Scaling on vinyl liner

Jul 7, 2018
61
Hutto/TX
hey yall,

unfortunately I got pretty lazy this winter and let the pool go green and much longer than i should have.

I noticed some scaling when I was cleaning it up but I didn't realize that's what it was! I got it cleaned up pretty good now but the surface is still rough, so upon googling I learned it was scaling..

I went out to test the and sure enough ph was sky high 8.2+ and ta was so high I couldn't even get a good read. Hit over 300 and didn't want to keep going and waste it all.

After work I'm going to do the full testing and add some muriatic acid.

My question is, how bad did I screw up? The scaling came off when I scrubbed the inside of my pump/filter with a tooth brush, but its not coming off the walls of the liner with my pool brush. Im also worried about the insides of the pipes I can't see and can't scrub. And I'm worried about how bad the liner is damaged.

Pool was in great condition at the end of summer last year so between then and now it's gotten to this point.

Thanks for any feedback!
 
Ok, that's not terribly high (although as you probably recall, vinyl doesn't *need* calcium like other pool types) but your pH and TA are way too high.
I would suggest that with the help of PoolMath you lower both (same procedure, done in increments) and keep your CSI on the negative side for a while and brush and scrub the walls often. See if that helps?



Maddie :flower:
 
Ok, that's not terribly high (although as you probably recall, vinyl doesn't *need* calcium like other pool types) but your pH and TA are way too high.
I would suggest that with the help of PoolMath you lower both (same procedure, done in increments) and keep your CSI on the negative side for a while and brush and scrub the walls often. See if that helps?



Maddie :flower:
Wait what is CSI?

I plan on brushing every day, but waiting til tomorrow to start that up as brushing didn't do much on it own before the acid. I added muriatic acid per pool math.

Do you think I caused any issues inside the plumbing? I was able to scrub it off inside the pump but I worry about the spots I can't see or scrub.

Thanks!
 
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Input all your test results, temp and salt level into PoolMath and it will give you a CSI number (Calcium Saturation Index). Vinyl pools as a rule rarely ever need to concern themselves with CSI, unlike plaster pools. But in your case running your CSI in the negative will help break down the calcium on the walls and inside any equipment.

There are also products such as ScaleTec that can help. I know nothing more about them then the name.

Maddie :flower:
 
Input all your test results, temp and salt level into PoolMath and it will give you a CSI number (Calcium Saturation Index). Vinyl pools as a rule rarely ever need to concern themselves with CSI, unlike plaster pools. But in your case running your CSI in the negative will help break down the calcium on the walls and inside any equipment.

There are also products such as ScaleTec that can help. I know nothing more about them then the name.

Maddie :flower:
Hmm I don't salt!
 
I’m struggling to see scale with 200ppm Calcium, so before you get too aggressive let’s verify what this is. Can you collect a bit of the white flakes and pour a tiny bit of vinegar or acid on it? Don’t do this on the deck, but while you’re doing it, watch for fizzing.

Can you post a photo?
 
I’m struggling to see scale with 200ppm Calcium, so before you get too aggressive let’s verify what this is. Can you collect a bit of the white flakes and pour a tiny bit of vinegar or acid on it? Don’t do this on the deck, but while you’re doing it, watch for fizzing.

Can you post a photo?
I can try and get a photo but basically the entire liner sides are rough like sandpaper. And it was like that inside the pump too but I scrubbed most of that off already. However I can't brush it off my liner and I don't want to use the rough brush I used for the pump...it sat green and with absolutely nothing done to it for several months over the fall and winter.

Its white, rough like sandpaper, very hard to remove, covers the entire liner
 

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Ta is down at 150 and ph is down to 7.2, cc at 3, at lunch time.

Adding stabilizer now so I didn't test that again.

Don't want to add anymore acid because i don't want that ph dropping anymore, is there another way to bring the ta down while keeping the ph steady?
 

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