I check weekly. I add United Chemical Easy acid if the PH and or Alkalinity is too way too high. If it's with 10% of the normal range I won't waste the money.
Hellllp me please...please...ive had an algae bloom a month ago, i finally had to super shock it to get rid of it because the pool store was being too conservative i bought super shock triple shocked my terrible algae and got the water blue. My pH is 6.0 my alkalinity is 200. Im so upset.i added clarifyer and vacuumed it i clean my filter 3 times a day the water is milky ..im so frustrated..ive poured hundreds of dollars into this stupid above ground pool im almost about to just throw it in the trash. Ive got plants where my pool water will drain and ill end up killing my lawn but im so over it. Most of my stimulus check went to buying chlorine shock super shock pH up muriatic acid cyanuric acid a new clip for my vacuum that busted twice and new pool hoses..im so over it. Help. My water is blue but has a ton of particulates in it. Im so tired.
@@tamarakennedy4976 ... when I was a kid my family lived within walking distance of a swimming pool on a US Air Force Base. My father was a civilian employee at the Base which meant we could not use the pool intended for Airmen and their families. But guess what. We all had a better time running through lawn sprinklers and having fights with buckets of water. It was great and there was no danger of drowning. I suggest that you dismantle and sell your pool if that's possible and invite all the kids in the neighborhood over for dashes through sprinklers and water bucket fights. Ahhh yes ... the good old days. Algae? What's algae. Cloudy water? Where? PH? What the hell is PH? Is that an abbreviation for telephone? And what's a water pump? Our water came out of a hose automatically. My father must have been rich.
HELLLP MY PH IS 7.5 SIDE OF 7.6 NOT QUITE 7.4 AND LIGHTER THAN 7.6 BUT ALKALINITY TEST ON 5 WAY I HAD TO USE 19 DROPS OF #3 ACID DEMAND AND ALKALINITY DROPS TO NEUTRALIZE THE PURPLE WATER TEST ...HELLLP. WHAT DO I ADD?? I NEED JUST ALKALINITY TO LOWER...HELLLLP.HELLLP.
With every video about chemical adjustments could you please include a safe-to-swim time? It is hard to find info on "you can swim ? Hours after adding".
I read 30 mins but there could be hot spots expecially if you didn't turn on the pump to circulate. I personally would wait a day when you know the pool has completely circulated once.
What is the link for your calculator used to determine how much acid to add and is there a specific calculator app you use to calculate chlorine and salt and other additives that need to be adjusted? I have seen every pool service guy I ever hired measure and pour the muriatic acid into the pool from a measuring cup or right out of the container so why do you say its essential to mix it with water first? I assume the water you mix with is pool water? Lastly you didnt specify how much can be added at once and how long to wait in between when adding more. Can you plz elaborate?
For people like myself who are visual learners, what does “1 part” of muratic acid”look like? How do you measure it the right way? Same goes with “10 part” of water
1 oz is "1 part" or 2 oz is "1 part". or 3oz is "1 part" - or what ever measure.. then what he says is make 10 parts to 1 in the mix - AND the water goes in the bucket FIRST..
so i've always been told to run the filter while adding and for a period of time after. Today somebody told me the opposite. Pour it in the pool with the filter off at night and leave it. Which is correct
i have high alkalinity but a perfect PH lvl 7.2 im using a sand filter with saltwater setup and chlorine generator all lvls are in the good range except the alkalinity its off the chart high water is crystal clear
I'm on well water the Alkalinity is 320 and the PH is so low it's off the scale. Should I raise the PH in an acceptable range 1st then do the alkalinity lowering with the acid?
What does 10 parts of water look like when adding water inside a bucket? How high is 10 parts of water? And how low is 1 part of muratic acid look like in a bucket?
@SwimUniversity my pH is usually high but my alkalinity is always too low. I keep hearing that they rise and fall together, but adding acid to lower pH and sodium bicarbonate to raise alkalinity seems to have the chemicals working at cross purposes. What say you?
I did, like you showed and, filled the little bottle with water to test it but all the test strips got wet. Was I supposed to remove them from the bottle first? And, real question, we have rampant scale/calcium? build-up on our gunite walls. Is the best option to drain it and acid wash the walls?
What if your pH is good, hanging around 7.2 to 7.4, but your alkalinity is high....around 180 to 190. If adjusting one adjusting the other, how do you get balance it out?
@@chief5981 Honestly, unless it gets super SUPER high, I don’t stress over it now. My pool will typically bounce between 150-180. Usually 180 is highest it gets and that is after a few days of evaporation. When I take the hose to top the pool off, it will dilute the pool a bit and bring my readings back into range. pH might be a slight low, and I just put alil pH plus in and I’m all good!
I was told by many pool owners that the optimal ph is 7-7.2 because the chlorines effectiveness at a ph of 7.5 is only about 40%, one guy had his pool at 6.8 for that reason. I'd like to hear some additional opinions on that
You are trying to match the ph in your pool to the ph in your eyes. Your eyes are between 7.0-7.3. Anything outside that range can be damaging to your eyes.
It depends on your pool. Concrete pools will require higher pH values because lower values will damage the concrete. However, you can go lower with your pH value in plastic pools. Regarding the effectiveness of chlorine, your information is about correct. Basically, free chlorine exists in two basic forms in your pool water: the hypochlorous acid (HClO), and the hypochlorite anion (ClO−). The hypochlorous acid is about 100 times more effective in disinfection than the hypochlorite anion. So what you want in your pool water is as much hypochlorous acid as reasonably possible. The ratio between both of these two forms of free chlorine is governed by the pH value. At pH 7.3, you have about 40% hypochlorous acid and 60% hypochlorite anion. If you want chlorine to become more effective, you will have to lower the pH value. Moreover, as your pH rises and more hypochlorite anions form, the more your pool water will become prone to forming unwanted chloramines from biological material collected from swimmers, such as sweat and urine, but also from decomposing insects in water, for example. Chloramines are also called "combined chlorine" (the one that stinks, burns in your eyes and nose, and does basically not disinfect your water), and this process can be partially reversed by lowering the water pH again. The rest of the chloramines will have to be destroyed by adding more free chlorine, though. Chloramine chemical bonds are very strong, so you will have to add as much as 10 times more free chlorine than you have measured combined chlorine to destroy chloramines.
One theory for natural water balance is to use aeration! A fountain, spray feature or waterfall feature naturally aerate the water, supposedly, helping keep alkalinity levels in check. 👍
Can you make a video explaining when to use soda ash over bicarb ? I just started as a pool service tech and I’ve been doing it 4 months. I understand chemistry and it’s importance and I under stand how to achieve what I want BUT I would like to be more accurate. We are taught use soda ash for low pH and use bicarb for alkalinity.. a lot of the guys I work simply use bicarb for both. If bicarb works for both why even use soda ash ? Is this accurate to say “9 times out of 10 If the pH is off the alkalinity will be off” ?
Hey pool friends I have a question. My pool was green and I got it back to crystal clear blue however I'm trying to balance my Ph and alkalinity levels so I dont get algae again or scaling in my pump or liner. I have a vinyl pool with a sand filter pump. My Ph is 7.2, my chlorine is HIGH (I assume from all the shock I poured in). I'm using a 5 way test kit but the readings are higher than 11.0 (it's a dark orange). However my alkalinity is also HIGH 330 ppm. I need it to be between 80 - 150 ppm. I have added muriatic acid. I had to keep the pump on so it didnt settle on the bottom and burn the liner. I did dilute it to 10 parts water in a bucket first before pouring in. My pool is a 2750 gallon pool. So in total I have put in 1 2/3 cup muriatic acid. It has been 24 hours since I did this and my new readings are the same. Does anyone know what I can do to lower the alkalinity in the pool.
To lower PH add acid with pump on, to lower Alk add acid while water is still let it sit for about an hour before turning pump back on. To raise Alk add baking soda with pump on. This works for a salt system.
Thanks for this video. My local pool store says I need to add 4 gallons of muriatic acid to my 16,200 gallon pool. It seems like a lot but my Total Alkalinity is 225ppm. Does 4 gallons sound about right? Thanks.
Renee Torres That sounds odd as they usually go hand and hand and are much closer. Are you sure the reagent/kit for ph is accurate? If the ph is low the alkalinity is usually low. I usually adjust the alkalinity first and the PH follows. With a PH of 7.2, I would not add muriatic acid as you want the PH to be about 7.4
@@cardo1111 I'm using the test kit that you put water in the Vile and add drops to it while shaking in between each one. I thought I was wierd to but iv done it everyday and the ph keeps coming in 7.2 and the alkaline says 200ppm ..iv tried test strips too and and I get the same result. I'm lost lol
@@reneetorres9845 You can aerate your water. This raises ph without upsetting alkalinity. A shop vac in reverse (blower instead of suction) for a few hours. Your neighbours will love it!
I have sort of the same situation...over 200 ppm alkalinity but Ph is just about 7.2. Someone else below asked the same question and pool dude responded with "Lower the alkalinity and just increase the pH with pH increaser." So, not super detailed but I guess it doesn't need to be too detailed....
I'm a pool tech and a lot of what this guy said goes completely against what I see when servicing pools. I tend to see Alkalinity drop and ph rise over time, not the reverse. So in my experience I would just give it a little time. If not, it may be cheaper to have a pro come service the pool just to get it back on track
I was at 170, I added 3 GALLONS of muriatic acid and now I am only down 10 to 160. 25,000 gallons, no heater. Just got water tested by pool store, they said to add 1.5 QUARTS! What's that going to do when 3 gallons did so little?
Hi This is sunil from india. in my pool we are getting kind of bubble/foam when we jump into the water and while swimming it stays for 10 to 15 second when swimmers in pool and then disappear when water is not disturbed. what to do PH is ideal 7.2 chlorine level is 2 in meter.
Is 200 alkalinity too high? and it was 160 before but keeps increasing. Also the ph is 7.2? We always have too fix the filter maybe that’s why.. also I already bought the Muraic acid from Lowe’s, the same one you inserted at the beginning of the video is that one safe to use cause it said in the video you have to buy a specificly for a pool from a pool store??
Yup, that's how I do it too. I have an in ground 20k gallon, with a 1.5hp pump. I carefully pour the whole gallon slowly above the return, not the skimmer side, ( pump on high is 20gpm) so your really just diluting into a 20,000 gallon bucket, just pour slowly, and just above the surface, you probably do that already. I always use the full bottle, that's not a chemical you want sitting around on your garage floor or shelf waiting for an accident! Scary stuff bro.
I'm a pool tech and have been for a little while now. Adding the acid directly to the pool is okay if the system is running so the water is mixing the acid around and diluting it. If you don't want the system on or have a system that isn't operational you could use a pool brush to stir the water manually but this isnt recommended for every application as it doesn't do as good of a job mixing. If the system isn't on or you don't stir it yourself, the acid is heavier than water and will sit on the bottom of the pool. Long term this will cause damage to the plaster and will eventually force you to re-plaster the pool.
@@bruceeverett5372, that 1 gallon muriatic acid will make your pool very low PH, not balance. I usually use Taylor Acid demand test, 20K gal pool, 7.4 target PH, 1 drop is 1 pint MA needed, 2 drop need 2 pint.
Alkalinity is the number 1 priority. Without the alkalinity in the correct range it’s difficulty to adjust your ph. Typically people have a high alkalinity. Add muriatic acid until it’s in the correct range. Then shock your pool to raise your ph.
My intex pool has 4500 gallons of water. From day 1 the alkalinity and PH were off the charts. I added 20 ounces of muriatic acid at a time..now I have used the entire gallon and my levels are still at the highest levels according to 2 different brands of test strips??? I dont really want to add more. What do you recommend?
@@ericmuller3339 make sure your test kits test for phosphate. It sounds like it could be really high which would promote algae growth. If so you would need to add a phosphate remover.
@@isaacmarin9353 Not green. Actually crystal clear. I have some algae that settles to bottom of pool...I vacuum that out with my sand filter and discharge it to my lawn.
My ph and alkalinity are high and don’t seem to want to come down. I’ve used about two bags or 10lbs total in my pool not all at once but little by little and they’re still high. I’ve used ph down from Clorox and one from another brand but like nothing. Just got some muriatic acid I think I’m gonna try that now and hopefully that’ll do it. Got it fell Home Depot. Comes in a box of two bottles. Says other uses and one says ph control so guess that should work?
Dry acid is more mild than liquid Muriatic. I use Magic Acid low fumes and it works but harder to find a seller or is not out of it. Muriactic acid works on both TA and PH much quicker with less product, but I have the safety equipment too. I'm still sturggline because you can only put so much of any acid in the pool at one time and then it takes awhile before it mixes to test, so it still takes time.
I’ve dumped like a gallon and a half of muriatic acid in to my 20000 gallon pool over the last 5 days and the ph and alkalinity creep back up out of acceptable range quickly. I live in Arizona and the temps are over 100 daily. I’m not sure what else to do. Any idea?
Ask your local pool expert about changing your pool water. This should be done in AZ every 3 to 5 years. The pool eventually cannot balance the chemicals and needs new water.
Wish you had an actual video on how much water your putting in the bucket and how much acid your pouring in as well. For those of us who aren’t good with measurements. Example, how much is a 1/4 of acid looks like.
fill a galon with water (90%) and add some acid from the bottle. You don't have to be super precise. The whole idea of diluting it is because working with undiluted acid is a bit dangerous. Wether you dilute it 10x, 15x or 8x it should not matter one bit
Hello! Thanks for all the informational videos. I’m having a problem. I have a vinyl above ground. I was able to get my ph up by using baking soda and borax, and once it was 7.4 I shocked it. And I have floater with 3 chlorine tabs and a chlorine tab in my filter. 1 hour after shock the chlorine was great last night. But this morning it plummeted. And is at .5 again. What can I do to keep the chlorine ideal. The ph dropped to 7.2 this morning as well.
pH will drop when adding chlorine. Make sure your alkalinity is in range. Shock is unstabilized and drop fast. Add more chlorine pucks to keep the chlorine up and more consistent.
Check your stabilizer level. If it is low, add cyanuric acid. Low cyanuric acid level is the number one thing in my 2 pool ownerships that caused the chlorine to dissipate too fast. Once it is in the 30 to 50 ppm level you will be good. Walmart sells Chlorox brand stabilizer cheap. Ingredient is 100% cyanuric acid. Also available on Amazon.
@@SwimUniversity check phosphates levels if high you probably are battling algae even if you can't see it eating up your chlorine. How is your CYA is high, it can over protect your chlorine refered to chlorine lock not remcommened over 50 ppm. But if you use the pucks, that is reached easily during the summer. I have experenced lower CYA as result of finding I had no chlorine, bacteria results and elimates CYA otherwise you have to drain or filter your pool water.
Trust me a pool supply store is wayyy better than Walmart also the pool supply store was way cheaper and stronger chemicals that work and better cleaning equipment. Take it from me I learned the hard way I went to Walmart and never again. Also pool supply store has a water tester for free. Good luck
My pool has high alkalinity and low ph. I live in Michigan and our water has high alkalinity from limestone. How it it even possible to have high alkalinity and low ph? I’m so confused.
That's what happened with me but with my hot tub. HIGH alkalinity low PH. So I focused on getting the alkalinity to an optimal range. The pH was giving me a headache dealing with it, so I literally forgot about the ph and just focused on the alkalinity , the culprit, first. It did bring the PH down to 6.8 which was good in my situation because once the alkalinity was locked in, just letting it aerate brought the pH back to where I wanted it. And it's been perfect ever since. I confirm it every once in awhile with my water testing strips and confirmed with my water drop test kit.. Which is at 7.4. It takes time but air doesn't cost any money which is great when it comes to pool and spa chemicals. It took several hours for the pH to back up to normal range but considering that it wasn't low for a long long time, I didn't worry about it hurting my spa. If my pH was low for a long of time, then yes I would have done something about that. Now the alkalinity and the pH are stable since I fixed the alkalinity problem. I was at the same shoes wondering how the heck can I have very high alkalinity and very low ph?! I used to think they kind of travel together, but when I had very high alkalinity, I would put pH Down but soon after the pH would be Sky High again which was a waste of money. But when your alkalinity is too high you'll notice your pH is never going to stay locked in even after you get the pH where you want it to. and you'll have to keep putting pH Down in a hot tub. I refill my hot tub every 3 months and here where I live in Texas, I always have to lower the alkalinity just a tiny bit and then it's good to go. And I was thinking why the heck is my alkalinity astronomical? And then I remembered a day or so before that, me and my husband were sitting outside about to take my almost three year old in and right within an arm's length of me. Of course the water was cool, not hot since it's really hot here. My son who was right next to me decided he had to dump the rest of his orange juice in the hot tub. At the time I was thinking dang it, no! But considering it was just a small amount of orange juice, whatever. But the next day when I tested my water, my alkalinity was up there. I am almost certain that is why I got into this mess, the freaking orange juice because I never had this issue with numbers all over the place this bad.. Even though you have a pool and I have a hot tub, it's one in the same with ph and alkalinity water balancing. At first it was very confusing but now I could pretty much handle any kind of problem after hours of research on the internet. Of course a hot tub is a lot smaller in your pool and I know that I can get my pH to rise quicker in a hot tub since it has so many jets in such a small amount of space. I know it's frustrating but maybe call your local pool supply place because you don't want to waste a bunch of money and product if there is a simpler solution for what you're dealing with. I'm not an expert but that is my solution. That's what worked for me dealing with my water issue even though I have a hot tub. I have my temperature set to 94 which is not hot at all.
Eileen Fuentes Orange juice! No!!! Lol. I’m so protective of my pool water, it’s a little ridiculous. My family is tired of me fretting of the water. I need to chill out a bit, first off. Secondly, so I haven’t messed with the alkalinity by adding acid to bring it down for weeks. However, the ph hasn’t changed either. It’s stable at 7.2. So should I just leave it well enough alone? Are there any problems with higher alkalinity, besides ph fluctuations, which I’m not experiencing? Like, does high alkalinity impact the effectiveness of chlorine?
Coco Savage Thanks for that advice. I have been aerating more and making sure the filter is really clean. I feel like I’m constantly adding chlorine though. I’ve been using a non-chlorine pool shock, it maybe I need to try a chlorine shock to get things back in balance.
2000 gallon pool and I can not get it to lower PH using “dry acid” I test with strips free chlorine reads good and pool water is crystal clear Please help
I have watched this video and have added a whole gallon of muriatic acid to my 24 ft pool and my ph and alkalinity is still high...it is green, so I'm trying to get my balance right before I shock it.....
So, kind of confusing... what is high ph then? Does high ph mean high alkalinity levels, is it the same? Should I be using anything else other than muriatic acid to lower the ph or alkalinity levels? On my Taylor reactant test kit, its the complete one, why is there an additional test for alkalinity levels if ph is the same, I'm confused... please help!
In order to lower Alkalinty you have to use muriatic acid which also lowers PH. That's OK if you have high PH too, you just have to treat with acid (usually more than once since you shouldn't add more than 32 oz to a 10,000 gal pool at one time). What you have to watch for is that the PH doesn't get to low as in below 7.2 ppm as it takes more to bring alkalinty down than PH, in my experience anyway. You need to monitor the PH so that if it gets to 7.2 ppm you need to "aerate" the water to bring up the PH (does not raise the alkalinty) and once it's safe you can start to lower it again until you get the alkalinity usually below 90-100 ppm and aerate again to bring the PH up slightly to 7.4-7.6 range to balance both of them. If you use tablets vs liquid chlorine you will have different chemical balancing issues too.
You have to drain water to lower calcium, you want it to be in the range of 150-300ppm. Although in AZ some freshly filled pools can start off above 400ppm
@@SwimUniversity Honestly... don't waste your time and money! Get a saltwater system!!! I did and instead of spending 500 or more a season on chemicals Im down too 60 without all the hassle. I do use muriatic acid at opening and Im usually good all season. I have a 8000 gallon above ground pool
I use a mask (quick release model) w/3m fume filters, chemical apron, chemical gloves and safty glasses (goggles) yes look like a chemical monster for about 5 mins but totally safe. I also use low fume acid too. I also found a chemical cap dispenser where I can turn the flow open on the gallon of acid but it's not full force. I just turn on the jets and walk around close to the pool and let it dispense moderately as I walk along. I don't want to handle it multiple times with mixing outside of the pool and then picking larger container to poor in the pool that's just more potential for accidents. I did some researh but as most of you know the information you get it different from source to source. I read it take 25.6 oz of 31.45 % muriatic acid to bring down your TA 10 ppm that means you will need a lot of acid AND you shouldn't add more than 1 pt (32az) at a time and it's 4 pts to gallon (128 oz). The advice to wait 24 hrs to test again isn't working for me because my TA and PH start to rise again maybe due to chlorine but then that is only suppose to be temporary by chemical reaction in the water. This stuff is mind moggling and all these videos keep trying to make it seem simple but it's not. I wait about a couple hours with pool circulating and then test and add more acid it will take a day to go through 1 gallon of acid and make a dent in bringing the numbers down. Right now I'm at 7.3 ph and 130 TA, I think my phoshates 240 from leaves and wind might be the cause of my problem eating up my chlorine so fast and shocking to keep out algae etc. I am going to add phoshate preventer so my chlorine level stays level. Good luck everyone
I use Magic Acid now same strenght but a bit more costly than the regular muriatic acid but no fumes and doesn't burn you, still use protective gear but stopped using the mask now.
My pool is about 27,000 gallons. Last test showed pH at about 7.6 and alkalinity around 190 PPM. Can you give me a ballpark figure to start with as far as how much acid to add to get the alkalinity in range?
One theory for natural water balance is to use aeration! A fountain, spray feature or waterfall feature naturally aerate the water, supposedly, helping keep alkalinity levels in check. 👍
@@CitizenPerkins you add muriatic acid during the day so that it has enough time to mix before adding your chlorine at night. Since you want to get your pH and alkalinity right before adding cholesterol. That's the only reason I can think of to add it during the day... But the guy is right. Sunlight doesn't affect muriatic acid like it does chlorine... If you're plan isn't to add chlorine asap, you can add the muriatic anytime.
Add 1/2 gallon of acid every week til the alkalinity is between 80 and 120 then use a pH Up product( soda ash ) to put the pH in range without knocking off the alkalinity levels
I have slight green color in my pool water is clear just a slightly green tint. All the number are fine except alkalinity. I can't keep the alkalinity up. How can I get that to stay up and what about the greenish color? 😩
You may need to add slightly more sodium bicarbonate to the pool at once that what you're already doing. If you're adding 2 pounds, try 3. It could be changing too quick to hold its readings long enough with the amount being added. And if the green color you see is more on the yellow side you may have Mustard Algae. Pick up some Copper Algaecide and read the instructions carefully because adding too much could be hurtful to your pool or stain your plaster. If you use the Algaecide make sure to have the system running and brush the pool before adding, dont add any granulate chlorine (tabs are okay) this will stain the pool a grayish color.
I have the HTH test strips, my tests NEVER match up to ANY of the colors on the bottle. So I can't figure this stupid thing out!! It has a number to text a picture to as well, but that doesn't even work!
Thank you for your talk on muriatic acid. Your video demonstrates you adding muriatic acid mixed in water from a bucket to the edges of a concrete pool. I have an important question. You mentioned using muriatic acid to lower pH. I have an 11 year old, 28,000 gallon mineral springs salt water, vinyl liner pool with a pH of 7.9, alkalinity 50ppm requiring "45oz". of muriatic acid per pool store. Is it safe for my vinyl liner to add muriatic acid 2oz. at a time into a 2.5 gallon bucket full of water into my deep end off the diving board or will it damage my vinyl liner?? Please reply. Leny B
If the water has no chlorine you will get "Green Algae", if the pool does have chlorine then green algae won't be able to survive. More than likely you have what is called Mustard Algae, it has more of a yellowish color to it. If so pick up some Copper Algaecide and read the instructions carefully.
i was told to put 13lbs of alkaline in my pool the next day i go to test my water at the same place they asked me what happened?, i say what are you talking about something ;i cant remember is to high ,i told her i fallowed the instructions.she asked me if my pool was 22000 gallons i said hell no is 4500 gallons oh we have you in our system long story short the manager told me to put 9 ozs every 4 hrs to bring this down should i haave the pump running for this and another thing my water is salt but they have me as chlorine another mistake they did or does it mather
The Pool Care Cheat Sheet (Free): swimu.com/cheatsheet
The Pool Care Handbook: swimu.com/book
The Pool Care Video Course: swimu.com/poolcourse
I check weekly. I add United Chemical Easy acid if the PH and or Alkalinity is too way too high. If it's with 10% of the normal range I won't waste the money.
Swim University how can I keep my ph down on a salt water pool? Goes up very fast
Hellllp me please...please...ive had an algae bloom a month ago, i finally had to super shock it to get rid of it because the pool store was being too conservative i bought super shock triple shocked my terrible algae and got the water blue. My pH is 6.0 my alkalinity is 200. Im so upset.i added clarifyer and vacuumed it i clean my filter 3 times a day the water is milky ..im so frustrated..ive poured hundreds of dollars into this stupid above ground pool im almost about to just throw it in the trash. Ive got plants where my pool water will drain and ill end up killing my lawn but im so over it. Most of my stimulus check went to buying chlorine shock super shock pH up muriatic acid cyanuric acid a new clip for my vacuum that busted twice and new pool hoses..im so over it. Help. My water is blue but has a ton of particulates in it. Im so tired.
@@tamarakennedy4976 ... when I was a kid my family lived within walking distance of a swimming pool on a US Air Force Base. My father was a civilian employee at the Base which meant we could not use the pool intended for Airmen and their families.
But guess what. We all had a better time running through lawn sprinklers and having fights with buckets of water. It was great and there was no danger of drowning. I suggest that you dismantle and sell your pool if that's possible and invite all the kids in the neighborhood over for dashes through sprinklers and water bucket fights.
Ahhh yes ... the good old days. Algae? What's algae. Cloudy water? Where? PH? What the hell is PH? Is that an abbreviation for telephone? And what's a water pump? Our water came out of a hose automatically. My father must have been rich.
HELLLP MY PH IS 7.5 SIDE OF 7.6 NOT QUITE 7.4 AND LIGHTER THAN 7.6 BUT ALKALINITY TEST ON 5 WAY I HAD TO USE 19 DROPS OF #3 ACID DEMAND AND ALKALINITY DROPS TO NEUTRALIZE THE PURPLE WATER TEST ...HELLLP. WHAT DO I ADD?? I NEED JUST ALKALINITY TO LOWER...HELLLLP.HELLLP.
With every video about chemical adjustments could you please include a safe-to-swim time? It is hard to find info on "you can swim ? Hours after adding".
I read 30 mins but there could be hot spots expecially if you didn't turn on the pump to circulate. I personally would wait a day when you know the pool has completely circulated once.
4 hrs for muriatic acid
What is the link for your calculator used to determine how much acid to add and is there a specific calculator app you use to calculate chlorine and salt and other additives that need to be adjusted? I have seen every pool service guy I ever hired measure and pour the muriatic acid into the pool from a measuring cup or right out of the container so why do you say its essential to mix it with water first? I assume the water you mix with is pool water? Lastly you didnt specify how much can be added at once and how long to wait in between when adding more. Can you plz elaborate?
Should we run the pump after adding the muriadic acid?
Since I met you, I check my pool water twice a week. Thank you.
For visual people like myself, how high is 10 parts of water in a bucket? Struggling to understand this. Pls demonstrate
10” high of water and 1” of muriatic acid total height of 11”
For people like myself who are visual learners, what does “1 part” of muratic acid”look like? How do you measure it the right way? Same goes with “10 part” of water
1 oz is "1 part" or 2 oz is "1 part". or 3oz is "1 part" -
or what ever measure..
then what he says is make 10 parts to 1 in the mix -
AND the water goes in the bucket FIRST..
lol. you pick what is a part based on what you have to measure. A cup, a gallon, a truckload...
These guys are jerks.
Parts just means fractions.
So 1 part chemical to 9 parts water is 1/10.
Great stuff. I have itchy skin after swimming in my 1.2k gal pool what is your best guess cause?
When or how often would I put muriatic acid on the pool
Should the pump be on or off while doing this?
Hello! Is it safe to add muriatic acid on intex above ground pools?
That link to the chemical calculator doesn't work, has it changed?
What do you put your filter on ? When adding it
Add muriatic acid with pump running or off?
How do u get cloudy water clean? If u add muriatic acid with ur pump on or off
Clarifier or Flocculant
The calculator link from the video is the wrong link. It is also not listed in the description of the video.
Do you have the pump and filter off when adding it?
Do you run the pump on filter or on recirculate when adding muriatic acid
so i've always been told to run the filter while adding and for a period of time after. Today somebody told me the opposite. Pour it in the pool with the filter off at night and leave it. Which is correct
i have high alkalinity but a perfect PH lvl 7.2 im using a sand filter with saltwater setup and chlorine generator all lvls are in the good range except the alkalinity its off the chart high water is crystal clear
You could try the pooling method but it’s supposedly a bit of a myth
Having the same issue. You ever get it figured out?
My ph is 7.2 but I have high alkalinity. What would be the solution
I have the same issue. Low ph and high alkalinity. Fixing either one makes the other worse. What is the process to correct this? 7:07 7:07
I'm on well water the Alkalinity is 320 and the PH is so low it's off the scale. Should I raise the PH in an acceptable range 1st then do the alkalinity lowering with the acid?
How do I lower alkalinity with minimal change to pH?
What does 10 parts of water look like when adding water inside a bucket? How high is 10 parts of water? And how low is 1 part of muratic acid look like in a bucket?
How does the TA correct itself?
@SwimUniversity my pH is usually high but my alkalinity is always too low. I keep hearing that they rise and fall together, but adding acid to lower pH and sodium bicarbonate to raise alkalinity seems to have the chemicals working at cross purposes. What say you?
I did, like you showed and, filled the little bottle with water to test it but all the test strips got wet. Was I supposed to remove them from the bottle first?
And, real question, we have rampant scale/calcium? build-up on our gunite walls. Is the best option to drain it and acid wash the walls?
I fill my pool and now i have high alkalinity but low PH. What i need to do? First lower alkalinity with ph reducer? And after put ph increaser?
Is it safe to swim in the pool right after adding muriatic acid, how long should we wait?
I would wait a few hours after running the filter and testing the water. You don't want to swim in water that just had an acid added to it.
What if your pH is good, hanging around 7.2 to 7.4, but your alkalinity is high....around 180 to 190. If adjusting one adjusting the other, how do you get balance it out?
Do I see a new video coming out soon @Swim University? This seems to be the question that needs answered. I would certainly like to know...
What did you ever do about it?? My ph was good but I quit trying to figure out my alkalinity at 200
@@chief5981 Honestly, unless it gets super SUPER high, I don’t stress over it now. My pool will typically bounce between 150-180. Usually 180 is highest it gets and that is after a few days of evaporation. When I take the hose to top the pool off, it will dilute the pool a bit and bring my readings back into range. pH might be a slight low, and I just put alil pH plus in and I’m all good!
@@dreedy23691 kinda thinking the same thing. Water is crystal clear and my kids are happy.
Didn't cover when it's safe to swim after adding the acid
Does this method work for above ground Intex inflatable pools, too?
What should you do if your PH is normal, but your alkalinity is high (180)? I do not have a pool heater.
I think you need to drop pH to 7.0-7.2 then aerate to bring pH back up.
Great information! Thank you.
What would cause the ph levels to become more alkaline assuming its the same water in the pool?
I was told by many pool owners that the optimal ph is 7-7.2 because the chlorines effectiveness at a ph of 7.5 is only about 40%, one guy had his pool at 6.8 for that reason. I'd like to hear some additional opinions on that
You are trying to match the ph in your pool to the ph in your eyes. Your eyes are between 7.0-7.3. Anything outside that range can be damaging to your eyes.
It depends on your pool. Concrete pools will require higher pH values because lower values will damage the concrete. However, you can go lower with your pH value in plastic pools.
Regarding the effectiveness of chlorine, your information is about correct. Basically, free chlorine exists in two basic forms in your pool water: the hypochlorous acid (HClO), and the hypochlorite anion (ClO−). The hypochlorous acid is about 100 times more effective in disinfection than the hypochlorite anion. So what you want in your pool water is as much hypochlorous acid as reasonably possible. The ratio between both of these two forms of free chlorine is governed by the pH value. At pH 7.3, you have about 40% hypochlorous acid and 60% hypochlorite anion. If you want chlorine to become more effective, you will have to lower the pH value. Moreover, as your pH rises and more hypochlorite anions form, the more your pool water will become prone to forming unwanted chloramines from biological material collected from swimmers, such as sweat and urine, but also from decomposing insects in water, for example. Chloramines are also called "combined chlorine" (the one that stinks, burns in your eyes and nose, and does basically not disinfect your water), and this process can be partially reversed by lowering the water pH again. The rest of the chloramines will have to be destroyed by adding more free chlorine, though. Chloramine chemical bonds are very strong, so you will have to add as much as 10 times more free chlorine than you have measured combined chlorine to destroy chloramines.
what do you do when your PH is around 7.4 but the alkalinity is 200?
Bring the alkalinity down, then re-raise the pH
Currently i have proper PH, but slightly high alkalinity. Nothing's ever easy!
One theory for natural water balance is to use aeration! A fountain, spray feature or waterfall feature naturally aerate the water, supposedly, helping keep alkalinity levels in check. 👍
@@Rhifan01 cool idea - it would even look nice. I'll have to check that out!
Can you make a video explaining when to use soda ash over bicarb ? I just started as a pool service tech and I’ve been doing it 4 months. I understand chemistry and it’s importance and I under stand how to achieve what I want BUT I would like to be more accurate. We are taught use soda ash for low pH and use bicarb for alkalinity.. a lot of the guys I work simply use bicarb for both. If bicarb works for both why even use soda ash ? Is this accurate to say “9 times out of 10 If the pH is off the alkalinity will be off” ?
What do you do if your PH is low but alkalinity is high?
Bring down alkalinity first with pH decreaser or muriatic acid, then raise pH with pH increaser
Hey pool friends I have a question. My pool was green and I got it back to crystal clear blue however I'm trying to balance my Ph and alkalinity levels so I dont get algae again or scaling in my pump or liner. I have a vinyl pool with a sand filter pump. My Ph is 7.2, my chlorine is HIGH (I assume from all the shock I poured in). I'm using a 5 way test kit but the readings are higher than 11.0 (it's a dark orange). However my alkalinity is also HIGH 330 ppm. I need it to be between 80 - 150 ppm. I have added muriatic acid. I had to keep the pump on so it didnt settle on the bottom and burn the liner. I did dilute it to 10 parts water in a bucket first before pouring in. My pool is a 2750 gallon pool. So in total I have put in 1 2/3 cup muriatic acid. It has been 24 hours since I did this and my new readings are the same. Does anyone know what I can do to lower the alkalinity in the pool.
Just curious - should the filter be on? Recirculate? or just turned off? For how long if you turn of filter or use recirculate. Thanks.
I'd also like to know this.
To lower PH add acid with pump on, to lower Alk add acid while water is still let it sit for about an hour before turning pump back on. To raise Alk add baking soda with pump on. This works for a salt system.
Thanks for this video. My local pool store says I need to add 4 gallons of muriatic acid to my 16,200 gallon pool. It seems like a lot but my Total Alkalinity is 225ppm. Does 4 gallons sound about right? Thanks.
Well done as always, I also like to brush the pool to help distribute the Muriatic acid once I add it.
Brushing is always a good call ;-)
What if my PH is 7.2 but my alkaline is high (200ppm) should I add muriatic acid?
Renee Torres That sounds odd as they usually go hand and hand and are much closer. Are you sure the reagent/kit for ph is accurate? If the ph is low the alkalinity is usually low. I usually adjust the alkalinity first and the PH follows. With a PH of 7.2, I would not add muriatic acid as you want the PH to be about 7.4
@@cardo1111 I'm using the test kit that you put water in the Vile and add drops to it while shaking in between each one. I thought I was wierd to but iv done it everyday and the ph keeps coming in 7.2 and the alkaline says 200ppm ..iv tried test strips too and and I get the same result. I'm lost lol
@@reneetorres9845 You can aerate your water. This raises ph without upsetting alkalinity. A shop vac in reverse (blower instead of suction) for a few hours. Your neighbours will love it!
OK but what if I have high alkalinity and a low ph…
thats why im here but sadly he didn't answer you.
I have sort of the same situation...over 200 ppm alkalinity but Ph is just about 7.2. Someone else below asked the same question and pool dude responded with "Lower the alkalinity and just increase the pH with pH increaser." So, not super detailed but I guess it doesn't need to be too detailed....
Ashley Kruempel I’m finding the answer to be lower alkalinity and ph then aerate or add ph up to increase ph back to 7.2.
I'm a pool tech and a lot of what this guy said goes completely against what I see when servicing pools. I tend to see Alkalinity drop and ph rise over time, not the reverse. So in my experience I would just give it a little time. If not, it may be cheaper to have a pro come service the pool just to get it back on track
Should I have the pump on or off when adding acid?
Definitely on to ensure the proper mixing of the acid.
What you suggest for low alkalinity (107) and high ph (8).
I was at 170, I added 3 GALLONS of muriatic acid and now I am only down 10 to 160. 25,000 gallons, no heater. Just got water tested by pool store, they said to add 1.5 QUARTS! What's that going to do when 3 gallons did so little?
It's possible there's a dilution issue.
My alkalinity is perfect 110 but my ph is 7.9 should I even balance or is it ok even though the ph is high?
How do I know how much “acid” am I putting in my pool? I mean the bottle of acid doesn’t come with measurements.
Hi This is sunil from india.
in my pool we are getting kind of bubble/foam when we jump into the water and while swimming it stays for 10 to 15 second when swimmers in pool and then disappear when water is not disturbed. what to do PH is ideal 7.2 chlorine level is 2 in meter.
You say with the test strips we should wait for 15 seconds but the description says to measure within 15seconds. Which is which?
Is 200 alkalinity too high? and it was 160 before but keeps increasing. Also the ph is 7.2? We always have too fix the filter maybe that’s why.. also I already bought the Muraic acid from Lowe’s, the same one you inserted at the beginning of the video is that one safe to use cause it said in the video you have to buy a specificly for a pool from a pool store??
I've been pouring the acid directly into the pool without diluting it. I did not know you were supposed to. Any drawbacks to doing it direct?
It's just safer. Gets everywhere if it splashes on accident
Yup, that's how I do it too. I have an in ground 20k gallon, with a 1.5hp pump. I carefully pour the whole gallon slowly above the return, not the skimmer side, ( pump on high is 20gpm) so your really just diluting into a 20,000 gallon bucket, just pour slowly, and just above the surface, you probably do that already. I always use the full bottle, that's not a chemical you want sitting around on your garage floor or shelf waiting for an accident! Scary stuff bro.
I'm a pool tech and have been for a little while now. Adding the acid directly to the pool is okay if the system is running so the water is mixing the acid around and diluting it. If you don't want the system on or have a system that isn't operational you could use a pool brush to stir the water manually but this isnt recommended for every application as it doesn't do as good of a job mixing. If the system isn't on or you don't stir it yourself, the acid is heavier than water and will sit on the bottom of the pool. Long term this will cause damage to the plaster and will eventually force you to re-plaster the pool.
@@bruceeverett5372, that 1 gallon muriatic acid will make your pool very low PH, not balance. I usually use Taylor Acid demand test, 20K gal pool, 7.4 target PH, 1 drop is 1 pint MA needed, 2 drop need 2 pint.
@@kylem2604 your explanation is just what I was looking for today, thanks.
My alkalinity wont come down from 180, other levels are in ok range. What gives!? Water is cloudy as well. Muriatic acid is not bringing it down
What if my ph is low and my alkalinity is off the charts high
Lower the alkalinity and just increase the pH with pH increaser.
@@SwimUniversity But that sounds counter productive to the layman. One counters the other - please explain!
@@johnlloyd2513 Same question... This should be a video all in it's own @Swim University. Thanks!
Do you run your filter when you add MA?
Alkalinity is the number 1 priority. Without the alkalinity in the correct range it’s difficulty to adjust your ph. Typically people have a high alkalinity. Add muriatic acid until it’s in the correct range. Then shock your pool to raise your ph.
My intex pool has 4500 gallons of water. From day 1 the alkalinity and PH were off the charts. I added 20 ounces of muriatic acid at a time..now I have used the entire gallon and my levels are still at the highest levels according to 2 different brands of test strips??? I dont really want to add more. What do you recommend?
@@ericmuller3339 make sure your test kits test for phosphate. It sounds like it could be really high which would promote algae growth. If so you would need to add a phosphate remover.
Is the pool green at all?
@@isaacmarin9353
Not green. Actually crystal clear. I have some algae that settles to bottom of pool...I vacuum that out with my sand filter and discharge it to my lawn.
@@ericmuller3339 what’s your ph and alkalinity levels reading
Very informative. Thanks
My ph and alkalinity are high and don’t seem to want to come down. I’ve used about two bags or 10lbs total in my pool not all at once but little by little and they’re still high. I’ve used ph down from Clorox and one from another brand but like nothing. Just got some muriatic acid I think I’m gonna try that now and hopefully that’ll do it. Got it fell Home Depot. Comes in a box of two bottles. Says other uses and one says ph control so guess that should work?
Dry acid is more mild than liquid Muriatic. I use Magic Acid low fumes and it works but harder to find a seller or is not out of it. Muriactic acid works on both TA and PH much quicker with less product, but I have the safety equipment too. I'm still sturggline because you can only put so much of any acid in the pool at one time and then it takes awhile before it mixes to test, so it still takes time.
I’ve dumped like a gallon and a half of muriatic acid in to my 20000 gallon pool over the last 5 days and the ph and alkalinity creep back up out of acceptable range quickly. I live in Arizona and the temps are over 100 daily. I’m not sure what else to do. Any idea?
Ask your local pool expert about changing your pool water. This should be done in AZ every 3 to 5 years. The pool eventually cannot balance the chemicals and needs new water.
Wish you had an actual video on how much water your putting in the bucket and how much acid your pouring in as well. For those of us who aren’t good with measurements. Example, how much is a 1/4 of acid looks like.
fill a galon with water (90%) and add some acid from the bottle. You don't have to be super precise. The whole idea of diluting it is because working with undiluted acid is a bit dangerous. Wether you dilute it 10x, 15x or 8x it should not matter one bit
On line calculator for chemicals is broken.
We have A small intex Circular 600 gallons (8ftx2ft) . What happens if alkaline High and ph is low? How do you find that balance? Thanks
I have the same issue and i dont know how to balanace
Hello! Thanks for all the informational videos. I’m having a problem. I have a vinyl above ground. I was able to get my ph up by using baking soda and borax, and once it was 7.4 I shocked it. And I have floater with 3 chlorine tabs and a chlorine tab in my filter. 1 hour after shock the chlorine was great last night. But this morning it plummeted. And is at .5 again. What can I do to keep the chlorine ideal. The ph dropped to 7.2 this morning as well.
pH will drop when adding chlorine. Make sure your alkalinity is in range. Shock is unstabilized and drop fast. Add more chlorine pucks to keep the chlorine up and more consistent.
Check your stabilizer level. If it is low, add cyanuric acid. Low cyanuric acid level is the number one thing in my 2 pool ownerships that caused the chlorine to dissipate too fast. Once it is in the 30 to 50 ppm level you will be good. Walmart sells Chlorox brand stabilizer cheap. Ingredient is 100% cyanuric acid. Also available on Amazon.
@@SwimUniversity check phosphates levels if high you probably are battling algae even if you can't see it eating up your chlorine. How is your CYA is high, it can over protect your chlorine refered to chlorine lock not remcommened over 50 ppm. But if you use the pucks, that is reached easily during the summer. I have experenced lower CYA as result of finding I had no chlorine, bacteria results and elimates CYA otherwise you have to drain or filter your pool water.
What happens if you get the stuff at walmart instead of a pool store? will it still work if I use a small amount?
Trust me a pool supply store is wayyy better than Walmart also the pool supply store was way cheaper and stronger chemicals that work and better cleaning equipment. Take it from me I learned the hard way I went to Walmart and never again. Also pool supply store has a water tester for free. Good luck
My pool has high alkalinity and low ph. I live in Michigan and our water has high alkalinity from limestone. How it it even possible to have high alkalinity and low ph? I’m so confused.
yep that's where we're at, aeriate the water and add acid when the ph swings up enough to bring down to 7.2 with acid, takes weeks
That's what happened with me but with my hot tub. HIGH alkalinity low PH. So I focused on getting the alkalinity to an optimal range. The pH was giving me a headache dealing with it, so I literally forgot about the ph and just focused on the alkalinity , the culprit, first. It did bring the PH down to 6.8 which was good in my situation because once the alkalinity was locked in, just letting it aerate brought the pH back to where I wanted it. And it's been perfect ever since. I confirm it every once in awhile with my water testing strips and confirmed with my water drop test kit.. Which is at 7.4. It takes time but air doesn't cost any money which is great when it comes to pool and spa chemicals. It took several hours for the pH to back up to normal range but considering that it wasn't low for a long long time, I didn't worry about it hurting my spa. If my pH was low for a long of time, then yes I would have done something about that. Now the alkalinity and the pH are stable since I fixed the alkalinity problem. I was at the same shoes wondering how the heck can I have very high alkalinity and very low ph?! I used to think they kind of travel together, but when I had very high alkalinity, I would put pH Down but soon after the pH would be Sky High again which was a waste of money. But when your alkalinity is too high you'll notice your pH is never going to stay locked in even after you get the pH where you want it to. and you'll have to keep putting pH Down in a hot tub. I refill my hot tub every 3 months and here where I live in Texas, I always have to lower the alkalinity just a tiny bit and then it's good to go. And I was thinking why the heck is my alkalinity astronomical? And then I remembered a day or so before that, me and my husband were sitting outside about to take my almost three year old in and right within an arm's length of me. Of course the water was cool, not hot since it's really hot here. My son who was right next to me decided he had to dump the rest of his orange juice in the hot tub. At the time I was thinking dang it, no! But considering it was just a small amount of orange juice, whatever. But the next day when I tested my water, my alkalinity was up there. I am almost certain that is why I got into this mess, the freaking orange juice because I never had this issue with numbers all over the place this bad.. Even though you have a pool and I have a hot tub, it's one in the same with ph and alkalinity water balancing. At first it was very confusing but now I could pretty much handle any kind of problem after hours of research on the internet. Of course a hot tub is a lot smaller in your pool and I know that I can get my pH to rise quicker in a hot tub since it has so many jets in such a small amount of space. I know it's frustrating but maybe call your local pool supply place because you don't want to waste a bunch of money and product if there is a simpler solution for what you're dealing with. I'm not an expert but that is my solution. That's what worked for me dealing with my water issue even though I have a hot tub. I have my temperature set to 94 which is not hot at all.
Eileen Fuentes Orange juice! No!!! Lol. I’m so protective of my pool water, it’s a little ridiculous. My family is tired of me fretting of the water. I need to chill out a bit, first off. Secondly, so I haven’t messed with the alkalinity by adding acid to bring it down for weeks. However, the ph hasn’t changed either. It’s stable at 7.2. So should I just leave it well enough alone? Are there any problems with higher alkalinity, besides ph fluctuations, which I’m not experiencing? Like, does high alkalinity impact the effectiveness of chlorine?
Coco Savage Thanks for that advice. I have been aerating more and making sure the filter is really clean. I feel like I’m constantly adding chlorine though. I’ve been using a non-chlorine pool shock, it maybe I need to try a chlorine shock to get things back in balance.
Dope hat. Great brews.
So 1 part to 10 parts? But how much of each please? I mean one part could be 10 cups to 100 cups. What is a good amount to start with?
That all depends on your pool’s ph and alkalinity levels.
Can y’all do a video about “Bromine Itch”?
2000 gallon pool and I can not get it to lower PH using “dry acid”
I test with strips free chlorine reads good and pool water is crystal clear
Please help
What is your pH at? Because your pool is so small, high temps can cause pH to rise.
@@SwimUniversity on the strips it is almost the highest read color PH/Alk
I have watched this video and have added a whole gallon of muriatic acid to my 24 ft pool and my ph and alkalinity is still high...it is green, so I'm trying to get my balance right before I shock it.....
Whoa.. what the update?
I’d like to know also. We are in this situation now. Used an entire gallon and nothing
I have low PH but Alkalinity High
So, kind of confusing... what is high ph then? Does high ph mean high alkalinity levels, is it the same? Should I be using anything else other than muriatic acid to lower the ph or alkalinity levels? On my Taylor reactant test kit, its the complete one, why is there an additional test for alkalinity levels if ph is the same, I'm confused... please help!
In order to lower Alkalinty you have to use muriatic acid which also lowers PH. That's OK if you have high PH too, you just have to treat with acid (usually more than once since you shouldn't add more than 32 oz to a 10,000 gal pool at one time). What you have to watch for is that the PH doesn't get to low as in below 7.2 ppm as it takes more to bring alkalinty down than PH, in my experience anyway. You need to monitor the PH so that if it gets to 7.2 ppm you need to "aerate" the water to bring up the PH (does not raise the alkalinty) and once it's safe you can start to lower it again until you get the alkalinity usually below 90-100 ppm and aerate again to bring the PH up slightly to 7.4-7.6 range to balance both of them. If you use tablets vs liquid chlorine you will have different chemical balancing issues too.
How would you recommend lowering calcium hardness?
You have to drain water to lower calcium, you want it to be in the range of 150-300ppm. Although in AZ some freshly filled pools can start off above 400ppm
My PH goes down but alkalinity is still way high
I have low alkalinity and high PH
1:31 fast forward 9 months from the taping of this and yep, everybody sounds like that now.
Can I add chlorine at the same time?
Wait a least a few hours between adding chemicals. Let the chemicals mix properly and test it before adding the next.
@@SwimUniversity Honestly... don't waste your time and money! Get a saltwater system!!! I did and instead of spending 500 or more a season on chemicals Im down too 60 without all the hassle. I do use muriatic acid at opening and Im usually good all season. I have a 8000 gallon above ground pool
I use a mask (quick release model) w/3m fume filters, chemical apron, chemical gloves and safty glasses (goggles) yes look like a chemical monster for about 5 mins but totally safe. I also use low fume acid too. I also found a chemical cap dispenser where I can turn the flow open on the gallon of acid but it's not full force. I just turn on the jets and walk around close to the pool and let it dispense moderately as I walk along. I don't want to handle it multiple times with mixing outside of the pool and then picking larger container to poor in the pool that's just more potential for accidents. I did some researh but as most of you know the information you get it different from source to source. I read it take 25.6 oz of 31.45 % muriatic acid to bring down your TA 10 ppm that means you will need a lot of acid AND you shouldn't add more than 1 pt (32az) at a time and it's 4 pts to gallon (128 oz). The advice to wait 24 hrs to test again isn't working for me because my TA and PH start to rise again maybe due to chlorine but then that is only suppose to be temporary by chemical reaction in the water. This stuff is mind moggling and all these videos keep trying to make it seem simple but it's not. I wait about a couple hours with pool circulating and then test and add more acid it will take a day to go through 1 gallon of acid and make a dent in bringing the numbers down. Right now I'm at 7.3 ph and 130 TA, I think my phoshates 240 from leaves and wind might be the cause of my problem eating up my chlorine so fast and shocking to keep out algae etc. I am going to add phoshate preventer so my chlorine level stays level. Good luck everyone
I use Magic Acid now same strenght but a bit more costly than the regular muriatic acid but no fumes and doesn't burn you, still use protective gear but stopped using the mask now.
My pool is about 27,000 gallons. Last test showed pH at about 7.6 and alkalinity around 190 PPM. Can you give me a ballpark figure to start with as far as how much acid to add to get the alkalinity in range?
One theory for natural water balance is to use aeration! A fountain, spray feature or waterfall feature naturally aerate the water, supposedly, helping keep alkalinity levels in check. 👍
What time of day is best to add Muriatic acid?
Any time. The sunlight doesn't matter here.
@@SwimUniversity -- Well isn't that something. I'd always heard, "Acid in the day, Chlorine at night."
@@CitizenPerkins you add muriatic acid during the day so that it has enough time to mix before adding your chlorine at night. Since you want to get your pH and alkalinity right before adding cholesterol. That's the only reason I can think of to add it during the day... But the guy is right. Sunlight doesn't affect muriatic acid like it does chlorine... If you're plan isn't to add chlorine asap, you can add the muriatic anytime.
I have 7.5 ph and 200 ppm alkalinity. Suggestions?
Also 5 ppm chlorine
Add 1/2 gallon of acid every week til the alkalinity is between 80 and 120 then use a pH Up product( soda ash ) to put the pH in range without knocking off the alkalinity levels
Carlos, you need to state your pool volume in gallons, or you best not use any of the answers you'll get!
I have slight green color in my pool water is clear just a slightly green tint. All the number are fine except alkalinity. I can't keep the alkalinity up. How can I get that to stay up and what about the greenish color? 😩
You may need to add slightly more sodium bicarbonate to the pool at once that what you're already doing. If you're adding 2 pounds, try 3. It could be changing too quick to hold its readings long enough with the amount being added. And if the green color you see is more on the yellow side you may have Mustard Algae. Pick up some Copper Algaecide and read the instructions carefully because adding too much could be hurtful to your pool or stain your plaster. If you use the Algaecide make sure to have the system running and brush the pool before adding, dont add any granulate chlorine (tabs are okay) this will stain the pool a grayish color.
I have the HTH test strips, my tests NEVER match up to ANY of the colors on the bottle. So I can't figure this stupid thing out!! It has a number to text a picture to as well, but that doesn't even work!
Test strips suck. Get a taylor test kit.
Thank you for your talk on muriatic acid. Your video demonstrates you adding muriatic acid mixed in water from a bucket to the edges of a concrete pool. I have an important question. You mentioned using muriatic acid to lower pH. I have an 11 year old, 28,000 gallon mineral springs salt water, vinyl liner pool with a pH of 7.9, alkalinity 50ppm requiring "45oz". of muriatic acid per pool store. Is it safe for my vinyl liner to add muriatic acid 2oz. at a time into a 2.5 gallon bucket full of water into my deep end off the diving board or will it damage my vinyl liner?? Please reply. Leny B
Yes this would be fine, the amount of acid to water you have isn't enough to hurt the vinyl. Have the system on when adding to ensure it mixes well.
5 minutes of words to get to the answer
PH 7.8 and Alkalinity 56 ????
Ph & alkalinity is so high the water is green someone help
If the water has no chlorine you will get "Green Algae", if the pool does have chlorine then green algae won't be able to survive. More than likely you have what is called Mustard Algae, it has more of a yellowish color to it. If so pick up some Copper Algaecide and read the instructions carefully.
How do I lower JUST my alkalinity my PH Is Fine .
Get a lot of aeration going with a water fall or spa jets to raise your PH then add acid and repeat.
Those test strips are EXPENSIVE
i was told to put 13lbs of alkaline in my pool the next day i go to test my water at the same place they asked me what happened?, i say what are you talking about something ;i cant remember is to high ,i told her i fallowed the instructions.she asked me if my pool was 22000 gallons i said hell no is 4500 gallons oh we have you in our system long story short the manager told me to put 9 ozs every 4 hrs to bring this down should i haave the pump running for this and another thing my water is salt but they have me as chlorine another mistake they did or does it mather
some pool world class maintenance people say Alkalinity is to be 70-120 ??? you say 100-150 WOW... okay ... i do not know jack ..
My Alk is very high 161-180 but my PH is 7.3. should I be adding the acid to lower the alk and then bring up the ph?
Is “pooling” muriatic acid to lower just the TA still a myth? or has this been debunked now??
My pH is very low and my alkalinity is very high.
😂 though you were going to say poop
You know were not going to do all that 😅
Bro you take along time to get to the point 🤦🏻♂️
😂😂 big facts
There was a point? I thought we were watching Batman 🤷🏻♂️
Is anyone going to talk about how great the Bane impression was? I thought Tom Hardy was doing a guest spot on swim university.
*We are intelligent* 😂😂😂