5 Boxes of Borax later.... PH STILL very low

[JohnT]

Whenever chemicals don't do what you expect, it always casts doubt on your test results. Some pH test methods are inaccurate at high chlorine levels. A pool store test would be a good sanity test right now.

A good way to figure out what's going on is to take a 5 gallon bucket of pool water and experiment. A cup of borax ought to make a big difference in the pH of that bucket of water. If it doesn't, try it again with tap water. That ought to give you an idea of what is happening.

[doggie]

Ok one thing I totally forgot till I was outside, was that last night around 6 p.m. we added one jug (I believe 6 pounds) of stablilizer. Then we've had the filter on since then. Would that cause a temp drop in PH?

[chem geek]

Yes. Stabilizer is highly acidic. It's Cyanuric Acid and is literally an acid and it's strong enough to show a serious drop in pH with the amount you add. It also dissolves slowly so you'll be fighting this drop until it fully dissolves.

Every pound of stabilizer will require about 1.3 pounds of 20 Mule Team Borax to maintain pH.

Richard

[doggie]

So I'll just keep adding Borax daily for the next few days until I get the stablilizer all dissolved. I better inform Meijer that they don't stock enough of it to meet my pool needs.

Since we just got a new liner last thing in the fall before we closed, I was worried I was off to a poor start this spring. Sounds like I'm OK for now after all.

Thanks so much guys!

[mbar]

Your alkalinity is a little high, so you can also turn your return jets up so that the water bubbles on top - it will raise your ph while lowering you alk. killing two birds with one stone You want the alk between 80-120.

[chem geek]

Excellent suggestion Marie! Only add enough Borax to keep the pH around 7.0 if the aeration isn't enough to keep the pH there all by itself.

[doggie]

Well crap, I thought Borax wasn't supposed to increase the alkalinity much.

I fought that vicious circle back when I used pucks.

PH low, raise ph. Find alk too high, add acid. PH low, raise ph. Find alk too high again. etc etc etc

Turning the jets up sounds easy enough, but won't that affect the way the pool gets circulated?



Edit: also, how can you aerate that way when you use a solar cover?