No FC but pool is crystal clear

[soupy01833]

Trying to work out a FC issue and hope to search for it .

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I need to update my signature when I get the permission but I have a 15k pool round vinyl above ground. Sand filter with 1.5 Hp Hayward pump. the pool is crystal clear but no FC.

CYA=40
TA=100
PH=7.2
TDS=700
Phosphates=100

TAC=2
FC=0

do I just keep adding bleach until I get FC to stay?

[Watermom]

Yes! In your pool, each quart of 8.25% bleach will add about 1.5ppm of chlorine and each 121-oz jug will add around 5ppm. Since you have no chlorine in the pool, it is probably best to go ahead and shock the pool. If you take a look at the following chart, you'll see that with a CYA of 40, shock level is 15ppm. http://pool9.net/cl-cya/

Go ahead and add 3 of the jugs in the morning. Tomorrow evening, test your water when the sun is off the pool and then add however much bleach you need to get it back up to 15. The next morning within one hour of sunrise, test again and report your reading. We are looking to see if how much chlorine you are losing overnight from sundown to sunup. If you lose more than 1ppm, you'll want to continue to keep your pool at shock level. If you do NOT lose more than 1ppm, that will be great but you should still keep your chlorine at shock level for one additional day and then let the chlorine drift down. With a CYA of 40, your maintenance range will always be chlorine between 3-6ppm.

For maintenance, you will want to test your pool each evening and add enough bleach to get your chlorine back up to about 6ppm. If you find that you have dipped below 3ppm by the time you test the next evening, take it up to 7 instead of 6. You want to always be able to make it through the day without ever dipping below 3ppm. (It is always best to add your bleach in the evening. The only reason I suggested adding it in the morning this time is because I don't want your pool to be sitting there all day tomorrow with no chlorine in it. That is an open invitation to algae!)

Keep an eye on your pH. You are ok at 7.2 but if it goes any lower, you'll need to use some 20 Mule Team Borax (laundry aisle at Walmart) to bump it up some.

What kind of test kit do you have?

Hope this helps. Come back with further questions and we'll try and help you out.

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[soupy01833]

Thanks, I am only using strips but plan to get a better test kit after reading many threads here. Thanks the advice and I will take it to shock level today.

On another note I thought I completed registration but have no permissions to do anything. Is there something I am missing?

[Watermom]

We have had SO many new registrations in the past few days! That is good --- we are always glad to welcome new members ---- and bad --- as we are swamped right now trying to get them all processed. Dancing as fast as we can, though! ;) Hang tight, hopefully it won't be too long and it is definitely worth the wait. This forum is so awesome!

[PoolDoc]

. . . membership updated.

Whatever you do, don't let algae get started.

While you wait on a K2006, go get a cheap local OTO / phenol red drops kit. Even better, some Walmarts have a Taylor-made HTH-6-way drops kit.

Keep your chlorine in the dark yellow range, till you get the K2006 and can see what's going on.

[soupy01833]

added 3 gallons last night. This morning 1 TAC 0 FC. I do not have a way to test CYA yet but it was 40 2 days ago. Ph is still 7.2. TA 100

[Watermom]

This is not a new pool, right? Do you have any idea what the CYA level was when you closed the pool last year?

Sometimes, CYA biodegrades over the winter and causes a huge chlorine demand upon opening in the spring. I'm kinda wondering if this could be what is going on with your pool. The only way to fix this is to keep hammering it with bleach until it eliminates the byproducts that are formed. So, keep adding bleach. It may take a lot of bleach but it will eventually hold. If you are home today, go ahead and hit it again. You really don't want to leave your pool all day today with no chlorine in it.

[soupy01833]

I do not know as i was a bad tester. I am only learning about the difference between FC and CC. I guess I have to keep adding bleach at night to shock level until it holds. When my k2006 kit arrives I should have some more accurate readings. The funny thing is the water is crystal clear.

Thank You

[Watermom]

You are right that evening is the best time to add bleach but since you basically have none in there, if you can, it would be best to also go ahead and add some now. (Probably need more in the evening, too, to get back to shock level.)

And yes, I know it seems funny that there could be an issue when your water is clear but sometimes you can't see stuff that is going on in there. Clear can be deceiving.

[JimK]

You are right that evening is the best time to add bleach but since you basically have none in there, if you can, it would be best to also go ahead and add some now. (Probably need more in the evening, too, to get back to shock level.)

And yes, I know it seems funny that there could be an issue when your water is clear but sometimes you can't see stuff that is going on in there. Clear can be deceiving.

+1

This spring I was dealing with the byproducts off CYA biodegrading over the winter. Just like the OP, my water was clear; there was no visual indication anything was amiss. After about 25 gal. of bleach CL levels finally held. Now I'm enjoying! (Yes, that's me in my pic) :D

[PoolDoc]

Ironically, what can happen if you have ammonia from biodegraded CYA, is that you end up with monochloramine in your pool. This is the same algaecide that you're trying to produce when you use "Yellow Out", "Mustard Master" or similar products.

Monochloramine is a VERY good algaecide, better than plain chlorine. The problem is that it's a fairly good people-cide! It doesn't actually kill people, but it will run them out the pool with burning eyes and itching or red skin!

Fortunately, it breaks down pretty quickly as you add MORE chlorine, but during the brief periods when it's present, it can do a number on the algae.

[soupy01833]

Added another 3 gallons of bleach last night. This morning it is gone again.

FC=0
TAC=.5
Alk=90
ph=7.2
CYA=40

Question= bleach is getting expensive as it is up to 2.50 or so per gallon. is 63% calcium hypochloride as effective as 8.25% sodium hypochloride? Is 1 ilb bag equivalent to 1 gallon of 8.25% bleach?

Thanks

[PoolDoc]

Check the available chlorine % --if that's 60% or higher, it's mostly undiluted cal hypo.

With a TA=90, you can probably use cal hypo OK -- but what is your calcium level? (How are you testing?)

To answer your question, a pound of cal hypo with 65% available chlorine is roughly equivalent to a gallon of 8% bleach, in chlorine added to your pool.

[soupy01833]

My Calcium levels are low at 160 so I am not concerned there. Does cal hypo raise or lower TA?

oh and until my taylor 2006 arrives I am using the walmart HTH 6in1

[PoolDoc]

It raises both TA and CH. It is possible -- with a sand filter -- to use cal hypo so that, once the pH + CA + CH are at saturation, the rise stops.

You're not at that point yet. But if you add cal hypo via the skimmer AND let your pH float, it will stabilize near saturation. This is not a great idea if you have a heater, and MUST not be done if you have ANY sort of feeder or chemicals ANYWHERE between the skimmer and the filter: cal hypo tends to react VERY BADLY if it comes into direct contact with any number of other chemicals, including forms of chlorine.

[soupy01833]

I went to ocean state job lot. they have liquid mega shock 12.5% sod cl for 2.99 a gallon. Bought 2 cases. It is cheaper than bleach right now. I added 2 last night. Levels high. woke up and back to nothing again.

TAC=.5
FC=0

CYA=40
TA=100
PH=7.2
calcium=160

[JimK]

I went to ocean state job lot. they have liquid mega shock 12.5% sod cl for 2.99 a gallon. Bought 2 cases. It is cheaper than bleach right now. I added 2 last night. Levels high. woke up and back to nothing again.

TAC=.5
FC=0

CYA=40
TA=100
PH=7.2
calcium=160

Keep at it, you'll get there. ;)

[PoolDoc]

Losing chlorine overnight actually means you are accomplishing something: breaking down whatever residue is present in your pool. (Daytime loss is often just to sunlight.)

[soupy01833]

well, this is the first morning I had both FC and TAC when I woke up. It was not much but at least it was around FC=3 and TAC=3. It is mostly gone now during the day. Do I need to keep going to shock level? or simply try to get it to stay at around 6-7?

My 2006 kit should be here this week sometime. Strips are all I have to measure FC at the moment.

[PoolDoc]

You probably need to use dichlor long enough to get your stabilizer up. Dichlor adds 9 ppm of stabilizer for every 10 ppm of chlorine. I'll post the info below:


Undiluted dichlor is getting hard to find, but is available at Sams Club and via Amazon. It's sometimes available at Lowes or Home Depot, but you'll need to be a expert label-reader to recognize it!

PoolBrand granular dichlor 50lbs (http://www.samsclub.com/prod4340004.ip) @ Sams Club => ~$2.20/lb (May 2014 in Chattanooga)
PoolBrand dichlor bagged shock 24lbs (http://www.samsclub.com/108822.ip) @ Sams Club => ~$2.50/lb (May 2014 in Chattanooga)

Kem-Tek dichlor 22 lbs (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0030BEHZA/scouscho-20) @ Amazon => ~$3.50/lb (May 2014)
Kem-Tek dichlor 12 lbs (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0030BEHZ0/scouscho-20) @ Amazon => ~$4.10/lb (May 2014)
Kem-Tek dichlor 5 lbs (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0015UIOWK/scouscho-20) @ Amazon => ~$5.00/lb (May 2014)
Kem-Tek dichlor 2 lbs (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0030BEI40/scouscho-20) @ Amazon => ~$9.00/lb (May 2014)

Keep in mind that Amazon products normally ship free; and that in many parts of the country, you will not have to pay sales tax. Shipping + tax can increase the cost from other suppliers by 15 - 40%, so compare delivered cost, not nominal price.

[soupy01833]

If my CYA is 40 how much higher do I want it?

[Watermom]

Most pools do well with CYA around 50ppm.

[soupy01833]

Finally holding pretty good through the night.

Thanks everyone for the help. I think I can take it from here. I learned so much from reading posts on this site that I would have never figured out on my own.

[PoolDoc]

Great. Let us know how it goes!

[PoolDoc]

membership upgraded.