We use top of the line Taylor and LaMotte chemical test kits to get the most accurate water analysis possible. With this equipment we can test for Free Chlorine (FC), Total Chlorine (TC), Combined Chlorine (CC), Protens Hydrogen (pH), Total Carbonate Alkalinity (TA), Calcium Hardness (CH), Cyanuric Acid (CYA), Iron (IR), Phosphates (PHOS), Salt Content,, and Copper (COP).
What you're about to read is surprisingly simple.. In nature..
While we may boast about our technical experience and qualifications in our industry, post shots of our fancy testing equipment, and use long chemical names, it all doesn't mean much if you can't apply the knowledge. The basic idea is to balance the water so as to prevent corrosive or scaling conditions and to maximize the effectiveness of oxidizers and disinfectants while maintaining a safe and comfortable enviroment in which to swim. Simple, right?
The saturation index
Let's start with the Saturation Index, which is best described as the water's mineral content in relation to the concentration of hydrogen ions. The saturation index is measured by adding a series of values (pH + Total Carbonate Alkalinity Factor + Calcium Hardness Factor + Temperature Factor) which are then subtracted by the value of the Total Dissolved Solids. The resulting value indicates how corrosive or scaling the water is.
"Corrosive" means that the water doesn't have enough minerals and/or that the concentration of hydrogen ions is low and the water is literally taking the minerals it wants in order to balance itself. When this occurs, it can cause staining, damage to the pool surface, and diminish the life of your equipment by literally dissolving the components.
"Scaling" means that the mineral content is high and/or the hydrogen ion concentration is high and the water is depositing the excess minerals it has in solution. When this occurs, plumbing can become clogged with mineral deposits, calcium build-up covers your tile and pool surface, and equipment becomes less efficient and can cost you a fortune in repairs and cleaning.
To prevent these kinds of problems, regular monitoring of the saturation index is absolutely essential!
oxidation and disinfection
Once the water is balanced, the next step is to sanitize the water. This is really a two step process. One step is oxidation and the other is disinfection. Oxidation is the use of oxidizing chemicals (chlorine in most cases) which helps to change the chemical structure of contaminents to make them easier to filter out. Conveniently, chlorine also acts as a disinfectant by killing microorganisms and bacteria. Unfortunately, chlorine breaks down very quickly in sun light and the rate of destabilization increases as the water temperature increases (which is why your pool goes through chlorine like crazy in the summer). In order to keep the chlorine in solution, pool water is usually given a precise amount of cyanuric acid which acts as a stabilizer that prevents (or at least slows down) the breakdown of chlorine. On the other hand, too much cyanuric acid can inhibit the oxidation process and can cause innacurate measurment of the total alkalinity. For these reasons we regularly monitor the level of cyanuric acid in all of our pools and spas. Not to mention that excessive levels of cyanuric acid can be very toxic to people and pets (especially if they drink from the pool.. The pets I mean..).
Tds, minerals, and salt
Now let's get into total dissolved solids and salt. Imagine boiling a small pot of water. Now imagine you forgot that you had left the pot on the stove and came back hours later (relieved that the house is still standing) and when you look in the pot, you notice all of the water is gone but there is a crusty substance burnt onto the inside of the pot where the water had once been but obviously evaporated out. This crusty residue are the minerals and metals that were in solution when the water was put in the pot but as the water evaporated, the minerals and particles that had been dissolved remained behind. This same principle applies to swimming pools. Whether you have an automatic pool filler built in or if you have to go out every few days and add water to your pool, you're doing so because you're aware that water is leaving the pool through the process of evaporation. What most people don't think about is that all those minerals left in your cooking pot are also in your pool, but on a much larger scale and in much larger quantities. So everytime you go out to fill your pool, you're introducing calcium, iron, copper, and all kinds of things to your pool from the source water. Over a long enough period of time, the water reaches a point when it can no longer keep all of this junk in solution and it becomes scaling (which is why TDS are a value used in the saturation index calculation) and for this reason, we monitor the TDS of your water using the most accurate testing methods on the market. The only bad thing about total dissolved solids is that when the water does reach a point of high mineral content, the only remedy is to replace the "saturated" water with fresh water. Now if you have a salt pool, things are a little different. Salt in the form of sodium chloride (table salt) is what is used in the chlorine generation process. They're great because you don't have to buy chlorine and because salt doesn't evaporate out of water, very rarely does it need to be added. The only issue with salt is that for the salt chlorinator cells to work properly, the salt content has to be maintained between a very specific parameter (usually 3,200 - 4,000 ppm depending on the specific cell make and model).
Protens hydrogen (ph)
Behold the power of the hydrogen ion! The pH scale is a logorithmic scale that determines how acidic or basic (alkaline) water is by measuring the concentration of hydrogen ions. It's a 14 point scale where 14 is very alkaline and 0 is very acidic. A value of 7 is considered neutral. Since the scale is logorithmic, a pH value of 6 is 10 times more acidic than a value of 7. In swimming pool applications, water is maintained on the slightly basic side of the scale between 7.2 and 7.8. The ideal range and most comfortable for swimmers is a range of 7.4 to 7.6. As pH is one of the factors monitored in the balancing of pool water that can change very quickly, we test for pH every visit.
total carbonate alkalinity (TA)
The Total Carbonate Alkalinity Value (better known as just Total Alkalinity, or TA) is the measurment of water's ability to prevent fluctuations in pH. When the TA is out of range, the pH balance tends to spike and drop rapidly. Since this is another value that can change quickly, we also test for TA at every visit as opposed to monthly (or never) like some other supposed pool "professionals". If you have a pool service company and they don't test for Total Alkalinity on a regular basis, something is very wrong with them, and probably your water..
phosphates and nitrates
Phosphates and Nitrates are introduced to your pool by swimmers, plant matter like leaves, rocks, pets, birds, dust, and dirt. They act as the main source of algae growth in pools as they are basically the food that algae need to thrive. Since nitrates are difficult to test for and remove from such large quantities of water, phosphates are what are generally tested for and treated. We use special chemical treatments that coat the filter media and remove phosphates from the water essentially starving and preventing algae growth. We test for and treat high phosphate levels on a regular basis and after storms and stints of high wind. Our company only funtions as well as it does because we adhere strongly to our philosphy that the best kind of maintenance is preventive maintenance!
Chlorine (free, total, and combined)
Chlorine is the most commonly used type of sanitizer in swiming pool applications. When testing for chlorine presence in the water, there are 3 different values that we check for. Free Available or "acting" Chlorine is the measurement of how much (in parts per million, or PPM) chlorine gas is actively sanitizing the water. When chlorine bonds with nitrogen and ammonia, it becomes inactive and can cause strong chlorine odors along with skin and eye irritation. The Total Chlorine value determines the amount of actual chlorine in the water, active and inactive. The Combined Chlorine is basically the difference in Free Chlorine versus Total Chlorine. When the Combined Chlorine value reaches a certain point, the water must be chlorinated to "breakpoint" which causes the bond between the chlorine and ammonia or nitrogen to breakdown. This releases the existing chlorine back into an active state. Since the chlorine values are probably the most rapidly changing, we test for all 3 chlorine values every visit.
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