Recent content by Sandra B

Looks great so far. Any updates? Are you happy with your pool builder so far? I'm planning a pool in NE OK soon, haven't even closed on the house yet, so any recommendations on pool builders in that area are welcomed.

Hi all. Looking to buy a house, and a requirement is to have a pool or be able to build one. Current house we are liking is built on 2.5 acres sloped to the lake. The backyard is built up with about 12 railroad ties on one side, going down to around 3 on the other side. The yard was obviously...

Thank you Pat and Michael! I'll do the bleach; it's so much easier to figure out. Thanks a million, I've been to Walmart and I'm out the door, only 2 hours late :). Sandra

...and don't know how! I have to leave today to take care of an ill parent for a 2-3 weeks, about 6 hours drive away. The pool was all ready (yesterday) so I went out this morning to do a last check of the equipment pad. The SWG is throwing a code 170, which means a problem with the front...

Have you unscrewed the vacuum port fitting from the wall to make sure the connector isn't somehow stopping flow? Maybe the pressure relief valve is messed up, and there's a screen to catch debris that could be clogged.

You can also purchase salt strips locally (Walmart, Home Depot, pool store) to check your salt balance. I find that the strips read a little high from my SWG, but they are in the ballpark. So if my SWG reads 3000 ppm, the strips might read 3300. But it's a good item to have in your toolbox if...

Is there no Lowes, Home Depot, or Ace hardware store nearby? Lowes and Home Depot carry MA in the outside pool section, and everyone carries MA in the paint department, all year around. The paint department version may be a lower concentrate than the pool area version, so make sure to check to...

Hi Ruth. The normal water level for most pools is about half way up the skimmer, so you should keep it around there. I'm in Shreveport, where it's really hot also, and in the summer I probably only have to top the pool off at most once a week, and that's maybe an inch if that. Also...

Hi Moi. Welcome. Do you have your own test kit? I'm asking because Cl at 1-2 is awfully low, especially if you put the 2.5 lbs of stabilizer (CYA) in. At 10,000 gallons, 40 oz of CYA will bring to you about 30 CYA, if you started with fresh water. Using the Chlorine/CYA chart here: Pool...

SWG's like a CYA of 70-80, so you're not out of the ballpark too much. As pooldv said, go ahead and SLAM at that level. It will take a bit more bleach but your pool isn't so big that it's gonna break the bank, and it looks mostly clear too. Should be a short SLAM. Keep the SWG off while you...

I have a plastic 64 oz clear paint bucket from Lowes that I measure my MA into. It's marked ounces on one side, litres on the other. Never had any issues using it and I've been using the same one for 3-4 years. It's nice using this size because I usually only add 16-24 oz MA, so it only fills...

With a CYA of 80, you should have a target CL of 9 and never below 6. I'm guessing you're getting below six in the heat of the day, so you're at the edge of an algae outbreak. Take a look at the CYA/CL relationship chart here: Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart With a 7,000 gallon pool, I'd...