So, am I ready to ROCK???

[Simmons99]

Pool_mike -

Were you able to get the pool clear? It seems like your "cloudy pool" thread was hijacked by the "we should vs. should not use SWCG to shock" discussion.

One more thing that I didn't see mentioned was that with a PH that is high (like over 7.8) you will have a high tendency to have a cloudy pool. This is because calcium will start to precipitate and/or the chlorine will be less effective leading to the growth of organics in the pool.

Also - the SWCG only changes the chlorine level. The % setting determines the strength at which it works (like the cook % setting on a microwave). The ppm you see on the display is what the SWCG sees as the current salt level in the pool. The salt concentration level changes the "ppm" reading on the SWCG.

BUY a GOOD test kit - the pool builder will give you a crappy OTO/PH test kit only. You cannot maintain a good looking pool by using that and then going to the pool store. Also buy about 2-3 gallons of muriatic acid, a couple of boxes of baking soda from the store. Keep this around to adjust the PH and ALK.

Good luck on the new pool - have you posted pictures?

[Pool_Mike]

pool never has "yet" got clear.

The shallow area "we" started to see the bottom.


I did use the cheap'OL' test kit that was given to us by the PB, the cl was high, the ph was little high.

I am not sure what to do to lower the cl, but as for the ph, I just dropped two cups of muratic acid. The test kit I got, just shows color, I have no idea how much I need to add if I do need to add anything. Muratic acid was a guess. I am sure 2 cups is ok.

[Pool_Mike]

test kit says to test the alkalinity first. I ended up dropping 10 drops to get it to yellow. By what the instructions said, I need to add 1 gallon 1/4 cups of muratic to our 20K pool. So I ended up adding that amount.

Well see tomorrow what it does. Also my SWG dropped to 2900, kinda weird

[Pool_Mike]

Ok.....


My dad sent me in the mail the HTH interactive water test software, which works with the hth 6-way swimming pool test strips that can be bought at wal-mart.

Seems to me this is easy way to test my pool and just input the test strip results on the PC software and it tells me what I need, which it said I needed nadda/ lol

But here are the results:

FC / 2.0 ppm

pH / 7.5

TA / 120

CH / 200

CYA / 100

-----------------------


Nope the pool is not clear

I did however notice that my swg dropped to 2900ppm, which seems to be running really low.

Should I add more salt to the pool? Maybe one bag (40 lbs)?

Anyways, I boosted the control know to 80 and hope it gets back up, but as of 10:20 PM these are the results. Thanks guys and hope to get my pool clear inside.

Thanks!!

What do I need guys?

[dawndenise]

Pool Mike -

Your SWG's ideal salt range is anywhere between 2700 and 3400, so you're still in that ideal range, per the owner's manual for your unit (I have the same one).

The salt reading dropped from what you saw before probably because your PB backwashed your filter. Anytime you lose water through backwashing or splash-out, your salt reading may go down a bit.

As Simmons99 indicated, you cannot change your salt reading by moving the control knob. Boosting your control knob to 80% won't change your salt reading. Right now, it will stay at or about 2900 no matter where your control knob is set, 10%, 30%, or 100%, or anything in between. Where the knob is set makes no difference to your salt reading. The only way to increase your salt reading is to add salt in your pool water. I'm not saying you should add salt right now, I'm just saying that's how your system works. The only way to decrease your salt reading is to backwash your filter, splash water out of the pool, or drain some water out of the pool.

The control knob governs how much chlorine is "made" with that salt - how much chlorine is generated and put into your pool. In basic terms, the higher the percentage, the more chlorine that goes into the pool.

[Jeffski]

From what I've learned on this site over the last couple months with a stabilizer that high (CYA 100 which is too high) you need to get your chlorine levels really, really high in order to effectively shock your pool. My guess is the chlorine you're putting in is doing nothing which is why the water is still cloudy.

Now hopefully an expert can chime in with how to lower your CYA or if that's even possible.

[Pool_Mike]

From what I've learned on this site over the last couple months with a stabilizer that high (CYA 100 which is too high) you need to get your chlorine levels really, really high in order to effectively shock your pool. My guess is the chlorine you're putting in is doing nothing which is why the water is still cloudy.

Now hopefully an expert can chime in with how to lower your CYA or if that's even possible.

Sounds like I may need to then do a manual Shock? Bleach ??

Anyone confirm and if so, how many gallons you think? Thanks

[Pool_Mike]

Sounds like I may need to then do a manual Shock? Bleach ??

Anyone confirm and if so, how many gallons you think? Thanks

I called goldline and they said that I can use bleach or chlorine tabs/powder. I just not sure how much by the reading I posted above. Anyone help??

[Jeffski]

I would first get an anwer to the CYA question and how to lower that. It's probably in a thread here somewhere if you look hard enough. I can't remember the answer, sorry.

[chem geek]

The CYA level may be more than 100 since that is the limit of the test (the black dot could disappear before one adds enough "cloudy" mixture to the tube to even get to the 100 ppm line).

Unfortunately, the only real way to lower the CYA is through dilution which means partial drain and refill. However, since this is near the end of the pool season and winter closing is approaching, the pool can just be made to have higher than usual chlorine levels until winter closing. Then the CYA may drop over the winter (for reasons that are not fully understood yet). If the pool is in an area where there are winter rains, then these can be used for dilution via overflow (but if it's in a freezing area, then that may not work as one usually lowers the water level below the skimmer and inlet returns).

Richard