Water Testing
We recommend you to test your pool water at least once a week, it will help you keep your pool crystal clear throughout the year!
FC-Free Chlorine: FC shows available level of chlorine. Maintaining proper FC level is the most important part in keeping your pool clear of algae and safe for swimming. Free chlorine is consumed by sunlight and by breaking down organic materials. FC level is adjusted based on your pool Cyanuric Acid level and could be raised with liquid chlorine or household bleach.
CC-Combined Chlorine: CC is a product created in the process of sanitizing your water. With proper pool water maintenance your CC level should be at or close to 0. Raised CC level corresponds with strong chlorine smell which means there is something in your water that FC is in the process of sanitizing. If CC level is above 0.5 it is recommended to shock your pool to lower CC and raise FC levels.
PH-Acidity/Alkalinity: PH indicates the level of acidity or basicity of your water. PH level of 7.6-7.8 is ideal. Levels bellow 7.2 will cause your eyes to burn, whereas high PH levels will cause calcium scaling. To lower PH use muriatic acid, to elevate PH level use borax or soda ash.
TA-Total Alkalinity: TA indicates the water's ability to buffer PH changes. Normal range for TA is 80-120 ppm. At low TA levels PH tends to be unstable, whereas high TA will cause PH levels to go up. Total Alkalinity could be lowered by using acid and raised by adding backing soda.
CH-Calcium Hardness: CH shows how much calcium is in your water. A plaster pool without SWG (Salt Water Generator) should have CH of 250-350, if you have a SWG you want it at 350-450, for spas you want it lower than 200 to keep the water from foaming. Low calcium levels will take calcium out of your pool's plaster, pebble, tile, stone and concrete, causing costly repairs. You can increase CH levels with calcium chloride, to lower CH you have to drain your pool or call us and we'll lower it by filtering your pool water with our Puripool™ trailer.
CYA-Cyanuric Acid: CYA is often referred to as stabilizer or conditioner, it protects Free Chlorine from sunlight and holds some of FC in reserve. With higher CYA levels your chlorine demand will go up to reach the same results, so it is very important to know your pool water CYA levels to figure out what FC level to shoot for. In non-SWG pools you want to keep CYA at 30-50, if you do have SWG than keep it at 70-80. To increase CYA add stabilizer or (conditioner) which is sold in pool stores. Best way to lower CYA is to drain your pool or call us and we'll lower it by running your water through our Puripool™ Reverse Osmosis system.
Phosphate: is an inorganic chemical component that contains phosphorous. Phosphates are often referred to as food for algae. It's recommended to keep Phosphate levels bellow 100 ppb (parts per billion). In poorly maintained pool, even at low Phosphate levels, algae will grow faster, whereas if your water chemistry is within recommended parameters, you should have no issues controlling algae, even with elevated Phosphate levels. Usually pools that are surrounded by vegetation will have higher Phosphate levels. Pool stores sell products that will lower Phosphates, but they can be rather expensive and annoying to use. We recommend using chlorine and keeping your water chemistry in check as algae prevention.
PURIFY it!
