Churn

Churn is a faithful chart implementation of churn: heavy effort with missing result, measured rather than eyeballed. A bar qualifies when volume reaches 1.5x its 20-bar average while range stays at or below 1x its own. Context over the last 50 bars then leans the reading: distribution after an extended advance or within 2% of the window's high, accumulation after an extended decline, neutral elsewhere.

How to Trade the Churn?

• Circle above the bar (distribution-leaning): heavy volume going nowhere after an advance or near prior highs — the classic caution for longs.
• Circle below the bar (accumulation-leaning): the same print after a decline, leaning toward absorption.
• Solid versus faded markers: a bar closing off its highs (or off its lows in an accumulation context) is close-weighted and emphasized.
• Sequence band: consecutive churn bars trap a tight range; the band extends until a close escapes, with triangles marking a resolution on expanding range.

Churn Settings

• Baseline Length (default 20): bars used to average volume and bar range.
• Volume Threshold (x Average) (default 1.5): minimum relative volume; practical settings often run 1.5x to 2x.
• Range Threshold (x Average) (default 1): maximum relative range for a bar to count.
• Close Position Threshold (default 0.5): close location adding weight to a churn bar.
• Context Length (default 50): lookback classifying the lean.
• Prior High Proximity % (default 2): distance from the window high that still reads distribution-leaning.
• Minimum Sequence Length (default 2): consecutive churn bars required for a band.
• Show Dashboard (default enabled) with Location (Top Right) and Size (Small).
• Style toggles: Churn Markers, Sequence Bands, Resolution Markers on by default, Color Churn Bars off.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does churn differ from stopping volume?

Both are effort-versus-result reads, but stopping volume looks for heavy volume arresting a directional move, while churn flags heavy volume producing almost no move at all. Churn is also two-sided — its lean comes from context, not the bar's direction.

Why did a flag appear on an obvious news bar?

Volume at rebalances, expirations, or earnings sessions is often mechanical rather than informative, and the detection cannot tell the difference. The dashboard exposes the underlying figures so such bars can be checked by hand.

Does a churn sequence predict a reversal?

No — churn marks two-sided conviction, not direction. The band matters more than the single bars: an escape with expanding range prints a resolution marker and fires its own alert, in either direction.