Tried the liquidator...Stopped using it...

[Superdave]

Well I'm just now getting around to posting this.

Last year I purchased a Liquidator.. It worked good for a few days then I got the white stuff. And boy did I get it. I got it in the ball meter, in side the box, inside the valves. It was so bad that water flow halted due to either the ball meter, valves, or most likely the pink float valves. Thus, my pump ran dry for a long period of time.

Only good this I can say is that my pump is awesome and did not burn up. So, I looped the inline hose to itself, closed the valve and took it offline.

I read lots of posts on the white stuff. I know my ph was 7.8 and my cholorine was good at the time. Not sure about the other levels.

So, curious as what I should try to get this thing working or sell it.

Dave

 

[Bama Rambler]

Did you upgrade to the 3/8" tubing and valves?

What brand of bleach were you using?

 

[Superdave]

Nope.. I did not upgrade the tubing. Would the tubing keep the whitestuff from getting in the pink float valves? I didnt think it would so I havent done anything except take it offline.

Bleach, I used generic 6% bleach with no additives probably from Walmart. Now I always buy 12% from the pool warehouse.

 

[JohnT]

I'm not sure anybody knows exactly what the white stuff is. Calcium? Maybe. Can you post a set of numbers including CH?

I have very low CH and never have problems with the white stuff.

 

[Bama Rambler]

I don't know what to tell you. I've used the LQ for a year and while the tubing has turned white inside there is no buildup and everything works great. We don't close the pool so the LQ has lliterally been used an entire year.

Using 12% has been reported to reduce the white stuff so before you decide to get rid of it you might want to give it a try.

Your next best bet is a SWCG or a peristaltic pump and tank system.

 

[Superdave]

I don't remember my CH numbers. I dont test that very often... I will test it and post. I'm in in TX so we dont close our pool either.

I'm not sure what to do either. I'm trying to get all my levels and at the moment trying to get my CYA at the proper level. The lowness hadn't been a problem over the colder months, but not is an issue. THey say that it takes a while for the CYA to stabilize after adding it, so I am still in the process of getting it to 50.

 

[Bama Rambler]

Maybe we should do a little research and see if we can figure out what condition causes the white stuff to form.
I know I have low CH (160) and John said he has low CH.

It normally takes a week for CYA to show on the test after addition.

 

[JasonLion]

If I remember correctly, adding borates helped prevent WS.

 

[chem geek]

If I remember correctly, adding borates helped prevent WS.

It did help for some, but not for everyone, though in theory it should help by preventing the pH from rising as much where the concentrated chlorine meets the pool water flowing through the outlet valve and tubing to the pool.

 

[flyboy320]

It did help for some, but not for everyone, though in theory it should help by preventing the pH from rising as much where the concentrated chlorine meets the pool water flowing through the outlet valve and tubing to the pool.

Does a lower PH help then (my PH usually sits at 7.6)?

 

[Pool-creetin]

I bet its alk and calcium thats percipitating if adding borates dimishes it. Borates raises alk/ph readings but by not really adding alk. Your alk test kits will be fooled some when testing, You could have low alk and not even know it because borates are scewing the test results.

 

[257WbyMag]

I don't remember my CH numbers. I dont test that very often.

Might be good for your pool in general if you got a CH reading and noted trends in CH and you might need to contend with high calcium down there. It's not uncommon to have pockets in central Texas where very hard water can be found. Lots of limestone in the ground over there.

 

[JasonLion]

Borates raises alk/ph readings but by not really adding alk. Your alk test kits will be fooled some when testing, You could have low alk and not even know it because borates are scewing the test results.

No true. The test kit is not fooled, borates really do raise the total alkalinity. Borates do not raise the carbonate alkalinity, however carbonate alkalinity isn't important. What matters is the total alkalinity, which is being measured correctly with or without borates.

Adding borates can help prevent WS because borates reduce the amount by which the PH rises inside the Liquidator. They just don't always reduce the PH increase enough to actually help.

 

[flyboy320]

Just a thought on the LQ and white stuff. I wonder if people experiencing this problem shut their pumps off for part of the day? Thinking maybe with the pump off and water not circulating in the LQ, perhaps the PH level is rising since no water is circulating, and as such, the minerals are precipitating out? With the pump running the water in the LQ is being "refreshed" continuously and perhaps this helps to reduce the build up of WS.... :?:

 

[Bama Rambler]

I hate to ruin your theory because that's some thinking going on there but... Our pump runs three intervals during the day and is shut down 10 hours at night.

 

[flyboy320]

I hate to ruin your theory because that's some thinking going on there but... Our pump runs three intervals during the day and is shut down 10 hours at night.

Doh.......oh well....

 

[Pool-creetin]

Borates raises alk/ph readings but by not really adding alk. Your alk test kits will be fooled some when testing, You could have low alk and not even know it because borates are scewing the test results.

No true. The test kit is not fooled, borates really do raise the total alkalinity. Borates do not raise the carbonate alkalinity, however carbonate alkalinity isn't important. What matters is the total alkalinity, which is being measured correctly with or without borates.

Adding borates can help prevent WS because borates reduce the amount by which the PH rises inside the Liquidator. They just don't always reduce the PH increase enough to actually help.

Thanks for the clairification, But I was under the impression the alk test designed for carbonate alkalinity.
Sorry I don't mean to sound like i am arguing. I was just under the impression that Carbonate alk was the goal for a true alk test.
Thanks for the info.

 

[chem geek]

The Total Alkalinity (TA) test measures what it says -- total, not carbonate. 50 ppm Borates in the water at a pH around 7.5 only contribute around 5 ppm towards this TA so is almost negligible. TA measures the capacity of buffering pH against a drop, not against a rise. Most of the borate capacity is against a rise in pH.

Though it is carbonate alkalinity that is needed to compute the saturation index, if you use The Pool Calculator, it will automatically calculate that for you based on the TA, CYA and Borates entries (as well as pH which affects the CYA and Borates contributions).

 

[Pool-creetin]

Ahh thanks much!