Oops. Now what? Cloudy water, high numbers.

[SpacemanSpiff]

We opened a few weeks back to crystal clear water with a small clump of likely vacuumable stuff at the bottom center.
Dunno why, but I guess I forgot everything I learned here last season.
I did not test the water. I *ass*umed everything would be 0.
I added ½ lb of shock: 53.5% Trichloro-s-triazinetrione 46.5% cereal filler [48.6% Available Chlorine]
Within hours, the water turned medium green and so cloudy you couldn't see the bottom.
Several [10?] gallons of 8.5% bleach later, the green is completely gone, but the cloudiness remains.
The filter has, for the most part, run 24-7 with constant cartridge changes. There's no green on the cartridges any longer.
Today's numbers:
>34 FC. I stopped when I hit 120 drops as the sample had not turned clear. Didn't know if I should continue.
7.3 pH
>780 TA Again, I stopped @ 78 drops. The sample turned from the green to yellow, but never turned red.
78 CYA
What next?

[SpacemanSpiff]

No suggestions, hints, incantations? :(

[FormerBromineUser]

Sorry about that. Would you please update with your current numbers (including CC)?

Another question, have you ever tested your fill water?

[SpacemanSpiff]

We had to get the water tested at our local pool store as we're about out of our Taylor reagent.
Their numbers:
>16.69 FC
0 CC
6.9 pH
13 Hardness
32 Alkalinity
42 CA
.2 Copper
.1 Iron

We've never tested our fill water. We use our neighbor's city supply as we didn't want to use our well water.

The water is still cloudy white.
We change the stock filters about every 8 - 10 hours.
The pump has been running pretty much 24/7 for close about 7-10 days.

[FormerBromineUser]

Your last readings and the pool store's readings are too different. I hope you didn't buy anything from them except reagents!

I would wait on your chemistry until you get new reagents except for keeping FC in the pool.

If you haven't ordered reagents yet, I use Amato Industries on Ben's Amazon link. Don't be afraid of shipping costs with them. It looks like each item you add to the cart has high shipping, but when you check-out, it all gets discounted. They fill orders quickly.

[SpacemanSpiff]

Can you provide the Amato Industries on Ben's Amazon link?
I can't seem to locate it.

[FormerBromineUser]

Apparently Amato Industries has moved or changed.
Here is a link you can use. It goes to the cheapest priced R0871. I'm not sure what you need, but you can start from there:
http://astore.amazon.com/poolbooks/detail/B0002IXJ8A

[FormerBromineUser]

If that's not the reagent you need, or you need others also, click testing on the left sidebar. The Pool Forum gets 4-7% of sales and the link always searches the best total price with shipping.

[FormerBromineUser]

Amato is back up! Here is a link to their Taylor Page:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_p_4_4?me=A1X5YNB90CMIET&fst=as%3Aoff&rh=p_4%3ATAYLOR+TECHNOLOGIES+INC&ie=UTF8&qid=1434038407
Remember that the shipping gets discounted for multiple items when you check-out.

[chem geek]

As described on the Taylor page of interferences for the K-2006 kit in this link (http://www.taylortechnologies.com/products_PotenInterf.asp?KitID=2230), note that at high FC levels the TA test can go from blue to yellow instead of green to red. So you should have stopped your count when you saw the color change to yellow. Also make sure there isn't static electricity by wiping the dropper tip with a moist cloth. The drops should be well formed and not squirt out.

[SpacemanSpiff]

Thanks ChemGeek. I didn't know about the color change with a high FC.
I never thought about static, but always ensure the drops are formed.
Appreciate all the input.

Our numbers as of Monday night:
4.0 FC
0.4 CC
7.3 pH
40 TA
63 CYA

I added 2 cups of Borax after these measurements.
I'll retest tonight.

The water is still cloudy and looks exactly the same after running the pump 24/7 for ~4½ weeks.
We've been changing filters once or twice per day.

[FormerBromineUser]

Are those pool store numbers? Your FC is too low for your CYA. You need to bring your pool up to shock level and keep it there until the water is clear, your CC is 0.5 or less, and you pass an overnight FC loss test. Did you get reagents?

[SpacemanSpiff]

Those are our numbers.
We haven't received the reagent refills yet, but had enough to complete the test.

The 4.0 FC has just been burning off from the original 34+. I haven't added any chlorine as I thought a CYA of 78 would have kept the FC up. Apparently not.

The only thing I've added in the last 3-4 weeks is Borax to keep the pH right.

What FC am I shooting for shock? Higher than the original 34?
How much bleach should we add to get there from 4.0 given the approx. 5k gallons?

[FormerBromineUser]

.
Your reported CYA numbers are between 63 and 78 so let's say 70. According to the Best Guess Chart, http://www.poolsolutions.com/gd/best-guess-swimming-pool-chlorine-chart.html , your shock level is 20, but personally I would aim for 22.

In order to clear your pool, you will need to get your FC up to 20 and keep it there making frequent additions until
1.) you lose no more than 1.0ppm FC overnight (test after sunset and 1/2 hours after your last addition and then test at sunrise to calculate the overnight loss)
2.) your CC is 0.5 or less
3.) your water is clear

You will need your reagents so that you can test regularly to determine how much bleach to add to maintain that FC at shock level. This means at least twice a day during the process. (More often helps.) 1 cup of 8.25% bleach will raise your FC by about 1ppm. Use that as your guide.

A CC number or 0.4 is either another estimation or you are using the 25ml sample for your test. You can use a 10ml sample, 1 scoop of powder, and then count the drops multiplying by 0.5 instead of 0.2.

CYA does not "keep FC up". It helps slow the effects of sunlight burning it off.

For now, 1 gallon of 8.25% bleach will bring you from 4ppm to 20ppm, but remember, you need to maintain at least a 20ppm level until the above criteria are met.