New here, questions about things...

[Puppiesonacid]

I am more or less new to having a pool. bought a house with one.

I have been using a pool company to open and close it last year, and open it this year.

I have used shock and it is fine... but on here I see all the rage seems to be bleach...

1 gallon is about 2 something... and i can buy shock at costco for about 2 something per pound, or can buy the good stuff for 5 bucks at the pool place per pound.

I guess the shock may raise some levels/ lower PH where the bleach doesn't? is that the big draw to it?

I more or less got the hang of my pool... new pump this year... running it on like 300 watts and it is good so far. will turn it up when it gets warmer and sunnier. hasn't been sunny here in 2 weeks really. Near DC.

so yeah. I am always up for good tips on saving money/ better different ways to do things.

Thanks

Jason

 

[Puppiesonacid]

Also, has anyone here ever worked for pool stores and know the tricks of their trade?

I trust the place I go... I just know they sell me stuff for more than i can find it else where. IE baking soda

 

[RobbieH]

The ones around me are manned by teenagers that have no clue how to run a pool. You might as well ask a Ouiji board what to do. Or maybe a Magic 8 Ball.

 

[triptyx]

Granular, puck, or stick based chlorine usually comes with CYA - stabilizer, combined with it. If it doesn't have CYA, it has calcium in it, which in turn raises your water hardness level inexorably. This means that your CYA or your hardness constantly goes up - which can be a problem over time. Both can only be fixed by draining off the water in the pool and replacing it, or an expensive reverse osmosis treatment. The higher the CYA, the higher the chlorine levels you have to maintain to keep your pool sanitary and algae free. The reason TFP practitioners use bleach is that it is basically chlorine and a little salt. If we need to adjust how much CYA or CH is in our pool, we do so by adding ingredients that are targeted to do this. This allows us to keep tight control over our pool's chemical levels.

Meanwhile, since your CYA isn't through the roof, you need far less chlorine in the pool to keep everything in check. And should something go out of balance and you get algae, you need far less chlorine to reach "shock" levels and kill it off.

Due to being in Arizona, and since we don't drain the water in our pools in the winter (nor get a ton of rain to add fresh water), the buildup of CYA and CH are always foremost in our minds. Many pools here have a massive CYA buildup using pool store recommendations, resulting in it being very difficult to keep the sanitary and algae free. Maryland may be a little different as overall pool care approaches are different there.

We're not saying NEVER use granular chlorine products, we're just saying to understand what they do to your chemical levels and to use them appropriately and sparingly (say, you're going on vacation for a week).

 

[RobbieH]

Sorry, welcome to TFP!

I have used shock and it is fine... but on here I see all the rage seems to be bleach...
Depends, liquid shock or solid? Solid will add things other than chlorine to your pool, and eventually will get out of hand. Then you are forced to drain and refill, usually after you have an algae outbreak you can't control. If that works for you, keep doing what you are doing. We just won't be able to help you here. Our method isn't just about saving money on the products, but learning how to properly manage your pool no matter where the chemicals came from.

1 gallon is about 2 something... and i can buy shock at costco for about 2 something per pound, or can buy the good stuff for 5 bucks at the pool place per pound.
It isn't the same thing. Solid adds other stuff to the pool.

I guess the shock may raise some levels/ lower PH where the bleach doesn't? is that the big draw to it?
Not adding unwanted CYA or calcium. pH is a minor thing.

so yeah. I am always up for good tips on saving money/ better different ways to do things.
You have to decide whether to follow our methods or the pool store's. They won't intermix.

 

[Puppiesonacid]

Cool, Got it. I am still learning. I have no one way or set ways of doing things yet. but so far this has been helpful.

What do you all use as skimmer sticks? or none at all?

 

[RobbieH]

You don't put chlorine in the skimmer. Where are those pictures again?

So, no skimmer sticks.

 

[Puppiesonacid]

Ah. I had algae last year, and i couldn't get rid of it.... hmmm...

 

[Deb04]

Bleach is the preferred method for those who don't have a SWG because all it adds to your pool is chlorine. You don't need to worry about anything else going off because of what you're putting in.

I have used TFP method since we had the pool built in 2008. We have a SWG, so I rarely have to buy Chlorine, But I can tell you that I spend < $200/ year on pool chemicals. I buy CYA, salt and some chlorine to start the season. That's about it. I've been in pool stores to buy toys, thermometer, etc, and have seen people spend way more than that in one visit. This method works, once your pool is balanced it's easy, and it's cheap!

 

[Puppiesonacid]

pictures? it is burning off extra chlorine right now, so a little cloudy. they are at home on the camera though

 

[triptyx]

None at all, the skimmer sticks are just another way of chlorinating your pool, and usually add CYA (Cyanuric Acid) while they're at it. Look at the package - if it says "stabilized", it's adding CYA - CYA that can only be replaced by replacing existing water with fresh tap/well water.

 

[Puppiesonacid]

cool. guess i know what i am buying next time i go to costco... i got more shock then i know what to do with atm though.

 

[RobbieH]

Well, sorry I should have been more clear. I was referring to the pictures of a burned up liner from putting stuff in the skimmer that was put up today. You don't have a vinyl liner, so it's less of an issue, but still hard on your equipment to put those in there. They sit while the pump is off and make an extremely caustic environment, then pump comes on and sucks it all in, not to mention what it is doing to your skimmer while sitting there.

- - - Updated - - -

cool. guess i know what i am buying next time i go to costco... i got more shock then i know what to do with atm though.

Post full test results. We can tell based on your current CYA/Stabilizer.

 

[triptyx]

Try selling it on CraigsList - I'll bet you'll find a buyer.

Are you sure that cloudiness is extra chlorine and not the start of a problem? First step is to get a good testing kit - not one from the pool store. Look at TFTestkits.net and purchase a TF-100 or K-2006.

We'll need the full set of numbers to make sure you're not in trouble!

 

[Puppiesonacid]

I have clorox skimmer pucks, and shock, as well as another company, but can't think of the name right now... the high end stuff. if that means anything. i think the clorox isn't much of anything... but not sure what the filler is

- - - Updated - - -

interesting. need to do a re haul.... this is why i am here. to learn, and figure it all out before i get all screwed up need a better test kit... but i got the numbers from the pool company, will get those

 

[RobbieH]

They are trichlor, which has CYA (stabilizer)

 

[Puppiesonacid]

TC 15
FC 15
ALK 94
hardness 254
cya 84
ph 7.1

Added about 100 lbs of shock in the last week to get it to this point... they said there was something in it that wasn't going away. i believe it is gone right now... but yeah...

 

[RobbieH]

Yeah but now your CYA is at 84. If that's from the pool store or test strips, it may be even higher.

 

[Puppiesonacid]

is that good or bad. on their sheet it says between 30 to 200 is decent... and bioguard is the stuff i have.

What should I do with the CYA?

 

[triptyx]

30-50 is recommended for CYA if you're using chlorine, 70-80 for SWG pools. CYA of 84 (assuming that's a real number - the pool stores get it wrong often) means you need at least 7-11ppm FC in your pool (if it's healthy and not fighting off algae or other problems) just to keep things under control. Shock level goes up to 33ppm at that CYA level.

To lower the CYA to 50, PoolMath calls for a 40% water replacement in the pool (that would be a complete, one time drain of 40% - if you can't drain that much due to groundwater or other issues, you'll have to do multiple, smaller drains to achieve a target of 50).