ubalr1,
As you point out, your chlorine level is too low for your CYA and that is certainly something to deal with immediately.
Don't worry too much about trying to hit the CSI to a perfect 0. This has a LOT of leeway, much more than I show in the spreadsheet. There are some users who don't see cloudiness until they get to +1.0 -- others around +0.75. Not sure about the corrosion side, but I suspect it's similar. So my spreadsheet "red values" that start at +/- 0.3 are VERY conservative, before I got some real-world experience from users on this site. Basically, the general rule on this forum is not to use LSI at all and just be in the ballpark (unless you don't have grout/plaster/gunite in which case CH is not needed).
At any rate, your numbers will all change after a drain and refill to get your CYA down since that will lower most of your other numbers as well (except CH due to its high value from fill water). You could probably run with a very low alkalinity of around 50 which would balance nicely with your high CH and let you run closer to a pH of 7.5. You will also experience less pH rise since your water will be less carbonated at a TA of 50 (though that doesn't seem to be a problem for you right now).
When I do the refill, it will be with softened water (CH=0). The autofill will also be replumbed to the soft water system too. I don't think I will have the calcium problem after the refill.
In the meantime, you can try using
Ben's Lowering Your Alkalinity post to get your TA lower.
Well, according to Ben's FAQs on Alkilinity, Alk should be between 50 and 200.
"What should my TA be?
Somewhere between 50 and 200 ppm. If you've got a heater, it usually should be lower than 150 ppm. If you've got a plaster or concrete based pool, it usually should be higher than 80 ppm."
Both my measured Alk (140) and adjusted Alk (87.2) fall within that range. I guess what matters is what the Alk is after I do the drain and refill.
With a lower TA you will be able to move your pH more easily. In fact, I am a bit surprised that you aren't already seeing a rise in pH from outgassing carbon dioxide. Are you using a pool cover? You could accelerate the process by aerating (splashing, pointing jets up, etc.) -- following Ben's procedure by going even lower in pH first should have this process go even faster. You aren't in serious danger with 7.1-7.2 pH if you just want to let it slowly drift upward, but aerating should accelerate that.
By the way, have you measured the CH and TA of your fill water? It seems quite high so would be good to know what you're dealing with when you do a drain and refill.
Richard
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