Problems getting a free chlorine reading.

[jenndue82]

I have been trying to clear my pool for almost a month now and have had 4 water test done at a local pool chain. My latest numbers are
0.5 Free Chlorine
5.96 Total Chlorine
7.3 ph
128 Alkalinity
41 CYA
168 phosphates
According to our paperwork we need to lower the Alkalinity so we added 1 cup of muriatic acid and thought we got it down to 120 and then attempted to SLAM the pool but after adding 5 gallons of 10% liquid chlorine we still show no free chlorine but it seems as if our Alkalinity is rising again. We have decided we need to stop for the night and start over tomorrow by focusing on adjusting the Alkalinity. Does anyone know about how much muriatic acid it will take to lower our Alkalinity to a proper level to hopefully show a free chlorine reading. We are starting to also think we may have ammonia in the water and that is whats killing our free chlorine. Can anyone help guide me in the right direction this is the first time we have ever had this much trouble clearing the water.

 

[Newdude]

Hey Jenn and Welcome !!!

You need your own test kit. The proper SLAM requires too frequent testing to use the pool store. How many free tests are they going to do for you when you don't buy gobs of chemicals with each one ? Yeah. See Test Kits Compared

The cure for ammonia is to add 10FC and test in 10 mins. If most of it is gone, you repeat until it holds. You simply cannot use the pool store for this.

Get yourself a kit. Read up on the SLAM Process. Take a break, process it, and read it again. Maybe a 3rd time. It's a process and needs to be followed if you want to take control back.

We'll help every step of the way.

 

[jenndue82]

Hey Jenn and Welcome !!!

You need your own test kit. The proper SLAM requires too frequent testing to use the pool store. How many free tests are they going to do for you when you don't buy gobs of chemicals with each one ? Yeah. See Test Kits Compared

The cure for ammonia is to add 10FC and test in 10 mins. If most of it is gone, you repeat until it holds. You simply cannot use the pool store for this.

Get yourself a kit. Read up on the SLAM Process. Take a break, process it, and read it again. Maybe a 3rd time. It's a process and needs to be followed if you want to take control back.

We'll help every step of the way.

We have a basic dpd 5 way test kit but it isn't giving us an accurate free chlorine reading so we are relying on strips and unfortunately they are showing no free chlorine. I thought maybe the strips were garbage so I put fresh water in a bucket and added some liquid chlorine and it showed the free chlorine so I was hoping they would atleast give us an idea for now lol.

 

[Newdude]

I get it. Believe me I get it. This new and overwhelming to you but for us it's just another day at the office.

You need precision and you need frequency and neither the pool store or test strips is going to get you out of this mess.

Her is our proof. We would love to add you at the end of the thread.
How Clear is TFP Clear?

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

Welcome!

How big is your pool? Which test kit do you have?

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[jenndue82]

Welcome!

How big is your pool? Which test kit do you have?

Take a few minutes to complete you signature. It'll help us help you.

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Its a 24x52 so we believe its close to 14,000 gallons. We usually use an HDX 5 way test kit and recently bought some test strips one is a pool time brand and the other are hth test strips

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

Its a 24x52 so we believe its close to 14,000 gallons. We usually use an HDX 5 way test kit and recently bought some test strips one is a pool time brand and the other are hth test strips

The kit is missing the most critical components; CYA test and the drop-based FAS/DPD chlorine tests. If your pool was closer in size to a temporary or seasonal pool, you could get away with a lesser kit, but you got yourself a real pool.

Take a look at the kits at tftestkits.net. They provide the best value. The TF-100 would be a good choice. The Smart Stir or Taylor Speed Stir will make testing easier and more consistent. It swirls the sample for you. The kit costs about as a couple bottles of worthless magic potions from the pool store. The difference is that the kit will result in clear water.

We're here to help...Best wishes!