Clear, but no chlorine???

[FormerBromineUser]

Just to explain why I asked you to test TA and pH:

I hadn’t seen a pH test result on your thread for a while. After seeing your pool the other day, I got to thinking that MAYBE your pH had risen. There was a potential for the “raging waves” (as your kids call the jet action on the pool surface) to have aerated the water. Lots of splashing does it too

Aeration raises your pH. Chlorine loses effectiveness at high or low pH levels. IF your pH had risen due to aeration (and chlorine additions), then getting pH back in range would be VERY important. Does that make sense?

[mary jo]

Yes, that makes total sense to me. What's strange is that this entire year the pool's pH was constantly low- even with the "raging waves" going constantly 24/7 and lots of splashing kids in constantly. What doesn't make sense (and I'm not sure I need to know- but I guess I want to know now) is testing pH using diluted water and not having to compensate for dilution.

[FormerBromineUser]

Did you use distilled water? Next time you test pH, try it with 1:1 dilution instead of 5:1. The less dilution, the more accurate. If that doesn't work, go to 2:1.

I'm not sure many people (except chemists) understand how to compensate for dilution in a pH test.

[BigDave]

pH doesn't test how much of something is in the water but rather the relative acidity / alkalinity of the water. Distilled water has no acids or bases in the water so it has little effect on pH.
We use dilution for testing pH because high chlorine causes the pH test to read falsely high.
The limit for the Taylor pH test is 10ppm chlorine. In your water, I'd dilute 2 parts distilled to 1 part pool water, test that mix and call it a fair approximation of your pool's pH.

[mary jo]

Thanks for the pH explanation. I used 3:1 ratio because 2:1's results were difficult for me to read. At 3:1 dilution, pH =7.6

Yesterday: FC went from 32 (morning) to 29 (early evening), and CC stayed @ 2.0. So I added approx. 24 oz of bleach (I figured about 1/5 of a jug) to bring the FC back up. At 10:30pm FC=31 CC=2.0

This morning @ 6:30am FC=30 CC=2.0

I decided to use the 2 scoops of DPD. Glad FC is holding, but darned frustrated about CC not lowering. Rainy day here, but sun just came out. Can't think of anything else to clean!

[FormerBromineUser]

Filters cartridges? You didn't clean them because they were new but maybe now?

[CarlD]

Since your FC went, during the day, only from 32 to 29, I'm not seeing the point in adding still more bleach to get the CC down, which has dropped. You just need a sunny day or 2, I think.