Newbie in Nashville Seeking Advice

[jbird0215]

Hello all, we are new pool owners and the previous homeowners recommended this site to us. What a wealth of great info! I am pretty much clueless but have been working hard to educate myself on this site. I hired out the pool closing last November and hired the same company to open it up this week. I have no idea what they used other than a couple of what looked like hockey pucks in the shallow end skimmer. The pool is relatively clear after 3 days. It's a little cloudy but seems to get better every day (see pic). I have the TF-100 and K-1766 test kits. I completed my first tests today and here are the numbers (probably in the wrong order):

FC - 12
CC - 1
TC - 13
pH - 7.5
Alk - 80
Cya - 20 (instructions said it may take a couple of times to "get it" with this most subjective test, but I think I did it correctly)
Salt - 2600
Temp - 68
Cal - I couldn't get a reading. After following the directions and 100 drops later, the water would not turn blue or any semblance of blue. I did it again for giggles and gave up after 20 drops. It turned clear but that's it. I see no evidence of calcium buildup but admittedly wouldn't know what to look for anyway.

I will be adding more salt tomorrow as the SWG is giving me a "salt too low" message. I think all of the relevant details are in my signature line and in this post. FC is a little high and Cya is quite low based on my limited knowledge. And the lack of a Cal reading is concerning, but may be a faulty tester or test (not sure which). Any and all advice on what to do next is much appreciated.

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

You have PoolMath?

Add stabilizer using the sock method to raise your CYA to 60-70.

Add salt to raise your salt to 3200 ppm.

Your lack of CH is not that concerning for a vinyl pool. Once you get your SWG running adding some CH will help prevent the plates from scaling. So the CH can wait until you get the SWG running.

Your FC is high. I would remove the tablets and chlorinate your pool daily using liquid chlorine following the FC/CYA Levels

 

[jbird0215]

{Started this before realizing I could reply directly to ajw22 post}

 

[jbird0215]

Welcome to TFP.

You have PoolMath?

Add stabilizer using the sock method to raise your CYA to 60-70.

Add salt to raise your salt to 3200 ppm.

Your lack of CH is not that concerning for a vinyl pool. Once you get your SWG running adding some CH will help prevent the plates from scaling. So the CH can wait until you get the SWG running.

Your FC is high. I would remove the tablets and chlorinate your pool daily using liquid chlorine following the FC/CYA Levels

Many thanks, Allen. I do have Pool Math and it says to add 8lbs of stabilizer to get to 60. I'll pick up some stabilizer from Ace Hardware tomorrow and utilize the sock method. I'll also remove the tablets.

To clarify, I don't add liquid chlorine until I fall below FC of 3 or so for a SWG - is that correct?

I'm also running the pump 24/7. Should I back off or keep it running until I get within range on CYA and Salt?

Very liberating to know I can do this with TFP's help.

 

[ajw22]

To clarify, I don't add liquid chlorine until I fall below FC of 3 or so for a SWG - is that correct?

If you need to add liquid chlorine then you should use the non-SWG target levels until your SWG can maintain Your FC without help m

 

[jbird0215]

Update

- Added salt to get to 3,200 ppm. Low salt light is no more. Chlorinator set at 45%.
- Started with 4 lbs stabilizer as I didn’t want to overdo it. CYA at 40 so I did 2 more lbs - all sock method. Plan to check CYA again tomorrow.
- Removed the chlorine tablets FC still at 12.
- Still running pump 24/7.

Questions:
- Should I keep running pump 24/7? We are expecting 1.5” of rain in the next 24 hours if that changes anything.
- I read that the only way to bring down FC is sunlight which we won’t have much of tomorrow. Should I back off the chlorinator % setting since I’m already running high FC?

Thank you very much.

 

[ajw22]

- Should I keep running pump 24/7? We are expecting 1.5” of rain in the next 24 hours if that changes anything.

Run your pump for at least 24 hours after you add salt and stabilizer.

- I read that the only way to bring down FC is sunlight which we won’t have much of tomorrow. Should I back off the chlorinator % setting since I’m already running high FC?

FC of 12 is not "high" for CYA 40. You can swim up to SLAM FC level which is 16 for CYA 40. See FC/CYA Levels

Running your SWG at 45% for 24 hours will generate 3.1 ppm of FC. So your FC is not going to drop and will probably rise at that setting.

 

[jbird0215]

Run your pump for at least 24 hours after you add salt and stabilizer.




FC of 12 is not "high" for CYA 40. You can swim up to SLAM FC level which is 16 for CYA 40. See FC/CYA Levels

Running your SWG at 45% for 24 hours will generate 3.1 ppm of FC. So your FC is not going to drop and will probably rise at that setting.

So helpful, thank you very much. Pool is crystal clear but a little chilly still. Hope to be swimming in May. Also bought a speed stirrer last night. The info on this site is first class. Be well.

 

[setsailsoon]

Get used to a perfect pool all the time. Cheap and easy the TFP way. Also always experts here to help if something weird happens or you just have questions to help you understand. PS we don't sell anything so the volunteer expert advice is always straight up. Never biased so we can sell you something.

Good luck!

Chris

 

[jbird0215]

Get used to a perfect pool all the time. Cheap and easy the TFP way. Also always experts here to help if something weird happens or you just have questions to help you understand. PS we don't sell anything so the volunteer expert advice is always straight up. Never biased so we can sell you something.

Good luck!

Chris

People helping people with no strings attached — I like it! Upgraded the app today so I can keep digital logs. Also saw the supporter levels and will be signing up. Thanks for keeping it real.

 

[Tpopz]

Pool is crystal clear

Your pool looks good in the first picture for sure, but if you follow the advice here, you will be amazed how clear your water really can be.

 

[jbird0215]

Pool is as clear as I've ever seen it thanks to this forum. I've been checking levels daily and adjusting per this site and it makes all of the difference in the world. Since I'm on the road to complete empowerment, I thought I'd ask 2 more questions:

1. FC has been consistently running between 10-12 but I haven't been too worried about it since it's technically safe at SLAM level. Any issues with running FC a little high like this? As of today, I've set the SWG % and pump timer to produce an estimated 2 FC per day, so it should begin to drift down a little I'm thinking.
2. I've updated my signature with heater specs. I'm getting the CE error and read that step 1 is to cycle off/on. I'm assuming this is a breaker exercise but have not a clue which one belongs to the heater. I'm afraid that if I start flipping breakers it could mess up some other settings. I thought I'd try this as a first step before looking at internal board repair/replacement, etc on the heater. Any advice here? I've attached some pics to show the heater and the setup.

 

[ajw22]

http://www.haywardnet.com/pdfs/uhs-heater-troubleshooting-guide.pdf

See page 32 & 35...

CE Code: “Communication Error” between ICB and display board. Error may be cleared by cycling line power off and on. Otherwise, inspect Display Interface ribbon cable and ensure plug is securely attached to ICB.

 

[setsailsoon]

Most control systems I'm familiar with retain their settings including configuration. I don' t have direct experience with yours @ajw22 @Jimrahbe can you help with this? I think you're going to have to flip them regardless. I'd start with the lowest amp breakers as the natural gas heater would not normally be connected to the high amp 240v breakers which are normally used for the pumps. Easiest way to check is to remove the breaker cover and follow the wires. But you need to be very familiar with 240v electrical work before you think about doing that.

Chris

 

[jbird0215]

Most control systems I'm familiar with retain their settings including configuration. I don' t have direct experience with yours @ajw22 @Jimrahbe can you help with this? I think you're going to have to flip them regardless. I'd start with the lowest amp breakers as the natural gas heater would not normally be connected to the high amp 240v breakers which are normally used for the pumps. Easiest way to check is to remove the breaker cover and follow the wires. But you need to be very familiar with 240v electrical work before you think about doing that.

Chris

Thank you, Chris. My problem has shifted now to the LO error code so I will read up on steps to address. Sounds like the Raypak is superior to the Hayward so it may be worth a replacement at some point The unit is likely 10 yrs old although I’m sure there’s a way to verify through a date stamp somewhere.

 

[ajw22]

Thank you, Chris. My problem has shifted now to the LO error code so I will read up on steps to address. Sounds like the Raypak is superior to the Hayward so it may be worth a replacement at some point The unit is likely 10 yrs old although I’m sure there’s a way to verify through a date stamp somewhere.

See page 40 in the link above.

 

[jbird0215]

See page 40 in the link above.

Ok got ole Bessie to fire up this morning after the error codes self corrected (really strange). The attached photo shows the result (tried to attach video but couldn’t figure out how to do it). I ran for about 3 mins but was a little nervous will all of the smoke and turned it off. It smelled like steam but I have no idea if this is normal. Thoughts?

 

[mknauss]

What is your ambient temperature and humidity? 'Steam' when running the heater occurs when the air temperature is low and humidity high.

 

[jbird0215]

What is your ambient temperature and humidity? 'Steam' when running the heater occurs when the air temperature is low and humidity high.

48 degrees and 57% humidity

 

[ajw22]

Ok got ole Bessie to fire up this morning after the error codes self corrected (really strange). The attached photo shows the result (tried to attach video but couldn’t figure out how to do it). I ran for about 3 mins but was a little nervous will all of the smoke and turned it off. It smelled like steam but I have no idea if this is normal. Thoughts?

That is poor combustion caused by the incorrect air/gas mixture. Look at the color of the flames. They should be blue, not yellow.

You could have a sooted burner area. Incorrect gas pressure. Air flow blockage. We had one member who had his burners installed upside down.