Ph low after acid wash - need advice

[km33326]

My diamondbrite was a bit stained, primarily on the top half of the pool walls. I decided to do an acid wash. I drained the pool half way and applied a total of about 2 gallons of Muriatic acid, diluted 1:1 in water, using a watering can. It worked great. I refilled the pool and planned to use Ph Up to adjust the Ph.

Unfortunately, I have now added about 12 pounds of Ph Up (3lbs at a time, testing in-between) and the Ph is still below 7. The water has also become cloudy. The pool has about 15K gallons.

I have 3 questions:
1) Is it possible to make this water safe again, or should I just dump it and refill?
2) Should I keep adding PH up or something else?
3) Will the cloudiness eventually dissipate?

I realize this was a stupid mistake, so no need to point it out

Thanks!

Kevin

 

[mknauss]

Welcome to the forum!
Use Baking Soda to raise your TA. If it is showing 0 with a TA test, then add 30 ppm worth at a time, mix, and test TA and pH. Once TA is at or above 50, then use borax, if needed, to raise your pH into the 7's.

The pH UP is expensive soda ash/washing soda. See Recommended Pool Chemicals - Trouble Free Pool
I suggest you read ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry.

 

[km33326]

Thanks mknauss. I have some good news. After running the filter for a while, my Ph is now around 7.6. However, my total alkalinity is now 200. The water is also very cloudy. I'm also concerned about the amount of PH up I had to add (12Lbs). Isn't this stuff toxic in high concentrations? Should I dump the water and refill? I don't want to risk my kids getting hurt. Thanks again for your help.

 

[mknauss]

That is the downside of Soda Ash. It raises your pH but REALLY raises your TA.

Not harmful. Your pH will now rise quickly and you will need to add acid on a regular basis to lower your TA.

The cloudy water is due to the soda ash. It should dissipate. Do monitor your pH daily and be ready to add acid.

 

[km33326]

Thanks!