Thought I'd be good to go this year...no go...assistance please!

[tech_east]

Hey all long time no talk....so just to recap my issues. I have an above ground Intex as you can see in my sig and decided to get started with it by dumping in first chemicals on May 20th. Over the winter I didn't do much to it other than drain below valves so pool was 3/4 of the way full roughly. Well as you can imagine the water was pond water brown with crazy patches of algae on top. I started by filling up the pool the rest of the way (over the valves so I could get pump up and operational) and took the next few days to skim the large chunks of algae off the top. After that was done I dumped in like 2 gallons of liquid shock (12.5%) and within hours the pool started to turn from the brown to an ugly greenish color which indicated what I was doing was working. I also added CYA to the pool but I believe I added too much for the SLAM process (suppose to be 30 but when I tested after adding it was around 60).

So everything was going well...pool was clearing nicely and all my testing was coming back good (FC / CC / pH / etc). So I decided to do the OCLT last weekend...but my CC was 1.0 so that was over the 0.5 threshold so I decided to continue the SLAM process. Here is the issue...ever since last weekend the water is being temperamental. It won't hold shock (eating through it like its favorite adult beverage) and now my CC is high at 3.5 or 4 when I tested it this morning. The water is nice an clear but I can't get it to hold shock for longer than an hour or two at most. I am trying to get the SLAM process done so I can run another OCLT but I feel like I am taking 1 step forward and 3 steps back. I am losing a ton of chlorine overnight (if my testing is accurate). I believe I brought it up to 15 to 17 ppm last night and this am it was down to 8 ppm. It's worse now than it was the first week when I ran my first OCLT...what gives?

I am using all good testing equipment btw....FAS-DPD dropper / powder to verify FC and CC. At this point I am thinking it would have been more cost effective to drain down as far as I could (without the Intex buckling) and then refilling with well water. I am spending a fortune on LS. Thanks for any assistance / guidance you can provide!

 

[Texas Splash]

Tech, can you do another CYA test for us? I'd be curious to know what you are showing today - sunny weather permitting.

CYA Testing:
Proper lighting is critical for the CYA test, so you want to test for CYA outside on a bright sunny day. Use the mixing bottle to gently mix the required amounts of pool water and R-0013 reagent, let sit for 30 seconds, then gently mix again. Recommend standing outside with your back to the sun and the view tube in the shade of your body at waist level. Then, begin squirting the mixed solution into the skinny tube. Watch the black dot until it completely disappears. Once it disappears, record the CYA reading. To help the eyes and prevent staring at the dot, some people find it better to pour & view in stages. Pour some solution into the viewing tube, look away, then look back again for the dot. Repeat as necessary until you feel the dot is gone. After the first CYA test, you can pour the mixed solution from the skinny view tube back to the mixing bottle, gently shake, and do the same test a second, third, or fourth time to instill consistency in your technique, become more comfortable with the testing, and validate your own CYA reading. Finally, if you still doubt your own reading, have a friend do the test with you and compare results.

 

[tech_east]

Tech, can you do another CYA test for us? I'd be curious to know what you are showing today - sunny weather permitting.

Hey @Texas Splash thx for the assistance I went ahead and ran a test on all components just to get a good starting point:

FC: 15
CC: 1
CYA: 30
pH: 7.5
TA: 110

I also went ahead and added about 20 oz or so of LC just to make sure I was above my SLAM threshold (I believe it should be around 12 ppm or so). I just didn't want it to fall below the 12 any time soon and I lose all my work thus far! And we do have sunny weather here today

 

[IceShadow]

The CYA going from 60 down to 30 makes me think you had that bacteria that eats CYA and makes ammonia, but the fact you have CYA left and an FC reading makes me think you got it all with the FC you put in.

Keep with the SLAM process and you should get through this.

 

[Texas Splash]

Thanks for those numbers. I'm relieved to see some of those numbers holding. Between algae and any post-winter chemicals that may still be getting removed, your CC could certainly fluctuate. For SLAM purposes the numbers look good. Just stick with it.

 

[tech_east]

The CYA going from 60 down to 30 makes me think you had that bacteria that eats CYA and makes ammonia, but the fact you have CYA left and an FC reading makes me think you got it all with the FC you put in.

Keep with the SLAM process and you should get through this.

I agree...I thought it was awfully weird that the CYA went from 60 to 30. I mean it has only rained once or so and didn't add that much water to dillute. Although that reminds me...I did add about 2 inches or so of water from hose / well last week because it was starting to get close to the bottom of the skimmer...so maybe that diluted my CYA down?

 

[tech_east]

Thanks for those numbers. I'm relieved to see some of those numbers holding. Between algae and any post-winter chemicals that may still be getting removed, your CC could certainly fluctuate. For SLAM purposes the numbers look good. Just stick with it.

Thanks for the help...this forum is so awesome I will stick with the SLAM process!

 

[Texas Splash]

Also remember that if you backwash a lot the CYA will also go out to waste.

 

[tech_east]

Also remember that if you backwash a lot the CYA will also go out to waste.

Awe man....great point! I was backwashing everyday during the first week just to help my filter with the algae removal process. So that prob didn't help with the CYA lowering

 

[IceShadow]

I agree...I thought it was awfully weird that the CYA went from 60 to 30. I mean it has only rained once or so and didn't add that much water to dillute. Although that reminds me...I did add about 2 inches or so of water from hose / well last week because it was starting to get close to the bottom of the skimmer...so maybe that diluted my CYA down?

Unless you have a leak or added more because of frequent backwashes, the water loss would be evaporation, which leaves the same amount of CYA in the pool (and would actually make it more concentrated as it evaporates). Then adding water would bring you right back to where you started. Unless you replaced half the water or had a testing error (which with the CYA test is entirely understandable), going from 60 down to 30 doesn't have a lot of other explanations. Luckily the one that makes sense means it's over with and shouldn't drop any further, since your FC is holding.

 

[tech_east]

Unless you have a leak or added more because of frequent backwashes, the water loss would be evaporation, which leaves the same amount of CYA in the pool (and would actually make it more concentrated as it evaporates). Then adding water would bring you right back to where you started. Unless you replaced half the water or had a testing error (which with the CYA test is entirely understandable), going from 60 down to 30 doesn't have a lot of other explanations. Luckily the one that makes sense means it's over with and shouldn't drop any further, since your FC is holding.

Thanks for the great explanation and clarification....appreciate it