Pretty, confused. New Caldera Seychelles spa with “fresh water salt system”.

[MaureenD]

I test it daily. CYA good, salt ok. I am needing to add dry acid (pH up from dealer) and baking soda daily and pool shock (liquid from dealer -12%) once or more times a week.
If I turn up the salt system, the salt level starts getting way too high but it really doesn’t keep the chlorine levels up.
The tub is lightly used, mostly only me, maybe 4-6x’s a week for about 45 minutes, more soaking than jet use (been in the 90’s here so not very inviting), very occasionally may have 3 people (lots of jet use then.)
I have it on auto circulation once a day and have turned the air down to reduce bubbles hoping to regulate the pH a bit. I don’t know what other info to provide. Hasn’t been used for 3 days and pH and TA still off daily.
It is 330 gal, I am keeping it at 101, it is covered and am following the pool math recommendations.
Any help would be appreciated.

 

[thetekgeek]

I see you are using a TF100 for testing, good job. I think you should start by posting a full set of test results.

Second. PH UP is not dry acid. I would recommend discontinuing use of that product and simply use baking soda if your alkalinity needs to be raised. Raising the total alkalinity of the water will help the PH to rise faster. It sounds like you are putting yourself on a PH and TA roller coaster. Once we see your full set of tests, the experts here will be able to help you make those adjustments in a way that you can understand exactly what is happening with the water.

Lastly, do you have the salt test add on for your TF-100? It is simply not possible for the salt system to add salt to the water when you have it operating. It just doesn't work that way. How are you testing the salt level? If you don't have the salt test, you can add that on by getting the K-1766 at this link: Taylor K-1766 Salt Test Kit

Please post that full set of tests so we can help you.

 

[MaureenD]

I see you are using a TF100 for testing, good job. I think you should start by posting a full set of test results.

Second. PH UP is not dry acid. I would recommend discontinuing use of that product and simply use baking soda if your alkalinity needs to be raised. Raising the total alkalinity of the water will help the PH to rise faster. It sounds like you are putting yourself on a PH and TA roller coaster. Once we see your full set of tests, the experts here will be able to help you make those adjustments in a way that you can understand exactly what is happening with the water.

Lastly, do you have the salt test add on for your TF-100? It is simply not possible for the salt system to add salt to the water when you have it operating. It just doesn't work that way. How are you testing the salt level? If you don't have the salt test, you can add that on by getting the K-1766 at this link: Taylor K-1766 Salt Test Kit

Please post that full set of tests so we can help you.

Thank you for your response. - Oh my goodness, sorry, I wrote pH up instead of DOWN! Suspect that changes things.

Yes, I have the salt test kit and the water is testing in the correct range. I understand I am not adding more salt to the water when I increase the output level on the display (0-10) and that it is supposed to increase the chlorine production. Maybe I am not understanding that system. I’ll work on that so more, adding chlorine is no big deal until I figure it out.

Here are the testing results for last week
FC - 2.5, 3.5, 2.5, 5, 3, 2, 2.5
CC - .5 all week
pH - 8.2, 7.8, 8.2, 8.2 (added pH down only day I retested, down to 7.5), about 8 for next 3 days
TA - 70, 70, 70, 70, 80, 70 adding 2TB baking soda every day (spa manual says 80 is optimal for this tub so 70 is ok I just try for perfect)
CYA - 30 - haven’t tested in a month but understood that it doesn’t change once you have gotten it were it belongs?
CH - 38 (50 optimum, 25 minimum recommended level for this tub)

 

[thetekgeek]

Thank you for the test results.

PH Down, I still would recommend that you discontinue using that product as it adds other things to the water that you do not want, especially with a salt generator. Use Muriatic Acid to lower PH instead, do not add liquid chlorine and muriatic acid at the same time, wait 15 minutes between each chemical if you are adjusting both FC and PH. Also, do not store liquid chlorine in the same place with the acid. It is best to store it outside away from metals. I keep my acid in a small deck box in the corner of my back yard. It is not affected by the sun / weather and does fine stored outdoors.

Now for a short chemistry lesson. Each time your PH rises to 8, calculate and add enough acid to lower to 7.5 or even 7.6. Each time you do this, you will be simultaneously lowering the TA of the water. Think of TA as potential for PH rise. The higher the TA, the faster the PH will rise. Each body of water is a little different and might take a little time to figure out, but as you go through this process of small adjustments the PH rise will slow down and eventually become much more stable, remember that any PH in the 7's is perfectly fine. For some, that stability happens around a TA of 90, the hot tub I manage loves TA at 60. I've seen people keep their tubs as low as 50, although I wouldn't think you'd want to go below 50. If you overshoot at any point and TA does get below 50, calculate the amount of baking soda you'll need to raise back up to 60. Try to stay off the roller coaster of lowering PH and TA only to bring it back up and try to avoid large adjustments while you are learning your particular hot tub.

Your CYA is at 30, which is great for a hot tub. The hot tub I manage does not have a salt generator, but as long as you stay within the parameters of the FC/CYA chart, you should be fine. Chlorine / CYA Chart Never let your FC drop below minimum, always dose to the high end of the target. Initially, use your liquid chlorine to get to the high end of the range and play with your salt generator output to maintain the FC level within the recommended range.

Lastly, your CH results don't seem accurate. It should be your number of drops to blue X 25. 38 is not a possible result, or did not come from your TF100.

I sure hope this helps you. Please let us know if you have any questions.

 

[MaureenD]

Sorry I am just getting back here.
You’re right about the CH, that number was from the dealers water test. I adjusted it a bit and got it to 50 from the TF100 and next dealer test a couple of days ago was 50.
I will switch to Muriatic acid, it was my instinct based on everything I have read here but was a bit afraid of it.
The tub manual says a TA range of 40-120 is ok, with 80 being optimal. I will follow your suggestions and see if I can stabilize the pH some by lowering the TA (been trying for the recommended optimum - will stop that)
FC has been a little frustrating but I will keep playing with the salt generator
THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time to help me, God bless you.

 

[thetekgeek]

Sounds good. Don't hesitate to post back if more questions arise.