Our New Pool Build and The FUN (i.e. Stress) that Goes Along with it!

[MeowMeow724]

I have a large rock I put in mine. I made sure it was WAY too big to go down the pipe just in case.

Look in my siggy for the recommended chemicals. You will find there is some that help the TA without messing with the pH too much. I am SO I forgot to tell you about tanking the TA while working on the pH!!

Kim

Hey- thanks and no worries!!
I looked at the "recommended chemicals" link in regards to the pH and alkalinity; I only see that it says soda ash, aeration and borax. All will raise the pH, and borax will only raise TA a little but I need a lotta' TA.
Was there a different one you were referring to? I will keep poking around.

 

[ajw22]

There are times when it is better doing nothing then doing things halfway. You need to do a complete set of chemical tests every time until you understand the interactions and understand your pool.

You always need to check pH and TA together and know that your FC is under 10 for your pH test to be valid. PoolMath needs a current TA value to give the proper dose of muriatic acid.

The pool is chlorinated via the SWG. I only added chlorine once in the very beginning when that tanked, and just before I added CYA.

What size cell do you have (and put it in your signature)? What is your % setting? How long does it run for every day?

I know I now have the following out of line (but need to test all together): TA is low. pH is high. CYA is low. CH is 250- I think low? Getting confused depending what I read.
Things are so out of whack right now. I am considering hiring a pro at this point.

Numbers please. There is still nothing in your PoolMath logs. We can't give advice on subjective comments.

I doubt a pro who visits you once a week will be much help. A new pool with new plaster needs daily attention.

You need to do less, not more, in a slow deliberate fashion.

 

[NorCalX]

I am in progress for a TA and PH balance as well

My PB left me with a TA of 160 and I have slowly been lowering it over time.

My PH keeps rising naturally on its own. I have been putting approx. 1 gallon of the 14.6% MA per week trying to keep near 7.2PH

TA is currently at 120

However...here is a NEW thing for you to worry about. Now that the weather is getting cold keep in mind that water temperature impacts CSI

My water is now hovering around 60 degrees instead of 80+

I am intentionally letting my PH go higher towards 7.5-7.8 now

 

[ajw22]

Hey- thanks and no worries!!
I looked at the "recommended chemicals" link in regards to the pH and alkalinity; I only see that it says soda ash, aeration and borax. All will raise the pH, and borax will only raise TA a little but I need a lotta' TA.
Was there a different one you were referring to? I will keep poking around.

How is TA Raised in Pool Water?

The simplest way to raise TA is with baking soda (sodium bicarbonate or sodium hydrogen carbonate). In fact, if you look at the ingredient in the chemical bottle that pool stores sell as “alkalinity increaser”, it is precisely that, baking soda!! And, it is often 2X to 3X the price of the stuff in your grocery store.

Other chemicals are sometimes suggested for raising TA. Their effects are:

• Baking Soda = big TA change, small pH change
• Borax = Big pH change, small TA change
• Soda Ash/Washing Soda = big pH change, big TA change.

It is often best to make large TA adjustments in a couple of steps, testing the water after each one, as adding large quantities of baking soda can raise the PH a little and you don't want the PH going out of range.

 

[MeowMeow724]

Thank you! Today on my break I will go home and test everything, and post results here and in PoolMath.
Then, hopefully you guys can help me... I fear with everything being so out of whack that my plaster and/or equipment is going to get damaged.

Based on this, I will probably prefer to use baking soda then. Less pH effects....:
"Other chemicals are sometimes suggested for raising TA. Their effects are:

• Baking Soda = big TA change, small pH change
• Borax = Big pH change, small TA change
• Soda Ash/Washing Soda = big pH change, big TA change."

 

[MeowMeow724]

There are times when it is better doing nothing then doing things halfway. You need to do a complete set of chemical tests every time until you understand the interactions and understand your pool.

Noted and makes total sense!

What size cell do you have (and put it in your signature)? What is your % setting? How long does it run for every day?

....I am not sure what size my cell is. I will need to look that up.

It is set to 50%.

I am not sure how long it runs. Yikes. How do I figure that out?

Numbers please. There is still nothing in your PoolMath logs. We can't give advice on subjective comments.

Yeah--- I literally JUST upgraded and still just have the one log that I originally did in there.


I am going to get a full set of results today and will post/put in PoolMath.

Hopefully from there, and with TFP assistance I can get things on the right track!

 

[kimkats]

Allen has you well covered with his suggestions! THANKS ALLEN!

 

[ajw22]

....I am not sure what size my cell is. I will need to look that up.

I am assuming you have a Hayward AquaRite SWG system. Post pics of your SWG control panel and cell is you are not sure.

Hayward has a bunch of different size cells. See ...

Aquarite T-Cells

I am not sure how long it runs. Yikes. How do I figure that out?

How long does your pump run for?

Do you have Hayward automation? Omni? Prologic? Aqualogic? Your signature does not show any automation.

 

[MeowMeow724]

I am assuming you have a Hayward AquaRite SWG system. Post pics of your SWG control panel and cell is you are not sure.

I keep hearing "AquaRite" but I have no idea what that is. I am so clueless! Now I understand that's in relation to the SWG. I tried to gather all of the manuals/materials before the crews threw them away and don't recall seeing anything for the salt cell. I will snap a photo today.
Our control panel is for the pump, filter and SWG. They bypassed the control panel on the pump to run from the same control panel as all else. I will also snap a photo of the control panel today.

How long does your pump run for?

24 hours a day. 12 hours on low speed, and 12 hours on medium speed.

Do you have Hayward automation? Omni? Prologic? Aqualogic? Your signature does not show any automation.

No, I do not have any automation.

 

[kimkats]

I am SO glad you found TFP to help with all of this! Just think of the poor people who have not! They don't have anyone to help them with stuff like this

 

[ajw22]

Our control panel is for the pump, filter and SWG. They bypassed the control panel on the pump to run from the same control panel as all else. I will also snap a photo of the control panel today.

If you have a control panel that controls the pump and SWG then you have some type of automation. You need to understand what you have and we need to understand what you have to give you proper advice.

 

[MeowMeow724]

Results are in. I'm not sure about the chlorine... The color didn't seem to match any of the lines... maybe the highest one. The Pool Math screen shot says 3.0 but that is the last recorded test I did, since I wasn't sure on it today.

My salt keeps climbing, too. It was 2800, then 2900, then 3000 and today it's 3100 over the course of the past 5 or so days, really. I have not added any salt. I do live in a saltwater climate and it's been raining quite a bit off and on for a few weeks.
Maybe I need to turn that down? It's on 50% now.


And for the TA test, I tried using my speedstir and noticed after 11 drops I would initially see a little red, but it would always go green again. So I started over and swirled. On 9 drops it turned purple and I wasn't sure if that was the "red" it meant so I did one more and it turned it hot pink (kind of like the pH test does). So, I counted it as 10 drops. I am not sure how confident I feel in my testing abilities; or maybe the test that was done this AM (by someone else using their Taylor kit) was wrong). But, for the amount of Muriatic Acid I have added, I think my test result for TA makes more sense. See "Effects of Adding" screenshot.
With my TA sitting where it was before, at 120, wasn't that high for having a salt system anyway?

I think I still stink at the CYA test, but I can see the black dot, gray and start to fade towards the top of the cylinder but it's basically gone when the cylinder is full. I have very little-to no CYA but chlorine is possibly super high? I put 0 on CYA because the tube was basically full at the point that the black dot wasn't really visible. I am going to get some CYA at the store tonight because I know in the least, I definitely need some of that. I will get the powdered one this time vs. the liquid and do the sock in the skimmer thing.

See pics for SWG and control panel.
On the SWG cell, there is only one label that I see with any real information. On the body of the cell itself it says "SmartPure Sanitizer and that's it. I don't see any T-anything.

We didn't opt for any automation, nor did we pay for any, nor did they show us any. I don't think we have any. Or maybe I'm thinking of automation in different context.. as in the $800 system we could have added on, but didn't.

 

[ajw22]

You need to do the FAS/DPD chlorine test in your TF-100. The OTO yellow chlorine test only tells you if you have chlorine. It’s results are not accurate. Do you know what that test is?

You have a Hayward Prologic automation system.

 

[ajw22]

Does your cell look like these cells with the blue label?

SmartPure® Salt Sanitizer - Replacement Cells

Replacement SmartPure® Salt Sanitizer 20/40 Replacement for Turbo Cell-5/15 for Aqua Rite, Aqua Logic, Pro Logic, and Omni Logic Keep Your Chlorine Generator Working Efficiently and Effectively 20,000 gallon (also fits Hayward Aquarite AQR3) (increases T3Cell to 20,000 gallon) 40,000 gallon...

shop.bluehaven.com

 

[ajw22]

You have the Hayward Prologic PL-P-4 system. This is the manual...

https://hayward-pool-assets.com/assets/documents/pools/pdf/manuals/PLTPM-PL-P-4OperationOct08&Later.pdf

See page 13 - Configuration Menu - where you can display the cell type. Go to it an see what type cell it is set for.

Press MENU then >>>>> to CONFIGURATION MENU then + to select CHLOR CONFIG then >>> to display cell type.

 

[ajw22]

Where are you getting your salt values from?

Your TA is fine for the moment. Lets solve bigger problems.

Yes, you need to add stabilizer if you are doing the CYA test properly.

 

[MeowMeow724]

Salt values are coming from the meter. I do not have a salt test kit yet. ☹

FC tested as 9. ?
Why would that be so high?

I didn't do step 4 and 5 though.. do we need "total chlorine" or just the free chlorine? Sorry, I got ahead of myself and realized after the fact that I didn't do step 5 and 6.

 

[ajw22]

What salt meter do you have? Salt measurements can vary by +/-400 ppm. Don’t worry about small variations between salt checks.

What chlorine test instructions are you talking about? step 4, 5, 6??? TF-100 test doesn’t not reference Total Chlorine. Where did you get that from?

Your SWG has been set too high and putting out too much chlorine. Your pH tests have been unreliable.

Figure out what cell type you have.

 

[MeowMeow724]

You have the Hayward Prologic PL-P-4 system. This is the manual...

https://hayward-pool-assets.com/assets/documents/pools/pdf/manuals/PLTPM-PL-P-4OperationOct08&Later.pdf

See page 13 - Configuration Menu - where you can display the cell type. Go to it an see what type cell it is set for.

Press MENU then >>>>> to CONFIGURATION MENU then + to select CHLOR CONFIG then >>> to display cell type.

"Configuration Menu Locked"

Photo of the cell. I was trying to keep the company name off the thread but it's inevitable.

 

[ajw22]

Your pool was new construction?

And the pool builder gave you a non- Hayward aftermarket cell? Did you know that is what you were getting?