Aquapure dead, numbers slightly off and what stabilizer?

[chris_r11]

OK, well that brings up another question

So, if I have an 18k gallon pool, I would need about 18 boxes of 20 mule team and about 5 gallons of acid? I know not to put them in at the same time, but just trying to figure out the numbers.

Do borates disappear from the water?

is the 20 mule team the best way to put them in?

Since I can't do it with my skimmer, should I put them in a mesh bag and put that in the skimmer?

Thanks,

Chris

[waterbear]

60 oz 20 mule team (sodium tetraborate decahydrate) will raise 1000 gallons to 50 ppm borates so for an 18K pool you will need 1080 oz. Since each box contains 76 oz this is 14 boxes (14.2 boxes to be more exact but its a pool, not rocket science. 14 boxes is fine!)

You will need between 4 to 4 1/2 gallons of muriatic acid to neutralize the pH rise from the borax.

To dose your pool add 2 gallons of acid and 7 boxes of borax driectly to the pool and brush well to mix. Add 2 more gallons of acid and the rest of the borax and brush. Wait 489 hours and then readjust the pH down to 7.6 if it is higher than that. It will probably take between a pint to a half gallon more of acid to achieve this if you pH is high at this point. For your size pool I would add a quart of acid at a time, wait about 30 minutes, test the pH and repeat this until the pH hits 7.6 or goes a bit below it, whichever comes first. (if it goes below to around 7.4 don't worry, it will rise again)

Borates are lost by spashout, backwashing etc. the same as salt or CYA. They are easily tested with the Lamotte or AquaChek borate test strips (the Lamotte are a bit easier to read)

If you want to spend the money there is an eaiser way. You can buy Proteam Supreme Plus (a mixture of sodium tetraborate pentahydrate and boric acid) which is pH neutral. You would just add 60 lbs of it to the pool to achive the 50 ppm borates and will not have to worry about neutralizing the pH with acid. You should still check the pH after 48 hours and lower it to 7.6 if it is higher than that.

Downside is that this way is CONSIDERABLY more expensive (Where I work we sell the 10 lb Supreme Plus for $40! The larger sizes are a bit less per pound but still pricy compared to 20 mule team and muriatic acid!)

Whichever method you pick you should check your borate levels montly (just like your salt, CYA and Calcium) and when they drop to about 30 ppm bump them up to 50 ppm again.