What am I doing wrong-how long does a darn slam take?!?

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needmypoolboy

0
Jun 11, 2015
45
O'Fallon, MO
OK, so I've been slamming for 5 days or so. i added my CYA in a sock a week ago but it didn't completely dissolve until Friday I think. I'm still losing FC overnight. Last night was at 14.5 & this morning was 11.5. I tested a half hour after adding bleach last night & this morning about an 1.5 hours after sunrise. My PH is staying high too. It was 8.2 last night so I added Muriatic Acid per PoolMath & this AM it's 8.0.

Thoughts? Should I do another CYA test yet? Can the PH be messing with FC? Am I finished slamming? Pool is crystal clear & CC has been 0 for 3-4 days. Thanks!
 
needmypoolboy said:
OK, so I've been slamming for 5 days or so. i added my CYA in a sock a week ago but it didn't completely dissolve until Friday I think. I'm still losing FC overnight. Last night was at 14.5 & this morning was 11.5. I tested a half hour after adding bleach last night & this morning about an 1.5 hours after sunrise. My PH is staying high too. It was 8.2 last night so I added Muriatic Acid per PoolMath & this AM it's 8.0.

Thoughts? Should I do another CYA test yet? Can the PH be messing with FC? Am I finished slamming? Pool is crystal clear & CC has been 0 for 3-4 days. Thanks!
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you cant test your pH when your FC is above 10. the test isn't accurate. don't worry about it for now. you are down to a 3ppm loss overnight, so you are getting close. have you remove your ladder from the pool? those can hold algae that's hard to see. are you brushing once or twice a day?

do NOT stop with your SLAM until all three criteria are met. sounds like you have met 2 of them but that OCLT is the most critical
 
First thing: Breathe!! You are doing fine. 5 days isn't really that long, it just feels like it. Since I've been a member I've seen them go 19 days.

Don't worry about pH at all while you are slamming. The high FC is going to throw off the reading. It might actually be 7. something and the addition of MA has driven it down where you don't want it.

The test for SLAM completion are three criteria.


OCLT: with FC loss 1ppm or less
CC reading < .5 ppm
Crystal clear water with no evidence of algae or other baddies.
 
what was your CYA level? are you dosing your FC based on the new CYA level (as determined by pool math)? if the CYA is dissolved you need to base your FC level on the new assumed CYA level. don't waste your time testing for it until after 1 week from adding. your FC may be too low. let us know
 
I haven't tested again for CYA since it wasn't completely dissolved until the end of last week. Would that reading be accurate now? Should I test for CYA now or wait until Thursday when it would be in for a solid week?

I'm dosing bleach based on my projected CYA level of 40. Thanks for info about PH-I somehow missed that when reading about slamming. Glad to know I'm not out of the range with slamming time. I was brushing once to twice a day, but it has been raining/storming on & off for three days so we haven't been in since Sunday. Hoping to get in late afternoon today to brush. I've been out to get readings in between storms & have been lucky enough to get a late night plus morning reading. Of course the sun is always out for an hour before my test then it clouds up-LOL! I have not taken the ladder out, but certainly can.
 
I have a 3/4 HP intex sand filter-bought it new. I got this pool for $200 clearanced, but had a little bitty one last year & the stupid cartridge filter gave out after a month. I then learned they were pretty much worthless so I bought this filter this year. The skimmer is not attached to the pool-it's by the pump if that makes any difference. I will take out ladder, backwash, & add more chlorine now. Should I do a CYA test yet? TIA!
 
ok, just keep going based on your CYA being 40 then. no need to test yet, it wont be accurate. you can test this weekend for CYA.

definitely get the ladder out, its a good place to hide algae. scrub it down and then let it stay out till you are done
 

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It takes as long as it takes. :)

Do not let the FC slip below target SLAM value and it will go faster, or as fast as it will possibly go by following procedure. Stay with it, don't let up. It takes a while for them to get bad, and it takes a while to clean them up.
 
More interpretation needed!!!

Yesterday I posted about how long a slam should take & followed advice of taking out pool steps & brushing down sides. We hadn't been able to get in for a couple of days due to rain. So yesterday FC dropped down to 6.5 by end of day so I eyeballed dosing it since it called for slightly over a gallon to reach 12. I didn't bother with the ONDT thinking there's no way it will be done slamming after being at 6.5, us swimming, & all my cleaning. Imagine my surprise when my morning reading was 14 CC was 0, & pool is very clear. So......do I trust this? Should I keep it at the 12 ppm slam point today & do ONDT? FC has dropped to 9 since early this morning, but it is sunny today. Hoping to see the light at the end of the rainbow!
 
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