Pool use vs SWG level?

[Tegguy]

Not exactly sure the right way to ask this question but I remember hearing that as your use the pool your chlorine level will drop due to splashing and stuff (I'm assuming this is true with water features also maybe?) This will be the first summer we have had the pool so I'm wondering what I should be planning to adjust in order to maintain chlorine levels. We used the pool 3 days this week and have noticed my chlorine level has dropped off pretty bad even when turning on the super chlorinate function. I'm not sure if I should do an overnight chlorine loss test even though my CC is low or something else.

I tested today (in the pool logs) and the FC was 1 so I went ahead and threw in the floating chlorine tablet holder I had left over from the pool start up to try to get the chlorine back up but is there something else I should be doing?

SWG is set at 30% with a 6 hour run time on the pump (except past 2-3 days it's been in super chlorinate).

 

[ajw22]

Running your IC40 for 30% for 6 hours in your 17,000 gallons pools gives you 0.7 ppm of FC/day. That is not enough FC as the days get longer.

Up your % or your pump runtime. You should generate at least 2 ppm/day and increase it to 3 ppm/day as we get into summer.

Run your IC40 at Superchlorinate and get your FC up to 6. Running it at Superchlorinate for 6 hours gives you 2.5 ppm of FC. You need to run it for 15 hours to get a FC of 6.

Using the pool does not effect chlorine levels with a few people. Your FC fell because your SWG is set too low.

 

[Orion7319]

I’m still trying to figure mine out as well. This summer will be my second year with it. One thing I learned is to not rely on it to raise chlorine levels, but to maintain them. If chlorine drops I will bump it up with bleach or cal hypo or whatever I can add that won’t mess up my other levels. It was my experience that if choline drops even for a short amount of time algae can start to grow.

 

[mguzzy]

What AJ said.. you can use the effects of adding in the Pool Math app to see what your FC contribution will be from your SWG. Don't be afraid to turn that knob up as you see the forecast or a pending pool party. I try to keep mine closer to 9 so I have the wiggle room in case sudden heat wave comes through or something. If you miss it then dump some liquid chlorine in there. it is the fastest way to make up the difference. In general you want to count on your SWG to maintain the level.. not reach it. I will say it took at least 2 seasons (maybe 3 because this was all pre TFP and I was figuring it out on the fly) with my SWG before I had a handle on how to manage my FC out put with the % knob!

Also, I wouldn't use pucks to add Cl, your CYA is already at 80, that is just going to add more CYA. Use liquid chlorine...that is unless you NEED CYA, but it doesn't look like it to me.

 

[Tegguy]

What AJ said.. you can use the effects of adding in the Pool Math app to see what your FC contribution will be from your SWG.

Also, I wouldn't use pucks to add Cl, your CYA is already at 80, that is just going to add more CYA. Use liquid chlorine...that is unless you NEED CYA, but it doesn't look like it to me.

I did not know the pool math app had that in there thank you for pointing it out. Also I didn't know the CL pucks had CYA in them that is also good to know.

Running your IC40 for 30% for 6 hours in your 17,000 gallons pools gives you 0.7 ppm of FC/day. That is not enough FC as the days get longer.

Up your % or your pump runtime. You should generate at least 2 ppm/day and increase it to 3 ppm/day as we get into summer.

Run your IC40 at Superchlorinate and get your FC up to 6. Running it at Superchlorinate for 6 hours gives you 2.5 ppm of FC. You need to run it for 15 hours to get a FC of 6.

Using the pool does not effect chlorine levels with a few people. Your FC fell because your SWG is set too low.

I've been using an excel sheet I found on here "SWG Run Time Calculator" and using a 2 PPM 24 hour FC demand with a 6 hour run time it says I need to run the SWG at 80% Does this seem reasonable or high?

 

[ajw22]

The math is what it is. If you only want to run your pump for 6 hours then you need to run the cell at 80%.

 

[cowboycasey]

I used to run mine 100% all the time and run my pump long enough to get the chlorine I need.. Your pump is usually the most expensive part of running your pool so get it done and shut off.. Unless you have a VS pump and run it low.. I now run mine 24/7 at 800 rpm and and running my SJ 55 at 3 hours a day...

When your FC drops always bring it up with liquid chlorine above the recommended levels and let your SWG keep it there...

 

[ajw22]

IntelliChlor Superchlorinate does a fine job to boost the FC to needed levels in less then 24 hours if you run the pump as long as necessary. It beats running out to buy jugs of chlorine. You paid for the chlorine in the cell so might as well use it if you need it.

 

[Newdude]

+1. Some folks obsess over saving every minute of cell life and buy/lug jugs in the meantime. It helps them sleep better and it is OK too. For the rest of us........ we make up an excuse to let the SWG do it’s thing. You bought it for a reason, so use it.

 

[Tegguy]

Thanks everyone I'll get the fc back up to where it should be and then increase my SWG output to the needed level.

 

[mguzzy]

I've been using an excel sheet I found on here "SWG Run Time Calculator" and using a 2 PPM 24 hour FC demand with a 6 hour run time it says I need to run the SWG at 80% Does this seem reasonable or high?

So do you have a feeling for how much FC you consume in the heat of the summer? 4-6ppm would not be out of the questions. So you need to factor that into high end of your Cl usage. And the low end would be whatever you go through in the winter. Think of the %knob as the number of jugs of Cl you would have to dump in your pool as the season changes.. Hotter weather, more swimmers, more jugs or more %'s.

 

[Tegguy]

So do you have a feeling for how much FC you consume in the heat of the summer? 4-6ppm would not be out of the questions. So you need to factor that into high end of your Cl usage. And the low end would be whatever you go through in the winter. Think of the %knob as the number of jugs of Cl you would have to dump in your pool as the season changes.. Hotter weather, more swimmers, more jugs or more %'s.

Thanks pool is only a few months old so this will be our first season with it so we really don't have an idea I might gauge it off my neighbors pool to see what percentage he's running and how long and everything

 

[Newdude]

Daily testing will help you zero in on how it responds. That will shortly turn into every other day, weekly, and *holy cow* this thing is AMZING !!!!!!

 

[mguzzy]

Thanks pool is only a few months old so this will be our first season with it so we really don't have an idea I might gauge it off my neighbors pool to see what percentage he's running and how long and everything

Use the Pool Math app to get your baseline and then tweak it from there. In all honesty it will take probably 2 seasons to figure out the idiosyncrasies of your pool. I wouldn't compare it too much to the neighbors pool... its a different body of water. My neighbors pool is completely different from mine.. it get 90% more sun, is 15 degrees warmer, etc etc and is only 150 ft from mine.

 

[Tegguy]

Alright I figure I'd post here rather than a new thread. I had my chlorine up at 4.5 for a week but today I tested and my FC is at .5 and CC is at .5

What the heck am I doing wrong?

 

[mknauss]

It appears you are not generating enough chlorine each day with your SWCG to offset your FC loss. Add liquid chlorine now to get to get to 6 ppm FC. Then adjust the SWCG to create 4 ppm FC per day. Monitor your FC level daily to see if the SWCG needs to be adjusted to keep your FC at 6 ppm +/- a ppm or so.

 

[ajw22]

How long are you running your pump for?

What % is the SWG set for?

How often are you walking by your SWG and checking you have the correct green lights?

Run your SWG on Superchlorinate for 15 hours and check your FC.

 

[Tegguy]

My post for split a littke but so my SWG is at (and has been since talking to a few people on here around a week ago) 85% with a 6 hour pump run time. Fc was good for 4 days and dropped from 4.5 to .5 in 3 days.

 

[Tegguy]

Pump runs for 6 hours currently

SWG is set at 85%

Whenever I’m in the area I'll look at the SWG but that’s rarely

I'll get the pump running. Just to clarify my FC was 4.5 three days ago (no change from the test before)

 

[mknauss]

Pump runs for 6 hours currently

SWG is set at 85%

Those setting are creating 2 ppm FC in your pool volume . Too low for your climate and time of year. Double the run hours to 12 hours and see how the FC holds.