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These are fun! In a few days you‘ll be able to toss a quarter in and see if it’s heads or tails and then you’ll say, “Now THAT‘S what a clean pool looks like.” And then you’ll be grossed out when you see other people’s pools. ?

My plan is to add SLAM levels of chlorine, and simultaneously vacuum the pool (I’ll be vacuuming blind because I can’t see the bottom). I have a leaf catcher thingy inline with my hose (I once sucked up a chunk of hardwood that blocked my skimmer line, like to never got the sucker out), so if...

I’m going to chime in only to get the ball rolling for you; it won’t take long for an “expert” to chime in. I’m answering because I opened my pool today and have the exact situation (and exact same filter) that you do. You need the DE properly run the filter but you’ll be “bumping“ it frequently...

Hi Denise! I don't really have much to add except that you're going to be so glad you found this forum in the early stages of pool ownership. I found it after some twenty years of doing it the pool store way. Could have saved a lot of time, money, and aggravation. You're gonna do great!

Thanks, Pat! I really appreciate you educating me on how this stuff works (and being patient with my questions!). I have a better understanding of the plumbing side of things. I'll discuss with my husband and see what he wants to do and how much $$ he's willing to part with. �� I'm...

So in your setup (pretty pool BTW, I love the color) water comes in through the skimmer, passes through a check valve and then a 3-way before hitting the pump (why the 3-way if the water only has one place to go, to the pump? or is that to draw water from two places, skimmer or main drain?)...

Dndrich, I started TFP around the same time you did and couldn't agree with you more! I haven't opened my pool yet and I may be in for a nasty surprise, (who knew this winter would be so mild), but I know exactly what to do to fix it. No $500 trips to the pool store for magical potions that...

Hi Pat, thanks for your input as well as that from Dave S. At this time we're not considering a pump or filter change; both are fairly new, 5 years old or less, and seem to be serving us well at this point. All of the plumbing runs below the concrete apron, so highly likely we'll not ever...

As I said in the OP, I was grubbing out some ornamental grass that had grown around the pump and filter area. I had to fight the grass every time I needed to clean out the pump basket. That's how the pipe got broken (accidentally hit it with the grub axe, apparently the PVC was/is very brittle...

If I attached the photos correctly (and I'll try again if not), one is of the plumbing setup in relation to the pool and the other is a closer view. I misspoke about two of the valves, they are gate valves, not ball. Also, yes, that is a tub of pucks. They are three years old and that's what...

Hoping to get my pool running for the year, waiting on some new parts (simple stuff, gaskets, etc). Today I was moving some ornamental grass that was too big/too close to the pump and filter and managed to break the pvc return line. Oops. I don't think it will be a huge repair, but my husband...

Update: I went to bed Wednesday night tired and frustrated (and just a bit angry). I was not looking forward to the idea of having to dig up the pipe to clear it completely. We had water flowing to the pump, but it was weak and of course the return flow to the pool was also weak. I didn't sleep...

Also, Richard, I see your picture, but we have no way to divert water to one side or the other. Our skimmer has two holes in it, one draws the water toward the pump, the other hole I'm assuming is to the floor drain but there's no diverter within the skimmer or any kind of valve that we can...

Richard, we had the drain king in the equipment side of the skimmer pipe (I can't get it far enough in the skimmer suction hole to inflate properly), hose all the way on, and let it run for quite a while (ten minutes maybe). Some water was coming up through the skimmer hole, but it seemed like...

Kim, sorry I didn't see your post until just now. I think we've been doing a variation on what you've suggested. Stop up one side, pump in water to try to build pressure. Reverse. We'll keep trying. I'm so frustrated (and therefore borderline angry!) that I might need to leave it for a day or...

Zea3, thanks for chiming in. No, I don't have a dedicated vacuum port. I used a Drain-King type device to plug the skimmer line at the pump end, then turned on the water (now pointed toward the pool). It never really did much of anything (our guess is that the water was running back up through...

Yippee, thanks for the links. They were very helpful. I'll order one or the other ASAP. Dave, I checked everything I could think of. Checked impeller, disassembled filter, cleaned that out (it wasn't dirty at all because I had cleaned it out before we closed in the fall, but just to make sure...

Hi, Yippee, yes, we remove the skimmer basket to vacuum, and the chunks go to the pump basket. This is the way we've always done it (20+ years with this pool). Of course as I read and troubleshoot, im finding that that's probably not the best way. I can't collect it in the skimmer basket because...

I recently opened my pool, water was relatively clear (for the first time ever, yay TFP!). Bottom was filthy with dirt (loop loc permeable cover, so no surprise there). Pump motor dead so had to replace that (successful install, I think, yay me!). Ran the pump last night for an hour and a half...

Thanks for your input also, jokaankit. I am reasonably handy, just not when it comes to electricity and water. My husband replaced the last one, so I guess he can do it again with no trouble. I wondered it it would be beneficial to up the horsepower just a bit, but learned there's a lot more...

Awesome, Scooperhsd! I think I'm just going to go with exactly what we had (again) because I know it works. Thanks for the input on the timer tabs. Never would have thought to look at Home Depot for them.

Just the fumes from the MA alone will leave you coughing and gasping. I always hold my breath and squint my eyes (even when wearing safety glasses) when I pour. Glad you're still with us!

I admit to being ignorant about all the parts and pieces, but I know we have a 1HP AOSmith motor on a Hayward pump. The motor has gone bad and needs to be replaced. We have replaced it before with exactly what we already had, but didn't know if this time we should be looking for something...

I'm sorry to say that I didn't write down my numbers when I closed. I kept pretty decent records over the summer, starting late May when I got my kit. TA started around 120 and decreased to around 60 over the course of the summer, and CH was around 250-280. I added MA frequently over the summer...

This past year was my first year using TFP methods, and in nearly twenty years of pool ownership, it never looked better. I closed the pool MUCH later than in years prior; hyper-chlorinated and put on the loop-loc mesh cover. Ignored the pool all winter. A few days ago I peeked under the cover...

Welcome to the forum! You'll love it here. Lots of knowledgable people who are willing to teach you what you need to know. I'll answer as best I can (I'm but a newbie myself), and others will fill in the gaps. Your numbers now look pretty good. Good job getting the CYA and CH down. Your TA...

I hope not, cause that's what I do. Haven't had an explosion yet! Get some pretty colors, though.

Pucks, pucks, and more pucks. In the skimmer basket. Algaecide, pH up, pH down, alkalinity up, metal free, phosFree, heaven only knows what else. In nearly twenty years of pool ownership, had never taken the filter apart and totally cleaned it until this spring (we're on our second filter in...