Hello summer, hello algae, hello pool forum!

[True Blue]

Testing with the Taylor kit, "upstream" from where I add the bleach:

FC: 4
CC: 2.5
pH: >8.0

My pump is currently off, as a large amount of rain will sometimes trip the breaker.

Any thoughts on what would cause a spike in pH? It certainly wasn't that high yesterday. Again, I know that bleach is basic, as is the ammonia that the algae would be producing.

[Watermom]

Did you have torrential rain which caused a lot of rippling on the surface? Aeration raises pH. Just a thought. I wouldn't expect that kind of increase though. My rain is usually acidic and lowers my pH. Go ahead and drop the pH some.

[True Blue]

Did you have torrential rain which caused a lot of rippling on the surface? Aeration raises pH. Just a thought. I wouldn't expect that kind of increase though. My rain is usually acidic and lowers my pH. Go ahead and drop the pH some.

No, the rain was steady, but lengthy...probably 12 hours straight. I'll be adding my first dose of dichloro tomorrow. That should bring the pH down some, shouldn't it?

[Watermom]

Yes, but not immediately. You typically don't see the pH fall until the dichlor is used up so give it a little time.

[True Blue]

I am...befuddled, to put it mildly. My pH has dropped from 8.2 on Sunday to 7.2 today, with only the addition of bleach. If you'll recall, when I opened the pool on Satuday, the pH was 7.5. My FC had dropped to 7.5, so I added my first dose of dichlor this evening. CC was 2.5. The good news is that I seem to have gotten rid of most organic matter off the bottom. My water is cloudy blue.

Any thoughts on the pH yo-yo?

[True Blue]

I'll add that the alkalinity is at 70 ppm...and that I ordered a pressure gauge that should arrive by Thursday.

[BigDave]

I don't know about the pH, you've got a lot of chemistry going in your pool and pH is difficult to predict. But, we do know how to measure it and how to adjust it. As you're near the bottom of your pH scale, you need to raise the pH with Borax. Half a box slowly in the skimmer with the pump running, let it mix a couple hours and measure it again. As you'll be dosing with dichlor, we can guess the pH will drop as the chlorine is consumed so let's aim for a relatively high pH - 7.6-7.8. Another reason for somewhat higher pH while getting rid of amonia is that the intermediate CCs may be less noxious at higher pH. But do try to keep it in range.

[True Blue]

Well, I'm just now starting to get the FC to somewhat stay and my CC is dropping. I lost about 3 ppm FC last night and about the same since this morning. CC was 1 ppm each time. Also, I now have some CYA with the addition of the dichlor that I have used. I am to 40 ppm CYA. My pH is was continued to bounce a bit, as I didn't have any borax and have been too busy to run to the store for a few days (20 minute drive one way to get borax), but I have some now.

The water is still very cloudy and since this morning has had a white splotchy film on it. I can't quite tell if it is some sort of foam or not. Any ideas?

[True Blue]

Anybody there?

[chem geek]

Just keep the FC at shock level for your CYA level and run the pump 24/7 so that the filter can help clear the pool. Don't worry about the film/foam. It should dissipate as the water clears up. Shocking is a process, not a one-time event.