What to do with test result water?

Hello,
Like the post says....Is it OK to pour the test vile/water/chemicals back in the pool or should I pour it on the lawn or what?

I have not used this kit before this week, sorry for the silly question.

Kevin

Not a silly question at all. In fact it is a very good question!
NOT a good idea to pour your test water with reagents back into the pool. You really don't want to be swimming in them. I pour mine down the utiltiy sink and run the water to dilute any reagents. I am on a septic system but I don't feel the tiny amount of chemicals will have any effect. For comparison, if you color your hair at home and wash it off in the shower you are putting a LOT more chemicals down the drain (and some of that might be DPD and related phenylendiames); or look at the ingredients in such household products as toilet bowl cleaner and such. FAR larger amounts of those chemicals go down the drain every day then the tiny amounts in the water from your test kit vials.
IMHO, pour it down the sink!

I just pour mine in the grass beside the pool.

I have a small bucket that I carry with me to the pool specifically for the test water and the first rinse after completing each test. When I'm done testing, I dip the bucket into the pool to fill it ~1/2 way (to dilute my little testwater cocktail) and then find an inconspicuous place to dump it - if there's some gravel or a rock on the edge of the property, that's my 1st choice. Dumping the tested water back into the pool is a big no-no, if for no other reason than the pH test negates the alk test (just do both tests back to back and dump the water into the same bucket; red + red = green :D )

Watermom,
Me too--that's one advantage to being a country girl! :)

Janet

Having spent a fair amount on sod following pool construction and now on maintenance of same, I just dump my test water back into pool. Only do full run of tests every other week or so, and chlorine and pH every other day.

If a group of kids are in the pool on a weekly basis, the contaminants they introduce into the pool is way more hazardous than a few cc's from testing.

Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

CaryB
Go 'Canes!

I pour mine in the mulch, or sometimes right on the pavers. Never had a problem yet.

Wow that is a lot of answers...keep them coming so I can which one comes up the most - haha.

Over the last week I have done them all.

thanks again Kevin

I just came across this thread. WOW, I didn't realize that 5 drops were that toxic that I should not be throwing it back into 6400 gallons of pool water. Hope I don't accidentally get any drops on my skin. If 5 drops will harm that much pool water, what does it do when thrown directly to the grass if I throw it out in the yard?

The boogey man come to get you!!!

Just be aware that the reagents ARE chemicals and some of them have some hazards.....DPD is an aniline derivative, OTO is dissolved in hydrochloric acid to make the test reagent, TA titrant is usually sulphuric acid, CH buffer is sodium hydroxide. Not really more dangerous than many household chemicals we use every day but they should be treated respectfully and disposed of properly. Dumping them back into the pool just isn't a good idea, even in the small amounts used. Some of them are adsorbed through the skin so if you get them on your hands it is a good idea to rinse them off right away. That is why I do my testing next to a sink. People have a lot of respect for working with muriatic acid. The chemicals in the test kit deserve the same kind of respect even though they won't cause the immediate damage that an acid spiil can cause and we are using them in much smaller amounts.

Just my 2 cents!