Chalk this up to yet another user that, like me two years ago, found this information out the hard way; basically on his or her own. The truth is that for all but a few exceptions and some parameters and circumstatnces, the best TA level is not a specified range as it is shown and taught in "pool school" but rather the level at which YOUR pool keeps PH the most steady. I like using the word "steady" over "stable", because "stabilized" and "stabilizer" mean something totally different here on this site. We're getting at least one inquiry each week with this same issue. The answer is not in pool school in a very direct manner.
Summer 2015 my PH began to continually drift up to 8. I was lowering PH with MA; lowering PH with MA; lowering PH with MA. Two or three times per week. I had read pool school and knew all the recommended ranges for my-type pool. Then I'd run a routine, regular full test of all my levels every couple weeks and my TA would always have fallen out of range; at or about 50. A full 20 below the recommended range back at that time. Guess what??? I was a good reader and comprehended pool school real well, so I knew that my TA was out of range. I wanted to keep my pool levels as close to the ranges as possible so as not to have a troublesome pool; but my pool was not trouble free since I was adding acid every two to three days. Little did I know back then, because it wasn't addressed in pool school, and I didn't know what questions to ask since I'm not a chemist, that if I had just left my TA alone and kept adding acid until the PH quit rising, my problem would have been solved on its own. Instead, since I'm not a chemist and did not know this, I was raising my TA back up to 80 each time I'd test it. Right in the middle like a good student would do. The cycle continued. Finally, after posting/asking if I could let my PH stay up around 8.0 with no problem and posting all my numbers, not even not even suspecting that TA was the culprit, since it was right in the middle of the recommended range and I'm not a chemist, Chem Geek gave me my true parameters for TA (a low of 29). This was a number that I had to stay above to avoid the threat of a PH crash as long as I wasn't using acid products like trichlor regularly. My PH finally became steady, and TA ended up being 40 the rest of that season. Ever since that time, for me, TA will be adjusted only to help make PH more steady. I'll measure and record it from time to time, but that's it. The next Spring my PH was dropping; borax; dropping; borax; dropping. I added enough baking soda to raise PPM only 5. I wanted to be careful and deliberate about what I was doing with TA. PH Kept dropping but more slowly now; borax; dropping; borax; dropping; added 5 more ppm baking soda. That was April 2016. I haven't adjusted PH since. My TA has been from the 50-60 range. I record it but that's it.
Please don't get discouraged by this "TA dilemma". They have added some words in pool school these days that talks about TA's job for keeping PH steady. Those words didn't used to be there. They have also increased the gap of the range for TA for some pools as compared to when I was having the problem. There needs to be something more or different written about managing TA or more correctly, not managing TA when PH is steady. But there is a trade off of simplicity of pool care instructions, versus 100% correct information for everyone all the time. The listed ranges probably work for 90% of our members' pools. Personally, I watch for this same-type post all the time and make sure it's answered correctly. The experts have been all over it lately, and there are some pool school words nowadays to back up what they say, so it's better than it was back when I had the problem and only Chem Geek gave me the right way forward.
