Trichlor and PoolMath help!

[thefloatqueen]

So I’m trying to bring my CYA (once again) back up to 40 from 30. I decided I would use trichlor pucks to do this while closely monitoring my CYA levels. I believe a 3” tablet weighs around 7 ounces so I checked the “effects of adding” on the PoolMath and the increase in FC and CYA amounts seem awfully high for only 2-3 pucks. Is this for the entire duration of the tablet (from the time I put it in the floater until fully dissolved)? Obviously the chlorine is going to bounce around a bit from the sun/evaporation/rain/fill water/swimming/etc. but according to the app it should only take 2 tablets (14 oz total) to increase my CYA to 40. Should I cancel my order and just order a couple individual tablets? How on earth do people use these consistently without their CYA skyrocketing through the roof? Is it because my pool is only 7000 gallons?

I bought a 5 lb container not knowing how few of these I need. Anyways, I’m totally confused. Before anyone says anything, I ALWAYS use liquid chlorine. This is strictly temporary so I can increase my CYA and know there is a steady source of chlorine in case it is raining or whatever. Thanks in advance!

 

[mknauss]

A 3" trichlor puck weighs 8oz.
One puck dissolved fully in your 7000 gallon pool will add 7.8 ppm FC and 4.8 ppm CYA.

 

[thefloatqueen]

A 3" trichlor puck weighs 8oz.
One puck dissolved fully in your 7000 gallon pool will add 7.8 ppm FC and 4.8 ppm CYA.

And that is from the time I put the puck into the floater until it dissolves fully, correct? Yeah I think I’m going to cancel my order for the 5 lb bucket and just buy a couple individual ones. The bucket is a better value but I did not realize how few of these I actually need. *facepalm*

EDIT: I apologize — you answered my question lol. Need my coffee ASAP!

 

[Chasarms]

... How on earth do people use these consistently without their CYA skyrocketing through the roof? ...

They don't. That's why there's a thread on this site at least once a week walking someone through the partial drain and refill process.

And, yes part of the reason that it is so dramatic for you is because of the volume of water.

 

[Chasarms]

And that is from the time I put the puck into the floater until it dissolves fully, correct? Yeah I think I’m going to cancel my order for the 5 lb bucket and just buy a couple individual ones. The bucket is a better value but I did not realize how few of these I actually need. *facepalm*

CYA does degrade over time, especially if your pool is in direct sun and gets very warm. I lose at least 5 ppm per month. The pucks last a long time and are handy to have around if you are going to be out of town for a few days. Unless you just don't want the expense, I might just keep the bucket.

 

[mknauss]

And that is from the time I put the puck into the floater until it dissolves fully, correct?

One puck dissolved fully

The pucks will last a very long time if kept dry. I keep a 5# bucket here for when we are going to be gone for a few weeks. Helps control the pH.

 

[thefloatqueen]

They don't. That's why there's a thread on this site at least once a week walking someone through the partial drain and refill process.

And, yes part of the reason that it is so dramatic for you is because of the volume of water.

I’m just shocked these are sold in 25 and 50+ lb buckets!! Even for a large pool, that sounds like way too much. I add fill water from evaporation weekly if we don’t get any or much rain. I don’t know if this is contributing to my CYA bouncing from 30-40 ppm. I honestly liked it better last season when my CYA was 50 ppm.

 

[thefloatqueen]

CYA does degrade over time, especially if your pool is in direct sun and gets very warm. I lose at least 5 ppm per month. The pucks last a long time and are handy to have around if you are going to be out of town for a few days. Unless you just don't want the expense, I might just keep the bucket.

It is in direct sun most of the day and I do not use a heater or solar cover but with the hot temperatures this summer, the water has been between 80-90 degrees most days.

 

[thefloatqueen]

The pucks will last a very long time if kept dry. I keep a 5# bucket here for when we are going to be gone for a few weeks. Helps control the pH.

Good to know that they don’t degrade quickly. I suppose I’ll keep the 5 lb bucket instead of cancelling my order. My pH would definitely benefit from them as well but I’m only going to use them as needed to increase CYA and to supplement my 10% liquid chlorine (especially during heavy rains).

 

[Chasarms]

It is in direct sun most of the day and I do not use a heater or solar cover but with the hot temperatures this summer, the water has been between 80-90 degrees most days.

I would check it every few weeks. You will likely lose some over the summer.

 

[Newdude]

Don’t get too wrapped up in this/last/next year. Heck, even this season is drastically different just a few months apart. We went from cold and wet to hot and dry in no time, then it got wet again but the hot stayed. So you’ll go crazy trying to connect the dots month over month and season over season.

The important thing is you have the knowledge and the tools to react to the *Now*. Next month might need a different tweak, and guess what ? You got that too.