Relatively New Pool Owner & New to TFP - Intro and General Questions

[JoePoolOwner]

Hello, my pebble in ground pool and spa construction was completed last Labor Day weekend. The builder left me a cheapo test kit (Poolmaster 5-way) with minimal instruction and said all I needed to test was chlorine and pH. I tested FC, pH, and Alkalinity for the first several months, then started taking a sample into the local national chain brand to compare their results with mine. The chain store was always far off from the home test kit, as they kept telling me I needed to buy more product. As a skeptical minded individual, I knew to look out for their recommendations along the way. My water has been clean, clear, algae free, and easy to maintain since filling it after construction. I ordered my Taylor K2006C and K1766 test kits a few weeks ago after deciding to subscribe to the TFP method. I have switched to these kits exclusively.

As of yesterday, my FC was 3.4, 0 CC, 7.7 pH, 220 CH, 80 TA, 3600 Salt, 38 CYA, pool temp is 85, and -0.21 CSI. All in all not bad, but I need to raise my CYA and CH. This morning I added 4lbs of granule CYA in a sock via my skimmer. The pump is running and I'll see where it lands in 24 hours. I think I may need to add one more pound of CYA to get my levels to the 70 recommended in the C/CYA table. I plan to add 20 lbs of Calcium Chloride in a day or two to bring that from 220 up to approximately 328. I paid for the annual Pool Math app on my iPhone, and I'm using it to help me adjust these levels.

Is there anything I'm missing in my scenario? At first I was overwhelmed by the TFP numbers and techniques, but after a month or two of sifting through the info here, I feel fairly confident that I'm on the right track. TIA for your feedback.

 

[Flying Tivo]

First i would suggest you test your Fill water, it might be CH high so you wouldn't need to add much maybe 275ppm. You do need to raise CYA to 70 at least.

 

[bmoreswim]

Great job! You seem right on track. No recommendations except lots of pool time.

You can save reagent by using a 10ml sample and having each drop be .5 FC instead of .2 with the 25ml sample. That's the best I can do for you!

 

[JoePoolOwner]

Thanks for the tip on using the 10ml line to measure chlorine. Now that I'm up in the 5-6 range, it definitely helps.

I have the CYA at 75 and the CH at 350. My CSI is -.020. Prior to committing to TFP, I figured raising FC would give me that chlorine smell and irritate skin, but now I understand that higher FC along with balanced water does not result in any chlorine smell or skin irritation. I'm so excited at how easy TFP is to maintain. By letting my TA drop to 80, keeping my pH 7.6 - 7.9, and reducing the time my spa/pool spillway runs each day (it still gets plenty of turnover, once in morning and once in late afternoon) keeps my pH way more stable so I don't have to dump a pint or more of muriatic acid into the pool 3x/week like I used to in order to keep it from jumping over 8.0.

Is there any TFP recommendation to treat the water before having several people over in the pool? Prior, I was advised to dump a pound of shock into the pool the night before or early morning of. I doubt this is necessary now, but just want to ask to be sure.

 

[mknauss]

Is there any TFP recommendation to treat the water before having several people over in the pool? Prior, I was advised to dump a pound of shock into the pool the night before or early morning of. I doubt this is necessary now, but just want to ask to be sure.

In your pool volume, a gallon of 10% liquid chlorine will bump your FC by 5 ppm. That would be a great idea to add the morning before a pool party. Depending on how long or how many children are at the party, you might call a time out about 4 hours into it and test the FC again. Have another gallon on hand just in case.

 

[PoolNewb2020]

I agree that at first the TFP method seems like a lot of work and complication. In the end it ends up being quite easy and inexpensive.

One thing top note, the CYA reading is rounded up to the next higher level. So if you have a reading that fell between 70 and 80ppm, we treat it as 80 ppm.