Water balancing and test kits..

[jonny5]

Just wondering what everyone's using to test there pool water in Thailand.. 

I've a new pool and want to make sure the water is OK. 

 

Any info or links to what people use would be great. 

 

Regards J

[SwimmingPoolsThailand]

For most purposes for domestic pools, a simple, very inexpensive test kit for chlorine and pH levels such as this is generally all you need and is the most common. Other, more sophisticated digital, colorimetric and photometric titration methods are also available. There are also test strips to dip in the water but they are not very accurate.

 

[jonny5]

14 hours ago, SwimmingPoolsThailand said:

For most purposes for domestic pools, a simple, very inexpensive test kit for chlorine and pH levels such as this is generally all you need and is the most common. Other, more sophisticated digital, colorimetric and photometric titration methods are also available. There are also test strips to dip in the water but they are not very accurate.

 

. Other, more sophisticated digital, colorimetric and photometric titration methods are also available.

 

What are these methods please.... 

The basic 1 you suggest is just for Chlorine and PH... But i feel there's more into water chemistry, then just the CL and PH levels. 

 

Regards J

[zappalot]

On 3/26/2020 at 8:51 PM, SwimmingPoolsThailand said:

For most purposes for domestic pools, a simple, very inexpensive test kit for chlorine and pH levels such as this is generally all you need 

 

This test kit does not even show you how much free chlorine is left to fight pollution/bacteria/algae.

 

Test strips that are very inexpensive give me at least a clue about how much free chlorine is left in the water. The total chlorine from the recommended test kit is completely useless since total chlorine includes the used up and thus useless bound to dirt/bacteria/viruses chlorine.

 

In addition I bought a digital pH meter which after calibration is really very accurate. It was just a few hundred baht...

[jonny5]

Thanks Zappalot 

 

That post is exactly what I thought... 

[Lacessit]

All you really need to know is whether you have free available chlorine present, and the pH to make it effective,< 8.

[jonny5]

7 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

All you really need to know is whether you have free available chlorine present, and the pH to make it effective,< 8.

OK thanks, but what about CYA.. Is this not the 'sunscreen' for Chlorine... 

[Lacessit]

1 minute ago, jonny5 said:

OK thanks, but what about CYA.. Is this not the 'sunscreen' for Chlorine... 

Cyanuric acid slows down chlorine release, yes. However, you do need to be careful not to overdo it, because high levels of CYA will actually compromise bactericidal activity.

I prefer the keep it simple stupid approach, free chlorine means you are zapping bacteria and viruses. I would use CYA at the bare minimum, 10 mg/L.

A slug dose of copper sulphate is useful in preventing fungi/algae taking hold.

[jonny5]

8 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Cyanuric acid slows down chlorine release, yes. However, you do need to be careful not to overdo it, because high levels of CYA will actually compromise bactericidal activity.

I prefer the keep it simple stupid approach, free chlorine means you are zapping bacteria and viruses. I would use CYA at the bare minimum, 10 mg/L.

A slug dose of copper sulphate is useful in preventing fungi/algae taking hold.

Thanks Lacessit, 

 

So how do I test for CYA as the test strips are useless. 

Could you recommend anything.. 

[zappalot]

14 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

...because high levels of CYA will actually compromise bactericidal activity.

that's why you need to know CA as well which should ideally be between 30-60... With the normally used TCCA chlorine CA will be build up over time rendering chlorine useless if to high...

Total hardness should be know as well as Total Alkalinity (which is of help to keep pH stable if in the right range)

[Lacessit]

1 hour ago, jonny5 said:

Thanks Lacessit, 

 

So how do I test for CYA as the test strips are useless. 

Could you recommend anything.. 

There is a turbidity test which uses melamine to bind to cyanuric acid, resulting in a white precipitate. It's described on the internet, reasonably reliable.

Test strips are usually affected by heat and age. As from memory they are made by Hach in America, so it is anyone's guess what condition they are in by the time a consumer in Thailand buys them.

[SantiSuk]

Total chlorine, free chlorine, pH, total acidity, CYA and Calcium/hardness are the ones I test for. I find the cheap dropper bottles to be only broadly indicative and test strips also inaccurate. I use the dropper bottle ('Kokaido branded sold by Swimming Pools Thailand) for total chlorine checks in between my weekly check regime but I now find the pH dropper bottle half of the kit to be so difficult to colour match that I don't bother to use it any longer. Maybe the Emaux branded dropper bottles I see them showing in a link above are better!

 

I use a Lovibond Scuba II tester (German product) with reagent tablets for all but calcium/hardness. More expensive than the methods covered above but not as expensive as the pro test versions available online in Thailand. I've had to self-import from the UK (brought the tester with me on one of my trips and get top-up reagent tablets from them via my UK sister). I've not seen Lovibond products on sale in Thailand:

 

https://www.ukpoolstore.co.uk/acatalog/Lovibond_Scuba_Tester.html

 

For calcium/hardness I have used colour change tablets from Lovibond:

 

https://www.ukpoolstore.co.uk/acatalog/Lovibond_Calcium_Hardness___Total_Alkalinity_Tablets.html#a3791

 

The colour change tablets for TA from Lovibond are also good in my experience of a few years prior. 

 

I said I have used Lovibond's tablets for calcium/hardness. I have recently bought a test kit for calcium from Swimming Pools Thailand online store - a bit expensive and slightly complex to use first time around, but seems to work well:

 

https://swimmingpoolsthailand.com/en/water-hardness/618-hardness-test-kit-3812.html

 

Costs (converting UK currency to Thai baht at ex rate of 40:

 

Lovibond Scuba II digital tester ThB 5,800

Boxes of 100 Lovibond reagent tabs (typically last for 2 years of weekly testing except DPD1 free chlorine tabs which are also used in the total chlorine check so last 1 year). DPD1 free chlorine and DPD3 total chlorine ThB 250 each box of 100. PHENOL pH acidity ThB 320. Cyanauric Acid and Total Alkalinity ThB 800.

Total Alkalinity and Calcium Hardness Lovibond colour change tabs (250 tabs per bottle - lasts 1-2 years) ThB 600

Calcium test kit from SPT ThB 1,590.

 

 

{PS I was stunned that Swimming Pools Thailand reckon that "For most purposes for domestic pools, a simple, very inexpensive test kit for chlorine and pH levels such as this is generally all you need". Most ex pool pros I have seen posting on this site would not agree with that statement!}

 

 

[jonny5]

19 hours ago, SantiSuk said:

Total chlorine, free chlorine, pH, total acidity, CYA and Calcium/hardness are the ones I test for. I find the cheap dropper bottles to be only broadly indicative and test strips also inaccurate. I use the dropper bottle ('Kokaido branded sold by Swimming Pools Thailand) for total chlorine checks in between my weekly check regime but I now find the pH dropper bottle half of the kit to be so difficult to colour match that I don't bother to use it any longer. Maybe the Emaux branded dropper bottles I see them showing in a link above are better!

 

I use a Lovibond Scuba II tester (German product) with reagent tablets for all but calcium/hardness. More expensive than the methods covered above but not as expensive as the pro test versions available online in Thailand. I've had to self-import from the UK (brought the tester with me on one of my trips and get top-up reagent tablets from them via my UK sister). I've not seen Lovibond products on sale in Thailand:

 

https://www.ukpoolstore.co.uk/acatalog/Lovibond_Scuba_Tester.html

 

For calcium/hardness I have used colour change tablets from Lovibond:

 

https://www.ukpoolstore.co.uk/acatalog/Lovibond_Calcium_Hardness___Total_Alkalinity_Tablets.html#a3791

 

The colour change tablets for TA from Lovibond are also good in my experience of a few years prior. 

 

I said I have used Lovibond's tablets for calcium/hardness. I have recently bought a test kit for calcium from Swimming Pools Thailand online store - a bit expensive and slightly complex to use first time around, but seems to work well:

 

https://swimmingpoolsthailand.com/en/water-hardness/618-hardness-test-kit-3812.html

 

Costs (converting UK currency to Thai baht at ex rate of 40:

 

Lovibond Scuba II digital tester ThB 5,800

Boxes of 100 Lovibond reagent tabs (typically last for 2 years of weekly testing except DPD1 free chlorine tabs which are also used in the total chlorine check so last 1 year). DPD1 free chlorine and DPD3 total chlorine ThB 250 each box of 100. PHENOL pH acidity ThB 320. Cyanauric Acid and Total Alkalinity ThB 800.

Total Alkalinity and Calcium Hardness Lovibond colour change tabs (250 tabs per bottle - lasts 1-2 years) ThB 600

Calcium test kit from SPT ThB 1,590.

 

 

{PS I was stunned that Swimming Pools Thailand reckon that "For most purposes for domestic pools, a simple, very inexpensive test kit for chlorine and pH levels such as this is generally all you need". Most ex pool pros I have seen posting on this site would not agree with that statement!}

Thanks for the info, i will take a look into what you suggested, much appreciated

19 hours ago, SantiSuk said:

 

 

 

[SwimmingPoolsThailand]

On 3/27/2020 at 5:29 PM, jonny5 said:

. Other, more sophisticated digital, colorimetric and photometric titration methods are also available.

 

What are these methods please.... 

The basic 1 you suggest is just for Chlorine and PH... But i feel there's more into water chemistry, then just the CL and PH levels. 

 

Regards J

 

5 hours ago, jonny5 said:

Thanks for the info, i will take a look into what you suggested, much appreciated

 

SwimmingPoolsThailand offers a very wide range of quality water testing products  available in Thailand without confusing the customers with choosing between multiple brands of the same article. The standard entry level test kit is perfectly adequate until the owner of the new pool knows which more sophisticated testers to invest in. These Cl&pH testers have been around for at least 40 years and they were all that was available for domestic pools until more accurate testers for a wider range of purposes came on the market in the early 2000s.

Quality testers are expensive and it would be a false economy to purchase something that might not be needed. If one has followed a link to the suggested product, it should be possible to browse all the other testers we have in stock.  SwimmingPoolsThailand also goes the extra mile and provides nearly 50 advice pages including the use of chemicals and testers. If in doubt, a trip to a local pool shop might help.