Recommended levels for pool with Autocover

[jdoghaf]

In the next month or two our pool should be finished, so I've been going through pool school trying to figure everything out. What I'm wondering is what our level of CYA and Chlorine should be. The pool will always be covered when not in use, as the cover is primarily for safety with young kids, so it will probably be covered 90-95% of the time I'm guessing. Should we be having different levels of chemicals with the Autocover or stick with Recommended Levels?

 

[mknauss]

You can run a lower CYA and corresponding FC. I would recommend you try 30 ppm CYA and a FC of 3-5. It will be a dance if you leave the cover open during the day, as the FC will burn off pretty quick so you may need to adjust the SWCG for those days you have the cover open longer.

 

[santacruzpool]

I run my pool closed 90% of the time, and I try to keep it closer to 40 CYA, as I find 40 is a little easier to manage for my pool. When I tried to keep it around 30 for a season it seemed a little harder to keep the chlorine levels consistent week to week. I think it is harder to tell when the CYA drops just below 30 and that would not be enough to protect the FC when the pool is open for swim sessions for me.

My Jandy automation allows me to have a different output level for my SWCG when the pool is open vs covered. For example, I can run my SWCG at 25% covered and when it is open it automatically adjusts higher to something like 35-50%. I fiddle with these numbers as the seasons change.

 

[bmoreswim]

That is a great function on the Jandy systems they added some time ago.

 

[Cngilley]

we built a pool with autocover last year. i have asked the same question and seems most people really don't know since the covers aren't that common. per latham blog (How to Keep Pool Chemicals From Damaging Your Automatic Safety Cover) chlorine should be kept around 1ppm to keep from damaging the cover. if you follow the rule of keeping FC atleast 10% of CYA then CYA should not exceed 10. last year i kept my chlorine around 1.5-3ppm, kept my pool covered unless we were in it and had perfect water all season. my CYA crept up to 35 due to smart shock i was using that had CYA (i was still learning about this stuff). i plan on lowering my CYA to 10-20 this weekend so i can keep my FC lower, still be effective sanitizer, and not damage the auto-cover. this being said if we are in the pool during heavy sunlight or have large party i turn my SWG percentage up to compensate for chlorine loss during those times

 

[bmoreswim]

The questions actually appear to be different. The OP is interested in TFP’s view on chemicals and how having a pool covered would affect that.

Your question is more about what do cover manufacturers recommend for FC for their covers.

Our view is that FC is much less harsh at higher CYA levels. Therefore, you can run a much higher FC level than they would suggest because the industry doesn’t generally accept the FC/CYA relationship.

Our recommendation would be to follow the FC/CYA relationship, but don’t worry about the 1 FC limit. Though you may be able to run a lower CYA if a pool is frequently covered. Let the CYA be the driver.

 

[DorsalSpine]

I don't have a SWG but I keep my CYA around 40 with my auto cover. It gives me a little more room for error for the days when the pool is open all day.

 

[Cngilley]

The questions actually appear to be different. The OP is interested in TFP’s view on chemicals and how having a pool covered would affect that.

Your question is more about what do cover manufacturers recommend for FC for their covers.

Our view is that FC is much less harsh at higher CYA levels. Therefore, you can run a much higher FC level than they would suggest because the industry doesn’t generally accept the FC/CYA relationship.

Our recommendation would be to follow the FC/CYA relationship, but don’t worry about the 1 FC limit. Though you may be able to run a lower CYA if a pool is frequently covered. Let the CYA be the driver.

Thanks for info. I had been wondering if the CYA were higher, and making FC less effective, would it also make FC less harsh on pool equipment etc.