Third Season Pool Owner, Looking For A TFP!

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Well, progress is still going well. Water is getting obviously clearer every couple days. Loss while at work is lessening. Overnight loss was only 1ppm each day, so we're getting there! I'll try to grab some pictures tomorrow!

I've also been reading up in the SWG section of the forums, only to see that my cell is barely enough to handle my pool. I was wondering why anyone would adjust the % down when it seems I had to run mine 24/7 at 100% to keep chlorine in the pool! Now I know when its due to be replaced, I need to go up to the larger cell.
 
schmidty94 said:
CH - 200-250 (hard for me to tell when it went from violet to a blue)
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A little late to the party, but read the notes for the extended test directions for CH, pay attention to this one:

  • The sample may turn purple during the test, or go to blue for a moment and then turn back to red/pink. This is called a "fading endpoint" and is caused by interference from metal ions. If this happens, do the test again, but this time add five drops of R-0012 before adding any R-0010 or R-0011L. Remember to count the initial five drops in the total.
    In extreme cases, a fading endpoint may occur even when adding five drops of R-0012 at the start. If that happens, mix pool water with an equal quantity of distilled water, test that, and then multiply the result by two.

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Here is the link Pool School - Calcium Hardness
 
Analogbytes said:
A little late to the party, but read the notes for the extended test directions for CH, pay attention to this one:

  • The sample may turn purple during the test, or go to blue for a moment and then turn back to red/pink. This is called a "fading endpoint" and is caused by interference from metal ions. If this happens, do the test again, but this time add five drops of R-0012 before adding any R-0010 or R-0011L. Remember to count the initial five drops in the total.
    In extreme cases, a fading endpoint may occur even when adding five drops of R-0012 at the start. If that happens, mix pool water with an equal quantity of distilled water, test that, and then multiply the result by two.

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Here is the link Pool School - Calcium Hardness
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I will definitely have to look at your reply when I do another CH test. Those notes were not on the paperwork included in the TF-100 kit I received. Did this possibly give me a false reading? Either way, I do not have any scaling, but I definitely don't want it to get to that point! Thanks Analog!
 
I wouldn't say a false reading, just hard for the human eye to tell when the color change actually occurs.

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Oh, and funny thing about your SWG setup vs mine. Your pool is twice as large as mine yet you have the T-9 and I the T-15. I produce chlorine for 10 hours of pump time at 18%. You are bad underrated.
 
After reading through your thread, it looks like you are doing good. One thing I would like to mention is that during the SLAM process all you really need to test is the FC. And maybe the CC. Once the algae and cloudiness are gone, you'll test everything and adjust as needed.
 
Analogbytes said:
I wouldn't say a false reading, just hard for the human eye to tell when the color change actually occurs.

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Oh, and funny thing about your SWG setup vs mine. Your pool is twice as large as mine yet you have the T-9 and I the T-15. I produce chlorine for 10 hours of pump time at 18%. You are bad underrated.
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Yeah, kinda upset about my SWG barely being enough. The company came highly recommended through multiple friends who had them install. The end result is a nice pool, I cannot complain about the quality, just some specs they liked to stretch my dollars on! When my cell dies, i'm definitely going to a T-15. Did you stick with Hayward, or are generic SWGs worth trying?

pabeader said:
After reading through your thread, it looks like you are doing good. One thing I would like to mention is that during the SLAM process all you really need to test is the FC. And maybe the CC. Once the algae and cloudiness are gone, you'll test everything and adjust as needed.
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I was actually thinking about if I needed to do those weekly tests, so funny you mention that! All I'm getting now is cloudiness after a brushing and/or vacuum. My pressure gauge isn't at the 25% over clean level yet either, so I'm trying to reserve my CYA. I did read that sand filters take the longest to clear up vs the cartridge or the DE, so I just have to be patient.

Thanks everyone for the help!
 
Picture time. I also had zero loss of FC from 12 midnight to 9am test this morning.

IMG_0725[1].jpg
IMG_0726[1].jpg

One last thing for today. Does it matter how my returns are pointed? I have 3 returns, I have two that barely hit the surface, while the last one is pointed towards the bottom. Yes, I did sweep and skim the pool after I took these pictures, lol, it looks horribly dirty!

Thanks!
 
Does it matter how my returns are pointed?
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It's all personal/pool preference. Depends on current circulation needs for your pool. If you aren't sure how water is moving, you can toss a few ping pong balls on the water to see if you're satisfied. Some like the returns at a certain angle, some down to help with lower water movement, others up for surface movement to push water (debris) to the skimmer.
 
Well, I think I'm finished with the SLAM process! Water is clear, overnight loss on a night I could get a test at sunset, then again in the morning, showed a loss of 1ppm. My CC was always 0.5 or lower this whole time. I've kept the SLAM going for a few more days just to satisfy my anxiety, haha.

Should I run a full set of tests? If so, will the only thing out of whack be the pH? Do I raise my CYA to 70-80 first, or allow my FC to slowly fall off, then sock method the CYA up?

What stinks is how underrated my SWG cell is, so I'll run it at 100% to see if it maintains I guess!

Thanks! Another testimonial for the TFP way!
 

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Should I run a full set of tests? If so, will the only thing out of whack be the pH? Do I raise my CYA to 70-80 first, or allow my FC to slowly fall off, then sock method the CYA up?
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Fantastic! So now you can let the FC begin to drop on its own. Once the FC is below 10 you can run a full set of tests and balance anything t hat needs adjusting. Since you have a SWG pool, you can begin to increase the CYA which will help the SWG unit itself. You might still need to use bleach a little here & there until you get the SWG and CYA balanced and working together. When in doubt, just remember to reference the Chlorine/CYA Chart so that you keep the algae away. Nice work!

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Oh, and by the way ......
dbtgallery.php
 
Final readings as of 11am this morning. Water looks as clear as if I just filled it.

FC - 10
CC - <0.5
pH - 7.7
CH - 165 (Had lots of rain, must have lowered it for me using the backwashes. I followed Analogs post to get a more accurate reading too.)
TA - 110
CYA - 30

Guess I need to lower my TA by adding some MA, then aerating using my returns. TA was 130 at the start in my notes, so its lowering. Obviously bring up the CYA to 70-80. I'll keep manually chlorinating until I get my CYA up as you said! Thanks again!
 
Looking good. :goodjob: As for the TA, don't feel as though you "have" to change it at this time. Base your decision on how well the pH remains stable. So if your pH seems to rise too fast each week, then go ahead and knock the TA down a little and see how that works for your pool. Be ready to add a little bleach as you work to increase the CYA and balance your FC production. From there you should be ready for summer. :swim:
 
Texas Splash said:
Looking good. :goodjob: As for the TA, don't feel as though you "have" to change it at this time. Base your decision on how well the pH remains stable. So if your pH seems to rise too fast each week, then go ahead and knock the TA down a little and see how that works for your pool. Be ready to add a little bleach as you work to increase the CYA and balance your FC production. From there you should be ready for summer. :swim:
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I read in another thread that sometimes raising your CYA does lower the TA. Hopefully in my case its enough. Thanks for the tip!
 
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