Hi, I'll be assembling our first pool this weekend and had a question for y'all. Should I add my chemicals as I fill the pool or should I wait until it's full and see what my numbers will be. I'll be filling it out of our well and I do know that water is on the acidic side. (5.9 I think). Thanks for any advice. This looks like a great site with a ton of information. I have ordered my test kit and I belive the pool is ~19K gallons.
New pool coming
- Thread starter Gulfjasper
- Start date
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,754
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Hello and welcome to TFP! 
Generally you can just wait until the water reaches the skimmer opening so that you can circulate water. But more than anything, your well water would concern us. You might want to have it tested for metals - specifically iron. Test before going into the pool. Iron is very common in well water. If you have it, do some searching here at TFP about pre-filters. If you do have iron content, the more you can physically pre-filter out before it goes in the pool the better. After that, you may need to read the TFP Pool School - Metals in the Water and Metal Stains page.
Also, make sure to read our Pool School page and do not rely on that in-line chlorinator for daily sanitation. Tabs add too much CYA to water when used continuously. Great to see you've already ordered a recommended test kit.
Please make sure to add it to your signature as well for us. Have a great day!
Generally you can just wait until the water reaches the skimmer opening so that you can circulate water. But more than anything, your well water would concern us. You might want to have it tested for metals - specifically iron. Test before going into the pool. Iron is very common in well water. If you have it, do some searching here at TFP about pre-filters. If you do have iron content, the more you can physically pre-filter out before it goes in the pool the better. After that, you may need to read the TFP Pool School - Metals in the Water and Metal Stains page.Also, make sure to read our Pool School page and do not rely on that in-line chlorinator for daily sanitation. Tabs add too much CYA to water when used continuously. Great to see you've already ordered a recommended test kit.
Please make sure to add it to your signature as well for us. Have a great day!Thanks, I'll check for iron content tomorrow. I haven't hooked up the auto chlorinated yet, would you recommend not using it? And I guess that would mean a former of liquid chlorine is better?
Bought a kit from lowes. Iron content was around .3ppm and copper was 0. That makes me feel better about getting started.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,754
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Good morning! Yes, liquid chlorine is generally best to use on a daily basis. Tabs are okay only for short-time use (i.e. vacation). Are you in Milton, FL? You can check locally, but any regular bleach will do - generic is fine. Just never use splashless or scented bleaches. One thing for sure, new water won't have any stabilizer (CYA) in it, so you'll want to add some. For summer, if your pool is full sun, I would advise a target CYA of about 40-50. You can start the CYA as soon as the water is full.
Next is pH to make sure it's in the 7.5-7.8 range.
We can look at TA later, and CH shouldn't really apply to you with a vinyl pool. But all the info you need is in my sig below. It's good your iron reading is below .4. Hopefully you won't see any reaction between the chlorine and metals once combined. Still, you can always do some pre-filtering and/or place a few paper towels in your skimmer early-on to try and catch any iron residue that might be floating around. If the water starts to change to a tea brown or clear, emerald green, let us know.
After that, test FC. It will probably be low. On day one increase FC to about 3 ppm (with bleach), then once the stabilizer is dissolved and in the water you can increase FC to about 5 ppm. I wouldn't let FC drop below 4 after that in the summer heat. When in doubt, always refer to the Chlorine/CYA Chart (link below) to keep algae away.
Next is pH to make sure it's in the 7.5-7.8 range.
We can look at TA later, and CH shouldn't really apply to you with a vinyl pool. But all the info you need is in my sig below. It's good your iron reading is below .4. Hopefully you won't see any reaction between the chlorine and metals once combined. Still, you can always do some pre-filtering and/or place a few paper towels in your skimmer early-on to try and catch any iron residue that might be floating around. If the water starts to change to a tea brown or clear, emerald green, let us know.
Thanks for the help. Yes I'm in Milton, FL actually a little north of there.
The only other question I have is if I'm going to use borates, can I use that to raise the pH at the same time I'm reaching my 50 ppm. Or should I get the water chemistry stabilized first and and borax later?
The only other question I have is if I'm going to use borates, can I use that to raise the pH at the same time I'm reaching my 50 ppm. Or should I get the water chemistry stabilized first and and borax later?
Last edited:
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,754
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
I would get your basic chemistry in order first, make sure things are going well, then look at your options for borates.
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