Now that your swimming pool is open & running, it's time to get the water properly balanced.
Good & proper water balance is a big key to operating any successful swimming pool - residential or commercial. pH, total alkalinity and water hardness are all important and need to be adequately regulated and tested, but many pool owners and operators make a huge mistake year in and year out when it comes to one particular balancing parameter: the cyanuric acid (CYA) or otherwise known as pool conditioner and stabilizer level.There's been a fair amount of controversy about cyanuric acid over the years and without getting overly technical, this is the stuff that is supposed to inhibit the degradation of chlorine in the water by sunlight (UV rays).
Proper amounts CYA attach to the pool chlorine and keep it working longer in the water to better (and more effectively) kill bacteria and algae. When CYA is too low (under 30 ppm), chlorine consumption COULD increase (we'll handle this question in a later post). When CYA is too high... well, really no one knows what happens! The only "bad" aspect of a high CYA level (over 100 ppm) is that the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) will escalate, interfering with the chlorine's bacteria and algae killing ability. Sometimes high levels of CYA can cause a condition called "purple" or copper cyanurate.
By the way, if anyone mentions the phrase "chlorine lock", they don't know what they're talking about. That's an entirely different symptom handled with other measures and procedures.
But here's the thing about CYA: if it's already in the pool, why add more than what's necessary? CYA doesn't dissipate or go anywhere except through draining, splash out or backwashing. Adding CYA or stabilizer or conditioner just because your neighbor or discount store or big box store says you need it is just plain foolish and a waste of your hard earned money.
Pool / chlorine conditioner should only be added after properly testing its level. As I noted in the previous post, you should have your pool water tested about 3 to 5 days AFTER the pool has been open and operating to thoroughly "mix" and distribute everything that is in the pool's water - even last year's CYA; it didn't go anywhere over the winter. In truth, the water that contains the CYA is more dense than the rest of the water and therefore sinks to the bottom of the pool. That's why it's so necessary to circulate and filter the pool water for several days before having it professionally tested (most home test kits or strips don't test for CYA).
Once a professional test and analysis is done, it can be determined if stabilizer is even needed. Many - if not most - times, CYA does NOT need to be added. What's more, today's "stabilized" chlorine products (long lasting chlorine tablets and sticks) already contain CYA and regularly "add" it to the pool water over the course of the season. Par Pool & Spa will never sell you something that you don't need; especially if we don't test for it first.
On the other side, pools that use UN-stabilized chlorine (also known as "inorganic" chlorine products) such as liquid (cheap but not economical), calcium hypochlorite (granular and small tablets - HTH is a popular brand), lithium hypochlorite, and salt/chlorine generators DO need to have an initial dose of stabilizer added at the start of the swimming season plus a smaller dose mid-season in order to maintain a proper level.
So before running out to buy that container of CYA or stabilizer or conditioner, do yourself a big favor: bring in a one quart water sample for a proper test and analysis of your pool water. Let's find out how everything really is and save some money.
Thanks for taking the time to read our post.
Questions: email me: techhelp@parpools.com
For more pool water care tips, click here.
