What to do first? CYA > 200 ppm

[PoolLizard]

Good.

The fact that you have a DE filter with a slide valve means vacuuming to waste would be difficult -- you'd have to add some valves. That makes it impractical to use the whole pool lime-softening technique, at least for now. But there may be some intermediate steps you can follow.

One point I should emphasize is that the so-called BBB method I originated (I came up with the method, not the name) is not literally bleach / borax / baking soda: rather those products are more symbolic of the approach of using the easiest, cheapest and best way to care for your pool. And one of the fundamental points of the BBB method is that you have a POOL, not a 'set of test numbers'. So, we don't worry too much about numbers, when they aren't causing a problem.

Unlike pool stores, who want to sell chemicals, we try to avoid fixing what's not broken!

In your case, if you have no tile-line scale . . . you are NOT having a calcium problem, even if your level IS 560 ppm. So, let's get more accurate info on your numbers, raise the chlorine, and then re-assess.

Okay, I just got done dumping 442 ounces of 6% bleach into the water. How long do I wait before I do a chlorine test? The pump is running at 3110 rpm right now.

Oh, I do have a scale ring. Plus, I think I have scale buildup on the bottom too. I'll see if I can get some pictures of the bottom.

[PoolDoc]

2 hours should be plenty, to wait. It sort of depends how your pool's circulation system is set up, but regardless, 2 hours should be enough.

Pictures of both tile & bottom, if you can, please. Post them, or links to them, using Webshots, Flickr, Google Drive, etc, or email them to poolforum@gmail.com. To take the pool into a scale-removing state will be a bit tricky, but I've thought of a way that may work.

Also, take pictures of your equipment. PacFab changed their name to Pentair a long time ago; how much like your filter is this one: http://www.pentairpool.com/pool-pro/...filters-61.htm ?

[PoolLizard]

Here are some pictures:

Complete pad:

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/P1000708.jpg

Filter:

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/P1000710.jpg
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/P1000711.jpg

Pump:

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/P1000713.jpg

Scale:

http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/IMGP0254.jpg
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/IMGP0253.jpg
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/IMGP0252.jpg
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...l/IMGP0251.jpg

Hope this helps.

Will go test water now.

[PoolLizard]

At 13:45 pm my time, the FC level is now 5.5.

Adding more bleach. And testing CYA.

[PoolLizard]

At 14:30 the CYA = 240. I mixed 7ml of pool water with 14 ml of tap water. Took 7ml of that for the test. Reading was 80. 80 x 3 = 240.

Also, added another 128 oz of 10% bleach.

[PoolLizard]

At 16:15 pm, the FC is now 10. Yeah!

What's next?

[PoolDoc]

OK, time for a decision. You have two options.

1. You can run a HiC2 pool (chlorine above 10 ppm, dosing 1x per week, etc) AND you can work on lowering your calcium by adding soda ash slowly upstream of your filter. Each time you do this, you will collect some calcium carbonate on the filter, but some more will cloud the pool. You'll have to turn the pump off for 12 - 24 hours to let the calcium settle, then vacuum it up and clean your filter. I'm not sure how much calcium you'll be able to remove on each pass.

OR

2. You can drain most of your pool and refill. To reach CYA = 80 ppm, you'll need to drain 2/3 of the pool. This will also lower your calcium hardness to around 230 ppm. This would be easiest; but whether it's best depends on your preference and how much water costs there. Obviously, the first option will be cheapest, even when you allow for spending $100 on soda ash, acid, and extra DE.