Author name: Bryan Baez

Why you should have a startup done We are talking about a pool startup that is done when you resurface your pool or build a brand new pool. We are very passionate about start-ups because we do a-lot of them, so we could tell the difference when a start-up has been done or not, we do pool service miami. So here we go when a newly plastered pool is filled with water, the plaster is very vulnerable. Plaster has many different components, a certain percentage of it being calcium hydroxide. Calcium hydroxide is the weakest part of the plaster.  When unbalanced water enters the pool it immediately starts pulling that calcium hydroxide out of the plaster. The calcium hydroxide turns into dust. This from the beginning weakens the plaster. Not only that, that dust falls back on top of the plaster and could mask the color of the plaster by adhering permanently to the top of the plaster while it is curing. One of the goals of a startup is to get rid of that plaster dust as soon as possible. So it doesn’t adhere to the surface. So a must is to balance the water as soon as the pool starts getting full. Orenda technologies which is a pool chemical company. Has something called the start-up barrel. What it essentially does is pretreat the water before it starts going into the pool. This pretreatment balances the water so it doesn’t have a chance to start pulling calcium hydroxide from the surface. The barrel is a bit expensive, but they have realized how important it is to have the water balanced before it entering the pool. They kind of almost guarantee no plaster dust from the start.  Alot of companies don’t have the startup barrel but a start-up is still needed. A start-up barrel is ideal, but what can we do. The goal is to have the water balanced as soon as possible.  Things you want to look out for as a homeowner. If your having a brand new pool built from scratch. You want to make sure that the shotcrete (the base concrete of the pool, the bare concrete). That when the shotcrete is done that they let it cure for 28 days before starting to do the plaster. That they wet cure it meaning a mist system or its watered daily. Wet curing it prevents shrinkage cracks, it makes sure the concrete reaches the highest compressive strength possible. By it reaching the required compressive strength, it ensures that the concrete can resist soil pressures, supports the pools finishes, prevents leaks and can handle daily use.  Not properly wet curing the shotcrete can reduce its compressive strength substantially. Believe 30% right off the bat. Shotcrete is shot at 4,500 psi. There has been cases where a shotcrete shell hasn’t been cured properly and they tested a few of these and they had 1250 psi only. More than half of what it is shot at, meaning way less strength. All these cases they’ve had to redo the shotcrete. Especially if your near water, you need as much strength in your shotcrete as possible so when the water table rises. Wet curing strengthens the shotcrete completely and towards the 28 day mark it creates an envelope so to speak and the concrete binds really hard together.  A-lot of builders don’t wait these 28 days because they want to move on to the next project but it is critical. A-lot of them also don’t even do the wet curing process. Which is extremely important. Also, if the builders don’t wait the 28 days for the shotcrete to cure, this could cause hydration stains on your plaster. The same as if they are replastering your pool and fix an area around your main drain underneath the plaster, and they don’t let that area that was patched with hydraulic cement cure for 7 days that can cause hydration stains as well.  What happens is un-cured concrete will let moisture out. That moisture could come out and show up on your plaster. What happens is that moisture pushes through the plaster pushing the weakest part of the plaster (calcium hydroxide) out of the plaster and could cause localized scale right there causing a hydration stain.  There is no chemical that can take out a hydration stain. The only way is to empty the pool and do something called torching. So that’s why you also want to be on top of your builder to make sure before applying the plaster that everything underneath is cured a 100% and that any on the shell is completely dried. That there is no water anywhere. Picture below is what a hydration stain looks like. Continuing on with the start up process So yea you want the water to be perfectly balanced for the best outcome. Also, on a startup a-lot of times a sequestrant is used. Orenda uses Sc-1000. What this does, is it binds with calcium and holds it in solution just in case there’s any part in the water that has not reached balance so the calcium doesn’t scale. Just in case there is any moisture behind the plaster, SC1000 is great at helping with hydration stains. Because when the water pushes through to the plaster and pushes calcium hydroxide out of the plaster it binds to that calcium and keeps it in solution so it doesn’t scale causing a hydration stain. Yea the water is balanced but there could be parts that aren’t completely balanced yet, so the SC1000 will help a-lot if water is pushing calcium hydroxide out of the surface, It will catch it and keep it in solution because the scaling of that calcium hydroxide is what will cause that permanent hydration stain. A hydration looks like a shadow on your surface and it will not come off unless you torch the plaster.  So you also want to do a startup so that while the plaster is curing that any dust or dirt

Pool Filters  So lets start with the basics. There are 3 main pool filter types?  D.E. filters, sand filters and cartridge filters. Lets talk a little bit about each.  D.E. Filters  D.E. filters are diatomaceotous earth filters. It is a filter with what they call grids and Diatomaceous earth is added to it. These filters can filter out about 1-3 microns. Making them the filter that picks up the finest particles of all 3 filters. It is a great filter if you want better water clarity. The only thing is cleaning them can be cumbersome because taking them apart and putting them back together can be hard sometimes until you get the hang of it. But you do not have to clean them as often as cartridge filters, every 4-6 months is recommended. Depending on the use of the filter. You have to be careful though to use the right amount of D.E. because if you use to much it could backfire on you. Because yellow mustard algae is a diatom. Meaning diatomaceous earth has yellow mustard algae in it. But the right amount and the filter makes the water crystal clear and you’ve got a great filter helping you with the maintenance of your pool. If you add to much D.E. you can do the opposite and create mustard algae. We do pool maintenance in South Florida  and we have taken over a few accounts where we have had to clean the filter housing extensively because to much D.E. had been added and by taking out alot of the extra D.E. powder, believe it or not we’ve been able to get rid of some algae from these pools. Also you want to make sure you wear a mask while adding D.E. to your filter because D.E. powder can cause cancer if inhaled on a consistent basis.  Sand Filters  Sand pool filters we are sure you’ve seen them around. Like the name they use sand to filter the water. Water comes out from the top of the filter like a spout and drops down to a sand bed. The water goes through the sand bed until it gets to some tubes on the bottom (called laterals), those tubes have tiny holes that return the filtered water back to the pool.  The sharpness of the sand is what filters the water. It is recommended based on the use of the pool that the sand in a sand filter be replaced every 5-7 years. Because the sand becomes dull eventually and can’t filter anymore. Sand filters pick up as low as 30 microns. Meaning they do not pickup fine particles as a D.E. filter does. We could definitely tell the difference between a pool with a D.E. filter, and cartridge filter and one with a sand filter. In a pool with a sand filter you could notice a little bit of fine dust sometimes on the surface no matter how much you vacuum.  Some pool owners prefer sand filters because to clean them you just have to backwash them every so often. Instead of taking the filter apart and having to clean it like you do a cartridge filter and D.E. filter. But its kind of the lazy way of caring for your pool because a cartridge filter or D.E. filter to use makes a big difference in how your pool looks. We prefer D.E. or cartridge over sand filters any day of the week. Also the sand filters, when you back wash them it unbalances your water because your getting rid of chemicals from your pool when backwashing.  Many people don’t know but you could make a sand filter, filter better by using glass media instead of sand. So you could fill your sand filter with glass media instead of sand. Glass media filters down to about 1-3 microns. Which is a huge difference compared to 30 microns from sand. The only bad thing is, is that glass media is about double the price of sand. But to us, it is totally worth it. Because on the back end you’ll save money on chemicals. The more stuff your filter picks up, the less your chlorine has to be used to oxidize contaminants etc.. Also when it comes to replacing the sand in your sand filter it is always a good idea to replace the laterals and all internals actually so you don’t run the chance that later on down the road those internals break causing sand to go back into the pool. By the time you do your first sand replacement those plastic internal components have been there for a while. So who knows if they are at there break point and give way a few months after you replaced the sand. That wouldn’t be good because you have to open up the filter again. Mid Size sand filter  Cartridge Filters Probably the most common types of filters around. In Florida they are usually one filter per pool more or less which is what they call bullet filters. Some bigger pools or higher debris pools they have four cartridge filters in one housing, which are called quad filters. Cartridge filters pick up up to as low as 10-15 microns. And from some manufacturers mouths they say its good to build up a small amount of filter cake so the filter picks up even less microns. So a small amount of particles picked up can make it filter a little bit smaller in microns. Cartridge filters pick up more fine particles than sand filters but not as fine as D.E. filters. We prefer D.E. or cartridge like we stated before because sand filters don’t pick up enough fine particles in our opinion. Now what we see a-lot, is customers buying very cheap cartridge filters online. We’ve noticed these cheap filters put a-lot of strain on pool pumps. We recommend pleatco filters, Oncore filters or unicell filters. Any other brands as of the day this article is posted are not worth it

Some facts & opinions, we bet you didn’t know on pool salt systems A salt cell produces chlorine via electrolysis. A salt cell has titanium plates inside that are coated in a rare precious metal oxide called ruthenium and sometimes iridium (which is what makes them so expensive). Those plates have an anode and a cathode. The cathode takes electrons from the anode. Dissolved salt and water pass over the electrically charged plates, the charged plates breaks them apart and produces chlorine gas and sodium hydroxide. The gas then mixes with the water and makes chlorine. Why Salt Systems are so PopularMany people like salt systems because the water feels softer. Some theories say it’s because a pure chlorine pool (non-salt) causes a hypertonic effect on your body. Water is always seeking balance, which is true, so they say it pulls salt from your body. Which they say is why in a chlorine pool your skin feels very dry. On the contrary they say in a salt pool there is enough salt for the water, so the water does not pull salt from your body, is what they say. Again this is just a theory we hear a-lot.  Don’t kill the messenger. Either way salt water is softer on the skin than just a regular chlorine pool.  Salt cells raise the PH of the water because the salt cell creates tiny bubbles while working. These tiny bubbles escape at the waters surface forcing dissolved carbon dioxide out of the water, in turn raising PH. Your pool should always be balanced whether chlorine or salt. But with salt pools you need to be more meticulous because if your water isn’t balanced your salt cell plates will scale often and scale on the salt cell plates cause resistance on the conduction of electricity going through them. Yes, eventually your salt cell plates will scale but the better your water is balanced the longer it will go without scaling. Water not being balanced, they will be scaled all the time. This is why you should hire a professional pool company to service your pool, pool maintenance miami is what we do. Also not balancing your water and it being on the corrosive side is also bad. Because corrosive water can eat at the salt cell plates and ruin them. That is why the Langelier Saturation Index is extremely important. Phosphates We have noticed that pools that have high phosphates a-lot, the salt cells don’t last as long as pools with no phosphate issues. Our opinion is that it seems to be that since the phosphates coat the salt cells metal plates they cause a-lot of resistance to the conduction of electricity through the plates, shortening the lifespan of the cell. Again our opinion but that resistance may be causing small damage to the plates and with time the plates don’t conduce the electricity as well as before. A little bit off topic but if you live on the ocean, like an ocean canal. Where the water is kind of brackish/dark. We’ve always noticed very high phosphates in those pools. Our theory is the wind and boaters passing by stirrup the water and algae spores fly around and land in your pool. The chlorine in your pool kills the algae spores but the phosphates in the algae remain. Yes cause algae eats phosphates, so they are full of phosphates. And yes algae spores can be carried by the wind and dropped in different places. Our suggestion if you live near the ocean and have a salt system, have a plan for the phosphates. You also want to make sure you have the appropriate salt levels in the pool. Most salt systems require between 3400-3600 ppm salt and some 3200. Going way below the ideal salt parameters strains the salt cell as well shortening its life. You also have to check your owners manual for the amount of TDS you should have in your pool for your salt system. Usually you want to be no higher in TDS than your salt level plus TDS coming from tap water plus 1500ppm. For example if your tap water has 500 tds and the ideal salt level for your salt system is 3500 you do not want more than 5,500 TDS in your pool, (salt is factored in to your TDS). The reason you do not want such high TDS is because TDS is essentially junk in the water and it will make it harder for the electricity on the plates to affect the salt molecule (chloride ion). Also too high of salt levels could cause the salt cell to not produce chlorine because it could also interfere with the electrolysis process. You also want to make sure you clean the salt cell with the manufacturer’s instructions on acid to water ratio. If done with too high of a acid water ratio you could damage one of the plates. Yes a higher acid concentration will get rid of the calcium scale on the plates faster but could damage your cell. Which is why we think customers should pay to have salt cells cleaned as an extra, not included in the pool service rate. Because your insuring your salt cell is being cleaned properly and no one is rushing to have it cleaned fast and possibly ruining it. We take our time but we’ve taken on accounts where the previous service company has burned through the metal plates while cleaning the salt cell. Also do not use sulfuric acid when cleaning the cell you could damage the cell. Also another factor in making sure your salt cell lasts a long time and most companies say this is the most important factor. Is how often the salt cell reverses polarity and cleans itself. They say to follow the manufacturers instructions on the right ratio of how often your salt cell should clean itself. They say there is a right ratio, I believe it is based on run time. They say

Perfect water balance the LSI and how it came about Langelier Saturation Index How a 1930s professor’s formula for keeping pipes from corroding became one of the most widely used tools in water treatment worldwide. Water is one of the most chemically aggressive substances on earth. It dissolves minerals, corrodes metals, and deposits scale — sometimes all at once. For the engineers of the early 20th century tasked with building and maintaining municipal water systems, understanding when water would attack a pipe and when it would silently coat it in protective scale was a pressing practical problem with no clean mathematical solution. That changed in 1936. The man behind the index Wilfred Langelier was a professor of civil engineering at the University of California Berkeley — a careful, methodical scientist working at the intersection of chemistry and public infrastructure. His focus was municipal water distribution: the vast networks of pipes, joints, and valves that carried drinking water to American cities in the early twentieth century. The problem he was trying to solve was concrete: flowing water in pipes either corrodes the metal or deposits calcium carbonate (limestone scale) on the interior. Corrosion means leaks, contaminated water, and costly repairs. Scale means reduced flow, clogged systems, and eventual blockage. Both outcomes were expensive and, in the case of lead and iron pipes, potentially hazardous to public health. “His goal was to prevent pipes from corroding or clogging with scale — a simple ambition that required a precise new way of thinking about water chemistry.” Langelier’s insight was to approach the question thermodynamically. Rather than measuring corrosion or scale empirically (an expensive, slow process), he sought a formula that could predict a water sample’s behavior from a handful of measurable chemical properties. The 1936 paper In 1936, Langelier published his landmark paper, “The Analytical Control of Anti-Corrosion Water Treatment,” in the Journal of the American Water Works Association. The paper introduced what he called the Saturation Index — a single number derived from the difference between a water sample’s actual pH and its theoretical “saturation pH” (the pH at which water would be in perfect equilibrium with calcium carbonate).The formula was elegant in its logic. If a water sample’s actual pH is higher than its saturation pH, the water has more alkalinity than it needs to stay balanced — it will deposit scale. If the actual pH is lower, the water is “hungry” for calcium carbonate and will dissolve it from pipes and surfaces. At zero, the water is perfectly balanced. The LSI scale at a glance Below -0.3 Water is aggressive — undersaturated, will corrode surfaces and dissolve materials 0.00 Perfectly balanced — water is in equilibrium with calcium carbonate Above +0.3 Water is scale-forming — oversaturated, will deposit calcium carbonate. To calculate the saturation pH, Langelier identified five key variables: pH, water temperature, calcium hardness, total alkalinity, and total dissolved solids. Each factor was assigned a numerical value that fed into the formula, producing a result any water treatment engineer could act on. From boilers to swimming pools Langelier’s original work was designed for closed-loop systems — boilers and municipal pipe networks — not open bodies of water. He never wrote about swimming pools. Yet the elegance and utility of his index proved irresistible to other industries, and it spread far beyond its original application. By the mid-twentieth century, water treatment professionals in industrial cooling systems, drinking water plants, and eventually the nascent swimming pool industry had adopted the LSI as a standard tool. Its journey into pool chemistry required some adaptation: pools are open to the atmosphere, exposed to sunlight, bathers, and sanitizing chemicals that Langelier’s original model never accounted for.The critical addition came in the 1970s, when researcher John A. Wojtowicz expanded the index for swimming pool applications, introducing a sixth variable — cyanuric acid — to account for the stabilizers widely used in outdoor pools. His work, published across several papers in the Journal of the Swimming Pool and Spa Industry, gave pool professionals a properly calibrated tool for their specific environment. The Langelier Saturation Index was not taken into account in Flint, Michigan in 2014 when Flint switched there municipal water supply to the Flint River. Which had very corrosive water. It lead to metals being leached from pipes into the drinking water of nearly 100,000 residents. It caused an outbreak of Legionnaires’ Disease. It caused permanent brain and nervous system damage and developmental issues to residents. How the formula evolved Langelier’s original index relied on printed tables, lookup charts, and manual arithmetic — a process that was accurate but slow and impractical for routine field work. Over the following decades, researchers refined the underlying thermodynamic constants, improved the solubility models, and simplified the calculation process for practical use. The digital age transformed the LSI from a laboratory calculation into an everyday field tool. Online calculators and smartphone apps now compute an LSI result in seconds from a handful of test readings. Companies like Orenda Technologies built entire product ecosystems around the index, offering free mobile calculators that gave pool technicians instant, actionable readings on the job. The orenda calculator is what we use when we service our pools. Miami Pool Service is what we do CYA is used in swimming pools to protect chlorine from the sun. The way CYA is factored into the LSI is it removed from the total alkalinity measurement to give carbonate alkalinity and carbonate alkalinity is factored into the LSI. CYA is factored out of the alkalinity because it is not as protective as carbonate ions are. So CYA adds to your alkalinity but then it is factored out. Legacy and lasting relevance Nearly ninety years after Langelier published his paper, the index bearing his name remains one of the foundational tools of water treatment science. Although other under indexes have been made the LSI is the one used the most and the most accurate. It is taught in every serious pool operator certification course, referenced in industrial water