Pool Water Level

[petercallen]

I am topping up the pool daily at present, With the fine weather and no rain

i am wondering if it is just evaporation or if i have a leak

Is anyone else topping up there pool regularly due to the fine weather

[stevehaigh]

depends how much? 1-4mm/day is probably normal for evaportaion. i loose about 1mm/day but i have a shade partly covering the pool which keeps the water cool and nice to swim in.

to translate that to liters, take the square meter area of the pool and multiply by no of mm you are losing, that's the number of liters

more than 5mm/day and you probably have a leak IMHO

BTW, you might get more answers on the swimming pool forum

Edited February 7, 2012 by stevehaigh

[WarpSpeed]

I'd concur with that..

[barka]

This time of year its mormal to top up,but if you think it is to much,and may have a leak,you have to do a ..Leak test..

[katabeachbum]

I have a pvc liner pool in the sun all day needing at least one cm/10mm a day these days. as its pvc and pump is in a fiberglass box, any leak is spotted instantly, so evaporating only. once a week barely keeps skimmer wet

I also have tiled pool in shade half the day needing less top up

[petercallen]

Our pool is in the sun all day, its 12x8M going from 30cm deep

at the shallow end to over 2M at the deep end with gentle slope

of the bottom, it has a big surface area but would only be 1.5

metres deep on average, topping it up with the pump from the

house storage tanks takes about 5 minutes on a daily basis i

think it is evaporation, i top it up about half a inch a day

[barka]

Our pool is in the sun all day, its 12x8M going from 30cm deep

at the shallow end to over 2M at the deep end with gentle slope

of the bottom, it has a big surface area but would only be 1.5

metres deep on average, topping it up with the pump from the

house storage tanks takes about 5 minutes on a daily basis i

think it is evaporation, i top it up about half a inch a day

I think you have answered your...problemm.?.yes,///

[petercallen]

Our pool is in the sun all day, its 12x8M going from 30cm deep

at the shallow end to over 2M at the deep end with gentle slope

of the bottom, it has a big surface area but would only be 1.5

metres deep on average, topping it up with the pump from the

house storage tanks takes about 5 minutes on a daily basis i

think it is evaporation, i top it up about half a inch a day

I think you have answered your...problemm.?.yes,///

Maybe but i have only had to top it up daily for about a week

Thats why i asked other people about topping up there pools

[katabeachbum]

Our pool is in the sun all day, its 12x8M going from 30cm deep

at the shallow end to over 2M at the deep end with gentle slope

of the bottom, it has a big surface area but would only be 1.5

metres deep on average, topping it up with the pump from the

house storage tanks takes about 5 minutes on a daily basis i

think it is evaporation, i top it up about half a inch a day

30cm deep makes much more evaporation, and if there is any leak and its in the ground I wouldnt worry at 10-15mm top up a day.

[petercallen]

Our pool is in the sun all day, its 12x8M going from 30cm deep

at the shallow end to over 2M at the deep end with gentle slope

of the bottom, it has a big surface area but would only be 1.5

metres deep on average, topping it up with the pump from the

house storage tanks takes about 5 minutes on a daily basis i

think it is evaporation, i top it up about half a inch a day

30cm deep makes much more evaporation, and if there is any leak and its in the ground I wouldnt worry at 10-15mm top up a day.

Yes thats what i thought i just wanted another opinion of someone who new

We do not usually have to top up the pool as the ground is paved between

the house and the pool and when it rains the runoff from the roof keeps the

pool over filled, usually have to pump water out to keep the skimmer box working properly

[stevehaigh]

Yes thats what i thought i just wanted another opinion of someone who new

We do not usually have to top up the pool as the ground is paved between

the house and the pool and when it rains the runoff from the roof keeps the

pool over filled, usually have to pump water out to keep the skimmer box working properly

don't you get a lot of dirty water washed in to the pool like that? i would put rain gutters on at a minimum

[katabeachbum]

Yes thats what i thought i just wanted another opinion of someone who new

We do not usually have to top up the pool as the ground is paved between

the house and the pool and when it rains the runoff from the roof keeps the

pool over filled, usually have to pump water out to keep the skimmer box working properly

don't you get a lot of dirty water washed in to the pool like that? i would put rain gutters on at a minimum

agreed, the only water I allow to come to my pool is rain from the sky. added water by hose is fed to skimmer while filtation is running.

[petercallen]

Yes thats what i thought i just wanted another opinion of someone who new

We do not usually have to top up the pool as the ground is paved between

the house and the pool and when it rains the runoff from the roof keeps the

pool over filled, usually have to pump water out to keep the skimmer box working properly

don't you get a lot of dirty water washed in to the pool like that? i would put rain gutters on at a minimum

No we don't, i sweep the paving daily and the pool stops clean, its not a problem

[Valentine]

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

[petercallen]

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

First time i have owned and maintained a pool here at this time of the year

Both you and KBB have confirmed what i thought but was not sure off

The wind evaporates water as well and it can be quite windy at Rawai

[napalm]

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

A bit off topic, but people in this thread seem to know about pools. Is there a pool company in Phuket that can conduct a complete pool water analysis ? The maker of my salt water chlorinator in Australia has requested one to see if there is anything wrong with the chlorine output. My pool is turning green on and off and we/I don't seem to get it right...I was suspecting that there was something wrong with the chlorinator, as the chlorine level is very low despite a 100% set output and enough salt in the pool........Thanks !

[katabeachbum]

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

A bit off topic, but people in this thread seem to know about pools. Is there a pool company in Phuket that can conduct a complete pool water analysis ? The maker of my salt water chlorinator in Australia has requested one to see if there is anything wrong with the chlorine output. My pool is turning green on and off and we/I don't seem to get it right...I was suspecting that there was something wrong with the chlorinator, as the chlorine level is very low despite a 100% set output and enough salt in the pool........Thanks !

a couple of hours after your chlorinator/filtration has started.

measure chlorine level next to eyballs and close to skimmer. if its more chlorine close to eyeballs, your chlorinator is defo making chlorine

and I am fed up with expensive silly chlorinators, cheaper and better with chlorine

hope

[stevehaigh]

a friend of mine has a salt water pool and he had many problems with algea. his pool co. put a LOT of salt in the pool, and he runs the chlorinator for about 8 hrs a day now and its ok.

personnally i think the whole salt water pool thing is a disaster, i had one once and took it out. if i wanted to swim in salt water, i'd go to the beach. and the electric costs and initialy equipment cost is far far higher than you would ever spend on chlorine.

just MHO

[petercallen]

I took out the salt water chlorinator, 6 years old not working

and was quoted 65K baht to replace it, thats 19 years supply

of granulated chlorine at the price i paid for the last 50KG

Don't have to buy salt and saving on electricity

[Valentine]

If you think your saltwater

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

A bit off topic, but people in this thread seem to know about pools. Is there a pool company in Phuket that can conduct a complete pool water analysis ? The maker of my salt water chlorinator in Australia has requested one to see if there is anything wrong with the chlorine output. My pool is turning green on and off and we/I don't seem to get it right...I was suspecting that there was something wrong with the chlorinator, as the chlorine level is very low despite a 100% set output and enough salt in the pool........Thanks !

You can easily check if your saltwater chlorinator is working. Take a bucket of water from the pool, remove the cell from its housing & put it in the bucket. Turn on the saltwater chlorinator. If working you will see copious quantities of white gas in the bucket originating from the cell. There is one problem at this time of year which some can face. If using water from a bore to top up your pool it can have very fine solids in it which affect the clarity in your pool & make it look like you have an algae problem. Just seen this on two pools lately. Only way to get rid of it is to flocculate & vaccuum to watse.

[barka]

If you think your saltwater

There are many factors in evaporation of water from swimming pools, not only heat, but I concur with others that this is normal for your pool.

A bit off topic, but people in this thread seem to know about pools. Is there a pool company in Phuket that can conduct a complete pool water analysis ? The maker of my salt water chlorinator in Australia has requested one to see if there is anything wrong with the chlorine output. My pool is turning green on and off and we/I don't seem to get it right...I was suspecting that there was something wrong with the chlorinator, as the chlorine level is very low despite a 100% set output and enough salt in the pool........Thanks !

You can easily check if your saltwater chlorinator is working. Take a bucket of water from the pool, remove the cell from its housing & put it in the bucket. Turn on the saltwater chlorinator. If working you will see copious quantities of white gas in the bucket originating from the cell. There is one problem at this time of year which some can face. If using water from a bore to top up your pool it can have very fine solids in it which affect the clarity in your pool & make it look like you have an algae problem. Just seen this on two pools lately. Only way to get rid of it is to flocculate & vaccuum to watse.

Thanks Val,good advice,i have had similar problems,my salt water chlorinator is now 6 years old,i have had it serviced,new sand etc, last year,but still have ocasional problems..thanks again for your..Free..advice..

[napalm]

You can easily check if your saltwater chlorinator is working. Take a bucket of water from the pool, remove the cell from its housing & put it in the bucket. Turn on the saltwater chlorinator. If working you will see copious quantities of white gas in the bucket originating from the cell. There is one problem at this time of year which some can face. If using water from a bore to top up your pool it can have very fine solids in it which affect the clarity in your pool & make it look like you have an algae problem. Just seen this on two pools lately. Only way to get rid of it is to flocculate & vaccuum to watse.

Thanks ! I will try this

[WarpSpeed]

I have a pvc liner pool in the sun all day needing at least one cm/10mm a day these days. as its pvc and pump is in a fiberglass box, any leak is spotted instantly, so evaporating only. once a week barely keeps skimmer wet

I also have tiled pool in shade half the day needing less top up

Hardly the only place a leak can develop, in fact not even in the top 10% of locations as most are in the pool itself and are never seen on the surface.

[WarpSpeed]

a friend of mine has a salt water pool and he had many problems with algea. his pool co. put a LOT of salt in the pool, and he runs the chlorinator for about 8 hrs a day now and its ok.

personnally i think the whole salt water pool thing is a disaster, i had one once and took it out. if i wanted to swim in salt water, i'd go to the beach. and the electric costs and initialy equipment cost is far far higher than you would ever spend on chlorine.

just MHO

To make ANY chlorinator more efficient and in hot and sunny weather you should run Cl2 stabilizer in your pool to screen the Cl2 from evaporation as it's an oxidizer and evaporates readily. Most here in Thailand don't even know about stabilizer or use it properly especially when a salt chlorinator is used which is actually contradictory (professional reference is Cyanuric acid). More salt was probably needed to produce but if stabilizer is used and maintained at proper levels of between 60 and 80 PPM you can reduce pump run time significantly and maintain a very "stable" and effective Cl2 level for sanitizing your pool..

I agree with you on liquid Cl2 in normal conditions but here it's a crap shoot..

Edited February 11, 2012 by WarpSpeed

[Valentine]

a friend of mine has a salt water pool and he had many problems with algea. his pool co. put a LOT of salt in the pool, and he runs the chlorinator for about 8 hrs a day now and its ok.

personnally i think the whole salt water pool thing is a disaster, i had one once and took it out. if i wanted to swim in salt water, i'd go to the beach. and the electric costs and initialy equipment cost is far far higher than you would ever spend on chlorine.

just MHO

To make ANY chlorinator more efficient and in hot and sunny weather you should run Cl2 stabilizer in your pool to screen the Cl2 from evaporation as it's an oxidizer and evaporates readily. Most here in Thailand don't even know about stabilizer or use it properly especially when a salt chlorinator is used which is actually contradictory (professional reference is Cyanuric acid). More salt was probably needed to produce but if stabilizer is used and maintained at proper levels of between 60 and 80 PPM you can reduce pump run time significantly and maintain a very "stable" and effective Cl2 level for sanitizing your pool..

I agree with you on liquid Cl2 in normal conditions but here it's a crap shoot..

All the manufacturers of salt water chlorinators will state on their packaging this model is suitable for x size pool running for x hours per day. What they do not state are that the numbers are based on use of pool stabilizer. The average pool owner generally has no idea of the amount to use or how to apply & test. If averse to using pool stabilizer what can help is to shock the pool occasionally with 90% chlorine as it contains cyanuric acid. Sure, it will not give full effective coverage but is better than none. I feel it is always best to inform customers using salt water chlorinators that they have 2 options. Run the pool with the extra chemical addition or run the chlorinator for twice the number of hours for effective sanitizing. It is the UV rays from the sun which deplete the chlorine, besides the bathers & other compunds, so it is a good idea to run the unit during the hours of darkness to build up a chlorine residual before the sun hits the pool.

BTW adding extra salt will not produce more chlorine as most salt water chlorinators work on about 4,000 ppm salt. Running at lower than the recommended salt level will shorten the life of the cell. At this time with high evaporation normally the only treatment for the pool is adding water if running a salt water chlorinator. Of course the opposite applies during the wet season.

[katabeachbum]

To make ANY chlorinator more efficient and in hot and sunny weather you should run Cl2 stabilizer in your pool to screen the Cl2 from evaporation as it's an oxidizer and evaporates readily. Most here in Thailand don't even know about stabilizer or use it properly especially when a salt chlorinator is used which is actually contradictory (professional reference is Cyanuric acid). More salt was probably needed to produce but if stabilizer is used and maintained at proper levels of between 60 and 80 PPM you can reduce pump run time significantly and maintain a very "stable" and effective Cl2 level for sanitizing your pool..

I agree with you on liquid Cl2 in normal conditions but here it's a crap shoot..

All the manufacturers of salt water chlorinators will state on their packaging this model is suitable for x size pool running for x hours per day. What they do not state are that the numbers are based on use of pool stabilizer. The average pool owner generally has no idea of the amount to use or how to apply & test. If averse to using pool stabilizer what can help is to shock the pool occasionally with 90% chlorine as it contains cyanuric acid. Sure, it will not give full effective coverage but is better than none. I feel it is always best to inform customers using salt water chlorinators that they have 2 options. Run the pool with the extra chemical addition or run the chlorinator for twice the number of hours for effective sanitizing. It is the UV rays from the sun which deplete the chlorine, besides the bathers & other compunds, so it is a good idea to run the unit during the hours of darkness to build up a chlorine residual before the sun hits the pool.

BTW adding extra salt will not produce more chlorine as most salt water chlorinators work on about 4,000 ppm salt. Running at lower than the recommended salt level will shorten the life of the cell. At this time with high evaporation normally the only treatment for the pool is adding water if running a salt water chlorinator. Of course the opposite applies during the wet season.

agreed, most chlorinators need 4-5kppm salt. less it doesnt work properly, double ppm hurts or kills cell.

[barka]

To make ANY chlorinator more efficient and in hot and sunny weather you should run Cl2 stabilizer in your pool to screen the Cl2 from evaporation as it's an oxidizer and evaporates readily. Most here in Thailand don't even know about stabilizer or use it properly especially when a salt chlorinator is used which is actually contradictory (professional reference is Cyanuric acid). More salt was probably needed to produce but if stabilizer is used and maintained at proper levels of between 60 and 80 PPM you can reduce pump run time significantly and maintain a very "stable" and effective Cl2 level for sanitizing your pool..

I agree with you on liquid Cl2 in normal conditions but here it's a crap shoot..

All the manufacturers of salt water chlorinators will state on their packaging this model is suitable for x size pool running for x hours per day. What they do not state are that the numbers are based on use of pool stabilizer. The average pool owner generally has no idea of the amount to use or how to apply & test. If averse to using pool stabilizer what can help is to shock the pool occasionally with 90% chlorine as it contains cyanuric acid. Sure, it will not give full effective coverage but is better than none. I feel it is always best to inform customers using salt water chlorinators that they have 2 options. Run the pool with the extra chemical addition or run the chlorinator for twice the number of hours for effective sanitizing. It is the UV rays from the sun which deplete the chlorine, besides the bathers & other compunds, so it is a good idea to run the unit during the hours of darkness to build up a chlorine residual before the sun hits the pool.

BTW adding extra salt will not produce more chlorine as most salt water chlorinators work on about 4,000 ppm salt. Running at lower than the recommended salt level will shorten the life of the cell. At this time with high evaporation normally the only treatment for the pool is adding water if running a salt water chlorinator. Of course the opposite applies during the wet season.

agreed, most chlorinators need 4-5kppm salt. less it doesnt work properly, double ppm hurts or kills cell.

Thanks again, Val,for more info,a lot of this makes sense,i stopped putting bags of sait in a long time ago but i do as you say and run the chlorinator longer,it seems to work for me..,i also put some chlorine tablets in a floater,that goes around the pool,that usually keeps the chlorine level up..

[katabeachbum]

To make ANY chlorinator more efficient and in hot and sunny weather you should run Cl2 stabilizer in your pool to screen the Cl2 from evaporation as it's an oxidizer and evaporates readily. Most here in Thailand don't even know about stabilizer or use it properly especially when a salt chlorinator is used which is actually contradictory (professional reference is Cyanuric acid). More salt was probably needed to produce but if stabilizer is used and maintained at proper levels of between 60 and 80 PPM you can reduce pump run time significantly and maintain a very "stable" and effective Cl2 level for sanitizing your pool..

I agree with you on liquid Cl2 in normal conditions but here it's a crap shoot..

All the manufacturers of salt water chlorinators will state on their packaging this model is suitable for x size pool running for x hours per day. What they do not state are that the numbers are based on use of pool stabilizer. The average pool owner generally has no idea of the amount to use or how to apply & test. If averse to using pool stabilizer what can help is to shock the pool occasionally with 90% chlorine as it contains cyanuric acid. Sure, it will not give full effective coverage but is better than none. I feel it is always best to inform customers using salt water chlorinators that they have 2 options. Run the pool with the extra chemical addition or run the chlorinator for twice the number of hours for effective sanitizing. It is the UV rays from the sun which deplete the chlorine, besides the bathers & other compunds, so it is a good idea to run the unit during the hours of darkness to build up a chlorine residual before the sun hits the pool.

BTW adding extra salt will not produce more chlorine as most salt water chlorinators work on about 4,000 ppm salt. Running at lower than the recommended salt level will shorten the life of the cell. At this time with high evaporation normally the only treatment for the pool is adding water if running a salt water chlorinator. Of course the opposite applies during the wet season.

agreed, most chlorinators need 4-5kppm salt. less it doesnt work properly, double ppm hurts or kills cell.

Thanks again, Val,for more info,a lot of this makes sense,i stopped putting bags of sait in a long time ago but i do as you say and run the chlorinator longer,it seems to work for me..,i also put some chlorine tablets in a floater,that goes around the pool,that usually keeps the chlorine level up..

I find one of the problems with salwaterchlorinators to be how to decide if salt level is correct. Tastebuds have difficulty to decide if its 5 or 10kppm, and a saltmeter as used by some divers come at a price

barka, where did you find that floater for chlorine? I d like to try one, unless my dog catches it

[katabeachbum]

I have a pvc liner pool in the sun all day needing at least one cm/10mm a day these days. as its pvc and pump is in a fiberglass box, any leak is spotted instantly, so evaporating only. once a week barely keeps skimmer wet

I also have tiled pool in shade half the day needing less top up

Hardly the only place a leak can develop, in fact not even in the top 10% of locations as most are in the pool itself and are never seen on the surface.

if a pvc liner leaks, water will often be collected between concrete and pvc liner, spotted easily. most pvc liner pools come with a suction valve between pvc liner and concrete, to evacuate leaked water after pvc repair

[barka]

KBB,You can buy the floaters at..The pool shop..T/R at Central go straight down that road,on right side,just before Y junction

They are Blue/White aprox 200 bht,they are on the shelf just as you go through the door..good luck.