Maintaining Chlorine levels during early spring

[Lenny]

Well, after running the filter for over a week and shocking a couple of times my pool is still devouring chlorine. The water looks very clear. There is a stain in the middle of the shallow end which looks like dirt. Other than that, the pool looks very clean.

On Saturday, I put enough bleach in to get me to 5 ppm, but it was pretty much gone the next day. So I put in 3 gallons of 10% which would get me to 15 ppm. That was down to about 2 ppm this afternoon. So I put in 4 more gallons of 10%, which should get me just over 20 ppm. If the pattern continues, this will be gone in a couple of days.

I also lowered the PH to offset the effect of the bleach and to get down to a PH level where the chrloine will be more effective. I brushed the pool as well (for the 5th or 6th time in the last week). I'm going to let the pump run all night.

Here are my test results from this afternoon before adding the chlorine:

TC - 2ppm (I didn't test FC today)
pH - 7.6
T/A - 120
CYA - 50
CH - 270

mwsmith2, one interesting thing to note about the CYA. When I closed the pool in December I had a CYA of 100 (thanks to my friends at the pool store ). I drained the pool about 15 inches at closing, which was replaced with rain water. Now I have a CYA of 50. I read on the old forum that some people have a drop in CYA over the winter and that organic material or bacteria might be the reason for this. I wonder if this is more proof that I have the bacteria problem you described.

Thanks to all for the help. My plan at this point is to go into standard algae mode: 20ppm/filter 24x7/brush daily. Am I on the right track?

Thanks,
Lenny

[duraleigh]

Absolutely on track!! Keep that Cl up around 20 by constantly replenishing ( three times a day, if you can) and your pool will be sparkling and your Cl will start to hold. You have a good grasp of the issues

Dave S.

[mwsmith2]

Yes, the "sudden drop" you describe comes from the biodegradation of CYA, of which the main waste product is ammonia, which as we all know, is the main waste product in urine. So, you basically have a whole buch of wee beasties peeing in your pool. Eventually, you will burn up all that waste product, but it will take awhile. The real test is holding Cl overnight. That way you eliminate the effects of the sun on your Cl levels.

Michael

[BorisMD]

I'll add my 2 cents worth here--one thing I like to do is keep two floaters going in the water and keep each one stocked with chlorine pucks. I find that that way I at least have a constant leak of chlorine into the pool, and that really helps to keep any growth of microbes/algea down.

Boris

[Lenny]

Thanks for the responses everyone. Now I'll know what to do if I ever really have that bacteria problem . Here's my latest tale of woe.

Thankfully, I realized what was going on the day after I last posted. I had my chlorine up to 22 and before I went to work the next morning I tested it again and it was holding strong. After work the chlorine was down to 9. Pretty fishy, huh?

My pool was built in the fall and opened late last year. The pool store that my builder turned me over to told me everything I needed to do to get the pool going. That included dumping in a bunch of di-chlor to shock and tri-chlor for regular chlorination. After just a 2 or 3 weeks they were measuring my CYA level at 100. I now know that it's implausible for the CYA to rise that fast without specifically adding CYA to the water, but I had no idea at the time.

I have Ben's test kit now and the results I published earlier were based on my testing, with the exception of CYA. I've been getting comfortable with the kit but hadn't yet added the CYA test to my repertoire, so I relied on my old friends at the pool store (they measured 50). After I saw what was going on with the chlorine I did the CYA test myself and found no measurable CYA. I went to another pool store and they confirmed this (although they measured a PH of 8.0, when I knew it was really 7.4 ). I don't know why they are so off on their CYA test, but at least they're consistent!

I've added CYA. I thought that I could use the pool stores once in a while just to confirm my test results, but I'm done with them. From what I've seen, test strips are a pillar of accuracy compared to the pool store.

Lenny

[Watermom]

Just remember to give it a week to let your cya dissolve in your filter before you retest your level, add more or backwash. It takes time. And, as you have read on the forum, you don't want too much.

Watermom

[duraleigh]

Hi, Lenny,

Pat yourself on the back that you solved that problem despite what the pool store testing was doing to you. It misled you and everyone on the forum.

While I certainly think there are some good pool places out there that you can depend on, I am continually surprised by the number of posts here who've had inaccurate testing done. I then think of all the folks who never have an opportunity to come across a forum like this and how they must struggle through the Summer fighting their pools instead of enjoying them.

Ben, give yourself another star!!

Dave S.