pH difficulty after new replaster

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TXaquaholics

TXaquaholics

Bronze Supporter
Feb 12, 2019
47
Austin, TX
Pool Size
15500
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Liquid Chlorine
New WetEdge Primera Stone replaster job this week. After adding 183 oz of muriatic acid (31.45% - 20deg Baume) over a 48 hour period, I'm still above pH of 8. Trying to get down to 7.4. Using Taylor kit. Leslie's verified my readings. Alkalinity is 80 ppm. Started with Austin, TX city water. Filter pump running continuously, spillway on only 1-2 hrs/day to reduce aeration rise. Pool Math was not even close, probably no good for start up. Am I missing something? Argh!
 
Did you add the MA in one bolus dose or was it trickled in over 48 hours? Cause that'll make a huge difference. Its the wham factor that you needed, as you're competing against the natural tendency of new plaster to raise the pH.

Next time you add MA, do it all at once over a moving return. Brush that area immediately also to mix it up good and keep it from laying on the pool's surface. Give it about 30 minutes of pump run time and re-test to see if you met your goal.

Maddie :flower:
 
Thanks for the feedback. It's been added in 8-10 oz increments in a 2-1/2 gal bucket of water over the past 48 hours. See attached pic. Didn't realize I needed to slam it hard. I had begun to wonder if I was working against the plaster curing process. I had a thought about adding it to the currently empty inline chlorinator so that it gets quickly diluted and distributed throughout the pool. What does the group think about this idea?

Capture.JPG
 
No need to dilute or spread it out across that much time. I can easily add 1-2 cups all at once by pouring slowly near the return jets with the pump on high. Sometimes I may brush the area just for extra movement. Then I can re-test in about 30 minutes to confirm. That should help you stay on top of the pH rise a little better.
 
TXaquaholics said:
I had a thought about adding it to the currently empty inline chlorinator so that it gets quickly diluted and distributed throughout the pool. What does the group think about this idea?
Click to expand...
Thanks Maddie! I skipped right over that one. Definately a no-no Aqua. No Bueno.
 
Why don't you just go ahead and buy stock in the MA company - you're going to be using a boatload of it over the next 6 months (yes, it can take that long for the pH to stabilize)! Try to keep the pH below 8 but don't obsess over getting it down to 7.4. You are correct that you don't want to be too aggressive with acid while the plaster is in the initial cure stage, but pH over 8 can accelerate staining and scaling.
 
Thanks. I finally got it down to 7.4 yesterday morning. I hadn't realized the curing process was causing it to continuously rise. I do now. Home Depot is one mile away so MA replenishment is easy.

Now working on getting the FC and CYA set up. I've been using tabs for 10 years and my CYA was always way too high. After reading more on TFP, I'm likely to switch to liquid chlorine except when on vacation.
 

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