Opening 48,000 Gallon Pool 1st Time

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rob.mwpropane said:
Thankfully I only have to get the pool to the right levels and then I'm done.
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Will he know what you did, and why you did it, so he can continue the needed pool care?

For the pool owner it is the start, not the end.
 
Note that sodium chloride and calcium chloride are both types of salt. A 50 lb bag of calcium chloride will result in about the same increase in salt reading as a 40 lb bag of sodium chloride.

The Intellichlor will work up to about 10,000 ppm salt, but it will give a high salt warning light at about 4,500 ppm.

If the pool is covered, you have to be very careful not to overchlorinate. With the cover on, you get almost no chlorine loss.
 
ajw22 said:
Will he know what you did, and why you did it, so he can continue the needed pool care?

For the pool owner it is the start, not the end.
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A pool company is supposed to maintain the pool after I leave, I just need to get it right before I go.

JamesW said:
Note that sodium chloride and calcium chloride are both types of salt. A 50 lb bag of calcium chloride will result in about the same increase in salt reading as a 40 lb bag of sodium chloride.

The Intellichlor will work up to about 10,000 ppm salt, but it will give a high salt warning light at about 4,500 ppm.

If the pool is covered, you have to be very careful not to overchlorinate. With the cover on, you get almost no chlorine loss.
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Will calcium chloride really raise the level of salt? I can't find anywhere where it says that, or even has a calc for it? Excuse my ignorance, I honestly don't know.

The pool is covered, but it's uncovered just about every day in the summer. They uncover it even if they don't plan to use it just because it looks nice. Do you have a recommended % to start with for the IC60? I understand I have to test afterwards, just looking for a starting point now that you know what the setup is.

Thanks.
 
Recommended % to start with for the IC60 depends on the pump runtime.

Not considering the cover factor I would set the cell at 70% if run 24/7. That is probably on the high side but better high then low.

Why kill yourself getting it right for the pool company when it is unlikely they will maintain all your good work? Turn the pool over to the pool company and let them do whatever they will do. :cry:
 
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Calcium chloride is a type of salt. So, yes, adding calcium chloride will increase the salinity.

Setting a swg when a pool is covered can be tricky. I would start at maybe 10% if it's covered most of the time.

Maybe go to 50% if it's open a lot.

The key is daily testing and adjustment until you get the level tuned in.
 
ajw22 said:
Recommended % to start with for the IC60 depends on the pump runtime.

Not considering the cover factor I would set the cell at 70% if run 24/7. That is probably on the high side but better high then low.

Why kill yourself getting it right for the pool company when it is unlikely they will maintain all your good work? Turn the pool over to the pool company and let them do whatever they will do. :cry:
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I made a commitment that I really didn't want to, but it is what it is. Pump run time will be 100% of the time, so I'll start with maybe 50% on the IC and go from there. I doubt the cover will be on most the summer.

JamesW said:
Calcium chloride is a type of salt. So, yes, adding calcium chloride will increase the salinity.

Setting a swg when a pool is covered can be tricky. I would start at maybe 10% if it's covered most of the time.

Maybe go to 50% if it's open a lot.

The key is daily testing and adjustment until you get the level tuned in.
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Thank you,

The plan now is to get salt right (maybe changing some water) down to 4000, getting CH in line, and TA in line, then attacking pH...pH probably being at a later date
 
rob.mwpropane said:
Question? Would the temperature of the pool affect the IC from giving an accurate reading? I understand they can be off anyway, but can a cold temperature cause them to be off more?
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The IC has a thermistor in the flow switch to adjust the salt reading for temperature.

However, you basically should ignore the IC salt reading and as long as it is happy generating then salt is good. Use the Taylor to check the salt level if the IC says low salt.
 
The thermistor in the IC is prone to failure. So, it might be right and maybe not. If you see a big difference in the salinity reading with a temperature change, then the temperature sensor is probably bad.

Does the pool have automation where you can check the salinity reading?
 

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Alright guys, went to the pool today and tested the salt with a Taylor K-1766. It was @ 4500, so I drained enough water to hopefully bring it down some. We'll see how it goes. I tested the CH of the well water and it was @ 175. I'm heading there tomorrow afternoon to hopefully get it more dialed in.

Did not add any chemicals today, wait to see where everything falls when it gets full.

Quick question, the pool math calc says for a plaster pool should have a CH of 350-450, but I see a lot of people recommending different (lower) on here? What is the general consensus?
 
Sometimes folks in areas of the west or southwest have so much evaporation that they lose water but not the calcium in the pool. It builds up over time. So *some* folks try to avoid the too fast rise in those areas by starting a bit lower. That might be what you're thinking of?

Vinyl pools and fiberglass pools have differing calcium requirements than plaster ones. That's another variable.

Maddie :flower:
 
rob.mwpropane said:
Quick question, the pool math calc says for a plaster pool should have a CH of 350-450, but I see a lot of people recommending different (lower) on here? What is the general consensus?
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CH of 250 is often all a plaster pool needs. CH and pH are the two best ways to adjust CSI. So higher levels of CH are often the easiest way to get CSI into a happy zone.

This is another example that the only two tests that make a differnce on their own are FC and pH. All the other tests interact with each other and you can't target one number without looking at the overall pool chemistry.
 
ajw22 said:
CH of 250 is often all a plaster pool needs. CH and pH are the two best ways to adjust CSI. So higher levels of CH are often the easiest way to get CSI into a happy zone.

This is another example that the only two tests that make a differnce on their own are FC and pH. All the other tests interact with each other and you can't target one number without looking at the overall pool chemistry.
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Sorry for the late reply, work has been busy. Why does the pool math say CH of 350-450? This pool is located in Owings Mills, MD. Just trying to get a good handle on CH before adding more... I understand if CSI needs to be higher this would be the easy way to do it.

Also, the IC60 says salt is down to 4000. I plan to test again with my kit when I go back, but it (IC60) was pretty accurate before.

In reference to the IC60, I'm told that they only take the cover off when they want to use the pool (I had previously thought they leave it off most of the summer). Any recommendations what % to set it at with that in mind?

Thanks to all again. The time taken out of your day to lend some free advice is always appreciated on my end:)
 
the pool math calc says for a plaster pool should have a CH of 350-450
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, That's too high. 250-400 is the correct range

I would not suggest adding CH to your pool to satisfy an arbitrary CSI number. There is seldom, if ever, a need to calculate CSI in a pool in Maryland......you typically have far softer fill water (175 is pretty decent) than the Southwest.

Balance your pool based with the TFP guidelines of pH, FC, CC, CH, TA and CYA. The TFP guideline for CH has always been around 250 to 400 and CH will normally increase with time. Once in your pool, you can not easily get rid of it.
 
duraleigh said:
, That's too high. 250-400 is the correct range

I would not suggest adding CH to your pool to satisfy an arbitrary CSI number. There is seldom, if ever, a need to calculate CSI in a pool in Maryland......you typically have far softer fill water (175 is pretty decent) than the Southwest.

Balance your pool based with the TFP guidelines of pH, FC, CC, CH, TA and CYA. The TFP guideline for CH has always been around 250 to 400 and CH will normally increase with time. Once in your pool, you can not easily get rid of it.
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That is what is recommended on TFP, same with the pool math calculator? I understand that it's too high, but why is it listed that way if so?
 

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TFP has been evolving over the years and our standardization has not kept pace. At some point, we need to pause and get articles in sync so we don't have multiple answers (though usually all pretty close to correct) for the same question.

Also, there is seldom one perfect absolute rigid answer except for JohnT's favorite, "It depends".

TFP will get better as we continue to grow.........bear with us and keep your CH at 250.
 
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