All alkaline materials are buffers. Cyanuric acid happens to be the most common buffer found in pool water. In effect, cyanuric acid helps stabilize both chlorine and pH. It binds with chlorine to prevent photolysis and it keeps pH elevated.
Clearly, when cyanuric acid is in the water, it overpowers pH in terms of controlling chlorine strength.
CYA is acidic and it keeps on lowering PH the entire time it is dissolving. Metal Free is also somewhat acidic. Sequestrant slowly decays in the pool. That is why regular maintenance doses are required.
When cyanuric acid is added to the pool, it increases the total alkalinity, but not the carbonate alkalinity, which is the alkalinity that matters in water balance.
If you need the pH level in the pool to rise, you need to add pool conditioner or stabilizer directly to the pool.
The problem with low cyanuric acid is chlorine degrades quickly in the presence of sunlight. Chlorine is rendered completely ineffective within a few hours of sun exposure. If you didn't have cyanuric acid in your pool or it was low, you'll find that you need to add a lot more chlorine to have effective sanitization.
Cyanuric acid is raised by adding chlorine stabilizer containing cyanuric acid. The only way to lower cyanuric acid is by replacing water.
A pH level of 7 means that water is neutral; above 7 means the water is alkaline, while below 7 indicates acidity. Aim for a pH level of between 7 and 7.6. If the water pH is higher than 8, anyone who swims in the pool is at risk of skin rashes, while a pH of lower than 7 can sting swimmers' eyes.
To bring down pH, use a made-for-pools chemical additive called pH reducer (or pH minus). The main active ingredients in pH reducers are either muriatic acid or sodium bisulfate (also called dry acid). Reducers are readily available at pool supply stores, home improvement centers and online.
Low T.A. will lead to erosion of pool surfaces and corrosion of equipment. It will also cause the pH levels to be very unstable so small additions of chemicals can result in major shifts in pH. This is sometimes known as “pH bounce”. Adding buffer will RAISE the Total Alkalinity.
While shocking and adding algaecide is effective in getting rid of algae, it should not be done together. This is because when you mix chlorine and algaecide together, it renders both of them useless. Hence, you should first shock the pool and wait for the chlorine levels to fall below 5 PPM.
Baking soda is the best way to raise total alkalinity with minimal effect to pH and cyanuric acid.
The most common reason for a consistently high pH level in pools is the use of liquid chlorine or a saltwater system as the primary sanitizer. Sodium hydroxide is produced, which has a pH of around 13. New pool plaster or pebble finishes will also raise pH in pools for about a year after installation.
Aim to bring your pH down to just below the optimal range. This should be enough muriatic acid to bring your alkalinity down to normal. In general, 20 ounces of acid will lower the alkalinity in a 10,000 gallon by 10 ppm.
A high pH level can be caused by several factors, the main culprits being additional chlorine stabilizers and sudden increases in temperature. In addition, high pH runs a risk with your chlorine, as your chlorine will no longer disinfect fully. There are also physical consequences of high pH for swimmers.
Pool Chemicals
The chemicals used to sanitize the pool also affect the pH of the water. Granulated or liquid chlorine is alkaline and, therefore, tends to raise the pH level. Bromine is more neutral and has a minimal effect on pH, while chlorine gas is acidic and lowers pH.
Adding a basic substance such as sodium carbonate will increase the pH. With proper care, your pool will stay at an ideal pH level of 7.2-7.6, which makes your chlorine up to ten times more effective. It will also prevent any sort of maintenance issues or irritation and redness for bathers.
To raise your pool pH levels, try adding in sodium carbonate (AKA soda ash). Make sure that you don't add any more than two pounds of soda ash per 10,000 gallons of water per treatment. When adding in the soda ash, start adding from the deep end of your pool and work your way up to the shallow end.
Saltwater pool manufacturers recommend maintaining cyanuric acid levels around 60-80 ppm. This is a bit higher than the 30-50 ppm range recommended for non-saltwater pools. And if you live in an area where your pool gets a lot of direct sunlight, you may even consider bumping your cyanuric acid up to 80-100 ppm.
Answer: Cyanuric acid shouldn't be at Zero for an outdoor swimming pool because chlorine will deplete faster in hot and humid weather, leading to cloudy water. If your FC is at normal level of 3ppm, raise Cyanuric acid level to 40 ppm and you will reduce chloramine levels that make your water appear cloudy.
When Is It Safe To Swim After Adding Cyanuric Acid? As a general rule though, you can swim in your pool within 20 minutes of adding cyanuric acid. Make sure you have the pump on when you add it so that it mixes in the water. It's always best to check the manufacturer's instructions though.
Pools with very low or no cyanuric acid experience “chlorine demand,” or the inability to maintain chlorine levels. No matter how much chlorine you add, the levels drop quickly. Chlorine without CYA, also known as unstabilized chlorine, is destroyed by UV rays very quickly.
Yes both cyanuric acid and muriatic acid are both acids but they serve different purposes for the pool owner. Cyanuric acid has the chemical formula CNOH, whereas muriatic acid is a diluted form of hydrochloric acid, HCI.
You should keep your outdoor pool or spa's Cyanuric Acid level at 0-30 parts per million (PPM).