Hawk48 Posted June 17, 2014 Report Share Posted June 17, 2014 Hi All, I have done a bit of reading and successfully used the 3 step bromine process for the previous 6 months. I emptied the spa and refilled 2 weeks ago but this time I'm struggling. Any help would be appreciated please The spa is 1150 L capacity (thus have gone with calcs on 1000L water) Also I have the Taylor K-2106 kit. Steps to date: At Start: TA = 10 pH = 7.4 CH = 20 TB = 0 I added 158g Sodium BiCarbonate ==> TA now 100 I added 144g Calcium Chloride ==> CH now 100 Ph = 8 (may be higher?). Not sure why changed? I added 65g Sodium Bromide Also added 80ml chlorine (12.5%) to shock And some tabs in a floater Let it sit for a couple of days: TA = 125 pH = 8 CH = 125 TB = 1.25 Starting adding pH down (dry acid) eg. 14g, 14g, 14g, 25g, over a few days but pH would not budge. Readings now TA = 75 pH = 8 CH = 125 TB = 2.5 Have just added 44g Sodium BiCarbonate to increase TA. Also the water is a bit cloudy (not sparkling clear like I have had in the past). I have shocked the spa by adding chlorine and also cleaned the filters, but this has had minimal effect. Any new ideas appreciated to return spa to ph of approx 7.5 and clear water Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawk48 Posted July 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 This is a bump - any help would be appreciated. Else thinking of dumping water. Still following cycle above. Adding dry acid to decrease pH. Doesn't seem to have any impact Occasionally adding Sodium BiCarbonate to increase TA. Both TB = 4 and CH = 100 ok. How do I get pH down please (full details in post above). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spanky Posted July 7, 2014 Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 Stop adding Sodium Bicarbonate!!! Adding Baking Soda increases TA and pH. Adding acid (dry or Muriatic) lowers pH and TA, you're chasing your tail by adding acid to lower TA & pH then adding Sodium Bi Carb, increasing TA & pH. Carbonate in the water (TA) outgasses CO2 with aeration, which raises pH Let the TA drop naturally to about 50ppm. Do Not add BS until it drops below 50. You can also add 50ppm borates which tends to stabilize pH with a TA of 40-50 but that's a more advanced topic. It sounds like you're new to spa's and hopefully following Waterbear's "Bromine for Beginners" this system normally has a pH range of 7.6 - 8.0 and naturally tends to drift up. Yes Waterbear's instructions call for an initial TA of 100 but that's designed to build a "Safety Net" against pH dropping too far (which can damage the Spa). Bromine is "Net" acidic and newbies often make measuring errors when dispensing acid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlleno Posted August 5, 2014 Report Share Posted August 5, 2014 just to add my own experience to this advice. I find, as many others have, that TA above 50-60 is a recipe for pH upward drift. After my initial fill, I run my jets to raise pH without raising TA, and then reduce both by adding dry acid. I do this until I achieve TA=40. Still, pH rises and to control this I use very carefully measured, small amounts of dry acid which results in TA as slow as 30ppm. As the spa gets used, the 'net acidic' behavior of the chemistry requires that I add Sodium Bicarb to keep build TA back up and control pH. TA=30 is very low, and you risk a precipitous drop in pH, so you have to watch this very carefully.By the time my water has passed the half way mark of its natural life, I find that TA=80 is required. Experimentation with your own spa is required to dial it in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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