Scale, I need help please

Jump to latest Follow Reply
So, am I correct in assuming if I keep my CSI negative scale will not form?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I am still concerned about this scale problem. I have vacuumed to waste twice, and the pool looks great for two days and then it reappears. My water CSI has been maintained at -.2 to -.3
I opened my SWG a few days ago and it looked clean. Could it be coming from the fill water I add when I vacuum to waste to replace the water? I am at a loss where this is coming from if the negative CSI will not allow scale to precipitate. I was hoping by vacuuming to waste I could get rid of existing scale. Is my CH high enough after a replaster? Prob nothing to do with scale but wanted to ask.......Any ideas?
Ph-7.4
CL- 6
CC-0
TA - 120
CH-325
Salt- 3100
CYA - 55 to 60
Temp- 84


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
It may not be scale but efflorescence.

There is also a possibility that if the plasterer added calcium chloride to the mix (and he likely did), the calcium can be causing areas of white discolorations.

Are the areas in question raised off the surface and very rough? As stated before, if your numbers are truly in the negative CSI range, scale formation is not possible. Any chance you can take a couple pictures?
 
No, they are not rough at all in fact they are so soft you can't hardly pick them up. If I do manage to get a piece, if I touch it it dissolves quickly when squeezed.... it is extremely soft. I put some in a capful of Muratic acid and it dissolved immediately. Although there are small deposits throughout the pool, 99% of it seems to precipitate out in my shallow wading pool and the steps going to them. Here are some pictures.

2db046678f84e4f577f7b45d22f46209.jpg
55e3468b3171a0b92f5340d9e216e61e.jpg
32aa93faf8fba05fffdb9f007ac6a589.jpg
3b9036e14d696bf9e549c36b1698df64.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I should add, they are easily vacuumed up and the pool looks great for a couple days, they are in no way attached to the surface or hard and rough.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
My backyard is on a pretty good slope, I know when they dug my next-door neighbors pool a month ago or so there was no water level to speak of there. I do run my sprinklers every night in my ground is pretty wet. It seems odd that it is only happening on the one end (shallow) of the pool primarily. What do you think it might be?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
Thanks everybody, I really would like to figure this out. I just went and turned my sprinkler times from 30 minutes to 15 minutes on every station near that area.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Correct me if I misunderstood your posts.
There is no permanent white scale that is sticking onto the plaster surface.
The white residue is often appearing in certain sections of your pool, such as the shallow-ends steps, and some other areas. Does that correspond with your return lines, and the ones that have the most volume coming out?

If so, then I suggest that the white residue is being formed within your salt unit (as was suggested by pooldv) and simply blowing out into the pool and dropping out in those areas. That would have nothing to do with the water balance. That can occur even in slightly negative CSI water.

The white residue or scale will fizz and foam when it comes into contact with acid. Try that experiment. As long as your dark color plaster surface is remaining dark and smooth, that is what is important.
 
I answered your questions within the quote below:

onBalance said:
Correct me if I misunderstood your posts.
There is no permanent white scale that is sticking onto the plaster surface.

That is correct nothing sticks to the surface.


The white residue is often appearing in certain sections of your pool, such as the shallow-ends steps, and some other areas. Does that correspond with your return lines, and the ones that have the most volume coming out?

Yes it is mostly in the shallow end, and there are two return lines in the wading pool area which probably do indeed produce the most volume, but the least pressure.

If so, then I suggest that the white residue is being formed within your salt unit (as was suggested by pooldv) and simply blowing out into the pool and dropping out in those areas. That would have nothing to do with the water balance. That can occur even in slightly negative CSI water.

So what can I do to prevent this? It did seem to start happening after the installation of the SWG. What is this residue?

The white residue or scale will fizz and foam when it comes into contact with acid. Try that experiment.

I did do this, and it definitely immediately disappeared when contacted with acid.

As long as your dark color plaster surface is remaining dark and smooth, that is what is important.
Click to expand...

The plaster surface seems to be remaining smooth, I don't think it has been affected.

What can I do to stop this? Once I get home, I will take a video of the acid reaction if I can figure out how to post a video. Thanks for the help.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
The white residue material is calcium carbonate also known as common scale, and even efflorescence.
I don't think there is any practical way to eliminate this problem. It is a common problem with Salt systems, and shows up in easily in dark color pools.
 
Wow, so I will have to vacuum my pool every two days forever? I think I would rather continue to use chlorine if I would've known that. That's a real bummer. So everybody that has a salt water generator deals with this on a regular basis? I thought if you had a CSI that was negative scale could not precipitate? That is not true?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Would adjusting the time I let the generator run, and the power used make a difference? I can't believe if this is so common that I would not have read about it. I never would've installed it if I knew this was the case. I'd rather remove it than have to vacuum every two days. Hopefully there something I can do.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have a question, I just had a person tell me that if I turn the power down and run it longer that would help because the stronger it runs the higher the pH it puts out, is that true? I am hoping adjusting one way or the other will help.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Kim, do you really think that it could be scale from the swg? Given his current numbers I don't see how that could be possible and with that said that would be a lot of scale coming from the salt cell. If I recall the OP had very high TA fill water and I'm thinking that that might be leaching into the pool now that his CSI is negative. Efflorescence would be a likely possibility from what he's saying and it seems to match his description pretty well.

- - - Updated - - -

To the OP, running the swg at a low percentage for a longer duration would certainly reduce the amount of pH rise at the cell itself, but it's not likely that what you are seeing is from the cell. How long and at what percentage are you running the cell?

Is the ground really that was around the pool?
 
I have a little bit of a update from Hayward. They told me that I need to run the cell longer than five hours because it reverses polarity every three hours and when it gets shut off before that it starts the process over and will cause scaling. I don't really understand what they're trying to tell me completely. I kind of follow what they're saying, but I will try that hopefully it will help. I do not think groundwater is an issue because I am on a pretty good slope on a hill and also my next-door neighbor just dug a brand-new pool a few months ago and there was no ground water in his hole. By the time you would get to the front of my house you would probably be at an elevation lower than the bottom of the pool. I am thinking that by not running that cell long enough to complete the cycle, the pH right at the cell may be higher at its start up, than what my water shows. I don't completely understand what they said, but I did follow that it needs to be able to reverse it cycle from one place to the other to prevent scaling is what they told me. They also told me that chlorine of 6 ppm is too High not sure I buy that. In the meantime I just went to the pool store and bought a pool blaster so I can deal with this scale without having to drag out my hose to the skimmer. That should work good for the scale as it is mostly confined to one area, and I kind of wanted one for Spot clean up anyway.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I am on my way home right now and I will confirm the power and duration of the SWG soon.....what is efflorescence?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply