HELP - Ascorbic Acid treatment - I have a problem

[gerri]

My Ph is 6.8 right now. I've got the pump on recirculate. I will post tomorrow about how the stains are looking.

Thanks,

Gerri

[gerri]

Waterbear, today I still have stains although they are much lighter and streaky. I still have the pump running on circulate. The Ph is very low. I don't want to do damage. I may have more AA tomorrow. I ordered it last night and if they shipped it today it may come tomorrow because they are only 130 miles from me. Have you ordered from the Chemisty Store in Cayce SC before? Are they fast shippers?

Any advice as to what to do? Can I keep it as is and add more AA tomorrow if it gets here?

Thanks

[waterbear]

Waterbear, today I still have stains although they are much lighter and streaky. I still have the pump running on circulate. The Ph is very low. I don't want to do damage. I may have more AA tomorrow. I ordered it last night and if they shipped it today it may come tomorrow because they are only 130 miles from me. Have you ordered from the Chemisty Store in Cayce SC before? Are they fast shippers?

Any advice as to what to do? Can I keep it as is and add more AA tomorrow if it gets here?

Thanks

Are you sure you pH is 6.8 or is it possibly lower? You might want to add just a bit of borax to bring it up to 7.0 just to be safe. If there is still staining you can add more ascorbic acid around the stained areas when you get it. Sometimes it can take a while for all the staining to disappear. Adding more seqesterant can sometimes help also. I have never ordered ascorbic acid mail order. I get it locally.

[gerri]

I'll check the Ph again to be sure and add borax if it's too low. I'm glad I stocked up on everything before I started this treatment process.

[gerri]

Well my Ascorbic Acid didn't come today. I am so hoping it gets here tomorrow.

I tested my Ph again and it's creeping up! It is 7.8 now.. should I add some Muriatic Acid to lower it? I'm so scared of handling the MA. I don't know how much for 8500 gallons either.

I am sorry to seem so ignorant.

[waterbear]

add about a pint and then test the pH a few hours later. If it has not come back down enough add another cup to pint and test again. How much to add really depents on how high (or low) your TA is at this point.

[gerri]

My TA is very high, over 220. I need to test again to get a really accurate reading but I know it is very high.

I will add some MA tonight. Do you wear goggles and saftey gear when using it? I'm really scared of it.

[KurtV]

...I will add some MA tonight. Do you wear goggles and saftey gear when using it? I'm really scared of it.

You should wear safety glasses or a face shield and gloves (almost any will do), avoid breathing the fumes, and keep it away from other chemicals but it's nothing to be scared of. With those safety precautions and a healthy respect for strong acids, you'll be fine. You can also dilute it in some pool water in a bucket before adding it to the pool (always add acid to water, never the other way around), but I don't think that's necessary.

[waterbear]

Muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid) IS a chemical that deserves respect but should not be feared. You probably use things just as dangerous every day. Ever use Draino? It's lye, every bit as dangerous as muriatic acid. Ever use liquid toilet bowl cleaner....active ingredient in most of them is hydrochloric acid. Ever put gasoline into your lawn mower? Do you know how explosive gasoline vapors are? The biggest danger in using muriatic acid is fear because that leads to accidents. You should respect it and take safety precautions but if you are afraid of it don't use it! You can use sodium bisulfate (dry acid, pH decreaser) instead. It is easier to use but still a dangerous chemcal. Rubber gloves and eye protection are always a good idea when working with chemicals. Keep pets and children away from the area while you work with it. And remember that if you get any on yourself you can just jump into the pool to wash it off quickly. The most important rule is NEVER ADD WATER TO ACID...ALWAY add the acid to water.

[gerri]

I got over my fear of Hydrochloric Acid last night and added some. Today Ph was about the same though so I just added a little more.

My AA still didn't come today. I'm not too happy about that. I have the filter running on filter, switched over from recirculate. I also added a touch of bleach. Since it's going to be all weekend it looks like I'm just going to be starting over when the AA finally gets here.

The good news is my TA has dropped down to about 180 now.