Super Beginner Needing Saltwater Maintenance Advice

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Stevev23

Gold Supporter
May 7, 2023
23
Tamarac, FL
Hello. I've had someone maintaining my pool for 3 years and recently converted to SWG a month ago.

I'm not sure they knew how to maintain an SWG, because I just decided to maintain the pool myself, started to educate myself here, tested, and things seem very off.

For one, my SWG was set to 100% for the last month, which I just learned is too much. I've turned it off for now due to high FC.

I've installed Pool Math and configured it for my size pool (Est. 13,700 gallons) and my SWG (Jandy TruClear).

I also bought the TF-Pro Salt kit and these are my initial results which were a bit alarming (particularly FC):

FC - 25
PH - 7.8
TA - 100
CH - 300
CYA - 110
Salt - 2800
Temp - 87 (It's an outdoor pool in South Florida, if that helps with advice.)
CSI - 0.04

I've also noticed that the TFP recommendations are very different that the Jandy recommendations, but it seems that I should go by TFP from what I've read on the forums here.

Is it even safe to swim in my pool with FC so high?

Trying to get independent here, but super beginner so any advice is greatly appreciated to get off on the right foot.

Much appreciated,
Steve
 
Last edited:
Stevev23 said:
CYA - 110
Click to expand...
Everything is ok, except for FC and CYA. FC may or may not be OK, depending on CYA.

How did you get CYA of 110? Did you do diluted CYA test? If not, do this:
Add pool water to bottom of Line/sticker.
Add tap water to top of Line/sticker.
Shake.
Pour out half so mixture is to bottom of Line/sticker.
Add reagent to top of Line/sticker.
Shake.
Test outside with back to sun and tube at waist level.
Pour back and forth a few times to see if you get the same result.
Double the result.

Post up your result with this test...
 
I did not do a diluted CYA test.

It sounds like I might have a different CYA test?

Mine says:
1. Fill the red-capped CYA to the 7.5 ml with pool water, and the 15 ml mark with R-0013. Mix then wait 30 seconds. Shake once more.
2. Next, get the clear tube marked "CYA VIEW TUBE" and holding it at waist level (so you can look down the tube) slowly fill the view tube with the solution you have mixed. Keep filling until you can no longer see the black dot in the bottom of the tube. Note the fill level of the view tube.

The lowest line on my tube is marked 100 and it was under that line by the same distance as the 90 mark above the 100.

That's how I arrived at 110.
 
The scale on the CYA test tube is logarithmic, not linear. The space between the markings are not even.

What @PoolStored is suggesting is for you to do a diluted CYA test.
Follow his instructions to the letter.

If your CYA was clearly less than 90, he would not have suggested the diluted test. But since yours was somewhere over 100, you need to do the diluted test to get a reasonable idea of your true CYA reading.

Once you post that diluted CYA test reading, we can advise how best to proceed.
 
Yes, I can see it's logarithmic, though the difference between the values do seem to get more even as the number gets higher. It was just my best guess.

I'm not clear on how to follow the instructions given.

I have multiple lines on my bottle (7.5 ml, 15 ml, and 30 ml).

I'm guessing all of his instructions are based on the 7.5 and 15 ml lines and ignore the 30 ml line?

Sorry if I'm being dense. I'm new to this.
 
Your CYA is high - use the 7.5 ml and 15 ml markings

Fill the bottle to 7.5 ml with pool water.
Add regular tap water (it doesnt have CYA in it) to the 15 ml mark.
Shake/mix well.
Remove enough of the mixture to get back to the 7.5 ml mark.
Add R-0013 to the 15 ml mark.
Mix and do the CYA test as you normally would.
Take the result and double it (because you diluted the pool water with tap water 50/50).
Post the result here.
 
It's not just Jandy btw. Just about all pool equipment manufacturers list some stuff to do that you can't figure out how they came up with. Our methods have actually been "field tested" over the years. Seem to be just fine for around 300k pool folks!

But give them some credit...the chemical manufaturers are much worse!
 
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Yep, makes sense. Just had to think about it a minute.

So I can definitely see why they say this is the most subjective test and that it can take a couple of tries to "get it"!

Sometimes I thought the black dot was gone, but then my eyes would adjust and I'd see a faint shadow.

I poured it back and forth 5 times and I averaged around the 90 mark, so 180!

I know one of the last thing my pool maintenance guys did was add stabilizer in early to mid April, so I wonder if they could have added too much? It cost a mint, which is one of the reasons I decided to finally learn how to do this myself.
 

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Fill the vial to 100.
Hold the vial at waste level using your thumb amd index finget near the top.
Back to the sun.
Glance - just glance - to see if you see the dot. Do NOT stare.
If you see the dot, fill the vial to 90.
Rinse, repeat until the dot isn't visible - with just a glance.
If you see it at 70 and not at 60, your CYA is 70. Always round up.

If you can't see the dot at 90 or higher, do the diluted test.

You can reuse the mixed solution multiple times for practice or to get an average over 3 readings.
Don't save the solution for a later date though.
 
OK. Started from scratch this afternoon.

Not diluted - Could not see it at 100

Did the diluted test, holding at top of tube, at waist level, quick glances, two sets of eyes (my wife and I), and many re-pours (which some shakes in between) so we could get an average.

We both kept getting between 60 and 70, which if rounded up, would be 70 or 80, so let's say 75 x 2

CYA = 150
 
OK. Started from scratch this afternoon.

Not diluted - Could not see it at 100

Did the diluted test, holding at top of tube, at waist level, quick glances, two sets of eyes (my wife and I), and many re-pours (which some shakes in between) so we could get an average.

We both kept getting between 60 and 70, which if rounded up, would be 70 or 80, so let's say 75 x 2

CYA = 150
 
Ok - so your FC is actually at an appropriate level for your CYA, but it will bleach out your other tests (most importantly the pH test). It also is probably putting a lot of strain on your cell.

Are you able to replace the water? You’d have to swap out something like 50-70% with fresh water to cut the CYA down to a level that will let your FC be down where it should be.

Be careful if you do trade out water. If your water table is high, draining can cause your pool to float out of the ground, which is just as terrifying as it sounds. Check out the no-drain water exchange procedure here:

Draining - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
Call both 80 and doubled is 160.
This is what you get with a "pool service"

You will need to deal with the extreme CYA before anything. You CAN live with a 160, but it's not recommended.
 
Griswald said:
Call both 80 and doubled is 160.
This is what you get with a "pool service"

You will need to deal with the extreme CYA before anything. You CAN live with a 160, but it's not recommended.
Click to expand...
I definitely feel "serviced" right about now.... but also excited to be learning how to do this myself and very grateful to this community for all the help!
 
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IceShadow said:
Ok - so your FC is actually at an appropriate level for your CYA, but it will bleach out your other tests (most importantly the pH test). It also is probably putting a lot of strain on your cell.

Are you able to replace the water? You’d have to swap out something like 50-70% with fresh water to cut the CYA down to a level that will let your FC be down where it should be.

Be careful if you do trade out water. If your water table is high, draining can cause your pool to float out of the ground, which is just as terrifying as it sounds. Check out the no-drain water exchange procedure here:

Draining - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
Click to expand...

Interestingly, the PH test is giving me 7.8, though now I'm wondering if it's accurate.

Just saw the picture of the out-of-ground pool on the draining page and that was truly as terrifying as I imagined!

Now I just need to find my sewer cleanout, so I can do this properly. I've looked everywhere in the past with no luck, so it might be time to find my survey map or call a plumber to help me locate it.

Hopefully it's not buried.
 

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