PH not dropping like it should

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scott011422

Member
Jul 23, 2023
9
Dekalb, Illinois
Morning Guys

I recently bought a digital water tester. My PH was at 8.6. I added 12oz of 34.6% acid from Menards and the PH only dropped to 8.4. I added 12oz another 4x over a few days to get the PH down to 7.6 when I ran out of acid. I got some new acid today from ACE that is 31.45%. Tested last night at 8.4 PH. Added 12oz of this new acid and was 8.15 this morning. Why isnt the PH dropping like it should be? A coworker said he had bad results with the Menards acid and said the ACE acid worked well for him, hence the change.

Salt water pool, no cell, running with liquid Chlorine.
5285 gallons.
10hrs pump time
Heated to 88 Deg.
3800 PPM of salt.
Uses Soft water.
1 ppm of chlorine
50 CYA
80-120 Range TA
.365 MV ODP
 
Last edited:
I think more than likely the problem is with your tester. Do you have one of the recommended test kits? Or at least the Ph block color match?

How big is your pool, what is your TA?
 
My pool holds 5285 gallons.

Tester is fine. First thing I did was take it to work and calibrate it. It was within .1 of our calibrated work tester.

I do not have any "recommended" testers. I've always used 7 way test strips and a digital Salt PPM tester. Always had really good luck. Never had any water quality issues.

The strips also say the PH is around 8.4.

I just purchased this tester because It does ODP and I was curious about the whole ODP process. My Chlorine level has always been supper low, 1PPM at most unless I add liquid chlorine. The odd thing is I have NEVER had ANY water quality problems. Never cloudy, Never algae.
 
I'll start a separate thread on the Chlorine later, Thats another story odd story.

All these test kit replies, Non of this has anything to do with why i'm having trouble adjusting PH. but thanks for the suggestions.

I'm 100% confident in my PH reading. Not only does this C-600 Meter match my test strips. It also matches our expensive lab grade tester at work. That tester is professionally calibrated monthly and checked daily.
 

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JamesW said:
Did your test strips show that the pH was 8.6?
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Its debatable. Sometimes its hard to match those colors. It was darker than the 8.4 and lighter than the 9.

I find the strips great for daily testing when everything is good. Once you start having issues its hard to see just how bad your issue is. Yes the PH, ALK, CYA whatever is high. How high? Who knows. Thankfully, until my cell died last year, the water has been rock solid. I never really did anything.
 
ajw22 said:
Keep all your water chemistry issues in one thread. They are likely interrelated.


TA affects the ability of your pH to change.

Do you have borates in your water? They also affect pH change.

Borates in pool - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
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I can do that. Not really an issue, more of an oddity. As i stated, My Chlorine PPM is normally 1. Has been 1 since I got the pool 4 years ago. Everything else stays in range. Pool has always been crystal clear. Never any issues. For better or worse, I don't even shock the pool. Most ill do is pour in some extra LC after a heavy swim day. I don't remember the data, but i've tested the pool on an off over the years with a friends big Taylor test kit and all was good.

While I know 1ppm is low, Its never been a problem so I've never delt with it.

The question is, Why has it never been a problem?

I do not have any borates.

TA was around 180 or so when the PH was really high. They always move together for me. When my PH is good, So is my TA.
 
scott011422 said:
The question is, Why has it never been a problem?
Click to expand...

Clear water is not sanitary water. Bacteria and algae can be in clear water.

Without a proper test kit, which we have been telling you about, you cannot test if your water is algae free and sanitary. Test strips are not adequate to do tests like a Overnight Chlorine Loss Test
 
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