Is it a good idea to use bleach instead of Chlorine tab for daily/weekly maintenance?
If so, how much bleach should be added daily/weekly?
Any thoughts?
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Is it a good idea to use bleach instead of Chlorine tab for daily/weekly maintenance?
If so, how much bleach should be added daily/weekly?
Any thoughts?
Many of us do use just bleach but I can't suggest amounts, etc. unless we have some good testing numbers for your pool taken with a drops-based kit. Not test strips. We need: chlorine, pH, alk, calcium hardness and CYA.
Using bleach/liquid Chlorine is almost always a good thing because all it adds is chlorine, not adding CYA, calcium, or changing pH. Tabs are almost always Tri-Chlor tabs. If your pH is high and your CYA levels are low, Tri-chlor tabs can address both while eroding in a fairly constant flow of chlorine. Of course, if the pH gets too low and the CYA gets high or too high you have to stop. BUT if they are "dual-action" it means they have copper in them as well and do NOT suggest you use them.
Test Number (Disclosure these are from Leslie's water analysis. I was going there due to a broken offline chlorinator pipe, so decided to have them test my water).
FC: 2
PH: 7.4
TA: 50
CYA: 60
Hardness: 200
Thanks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Watermom
I would NOT use Tri-chlor tablets or Di-Chlor powder with those numbers.
Your pH is good but on the low side --Still a "not broken so don't fix it". And, if it's stable at 7.4, don't mess with TA--leave it. If you find pH trends down using just bleach you'll want to increase TA. Baking soda will increase TA, Borax will increase pH, ordinary Washing Soda (same chemical as pH Up!) will raise both pH and TA.
CYA is high but manageable. I keep mine at 60 for my SWCG.
I would definitely switch to using bleach/liquid chlorine. 1 gallon of 6% bleach (if you can find it ) will add 2ppm of chlorine. 1 gallon of 8.25% bleach will add 2.75ppm of FC. If your pool is clean you need to keep FC between 5 and 10 ppm to maintain it.
If you decide to use Cal-Hypo, watch your Hardness level and don't use it once it reaches 400.
Assuming your numbers are right, and pool stores are not known for accurate testing, your chlorine is too low. Take a look at the chart at the following link which explains the relationship between CYA and chlorine:> http://pool9.net/cl-cya/
In a 30K gallon pool, each of the 121-oz jugs of 8.25% bleach will add roughly 2.5ppm of chlorine. You can use that to help you figure out doses of bleach to add. It is best to test and add bleach in the evening after the strong sun is off the pool. With a CYA of 60, after you test, add enough bleach to take your chlorine back up to around 10ppm. You want to make sure you always keep the chlorine between 5-10ppm. You may find that you will only need to add bleach every other day or so. With frequent testing, you'll soon learn your pool's pattern.
You are going to need to buy a Taylor K2006 or 2006C (better buy) kit since you're going to need to keep your chlorine between 5-10ppm. Other test kits cannot measure past 5ppm. Won't be available locally, but you can get it through this link:> http://pool9.net/tk/
Your pH, CYA and calcium hardness levels are all fine. Your TA is low. You can use a little baking soda to raise it up to 80-100ish. Add a couple of lbs. slowly to the skimmer while the pump is running and then retest several hours later and add a little more until you get it where you want it. (Not critical that it be done immediately, though.)
Now, having said all this I have to ask ---- do you have a bunch of trichlor tabs left that are unwrapped? You might want to also take a look at this:> http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthr...-and-chemicals
Hope this helps! :)
So just did my first testing with the K2006.
For CYA i got around 50 (Maybe a little lower).
TA was 50 as per previous testing.
I got FC of 1.2
CC - I could not test. After adding R-0003 the water did not turn pink (or barely maybe?). So does that mean no CC?
Any thoughts?
Thanks.
Yeah, if the water doesn't turn pink when you add the R-0003, your CC is 0.
But save your reagents and don't test at 25ml, test at 10ml. Each drop is .5 and that's accurate enough.
Thanks for the tip. Any reason for cc 0?
That is what you want the CC to be! O is perfect!
Are there any instructions on how to test with 10ml.
I am assuming:
10 ml of water
1 dipper DPD powder (correct???)
R 871 - drop wise - # of drops x 0.5 = FC
R 003 - Still 5 drops (???)
R 871 - drop wise - # of drops x 0.5 = CC
Is that correct?
Quote:
Originally Posted by CarlD
Yep. You got it!