Sanity Check...

[Dr. Spike]

Hello all,

I have a quick question or three , but first I would like to thank Ben and the Mods for this forum!

I have learned a lot and by just lurking for a long time I was able to get my TA down from 220+ to something more reasonable with the aeration method.

Ok, here are my questions.

First my pool is 21'W X 40'L, shallow end is 4" and the deep end is 9' (40,950 gal, but I think it is a less than that, it is a Grecian style pool and the deep end has a slight slope to the walls that start at the 4' level, I think it is a 17 degree slope? (Might be closer to 38,000?)).

EDIT: It is a vinyl lined IG pool

The pool has a dome over it, so it gets no sunlight at all. The water is crystal clear, it has been crystal clear since I opened it. I have been running the filter 24/7 since I started the opening. I know that I don't need to, but it really hasn't hit the electric bill too hard at all.

I am currently waiting for parts to fix my heater, the water is currently 65 degrees F. It was 62 a few days ago. (brrrr)

My fill water numbers: (I only tested this once with with the strips, HTH and pool store. I guess that is three tests, but they were all about the same.)
pH - 8.0
TA - 220
CH - 260

3 days ago I had these numbers from using test strips, an HTH 6 way, and the pool store. (I have Ben's kit ordered and on it's way (Thanks Ben!))

Test - Test Strips - HTH - Pool Store
TDS - x - x - 0
FC - 3 - x - 3.4
TC - x - 10 - 10.0
CC - 7 - 7 - 6.6
pH - 7.2-7.5 - 7.2-7.5 - 7.5
CYA - 0-30 - (too low to measure) - 38
TA - 120 - 120 - 119
CH - x - 250 - 257

So I shocked the pool using 6% bleach to bring it up to 12 using the calculator. (I actually hit 15)

I have been testing the CL levels a few times a day.

Today the numbers I have are

Test - Test Strips - HTH - Pool Store
TDS - x - x - 0
FC - 10 - x - 10.0
TC - x - 10 - 10.0
CC - 0 - 0 - 0
pH - 7.2-7.5 - 7.2-7.5 - 7.5
CYA - 0-30 - (too low to measure) - 16
TA - 120 - 120 - 107
CH - x - x - 220

I started using the 3" pucks and all the other pool store chemicals when I started the opening. However I found this sight in time and quickly switched to the BBB method.

Ok I will get on with my questions. (Really this time ).

Are my TC levels safe to swim in? Or should I not worry and maybe have some faded swim suits. (And freeze with my pool temp)

I am not sure what caused the increase in CC, the pool was not used, it was just too cold, but I have been doing my daily Cl and pH testing, and bi-weekly or more brushing, vacuuming and the other tests. Any guesses as to what could have gotten in there?

There has never been a sign of algae or cloudy water, it has always been crystal clear. (Except for some foam during the opening which I am guessing was the algaecide that was put in by the pool company that started up the pool. It went away in a few days.)

Since I get no sun on the pool should I just leave my CYA alone? Or should I bring it up some? Also could the drop in the CYA have been from what ever was in the pool that caused the high CC? From reading other posts this seems to be likely.

I have not added any muriatic acid since brining the TA down (over a week ago), but it still dropped, could this be a test error or something else going on?

A little background, I have maintained various fresh water, salt water, reef, and brackish aquariums, so I am familiar with balancing and maintaining water. I just never had a pool before so I want to make sure I am doing things right (The Pool Forum way ).

Thanks,

Dr. Spike

P.S. Sorry for the long post.

[duraleigh]

Hi, Doc,

Wow, those are interesting numbers. I'm afraid most of us, including me, have no experience with indoor pools and I cannot explain that high CC. It was very revealing that you were able to eliminate with one dose of 15ppm chlorine.

I'm pretty sure you need absolutely no CYA in an indoor pool. How did it get there?

Fine to swim in. Might fade a suit or two. Since it's indoors, skinny-dipping would save the suits.

Final thought.......since you overshot a little on the Cl and you certainly appear quite accurate on your tests, I would suspect the pool may not hold as much water as you are calculating.

Wish I could help more but thanks for posting....very interesting.

[Dr. Spike]

Hi Dave,

Thanks for the reply!

The only thing I can think of that could have added the CYA was the pucks that I started using before I found this site and the BBB method. It had CYA=0 when I first tested and opened the pool. I didn't think that I needed much if any from the posts that I have read and it being basically an indoor pool.

I thought the CC numbers were interesting as well, so I thought I would see if anyone might know of a cause.

After reading some more, I decided that I would go for a swim, water was COLD at first but it felt great. No irritation at all with that level of TC. I could not even smell it. I think it was the cleanest pool that I have swam in in a long time.

That was my guess too as for the size of the pool. I guess I will have to take some string and dive for measurements, then do some math.

Skinny dipping is the way to go. I don't have to worry about frightening the neighbors or have the local police handing me a towel and giving me a ticket.

(Edited for typo)