Testing CYA

[laughingboy]

BTW, I took a second sample to a different pool store and they measured the CYA at 40. That's seems like a much better ballpark number to me.

Interestingly, I've now discovered on another pool forum they have an intro to BBB that reads in part:

"If you have a SWG or get extreme amounts of direct sunlight on the pool, adjust CYA to between 60 and 80. Otherwise adjust CYA to between 30 and 50."

So they have no qualms about recommending 60-80 for extreme direct sunlight. Here in Tucson with 105+ degree temps and no clouds day after day would seem to qualify.

OTOH, I'm not in a big hurry either. I think for now I'll assume I have 40 CYA and target 50 with a 6 FC target.

Mike

[aylad]

By bumping the CYA up just 10 ppm or so, you should be able to get an idea of whether it affects your chlorine loss or not. I can't explain the chemistry behind why the higher levels protect the chlorine better, I can only give you real-world experience gained from 8 years (and I mean year-round) of experimenting with my own pool.

Janet

[chem geek]

I higher CYA level should have your chlorine last longer, but you'll need to raise your target FC level according to Ben's Best Guess CYA chart. The only real problem with the higher CYA level is IF you let the chlorine get too low and algae starts to form, it takes a much higher chlorine level to get rid of the algae. So you really need to stay on top of your pool maintenance.