suggestions on chem levels

[smileitsachoice]

I just drained about 10k gallons out of my pool. Thanks to being pool stored my cya was over 100. I just tested and the following are my results.

cya=60
fc=8.0 ppm
cc= 0 ppm
ph= 7.5
ta=100
cal=200

I have a 20*40 in ground vinyl pool @ 30k gallons. Before draining cya was over 100, ph was =< 6.8. I have be using tri chlor pucks for over 3 years, and shocking with cal hypo.
Thanks for you help and a great website.

[Watermom]

Welcome! I like your username, BTW.

A cya of 60 is going to be SO much easier to manage. Actually your numbers look pretty good. With this cya level, you'll just need to keep your FC between 5-10 ALL the time and your shock level will be 20. I would also suggest not using any more cal-hypo. You already have a calcium hardness reading of 200 and vinyl doesn't need calcium. Too much can cloud the water. Also, no more trichlor pucks or dichlor shock powder. Both contain cya and you don't want yours any higher. I would suggest just using bleach for your daily chlorination and for shocking when needed. Hope this helps! Thanks for subscribing!

[smileitsachoice]

Yea I have wrote off trichlor and dichlor, Sticking to the bleach. Do you think it would make sense to drain more water to get down in the 30 to 50 range for cya. It takes alot of bleach to shock a 30k gallon pool to 20 ppm. I am thinking I would like to drop my cya so I can lower my fc level to around 4 or 5 ppm. Also I run my pump about 10 hours a day. I have a Hayward s244t sand filter with a AO Smith st1102 1 hp pump, two 1.5 returns one in the deep end and one in the shallow. 2- 1.5 skimmer, and a additonal 1.5 side intake in the deep end. Does this seem like enough run time for the pump?

Again thanks.

[aylad]

If draining water isn't too expensive for you, then if you can drain enough to get your CYa down to that 30-40 range, it really would make it easier on you to keep the pool clear, especially if you're using bleach/liquid chlorine. However, before you do that, I would go a couple of weeks with it at 60 and see how it works out for you. You are in much the same climate as I am in northern Louisiana, and I intentionally keep mine high because I lose a LOT less chlorine that way. Granted, it's harder to get it up to the 20 ppm level to shock, but by the same token you're starting out with a much higher level before you start adding. By keeping it high I find that I can easily maintain my chlorine by the Best Guess Table by making a couple of additions per week, whereas if I keep the CYA lower, it requires daily additions....and I'm as lazy as the next person!

As far as run time goes, my pool is 18 x 36 with 1 HP motor and one skimmer, and I only really need to run it 6-7 hours a day to turn over my water once, which is your goal. In reality, I turn it on when I get up and off when I go to bed so it runs much longer than that, but 10 hours daily should be plenty of time for your pump to run,.

Welcome to the forum!

Janet

[smileitsachoice]

Thank you so much for your advice. Will try the higher cya for awhile. Daytime temps in northern Alabama around 100, and my pool is in full sun all day.

Thanks and Roll Tide.

[aylad]

Mine too, I end up keeping mine in the 80-90 range. That's much higher than I recommend for most pools, but mine is in full sun all day too, and with our heat and humidity, I just lose less chlorine that way. Try it and let me know how it goes!

Janet

[smileitsachoice]

My only problem is I have a wife and duaghter that have blond hair. Higher chlorine levels seem to be harder on them. It also seems to cause some skin dryness. It my just be that was the case with my unbalanced water earlier in the year. I was trying to out pace my cya with large doses of chlorine. Now that I have a better balance I am going to let in run for a couple of weeks and try it. I do like the less labor idea.

Thanks

[aylad]

Higher chlorine levels with lower CYA levels do tend to be drying--but if you're keeping your Cl levels in line with CYA, you shouldn't have much of a problem. The girl that cuts my hair tells me that if you'll rinse hair with tap water before going into pool and again after, that it helps decrease the drying. A good conditioner helps, too.

Janet

[docsobeck]

i had a copper disaster several summers ago (and ben REALLY bailed my hind end out in that case), but one of the things i had to do was keep very high FC levels for a couple of weeks. my wife's stylist is a friend, and she strongly recommended putting in just a bit of leave-in conditioner before spending much time in the water, and it seemed to really help.

for the record, i'm with everyone else. i'd leave the CYA where it is and see how it goes. depending on your bather load/habits and backwashing, it'll creep its way down as the summer wears on and pool water is replaced.

[thilbert]

You may also want to add a few bags of solar salt to your pool to alleviate the "straw hair" as my wife calls it. I also find that it softens the water and helps with the dry skin.

Everyone that swims in my pool loves the added salt. Rave reviews all around.

-Troy