Ok, so it was my fault - my head is already hurting from how many times I hit myself....
somehow this summer I thought I was using 8.5% bleach when in fact I was using 6%.....so I was underdosing (no I don't chk the fc after I dose, only before)....and slowly but surely, my baseline just seemed to be dropping from 4-5s to 2-3s, to 1-2s, then...
Well, you guessed it...eventually I just couldn't keep up and I came back this last weekend to find some white flakey stuff (likely mold) floating, a strong smell (who knows which N-containing compound) on opening the cover, an FC of 0, a CC of 1, a pH of 8, TA 90, borate of 30, and a CYA of zero and a need to use 314 oz of 6% (48ppm total required, end point 11-12 ppm cuz I dumped in enough CYA to reach 30ppm and was at 25ppm after 24 hrs) to get to a successful SLAM, finally, last night after 4 days. [yes, that was a very long run-on sentence]. In addition I did a total wipe down, which in an endless pool means removing screwed down channel covers and grates and more yuck than you would imagine, all just deeper than my arm's length under the water (my due punishment, LOL).
My pool has a baseline CYA consumption rate of ~10 ppm per month, so smart me, I've just been putting in 30 ppm every 3 months. Yup, I've just assumed it was non-bacterial, heat and sunlight caused degradation.
So I've already figured out the need for more chlorine thing, and the need to not just assume the CYA is dropping and the pH creeping (no water features) is due to non-bacterial issues but I'm left wondering...
....I am so tempted next time (which WILL NEVER HAPPEN if I can avoid STUPID) to just dump in 2.5 bottles of bleach and come back in 4 days. Given my pool baseline FC degradation rate of 22-23% (temp at 86 baseline, higher with higher Seattle air temps all summer, opaque auto cover), I should be back down to SLAM range at just about that time..... I might be conservative and just dump in 2 bottles (128 oz each), wait 3 days, then start tweeking....(no, not with meth....). I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts, esp Chem Geek if you're out there....
For Chem Geek, your thread about CYA degradation left me with this impression....for every 10ppm CYA degraded, 3ppm ammonia is eventually formed, and that it takes 30ppm FC to get rid of that. Is that about right? So if I realaly don't have bacteria, and my CYA degradation is just me/my pool placating the gods (a little itty bit of sunlight, probably heat as primary factor), should I have a baseline need (to cover just the CYA degradation) of 30ppm FC each 30 days?
somehow this summer I thought I was using 8.5% bleach when in fact I was using 6%.....so I was underdosing (no I don't chk the fc after I dose, only before)....and slowly but surely, my baseline just seemed to be dropping from 4-5s to 2-3s, to 1-2s, then...
Well, you guessed it...eventually I just couldn't keep up and I came back this last weekend to find some white flakey stuff (likely mold) floating, a strong smell (who knows which N-containing compound) on opening the cover, an FC of 0, a CC of 1, a pH of 8, TA 90, borate of 30, and a CYA of zero and a need to use 314 oz of 6% (48ppm total required, end point 11-12 ppm cuz I dumped in enough CYA to reach 30ppm and was at 25ppm after 24 hrs) to get to a successful SLAM, finally, last night after 4 days. [yes, that was a very long run-on sentence]. In addition I did a total wipe down, which in an endless pool means removing screwed down channel covers and grates and more yuck than you would imagine, all just deeper than my arm's length under the water (my due punishment, LOL).
My pool has a baseline CYA consumption rate of ~10 ppm per month, so smart me, I've just been putting in 30 ppm every 3 months. Yup, I've just assumed it was non-bacterial, heat and sunlight caused degradation.
So I've already figured out the need for more chlorine thing, and the need to not just assume the CYA is dropping and the pH creeping (no water features) is due to non-bacterial issues but I'm left wondering...
....I am so tempted next time (which WILL NEVER HAPPEN if I can avoid STUPID) to just dump in 2.5 bottles of bleach and come back in 4 days. Given my pool baseline FC degradation rate of 22-23% (temp at 86 baseline, higher with higher Seattle air temps all summer, opaque auto cover), I should be back down to SLAM range at just about that time..... I might be conservative and just dump in 2 bottles (128 oz each), wait 3 days, then start tweeking....(no, not with meth....). I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts, esp Chem Geek if you're out there....
For Chem Geek, your thread about CYA degradation left me with this impression....for every 10ppm CYA degraded, 3ppm ammonia is eventually formed, and that it takes 30ppm FC to get rid of that. Is that about right? So if I realaly don't have bacteria, and my CYA degradation is just me/my pool placating the gods (a little itty bit of sunlight, probably heat as primary factor), should I have a baseline need (to cover just the CYA degradation) of 30ppm FC each 30 days?
