New pool owner, feeling totally overwhelmed

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schmoopie11

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May 30, 2015
22
Tucson, AZ
My family just bought a house with a pool, pretty much our only experience with pools is swimming in them. We hired a pool service who, long story short, apparently didn't know what they were doing, then the pool pump broke and within 24 hrs we had green water. Now (a week later) the pump is mostly functional (still has a leak though that we just noticed when we turned it on 5 minutes ago) and another pool company that was supposed to show up this afternoon to start dealing with the water didn't show up and aren't answering the phone. I seriously just want to cry over this pool. At the same time, I am so over being dependent on these people and am ready to try to figure this out on our own. Please help!

I tried to create a signature, but was getting an error, I will try again later but here is what I can piece together from looking at the equipment and the documentation left by the previous home owners:

Pool size is 14' x 26', 8100 gallons, pebble tec, cartridge filter, 1.5 hp pump

We are in Arizona, if that is relevant.

I have read the pool school and the "how to turn your green pool blue" article, and have ordered the TF-100 Test Kit with stirrer and XL option (should get here on Tuesday).

As I mentioned, right now the pool is green and I'm not sure what I should be doing or buying at this point before the test kit arrives. Any and all advice is appreciated, thank you in advance!
 
Welcome! :wave:

Very happy to hear you've ordered a test kit. Hopefully you'll get that pump going soon.

About all I can suggest to do at present is to add 10 ppm FC every day and brush the pool to get it well mixed. In 8100 gallons, that's almost exactly one 121 oz jug of 8.25% bleach. It won't clear your pool, but it should stall the progression from green to thick gooey green or black. Once you have a test kit, you can deal with things intelligently.

In the meantime, read some of the linked threads in this: Recovering my old inspirational links - Page 2 Start at the last one and move up so you see the most recent first. They should help give you some hope.
 
HI schmoopie,
Welcome to TFP!

You have certainly came to the right place. First let me say THANK YOU for reading some of pool school and going ahead getting the test kit on order. That will be the best investment you could possibly make.

Richard advised on holding off algae until your test kit arrives....

Either sooner or later, you will need some Muriatic Acid which is used to lower pH. so it wouldnt hurt to pick up a jug at your local hardware store or big box store. Check the paint section.

Go ahead and pick up some bleach too. Regular concentrated with no fancy scents or splashless additives. Start with 10 gallons and if you dont need them all for the slam, then you can use them for regular chorine additions.

Are you familiar iwth Pool Math? If not, here is a link. This will be your best friend.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html

Also, here is a reference to the FC/ CYA chart.
Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart

In addition to reading the SLAM procedure and making yourself familiar with it while waiting on your test kit... also check out the ABCs of Pool Chemistry. Its a simplistic explanation of how the different water parameters play together and what the do.
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
 
Welcome! These great guys have you taken care of! I just want to say welcome, give you a virtual hug, and tell you I was overwhelmed just a few months ago. You can do this and you will be oh so glad you took control of your pool!

I'm rooting for you!


[emoji176] Lisa P.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Welcome to the forum. :wave:

Yes, I suggest you do take it out. It is adding CYA to your pool and you may not want that. The one jug of bleach each day (as Richard320 suggests) is really good advice. Divin Dave is a master at doling out help you will need.

Your eyes will soon be opened to proper pool care and you will never look back...promise.

I assume the username is a Seinfeld reference?
 
I too live in Tucson area, Oro Valley. If you want a reference to a pool pump guy PM me. Just used him once on a reference from a coworker but did a good job for me.

As you progress with your test kit numbers the forum can help you. With all our sun in AZ I have had success with 60 ppm CYA after bringing it down from over 150.
 

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Pogueld said:
Welcome! These great guys have you taken care of! I just want to say welcome, give you a virtual hug, and tell you I was overwhelmed just a few months ago. You can do this and you will be oh so glad you took control of your pool!

I'm rooting for you!


[emoji176] Lisa P.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Thank you so very much, I needed that!

- - - Updated - - -

duraleigh said:
Welcome to the forum. :wave:

Yes, I suggest you do take it out. It is adding CYA to your pool and you may not want that. The one jug of bleach each day (as Richard320 suggests) is really good advice. Divin Dave is a master at doling out help you will need.

Your eyes will soon be opened to proper pool care and you will never look back...promise.

I assume the username is a Seinfeld reference?
Click to expand...

Yes, username comes from Seinfeld, I love that show!
 
BuckeyeChris said:
how deep is your pool? ours is 12x26, 4/5/4 with a Baja shelf, and it's about 11,000 gallons. I'd hate for you to under-dose your pool because your volume estimate was low.
Click to expand...

The pool is 3'-5' with some steps and a bench. It is oval-ish shaped. I took the gallons from a paper left from the previous owners called the final working drawing from the company that built the pool. I hope it's correct.
 
Some background on the pump situation - When we moved into the home, our first pool service guy noticed a small leak from the pool pump, when he attempted to fix it it became a big spray, then he said it would have to be replaced completely (something about bearings or stripped bolts, my husband might have a better idea but having no clue about pool equipment it mostly went over both our heads.). When we bought the house a home warranty was included so we've been trying to go through them with much frustration. After much back and forth and a long estimated wait time to get it fixed (they needed to order and ship the pump and had no idea how long that process would take) we called the nearby pool store to ask about them just coming out to replace them pump at our own cost (guess it's apparent how home warranty companies make their money), the guy there told us that due to AZ law we had to replace our single speed pump with a variable speed one and the cost was ~$1200 plus a couple hundred to install. That was fun news to receive.

My husband called back the warranty company and after 45 mins on the phone they agreed to let their chosen contractor come out an install a pump he had in stock. So he came out on Friday and installed the replacement pump (which was as far as I could tell was the same as the old one, was he not supposed to do that according to AZ law?), he said to give it half a day to let some kind of sealant/glue dry that was connecting it to whatever other pipes. When we turned it on yesterday there was a steady drip that quickly became 2 then 3 drips, we called the guy within their Saturday hours and left a msg but never got a call back. Given that today is Sunday I'm guessing we won't hear back today either. What i'm wondering is what is up with this whole single/variable thing, should be not be installing this? If this is incorrect and needs to be changed I forsee a huge hassle with the warranty company and truly this is stressing me out to the point I just want it fixed and we are willing to just pay for it ourselves to get it done, we just don't know anything about pumps or what we need.

Jen
 
Jen, I am sure some some of our pump experts will pipe in soon! I am good with chemicals and I know how to use my pump - lol.

Someone will come along and help you out. I'm sure of it.


[emoji176] Lisa P.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I am not sure about AZ laws. But, VS pumps are very energy efficient and the versatility of being able to change pump speed is very handy. We run our VS at 1100 rpm to make chlorine with SWG and skimmers. It only uses 150 watts at 1100 rpm. I can run the pump 24x7 for less than 12 bucks a month at $0.1025/kwh.

The Pentair 342001 is a suitable VS pump for your pool. Usually in stock and 650 bucks at sunplay.com.

Pentair SuperFlo VS Pump 342001 | Pentair 342001
 
Hi Jen,
me again. I just want to say that duraleigh gives me entirely too much credit for doling out advice! A master, I am not! Truly, everything I will probably ever tell you is contained in pool school and some other more in-depth posts on this forum. If there is kudos to go out, it is to duraleigh for having this forum available to us all, for free, so we can keep our pools well cared for, and safe and oh so sparkly and a pleasure to swim in, float around it, play games in and whatever else we do int... And a sparkly crystal pool is a joy just to look at! :)

Regarding your pump. Many states do now mandate that energy efficient pumps be installed on new installations and pump replacements.
(but there is no pump police to check it, so stores and installers still put single speed ones in, regardless).

Energy efficient pumps in most if not all states however are not relegated to a Variable Speed Pump only! Someone is try to sell you the most expensive pump they can, so they can make more money! Whether you need it or not is not in the pool stores best interest. This is why we typically distrust pool stores - imensely!

A 2 speed pump Im sure satisfies the energy efficient state requirement.
A 2 speed pump on low speed, will result in only 1/4 of the energy consumption that a single speed pump will. Even if you have to shell out $ for a 2 speed pump yourself, it will probably pay for itself in a1 year or 2 at the most in the form of saving on the electric bill. After that first year, the savings are just money in your back pocket.

I can tell you also, that depending on your cost/KWH of electricity, a variable speed pump can save even more than that.
Generally speaking, if your electric cost is > .20 cents/ kwh, a VSP would be a good investment.
If its less than that, then a 2 speed would be the best for you.

You may be able to google your state laws about pumps online, or check with your county extension agent. He may be able to help you determine what is required, and what is not. Barring that, check with your municpal building permit office, they may be able to also help.

[EDIT] Well there you go, Wildcat has already hooked you up!
 
Lot of misinformation out there on new pool pump law in AZ.

New Pool Pump Regulations for 2012 < The Arizona Republic | Rosie on the House


Even Rosie seems to have it wrong, equates energy efficient with only variable speed. While I personally think variable speed is better than two speed because it is so quiet and I can set like ten programs without a separate control box.

This site seems to more directly state the law and it seems to even allow single speed if they are on the list of approved pumps and less than 1 HP

Arizona Pool & Spa Energy Requirements (Title 44) | Issues and Advocacy | APSP



http://apsp.org/resources/energy-efficient-pool-pumps.aspx This site has a link to an Excel spreadsheet with all the approved pumps. While mostly VS or 2 speed there are some SS on there as well



Does the law allow for single speed pumps?
Yes, if the pump is less than one Total-HP, a single speed pump can be installed. If the pump is NOT for filtration purposes, i.e. a booster pump for a cleaner or water feature, it can be any size single speed pump. Multi-speed (2 speed or greater) pumps are only required if the pump is one Total- HP or greater and being used for filtration purposes. The law requires pool owners be given a choice when selecting a replacement pump of either a single-speed pump or a multi-speed pump that offers increased energy efficiency..
 
New pump is installed and my test kit came today. I've read the instructions, watched the videos, etc. but I want to make sure I'm doing this right - for the chlorine drop test the water turned pink after adding the scoop of r-0870 but adding the r-0871 solution kept making the water darker and darker pink until it was a dark pink/purple color, this was after 60 drops, I wasn't sure if I should keep going or if I was doing something wrong or if my FC is really high and after a certain number I could just stop b/c it was so high so as not to waste drops?
 

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