to poor water chemistry etching out the copper heat exchanger in the heater.

 

[carlscan26]

Oh yeah - welcome to TFP!

 

[EarlKann]

Have you closed on the house? Until you do I'd hold off on doing anything to the pool. You are right about he algae and about needing to be there to be able to properly solve it. The roughness looks like scaling and those shiny blue spots like a copper stain maybe? That would most likely be due to poor water chemistry etching out the copper heat exchanger in the heater.

Yes, officially took possession Sunday evening, but the previous owners weren't completely moved out till Monday afternoon. It's all mine now though.

It is closer to work (reason for buying it) so I can stop by there in the evenings pretty easily, but with packing up the old house I really don't have the time to invest until I move in.

 

[BoDarville]

CYA appeared to be greater than 100 to me. Not sure if I'm doing this test right. (level was very low in the sight tube)

The CYA test is the most subjective test in the lot. When doing this test, bright indirect light is critical. This test should be done on a sunny day (late morning or early afternoon) with the sun at your back while holding the tube at waist level. Now on to the stains...

The staining could either be algae or metal stains. Here's a quick way to determine which:

• 1. Take a trichlor puck and hold it over a section of the stain for about 30-60 seconds. If it fades, then the stain is of organic origin (algae).

• 2. If it does not fade after doing step 1, then take a vitamin C tablet (which is ascorbic acid) and hold it against the stain for 30 seconds. If the stain vanishes or lightens noticeably in that area, you should do an ascorbic acid treatment. If this is the case, here are two articles describing the procedure: (1) http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/metal stains, and (2) http://www.troublefreepool.com/ascorbic-treatment-to-rid-pool-of-metal-stains-t2298.html. You will still need to do a partial drain & refill (D&R) to lower CYA. However, complete the ascorbic acid treatment just before doing a partial D&R so that a maximum amount of metal is removed from the pool with the water.

I would do both steps described above on different areas where the staining is present, especially on areas of the stain that appear different. You could have both types of stains. If that is the case, do the ascorbic acid treatment first and then do the partial D&R.

If the stain turns out to be algae and given that your CYA appears to be 100 or greater, you will need to do a partial drain & refill (D&R) to get the CYA down to 30-50 ppm. While the water level is lowered and the stain(s) are exposed, you can speed up the process of removing it by scrubbing the stain with a stiff brush & bleach. Once the pool is refilled with fresh water, run a full series of tests, rebalance it (pH & TA), and then add the proper dose of chlorine (bleach recommended) for your new CYA level. Then run an OCLT (see link in my sig). If you fail the OCLT, then go trough the shock process (link also in sig).

Regardless of the type of stain determined from steps 1 & 2 above, you are looking at a partial D&R either way due to the current CYA level as that is the only practical way to lower CYA. Use the Pool Calculator (link in my sig) and input your pool size and test results to determine how much to drain. Note the % to drain that appears in the CYA section of the calculator. The partial D&R will also lower the CH level which is on the high side at 570 ppm.

 

[carlscan26]

Since you'd in SoCal there is the option of doing a Revsrse Osmosis treatment on your water to deal with the high CYA. But if you need to do the ascorbic acid treatment you may as well do the partial drain and refill m

 

[Emilio.Largo]

Since you'd in SoCal there is the option of doing a Revsrse Osmosis treatment on your water to deal with the high CYA. But if you need to do the ascorbic acid treatment you may as well do the partial drain and refill m

I haven't heard of this technique yet... Where exactly can you contact someone about this?

 

[Richard320]

Since you'd in SoCal there is the option of doing a Revsrse Osmosis treatment on your water to deal with the high CYA. But if you need to do the ascorbic acid treatment you may as well do the partial drain and refill m

I haven't heard of this technique yet... Where exactly can you contact someone about this?

http://www.poolservicestech.com/index.htm