New pool, new climate, newbie

[bensmail]

Hi all

I have a little experience with an above ground Intex inflatable in a northern climate. I just moved south... FAR south to Clearwater, FL. The house came with an in-ground kidney shaped pool. Ton of rain here so I quickly learned how to drain the pool then I cleaned the filter after watching a youtube video. It's a Hayward tall cartridge filter.

Looks like the previous owners dumped a bunch of chlorine in there. I found some test strips and a liquid test kit, both say the chlorine level is off the chart high.

I vacuumed the bottom and drained the dirty water into the driveway... there was a lot of stuff settled on the bottom, mostly small particles. Then I brushed the side walls and been running the pump a lot.

3 questions:

How do I know how many gallons this pool is. Adding chemicals always goes by gallons. I have no clue. It's got a deep end.... how do I go about finding that information?

When you touch the side of the pool your hand turns blue..... It's a cement pool(no liner) and it has some sort of blue coating. I talked to a pool guy on the phone and he said it might be a coating that needs refinishing and that would probably run around 2K. I have not had anyone out to look at the pool or help me out. Can I just clean the pool walls and live with it for now? Brushing just made the water cloudy and you still get blue stuff on your hands touching the walls.

Is there anything I need to know to keep from making any huge mistakes and breaking my pool? Should I get a pool guy out here to just look it over and tell me anything I need to know?

Thanks!

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello and welcome to TFP! We a few things to address. Use these links to maintain your pool:
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart
Poolmath calculator
Pool School - Recommended Levels
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
TFTestkits.net
Pool School - Test Kits Compared
Right now, make sure you have one of the recommended test kits. That should be priority #1. Without it, there's not much advice we can give by guessing on the chemical status of your water.

It's hard to tell what's happening with you pool surface (age, chemical reaction, etc). Do you know how old the pool is?

Also, there's a pool size calculator at the bottom of the poolmath calculator that may help you try to figure out the gallon size of your pool.

As for avoiding mistakes, invest a little time on those links above. Those pages will keep you ahead of the game. Hope this helps get you going. Let us know if you have any more questions.

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Also, please add your pool info to your signature by going to the top of the TFP web page (just under the Pool School button) and select "SETTINGS". On the next page look to the left for a menu bar that says, “MY SETTINGS” and go to "EDIT SIGNATURE" to enter your pool and equipment info there. It will help us later.

 

[robertmee]

The blue staining could be from Copper. If the previous owner was using tablets, alot of those contain copper which will cause the blue staining. Take a sample of water to the pool store and have them test for metals. However, don't buy any of their concoctions, just get a test done. The recommended pool test kits don't test for metals, so this is one case where a pool store can be beneficial.

You can also test for copper yourself if you're so inclined...Here's a thread with some good info: gunnite pool with blue stains

 

[woodyp]

Is this pool painted perhaps?

 

[bensmail]

Yes, I believe the pool is painted. I went in for the first time today. The entire surface is coated with white residue and when you touch it you get baby blue coloring on your hand that matches the color of the pool wall. I could see my footprint on the bottom where I jumped in and you can draw in it with your finger like a dirty car. I tried wiping it off with a white towel and that turned baby blue also. Trying to clean it stirs up a lot of dust and clouds the water. I've used some chemical for treating cloudy water and that helps but there is still a lot of the residue left on the walls and floor. Is there an easier way to clean this stuff off? Should I be concerned??