Clear, but no chlorine???

[BigDave]

With that safety issue, I would keep it closed and deal with the consequences. If there's damage, it's only money.

[mary jo]

funny- that's what my husband always says….
I'm a night owl so I can keep the cover open til about 2am, then close until morning.
i have the test bucket with pool water & 1/2 cup bleach in it. Will let you know tomorrow what happens.
thanks

[FormerBromineUser]

.
You have a VERY important reason to keep your cover closed at night. There are other advantages too.

I almost always keep my cover closed at night: It helps keep in heat and that has been a real advantage with the cool weather this year! It helps keep critters from finding the pool at night; I never find dead toads, chipmunks, voles, etc. unless I leave it open. If a storm comes up at night, windblown debris stays out. (I rarely have to vacuum because I also close it during the day if there's any type of strong wind).

I leave it open: If my water level is low and it is going to rain with little to no wind. If the pool water temperature gets high and I need to cool it off. If I have to go to shock level. I also left it open while I was lowering my TA and aerating with my fountains.

Good luck with your pool and the party!

[mary jo]

Good Morning; I wanted to touch base and let you know how it was going, in case I'm was off base or spinning my wheels. Here's where I'm at: SATURDAY evening added 3 jugs of bleach, by next morning @ 7:50am and got CL=.5, CC=1.0
Here's my log:
SUNDAY:
8am added 3 jugs
test @ 9am CL=18 CC=1

test @ 12 noon CL=5.5 CC=1
added 2 jugs

test @ 2:30 CL=9.5 CC=.5
added 1 jug

test @ 5:30 CL=7.5 CC=.5
added 3 jugs

test @ 8:30 CL=13 CC=.5
added 1 jug

test @ 11:50 CL=10.5 CC=.5
added 3 jugs

MONDAY:
test @ 7am CL=10 CC=.5
added 1 jug

test @ 9am CL=12.5 CC=0
added 1 jug

SO- it seems Saturday the pool was steadily losing approx 2.5 ppm CL/hour, right? Today its losing less, but still early in the day (a rainy one at that). Is that how it's supposed to go? Am I on the right track?

[BigDave]

How does the water look? Still clear? No stains?

Did you happen to test pH when the FC was below 10 yesterday?

Sounds like you are on the right track. The only chlorine demand I recall like this was caused by ammonia that was the result of bacterial conversion of CYA over winter. Maybe your pool got into this situation, the bacteria could grow unseen turning CYA into ammonia if the active chlorine was low enough. I would, however, expect to see visible algae if the chlorine / CYA ratio was so low. Maybe it was the fertilizer.

Does the pool water stink of chlorine like a heavily used indoor pool (after the cover's been open a while) or does it have little smell?

[mary jo]

The water is still very clear. No slimy feel on the walls or floor. There is no heavy smell of chlorine at all. No staining at all. (The bucket test w/ 1/2 cup bleach had no stains either).
I did test the ph on Sunday morning after I added about 2 lbs pH up to the pool sat night ( several hours before adding the jugs of chlorine). It was 7.8. The water clouded when adding the pH up but dissipates in about 2 minutes.
I did test the cya to day and it's at about 140. Is that possible considering it was so high a few days ago?

[CarlD]

I don't know how this thread got closed, but I have reopened it.