Jigstick Posted June 18, 2023 Report Share Posted June 18, 2023 Just took delivery of our new Sundance Altamar and I’m having some difficulty getting the water right. I’m testing with a Taylor test kit. Original fill had my Alk low and out of range. So I added SpaGuard Alk increaser and got it up to 110. however my pH is consistently running 8+. I’ve added SpaGuard pH Decreaser multiple times over the past few days. Will briefly get the pH down to 7.6. But then it bounces up over 8+ again within a day. My Total Alk is maintaining at 110 Did I just overshoot my Alk correction….so my Alk level keeps buffering my pH Down attempts? with this high pH I can’t get my bromine levels up either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterbear Posted June 19, 2023 Report Share Posted June 19, 2023 Lower your TA to 70 ppm . There is a pinned tread by me in the pool water chemistry section that explains how. High pH will not have an effect on maintaining bromine levels. New spas often have biofolm in the plumbing from manufacturer's wet testing. Did you purge the spa when you first filled it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jigstick Posted June 19, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2023 I did not purge it on the initial fill. All I’ve done is wipe down the interior with clean water. And fill the tub with our hose with a charcoal filter attached. water is clear and clean. And my bromine is now reading 2. But my to get my pH down to 7.2 - 7.4 my total Alk wants to run at 70-80. I’m reading as much as I can. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jigstick Posted June 19, 2023 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2023 I’m actually a bit concerned how much SpaGuard Bromine Concentrate I’ve had to add to the water to get the bromine level to read on my Taylor test kit. Do I need to shock the water to get an accurate reading? Because I haven’t added shock yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ahhsomeguy Posted June 21, 2023 Report Share Posted June 21, 2023 Please listen to Waterbear and PURGE your brand new hot tub on the first fill. You will be greatly rewarded after you do this and notice that getting the chemical concentrations in sync will be easier to get the water balanced. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cusser Posted June 21, 2023 Report Share Posted June 21, 2023 On 6/18/2023 at 6:13 AM, Jigstick said: OMG -a zillion water jets !!!! My 1988 CalSpa has like 5 total !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jigstick Posted July 2, 2023 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2023 Thank you for the guidance this far. I was considering using Ahhsome and purging but my water chemistry seems to have calmed down. My results today were pH 7.4 TA 60 Br 2 Ca Hardness 200 CYA 80 i think my CYA came from my initial Bromine Concentrate while trying to establish my bromine bank…as there is some dichlor in that product. my concern is my TA. It wants to run at 60 to keep a pH of 7.4. If I try boosting up my TA my pH jumps up over 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterbear Posted July 3, 2023 Report Share Posted July 3, 2023 20 hours ago, Jigstick said: It wants to run at 60 to keep a pH of 7.4. If I try boosting up my TA my pH jumps up over 8 Then run it at 60. Also, run your pH around 7.8. Why are you trying to run it at 7.4. That will only make your pH rise faster. Don't worry about CYA. it does not enter in to bromine chemistry. Read these: https://www.poolspaforum.com/forum/index.php?/topic/52522-some-truths-about-ph-and-ta/ https://www.poolspaforum.com/forum/index.php?/topic/28846-lowering-total-alkalinity-howto/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterbear Posted July 18, 2023 Report Share Posted July 18, 2023 On 6/19/2023 at 2:27 PM, Jigstick said: SpaGuard Bromine Concentrate @Jigstick Missed this before, this is a one step bromine product that is mostly chlorine, it needs to be used for several weeks to build up a bromide reserve in the water. Reading this might help: https://www.poolspaforum.com/forum/index.php?/topic/53410-how-to-use-bromine-3-step-method/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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