Lime Softening Bucket Test Question, confused...again

[Old Bat]

I finally got around to starting the bucket test today. (many other non pool problems lately caused the delay)

Anyway, added the T bleach and then the washing soda. We tested at 480ppm hardness with the titrate test drops. Ph is like off the scale, very very pink. So I added 6 T washing soda. The directions say 1 T per ppm and then 1 more. Do you mean just one more or one more per ppm hardness?

Well the bucket water did not turn very cloudy. We had some of the washing soda clump into hard pebbles in the bottom. Tried to bust them up with some success. But still not very cloudy at all. The directions say if this is the case to ask why this happening. So I am.

Thanks for all your earlier help. Still have no algae problems and so grateful for that. Pool water is very clear but we are getting some scaling on the liner starting again.

[Old Bat]

Whoa, hold the phone, the test bucket is now VERY cloudy. The directions made me think it should be like an immediate reaction, so I was concerned about that.

[Old Bat]

So now I can see the film of fine white dust on the bottom of bucket. Hoping to retest tomorrow and then proceed with the process in the pool.

But please help. I was assuming that the polyquat called for in instructions was to drop the calcium,(like clarifier) but I see polyquat is algaecide? How does that drop the stuff to the bottom.

Please help clear this up for me. And the amount of soda ash, I see that we have an equation to multiply by # of tablesppons in the bucket and then that carries through to the pool water. In step 4, say I figure at 5000 gallons water do I then use 1/4 gallon acid, 1/4 qt polyquat and also 1/4 of the amount calculated for soda ash, (2 1/2 boxes per Tablespoon)

I don't want to mess this up.

[Watermom]

I've asked Ben to pop back in here on this thread.

[Old Bat]

I am completely amazed yet again. I retested the top water in bucket for hardness today. It has NO red coloration whatsoever. NO hardness! Unheard of round these parts! But yes, I'd like to make sure to proceed on the pool with somebody holding my hand. Yes, I admit it, I'm very dumb about this chemistry stuff. And with such a high number to start with I imagine I could really screw things up bad if I go about it wrong.

[PoolDoc]

I am completely amazed yet again. I retested the top water in bucket for hardness today. It has NO red coloration whatsoever. NO hardness!

That's precisely the result you are looking for. If you do it in your pool, you have to be prepared to vacuum the sediment out to waste -- so you'll want to start with the pool filled to the max.

Lemme know what if you want to get started, so we can calculate doses on the pool itself. The polyquat algaecide is effective at high pH; chlorine may not be. We want it in place so the pool dosen't turn green while we're removing the calcium!

[Old Bat]

Hello Pool Doc!

Sorry, been a busy weekend. Daughter leaving for Arkansas again

I have the washing soda, acid, chlorine. Any particular polyquat I should get? I will order off Amazon. All the algaecide available here seems to be copper based stuff and I assume that is wrong. And yes I will remember to click through one of the links here to order.

Thanks so much for your help.

[PoolDoc]

No, either of the polyquat's I've posted links for is 60% polyquat; just get whichever one is currently cheapest on Amazon. I just checked, and the Kem-Tek product is still cheapest. If you order 2, they should ship free, and polyquat doesn't seem to go bad. I had a 55 gallon drum purchased from Buckman (the mfg of the raw material) that I used for 4 years!

Kem-Tek 60% polyquat @ Amazon
Nava 60% polyquat @ Amazon

[Old Bat]

Hooray, it is ordered! Should be here toward the end of the week.

Now I printed out all your instructions and lost the papers somewhere around here. Hope to get started soon. Thanks so much for all the help. Please if you have time, give me any more helpful hints along the way.