Lowering TA with Dry Acid Or Muriatic Acid

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Originally Posted by CelticDaddio

Thanks, I'll take clever over pretty any day. And it cost me no additional $... Already had everything from when I moved my filter/pump/etc last fall (That was a pain!)

Ed

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And it is very clever!;)

Update: I added 1/8 gallon of muriatic acid last night... pointed 3 returns upward and increased water flow to the hot tub waterfall (into the pool) to help aerate. Readings were TA 180/PH 7.4 this at 9 AM.
So added another 1/8... in addition to the waterfall and returns adjusted upward, I turned on the blower in the hot tub, and turned on Polaris cleaner pump (without cleaner attached)... lots of water movement. Readings at 2:30 are TA 140/PH 7.4.
Is this to good to be true? Seems to be happening fairly quickly and with far less than the three gallons the pool store told me I'd need. Should I expect a rebound? What do the experts think? What should I do next?

BK

BK,

It sounds like everything is working EXACTLY the way it should. You are almost done!

Pool stores tell you to put in LOTS of chemicals--they SELL them to you. You put them in, overshoot by a mile your target, they sell you something else, continuing the cycle.

When I got my first pool I bought the book they sell "Taming The Pool Monster". It was useless and worthless. I don't even know where it is.

I test and check my water all the time, and stay ahead of problems--and I do NOT take pool store clerks' advice.

I made this one:

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...untainpipe.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b1...ntainwater.jpg

The valve isn't even necessary so it could be simpler. Works very fast if you stay on top of the pH with the acid.

So what effect would an in line "ozonotar" have on the aeration process? (In other words assume I need to Lower TA a lot but need to keep pH where she is now basically).

My assumption is, it is already performing that aeration to a large degree. But not knowing how the introduction of O3 may effect the offgas of Co2, I am not sure. Thoughts?

The ozone will get converted to oxygen gas rather quickly and will essentially outgas oxygen from the pool (and such oxygen bubbles will pull carbon dioxide from the pool) since it is already saturated in oxygen (from being in equilibrium with oxygen in the air). I do not know the rate of ozone generation in a typical ozonator so can't comment on how good it is at aeration compared to an SWG. You could certainly try the TA lowering process with the ozonator off and on at different times and compare the rate of TA lowering. It's clearly going to be better with it on than off -- I just don't know by how much.

Richard

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Originally Posted by CarlD

Tamminen gives the typical garbage the pool industry gives you. They love the "slug of Muriatic Acid" approach and give you a MacBeth Witches' explanation for why it works. If it does, it's incidental.

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Tamminen doesn't actually advocate the 'slug method' in his book. He just gives some treatment tables that show how much muriactic acid or dry acid is needed to lower a certain amount of TA in a given volume of water and doesn't really say much more on the subject. All references he makes about adding acid always say to add it in small amounts so as not to make too great a pH change at once and to 'walk' the acid around the pool or pour it slowly into the return stream with the pump running so it gets diluted quickly and to never pour it near drains, skimmers,and other suction inlets. Basically the same advice that has been given on this board time and again. His advice might not be complete (his whole chapter on water chemistrt is VERY basic) but it is generally sound.

:confused: I have borderline Alk reading of 70 and 7.9 PH... How much baking soda do I had to raise Alk and how much Muriatic acid do I had to lower PH

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Originally Posted by peggles0224

:confused: I have borderline Alk reading of 70 and 7.9 PH... How much baking soda do I had to raise Alk and how much Muriatic acid do I had to lower PH

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Say you have a 15,000 gallon pool. Start with 1 lb of baking soda and 1 cup of muriatic acid. I'd add them at least an hour apart (acid first), then wait a few hours (say 6?) and measure pH and T/A again. Go slow, use a little bit at a time so you don't overshoot targets. If you lower pH from 7.9 to 7.3, T/A should come down still further.

I'm having problems with the pH being at the higher limit and the TA being too high:

Here's my test results from this morning:

FC = 6
CC = .2
pH = 7.8
TA = 200
CH = 300
CYA = 35

I posted earlier results in another thread, but I think I should have posted them here. I seem to can't lower the pH and TA much. I haven't tried the acid stuff yet.

Yesterday morning, my FC = .4 and the CC = .2 My floatie was almost empty and I added the pucks.

I'm using 4 3" Pace Pucks in a floatie, and I shocked the pool yesterday afternoon, with a 1.75 gallon of Clorox.

Anyways, I'm trying to get the TA and pH down to a better reading. I've seen the posts on how to do such.

My questions are: How much acid do I use at a time to decrease the pH and TA.

Where is the best place to get the dry acid. I know where to get the liquid acid, but I think I need the dry acid because I have a fiberglass pool, or is does it really matter?

I have DE filter, which was completely washed and filled with new back in May or early June.

After I can realize my pH and TA at a lower reading, I'm going to do the aeration thing. I like the valve jig that Aquarium made. I'll do something similar too. My return lines dont have threads, so I'll figure something out.

Thanks,

Sam