Artesian Crystal AOP @ease smartchlor pH & FC issue

[htnj]

So as the title suggests, I have a brand new Artesian Pelican Bay with the Crystal AOP system and the @ease smartchlor.
The startup instructions basically say to add the jump start, bring up to temp, and put in the cartridges.

So what I did on Sunday was fill the tub (city water supply,) using a PreFresh filter on the hose.

Initial testing showed CH 90, TA 90, pH 7.2.  Based on the @ease recommended settings of CH 150-250ppm, TA 80-120ppm, and pH 7.2-7.8; I had some adjustments to make.
The first thing I tackled was CH.  Added 5oz of Diamond Hardness Control which brought it right up to 150ppm.

Now the TA, and I think here's where I went wrong.  I think I should've just left it alone, but instead I added 5tbl of Diamond Alkalinity Up which then brought it up to 110ppm.

Now a few hours later, checking the pH showed about 7.8 ( a little high.)

A day later we tried using the spa but the pH shoots up over 8.0 as soon as all the jets get going. 

This morning I added about a total of 2.3oz dry acid spread out over the course of an hour with all jets\air\etc running on high.
I re-checked the pH and TA and it appears like they're close to 7.6 & 90-100 respectively.

Now the issue I have is with FC & CC.  My FC is showing about 0.4ppm but the CC is northwards of 10ppm.  Do you think the wacked out pH would cause the CC to rise so much?
How can I slightly increase the FC?  Or should I just let things settle down for a day?  I haven't added any chlorine aside from the Frog jump start, and the smartchlor cartridges.  I have my mineral cartridge set on #6 and the smartchlor set at #4 as per instructions (I have a 24hr circ pump.)

It seems like because the system is so new, not many people know or understand how it's supposed to work.  Any info would be great!  Thanks!


*All testing done with Taylor k-2006

[The Wizard of Spas]

The discrepancy in Free Chlorine and Total Chlorine is the entire point of @ease.  The system is supposed to have a FC reading of .5-1.0ppm, and when you use the @ease test strips, they merely tell you if the TC is normal or not, and does not give an actual reading in ppm.  In actuality, the TC will be 10-15ppm.

The special chlorine in @ease is formulated to have one chlorine atom to be released immediately and one atom that gets stashed in reserve.  Thus:  When you use your spa, you continuously pull from the TC, as the mineral cartridge can sense when the FC is getting too low and will release chlorine from reserve.  This keeps your sanitizer from taking a nosedive to zero.  It is also why you only have to use shock once a month.  Regular sodium dichlor will release both atoms immediately, leaving nothing really in reserve. 

So as of right now everything is exactly where it needs to be.  Additionally, pH and alkalinity are imperative with this system.  Yes:  Water chemistry is important regardless of the sanitizer or the spa.  But as the TC has such an enormous reserve, it cannot be enacted if the pH is off.  And if you keep it in check, it always has a reservoir to pull from.

Think of it this way:  The @ease system is a way to have the FC continuously at .5-1.0ppm with a huge supply of reserve chlorine not unlike if you were to float tablets.  However, you do not have the harmful chlorine gas that builds up with a chlorine floater, and the @ease "tabs" would dissolve after a month. 

Make sense?

[htnj]

Ok, got it, that makes me feel better.

Because I did the FC test with the Taylor kit and got that 0.4ppm, then added the 5 drops of R-0003.  Now when adding the R-0871, you're supposed to count the drops and multiply by the drop equivalence (in my case 0.2ppm) to get ppm combined chlorine.  I got upwards of 50 drops and stopped counting

With the frog strips, they too were showing 10+ ppm. 

But after reading what you said, I feel more comfortable, and will just focus on dialing in the pH and seeing how everything improves.  I do notice when I flip the cover open it has a strong-ish chlorine smell.  Not 'burn your eyes out strong' but quite noticeable.

After all the dry acid I added this morning, I'll check the pH when I get home and see how it's looking.  All-in-all though, the water is super crystal clear.  So clear you almost don't even see the water when everything is shut off.  There's 2 frustrations I have though; 1) with the circ pump running, you open the @ease inline carrier and water will pour out, 2) you can't turn the circ pump off at all unless its in prime mode.  I wish the hold button affected the circ as well.

[The Wizard of Spas]

Here is a thread where we discussed @ease.  Scroll down and look for my responses, and they're spread throughout the 3 pages...

http://www.whatsthebest-hottub.com/forum/index.php/topic,18862.0.html

[htnj]

yeah I was in that thread too; thanks, you've been a huge help!

I'll report back later!

[The Wizard of Spas]

Per the circ pump question:  It isn't the most convenient way but it isn't inconvenient either.  The blue cartridge lasts 3-4 weeks, just about the same amount of time that you'd want to take out your filter cartridge for cleaning.  Thus- Just flip off the breaker and remove the blue cartridge and spray off your filter cartridge and replace both. 

[htnj]

Hey there again.  So after getting home last night, I checked and the pH was still sitting around 7.5 or so, FC looked good around 1ppm and TA was around 90.

Sweet I thought.  Then this morning I fired up the tub, all jets\waterfalls\air etc. and after 30 minutes or so the pH was so dark red it was off the chart.  I turned everything off, waited a few minutes, then tested again, dark red, so I did the acid demand test and determined that 2 drops brought it back down to where it should be.

Based on the dry acid chart in the Taylor book, I would need 1.35oz dry acid to lower it.  So I premixed it, and added with everything running for 5 minutes or so.

Now about an hour later I checked, and the pH is still dark red like 8+.  I re-checked the TA and its got to be 60-70 because 6 drops is very light pink and 7 makes it definitively red\pink.  So it seems like the latest addition of dry acid was not as effective as it should've been.

So what is going on?  Where do I go from here?  @ease says TA 80-120 but anytime I get close to that, the pH rockets up. 

Any help is greatly appreciated.

EDIT: the CH is also still fine; 150ppm.  @ease recommends 150-250ppm
Looking at my sat index calculator; I'm thinking I should perhaps push my CH up to 175 or so, then get my TA near 90 which would mean I need a 7.5 pH.  I just cant figure out how to increase TA from 60-90 when my pH is already so high.  ugh

[The Wizard of Spas]

What I would be interested in seeing is if the pH is actually at that level, or if the chlorine level is giving you a false-positive.  Sometimes you have to de-chlor the sample when reading pH, as chlorine is high in pH. 

In my time with @ease I haven't had issues with pH outside of the normal.  I use the @ease strips for showing customers but I'll also check with my WAVE XPRESS III system (electronic hardware that works with the Pool Watch Water Analysis software) here in my showroom.  I find both to be accurate. 

To be fair, I have not asked King Technology (maker of @ease) if their test strips are specifically formulated for their product.  I can check into it and see if other testing equipment may be susceptible to any irregularities.

EDIT:  By all accounts- The pH is not being affected by the @ease system.  I did some research and by all accounts its something outside the sanitizer. 

[htnj]

Ok. Thanks for checking.

I need to figure it out though. Maybe I'll take some water to my local store and have them check the ph.

I have CH: 200. TA: 80. That tells me PH needs 7.5 at 100 degrees for a perfect balance. So we'll see what the pool store says. My Taylor kit is still telling me off the chart.

I tested FC using dpd test and got 0.6. So that looks ok.

You think it's safe to use wit unknown ph?  The frog smartchlor strips  ironically are showing a decent ph but showing a really low ta. Other indicators look fine.