Superslamming

[DThompson55]

I'm thinking of superslamming - of bringing ppm up to 15 or 20 for a week. Any downside to doing that?

 

[Donldson]

What is a superslam? There's the SLAM Process. Works just fine. Having problems with your water?

 

[JoyfulNoise]

What is a superslam?

Not what, but who .... I think he was either a DC comics superhero OR a WWE wrestling pro ....

 

[CrystalRiver]

Any downside to doing that?

Risking damage to liner and equipment.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

<iin the voice of Crocodile Dundee> "That ain't a superslam...... THIS is a superslam!"

FC of 15 or 20 is normal SLAM levels for those whose CYA is between 40 to 50.

Maddie

 

[JJ_Tex]

Honestly, that FC likely is not high enough. We can only tell once we know your CYA levels. Post that level so we can help you further, pictures of the pool would help too... I double dog dare you.

 

[mgtfp]

It really depends on your CYA level. In your logs, the only CYA related entry is a stabilizer addition of 10oz a year ago. That would have raised your CYA by 5ppm.

If that was the only CYA addition you aver did, then FC 20ppm would be way beyond SLAM level, even beyond mustard algae SLAM level.

If your CYA was 50, then FC 20ppm would be the right SLAM level.

If you were chlorinating over the past year with Trichlor, then your CYA might be sky high, and FC 20ppm would not be enough for a SLAM.

You need to test and post your CYA level.

 

[Richard320]

I'm thinking of superslamming - of bringing ppm up to 15 or 20 for a week. Any downside to doing that?

My first summer, my FC minimum was about 20. I swam in it no problem. 'course the CYA was somewhere between 220 and 240 and I was under severe water restrictions.

Now, what purpose will this serve? Is your pool green? Cloudy? What?
Downsides? pH test will be iffy, and it will waste bleach. If you just want to buy a lot of bleach, save a trip to the store and just send me the money directly. I can PM you my paypal account information.

 

[DThompson55]

To the people who took me seriously, thank you and thanks for the advices. To the others, I appreciate the humor..

CYA = 80, Overnight FC=40, TC=40, pH=7.8

Based on that CYA number I should really be adding 4 gallons of 12.5% every morning and then maintaining 32ppm through the day, where I had only been adding 2 gallons and maintaining 15-20 through the day. I'll try that for while and then maybe push to higher levels if that doesn't work.

The higher CYA is recent. It was down to 20 so I added a few lbs thinking that would help with TC.

I'd post a picture @JJ_Tex but all you'd see is muddy green. Is that important? I can see about a foot down.

 

[duraleigh]

It is difficult for those of us who intelligently answer hundreds of question everyday and then be asked to leave the thread......(I guess because you didn't like the answers) to help much further. I do take your post seriously, however.

1. Can you explain what a "superslam" is. I have posted here for 13 years and have never heard of it?

2. Have you read the ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry?

3. Have you read the SLAM article?

 

[JJ_Tex]

The answer is simple, follow the SLAM article.

Based on that and your CYA of 80, your SLAM target is 31. Your proposed "superslam level" of 15-20 may do some good, but it wont be a SLAM. Also a week probably is not going to cut it if your water is "muddy green". Pics are good to help show progress or any other issues.

 

[DThompson55]

Hi @duraleigh -
1) By superslam I mean to double the ppm recommended in the SLAM guidelines.
2) Yes, I have read the ABCs of Pool Chemistry.
3) Yes, I have read the SLAM article. I test FC thrice daily. I maintain 10ppm, vacuum and remove debris, and run the filter overnight. We clean the filter daily, sometimes more frequently. My pH is a little high. The pool gets blue over the course of the four or five days, but has never been clear, indicating that slamming has never really been complete. Eventually I lose interest, or get called away, or we have a power outage, or we run out of chlorine for a few days, and then I'm back to slamming. I thought upping the CYA might help maintain TC given that it was sunny and hot for a few weeks, but it hasn't really. CYA was 20 for most of the summer, now it's 80.

 

[markayash]

Hi @duraleigh -
1) By superslam I mean to double the ppm recommended in the SLAM guidelines.
2) Yes, I have read the ABCs of Pool Chemistry.
3) Yes, I have read the SLAM article. I test FC thrice daily. I maintain 10ppm, vacuum and remove debris, and run the filter overnight. We clean the filter daily, sometimes more frequently. My pH is a little high. The pool gets blue over the course of the four or five days, but has never been clear, indicating that slamming has never really been complete. Eventually I lose interest, or get called away, or we have a power outage, or we run out of chlorine for a few days, and then I'm back to slamming. I thought upping the CYA might help maintain TC given that it was sunny and hot for a few weeks, but it hasn't really. CYA was 20 for most of the summer, now it's 80.

I am unofficially ADD and hate waiting so last time I had a slight algae attack and was going out of town I did what I call a Kill Shock. CYA was 50 and FC was already around 8 but wasn’t holding. Turned off SWG And added 4 gallons of 12% and 2 more the next day.
Down side was no swimming and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone else but it worked.

 

[JJ_Tex]

Hi @duraleigh -
1) By superslam I mean to double the ppm recommended in the SLAM guidelines.
2) Yes, I have read the ABCs of Pool Chemistry.
3) Yes, I have read the SLAM article. I test FC thrice daily. I maintain 10ppm, vacuum and remove debris, and run the filter overnight. We clean the filter daily, sometimes more frequently. My pH is a little high. The pool gets blue over the course of the four or five days, but has never been clear, indicating that slamming has never really been complete. Eventually I lose interest, or get called away, or we have a power outage, or we run out of chlorine for a few days, and then I'm back to slamming. I thought upping the CYA might help maintain TC given that it was sunny and hot for a few weeks, but it hasn't really. CYA was 20 for most of the summer, now it's 80.

1) "double the ppm recommended in the SLAM guidelines" - This would be a bad idea (but I dont think you actually read/understand the SLAM guidelines) but if you were to double the SLAM level (FC of 62 in your case) you would be wasting a lot of chlorine and run the risk of damaging equipment.

3) 10ppm is too low and will not do anything for a green muddy pool. Re-read the article, but your SLAM FC level is 31. 10 is way too low and for sure isnt "double" anything. It is barely your target for maintaining a clean and clear pool at your CYA.

 

[Donldson]

Those of us who have been here a while didn't really take you seriously because we knew you were making up some term to mean "put more chlorine than the instructions tell me to". We've been around enough to know people who suggest these ideas aren't following the process through to completion and then want to shortcut it. Though it is rare for someone to make up a term and then use it as if it's a common term that everyone understands the meaning of. So thanks for that, it let us have a bit of fun.

If you aren't interested in following the SLAM Process TO COMPLETION, then you'll just have to deal with the consequences yourself. Seems so far your attempts to shortcut things hasn't worked, so maybe that kind of thinking should be what you lose interest in.

Best of luck with your pool.

 

[mgtfp]

At FC 40ppm and CYA 80ppm, your HOCl level is about 0.46ppm. This is comparable to a pool without CYA at about FC 1ppm, which is a typical level in public indoor pools (they can go up to FC 4ppm at 0 CYA, which would be an HOCl of about 1.95ppm). This will of course cause higher strain on your equipment, but it won't instantly kill it, you are still under the mustard SLAM level of 46ppm for CYA 80, which is supposed to be maintained for 24h after a normal SLAM to really kill off mustard algae.

To put these HOCl levels into perspective, have a look at this old post from Chem Geek where he compared the wear and tear of swimwear at public indoor pools with 0 CYA at FC 1-2ppm (which is similar to where you were with your "superslam") with normal TFP levels (with CYA):

I don't have actual data on that, but anecdotal evidence supported by chemical theory. My wife swims in an indoor commercial pool over the winter 3-4 times a week that has had 1-2 ppm FC with no CYA in the water and every winter season her swimsuits get worn out where the elastic gets shot and the fabric gets thinner, basically having her need to get new swimsuits for each winter season. In our own outdoor pool with 3-6 ppm FC and 30-40 ppm CYA, her swimsuits have lasted for 9 summer swim seasons swimming almost every day though she now says she is starting to notice wear. The difference in active chlorine level between the two pools is roughly a factor of 10-20 which likely is reason for the difference. The same is true for the flakiness of her skin and frizziness of her hair between the two pools.

Obviously, you won't be swimming while you are at FC 40, so you won't really be concerned about your swimwear. But it puts the added strain on materials into perspective.

The bigger problem I see is, that it is very hard to maintain such a high chlorine level, your FC will be disappearing like nothing. There is a reason, why TFP recommends (when you actually have mustard algae) to hold mustard SLAM level only for 24h after a finished normal SLAM. Otherwise, the algae you are fighting will just annihilate your chlorine. And the rest will be finished off by UV. You'll just end up constantly pouring in bleach - that's why Richard jokingly suggested to just give him the money rather than investing it in bleach.

I'd suggest to just stick to the normal SLAM process. This process is well established, and the best compromise between algae kill times, good return of investment into bleach, time required to pamper the pool during the SLAM, strain on equipment and bathers. And you can with good conscience still let your family and friends use the pool during the SLAM. Or even better: Equip them with brushes, and let them do the hard work of scrubbing all the nooks and crannies while having fun in the pool

The SLAM will take as long as it takes. Can be just a day or two, or a couple of weeks, perseverance is the key. But it's worth it

 

[OG OOLS]

I was moderated for inquiring why someone stated slamming with bleach harms liners/ equipment. I still want to know, I think that was the purpose of the OP. perhaps the vague answer I responded to was deleted. I will start my own thread.

Sorry, I guess.
Forums sure have changed since I gave a about a hobby.

 

[duraleigh]

2 different people asking questions in one thread is a recipe for confusion in this well-disciplined forum. Please start your own thread and you will very likely get a timely, accurate answer

 

[OG OOLS]

Ok, thats logical. Same question see next thread please.

 

[DThompson55]

Thank you all for your sincere answers. I don't feel like I've short-cut anything with the three or four SLAM processes I've attempted this summer. But you guys are the experts. SLAM, if you follow to the letter, seems kind of hard to get wrong. In our case, each time I slammed for 4-5 days, and remember my CYA was only 20 at the time so it required far less chlorine. The water got blue (but cloudy), and the overnight FC levels were stable, so I stopped SLAMMING, and it'd be good through the following weekend, but then the pool would revert after a few days in each case. That's why I bumped up the CYA a couple weeks ago to try to hold onto some chlorine thinking that might help. I realize that was a mistake now. I think I need to get the CYA levels down by half and then work on this again next year as this season only has a few more weeks here. But until then I think there might be no point in chlorinating any more. Superslamming is clearly not the right nor a bright idea.

It was just pointed out that if at the end of a slam my water isn't clear that the slam is not really complete. So the root cause of the problem might be something to do with the filter.