TF-100 Newbie

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twowhlrcr

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Sep 1, 2011
41
Goodyear, AZ
Thanks to Everyone who helped answer my earlier question about Shock. Appreciate the help. Those answers led me to purchasing the TF-100 Test Kit. I have a 15,000 Gallon Freshwater Pool here in Arizona. Water looks great by the way.

I started with the basic tests and I do have Chlorine present and my PH is at 7.6. I've always fought a High CYA here in AZ. The local pool stores have me floating 3 Chlorine Tabs and I add Liquid Chlorine as necessary. I always plan on doing a partial drain during the winter to help bring down the CYA. My CYA is currently at 70.

I'm now ready to start doing things your way and following your advice.

Questions:
1) Should I start by lowering the CYA?
2) If the answer is Yes, I'm assuming that I should drain about 1/4 of the water....Correct?
3) I refill my pool with my Front Hose Bib which is NOT connected to my home's Water Softener.
4) However, my Pool's Automatic Leveler is connected to my Rear Hose Bib which IS connected to my home's Water Softener...Is that an issue?

I'll start here and I look forward to your replies and guidance. Thanks in advance.
 
Please posts a full set of water test results from your TF-100 as follows:
FC
CC
CYA
PH
TA
CH

With those results we can be sure to give you accurate advice. Remember that the tabs you had been using increase CYA, often times much too fast. Being in AZ, the hard water tends to increase CH not CYA. But yes, to lower either CH or CYA you will need to exchange some water. The amount to exchange depends on the test results you post for us.
 
Texas Splash said:
Please posts a full set of water test results from your TF-100 as follows:
FC
CC
CYA
PH
TA
CH

With those results we can be sure to give you accurate advice. Remember that the tabs you had been using increase CYA, often times much too fast. Being in AZ, the hard water tends to increase CH not CYA. But yes, to lower either CH or CYA you will need to exchange some water. The amount to exchange depends on the test results you post for us.
Click to expand...
Thanks Texas Splash, just finished my tests......Great Test Kit by the way!!
FC - 4.5
CC - 0
CYA - 70
PH - 7.6
TA - 130
CH - Turned Red to start and turned Clear while adding drops. Never turned Blue. I stopped at 40 Drops.

Let me know what you think and where to start. Thanks again!
 
Thanks for those results. :goodjob: So a couple things to note. First, you don't want the CYA to climb any higher if this is a non-salt pool. If you still have tabs in use, remove them. Then go to the FC/CYA Levels, click on the non-salt tab, and find the corresponding FC based on your current CYA. That's the FC range you'll want to maintain. Use liquid chlorine to maintain the proper FC level from now on as it has no side effect properties like tabs do.

Next is the CH. It's not uncommon for CH to be high in AZ. If you ever used cal-hypo bags from the store that only makes it worse. But you need to be sure about the CH level. Are you using a speedstir for the tests to mix? Let's confirm: 10 drops of #10, 3 drops of #3 (blue), then count each drop of #12 until it is supposed to turn a light baby blue. Then multiply the # of drops by 25. A CH of 1,000 would take 40 drops so you might be close. You could be higher, but please confirm your CH test one more time. Also be sure the #12 drops are falling out in nice full droplets. I would also suggest you run a CH test on your fill water to compare and let us know what that is as well.

Your pH and TA are fine for now. We'll watch for updates.
 
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+1. All bottles get perfectly inverted and a ever so gentle squeeze to allow gravity to make perfect repeatable drops. The nature of the beast is that the more drops you need, the more human error comes into play no matter how hard you tried. 5 drops isn't much but 45 drops allows alot more error on your part. So really try to take your time. You gain nothing by trying to save a whopping 45 seconds. :)

Also worth noting is the TA test comes out high for many at first. The bottles pick up a static charge in shipping and need to be wiped in between drops. After some tests it goes away and gets more consistent. If it is in fact 130 it will come down while managing the PH. Or its already in range.
 
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Texas Splash said:
Thanks for those results. :goodjob: So a couple things to note. First, you don't want the CYA to climb any higher if this is a non-salt pool. If you still have tabs in use, remove them. Then go to the FC/CYA Levels, click on the non-salt tab, and find the corresponding FC based on your current CYA. That's the FC range you'll want to maintain. Use liquid chlorine to maintain the proper FC level from now on as it has no side effect properties like tabs do.

Next is the CH. It's not uncommon for CH to be high in AZ. If you ever used cal-hypo bags from the store that only makes it worse. But you need to be sure about the CH level. Are you using a speedstir for the tests to mix? Let's confirm: 10 drops of #10, 3 drops of #3 (blue), then count each drop of #12 until it is supposed to turn a light baby blue. Then multiply the # of drops by 25. A CH of 1,000 would take 40 drops so you might be close. You could be higher, but please confirm your CH test one more time. Also be sure the #12 drops are falling out in nice full droplets. I would also suggest you run a CH test on your fill water to compare and let us know what that is as well.

Your pH and TA are fine for now. We'll watch for updates.
Click to expand...
Before I perform the CH test again, let me get clarification on the speedstir. I do have one (it's pretty sweet) and I tried both with and without. Should I use the speedstir for the CH test?
 
twowhlrcr said:
Should I use the speedstir for the CH test?
Click to expand...
Yes.

With high CH levels, you can also cut your pool water 1:1 with distilled water, do the test with that mixture, and then double the resulting CH you get from the test.
 
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You can swap tips and see if yours has an issue. It's an $0.000000000002 part, it wouldn't be the first one that was bad.
 
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LOL.....That's why this Forum is great!! I just saved myself a ton of frustration by asking one question that I thought might be a dumb one. The drops are completely different now that I removed the top and cleaned it. I never knew those were removable? I always wondered how you got the liquids in there?? :ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:

Alright, CH Test Results:
Pool - 625
Water from the Auto Fill - 25 (That hose bib is tied to my water softener. Should I change that in the future?)
Water from my front hose bib - 200 (I use this hose to fill my pool after partial/complete drains)

Thanks again Everyone!
 
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Use your softened water for make up water. A CH of +/- 400 ppm is easier to control CSI. So continued use of the softened water should let the CH come down some.
 
twowhlrcr said:
LOL.....That's why this Forum is great!! I just saved myself a ton of frustration by asking one question that I thought might be a dumb one
Click to expand...
Chances are, one or many of us have already screwed it up. And we are all THRILLED to help someone else get it right the easy way. Ask away anytime.
 
twowhlrcr said:
LOL.....That's why this Forum is great!! I just saved myself a ton of frustration by asking one question that I thought might be a dumb one.
Thanks again Everyone!
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This is only one of the aspects of this free to all (and free from ads) forum that makes it so special for pool and spa owners. Show your support and pay it forward..... Become a TFP Supporter
 
Texas Splash said:
Thanks for those results. :goodjob: So a couple things to note. First, you don't want the CYA to climb any higher if this is a non-salt pool. If you still have tabs in use, remove them. Then go to the FC/CYA Levels, click on the non-salt tab, and find the corresponding FC based on your current CYA. That's the FC range you'll want to maintain. Use liquid chlorine to maintain the proper FC level from now on as it has no side effect properties like tabs do.

Next is the CH. It's not uncommon for CH to be high in AZ. If you ever used cal-hypo bags from the store that only makes it worse. But you need to be sure about the CH level. Are you using a speedstir for the tests to mix? Let's confirm: 10 drops of #10, 3 drops of #3 (blue), then count each drop of #12 until it is supposed to turn a light baby blue. Then multiply the # of drops by 25. A CH of 1,000 would take 40 drops so you might be close. You could be higher, but please confirm your CH test one more time. Also be sure the #12 drops are falling out in nice full droplets. I would also suggest you run a CH test on your fill water to compare and let us know what that is as well.

Your pH and TA are fine for now. We'll watch for updates.
Click to expand...
Good evening Texas Splash, any chance you got to review my CH tests? Looking forward to your guidance on what to do next. Thanks again.
 
twowhlrcr said:
any chance you got to review my CH tests?
Click to expand...
Great! A CH of 625 is much more manageable. :goodjob: Glad you got that figured out. While 625 is much better than 1,000+, it's still approaching the elevated end of the CH scale. All that means is that you need to be mindful of your pH throughout the week. Last tested it was about 7.6 which is good, but try to not let the pH exceed 7.8 or so. If you do, then there is a higher potential for scale. Also know that with each application of muriatic acid to manage pH, it will slowly lower the TA which should be a good thing for you as well. If later you want to lower the TA quicker, let the pH hit that 7.8 mark then use enough acid to lower the pH to about 7.0 - 7.2. Each time you do that it puts a dent in the TA. You can let the TA fall as low as 50 - 60 and be fine. Since your local water is so hard, supplementing top-offs with that soft water is a great tool.

In short, you'll find as the temps increase in the Valley of the Sun, the CSI number on the PoolMath APP will increase. Water temp, pH, TA, and CH contribute to scale if they all get too high at the same time. Managing the pH is the best way to compensate for that. Hope that helps. If you have more questions let us know.
 

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