New 18' Intex Start-Up

[Livinright]

Hello Everybody

I opened my new 18'x42" Intex Easy Set pool last Thursday which was immediately after filling it as my kiddies just couldn't wait.

Prior to filing it I received some excellent start up advice from FPM in another thread here on the board as follows:

Hi Jim,

Welcome to TFP.

If I may suggest a slightly different route, and then you can decide which action to take... my reasoning is the pucks probably won't produce enough CYA at first, to keep your FC levels stable. Then you can use pucks for vacations, etc. they keep a long time stored properly.

I would suggest you pick up three 1 pound bags of Dichlor granular chlorine (look for "sodium dichloro s triazinetrione" on the active ingredient label).

Use 1/2 cup of Dichlor every night for the first 10 days. This will build your CYA level up to 30. Then stop using the Dichlor and switch to bleach each night, referring to the CYA chart for your recommended FC level and using the Pool Calculator to determine how much bleach that is each night. You shouldn't have to shock the pool to get started.

You can usually find 1 lb bags of Dichlor or 2 lb canisters (marked for Spa use) in the pool departments of stores like Lowes, etc. or you can find it at the pool store. Wal-mart probably won't have it.

Okay, that's my suggestion, good luck and ask any questions you may have.

This advice made alot of sense to me and is what I have done so far. However, due to the lack of any CYA in my water the FC level dropped to zero on the first day. So in addition to dissolving in the Dichlor each night I have been watching and adding 6% bleach several times per day to keep the level up above 3. The FC is actually dropping so fast that I have been resetting it to 6-8 and then waiting about two hours before anybody swims. I test after they swim and the level can easily drop by 5 or so.

On saturday while nobody was in the pool I used the calculator to raise the FC level to 8. However in about 3-4 hours in the sun it was back down to 2. That's how fast it's dropping so even though I haven't done another CYA test yet, I'm pretty sure there is almost none in there.

Lastly, last night I added enough bleach to bring the FC up to 5 and then later tossed in the 1/2 cup of Dichlor. I'm still shooting a little high on the FC as it drops pretty quick and I don't want to let it get down to zero again. Even if it was only for two hours. Anyway, the FC was at 7 in the dark evening with the cover on the pool. I checked it again this morning at 7am and it had dropped to 5.5 There was some light morning sun on the pool cover.

So anyway that's what I'm doing. Adding the Dichlor to raise the CYA and FC. And also adding bleach to keep the FC from dropping too much.

My PH is still 7.5 and the pool temp is 83f. The water looks very clear but not perfect.

Am I still OK with this ??

 

[reebok]

you could buy cya and add it by itself. but be careful with the dichlor if you do. what does very clear but not perfect mean?

 

[Livinright]

Thanks for the quick reply!

By not perfect I mean that you can see some very fine particles suspended in the water when you wear the swim goggles, and they are vaguely visable when looking at the steps of the ladder. Your first reaction is "hey the water looks great!" but upon very close inspection the water clearness is not perfect.

I have the pump/filter running 24/7 when nobody is in the pool and am also cleaning the filter every day. There is usually some brown discoloration in the filter that hoses out easily and looks like liquid mud. I have also vacuumed the pool twice in it's 4 days of usage mainly coming up with hair from my girls.

ON EDIT: I forgot to mention that I received my new TF-100 test kit on Saturday just in time for checking all of this I still have the HTH 6 way drop based kit from Wal-Mart too.

ON SECOND EDIT ! I forgot to mention that because the FC was dropping so rapidly that I tossed in the floater loaded with 3, 1" pucks inside. They're the HTH Dual Action Chlorinating Tablets, and yes they do contain some copper. I plan on stopping these as soon as the pool is stabilized. Or sooner :?:

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Take the tablets out.

You described a 1.5 FC loss overnight in the dark....eeek...it takes the CYA out of the equasion. So you do have something organic that is helping to consume the FC level besides the sunlight.

Good thing you have the TF100 now you can use the FAS-DPD chlorine test and measure more precise.

Tonight you will do an overnight FC loss test. This will confirm the next steps.

So you have added 4 oz of Dichlor for 4 nights, this should mean your CYA is about 12...correct me if you added more or less...

If you plan to use the pool today, that's fine, just use bleach to up the chlorine level. If you don't plan to swim, proceed with the shock process below:

This evening after every is done swimming (or now), predissolve 12 oz of Dichlor and pour into the return flow. Brush the pool, making sure everything is fully dissolved. This will "shock" the pool, and should take care of whatever is lurking there that probably caused the overnight loss you described. I doubt you will have to shock again, but the FAS-DPD overnight test should confirm that.

This Dichlor addition will move your CYA level to around 20. So the nightly Dichlor additions will now only go for additional 3 nights (Tues, Wed, Thurs). After that your CYA should be around 30 which is fine, then you should be able to use bleach for regular chlorination and you should see more stable levels.

So at least 1 hour after adding the Dichlor tonight, do the FAS-DPD test. ( Do it today beforehand, to get the feel for it, and get confident in your results. ) So tonight, you test the FC and CC. Write down the result, then tomorrow before the sun hits the pool, you test the FC and CC again.

If you lose more than 1ppm of FC, you have to keep shocking. If the CC is higher than .5, you have to keep shocking. (If you have to shock again, we'll calculate how much Dichlor to use to do it, so that you can be done using Dichlor sooner and just switch to bleach.)

Run a full set of tests with the TF100 for practice.

 

[Livinright]

Super! Thanks Doctor I'll add 5 drops and call you in the morning! Just kidding The pucks will come out immediately too

But I will do exactly as advised and report back tomorrow. I've already done several of the FAS-DPD tests and am confident with it now. However, I haven't done a CC test yet. It all seems fairly simple though so no worries. I'll go ahead and start testing for all the other stuff it will do.

I have indeed added 4oz of Dichlor for 4 four consecutive nights so hopefully there is some CYA in there as suspected.

Thanks again for your most detailed and excellent advice!

Jim

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

The next three days the nightly addition of Dichlor is still 4 oz. I just wanted to clarify that so you didn't add 12 oz each by mistake.

 

[Livinright]

Thanks and understood. I'm a newb so ya gotta say :lol:

 

[Livinright]

OK I'm back with this morning's results after doing the overnight FC test. But first a little info.

Nobody swam in the pool all afternoon yesterday and although it was sunny, I did have the cover on the pool all day long. I tested the FC in the evening at about 6:45pm and it was 5. So that was only a .5 FC loss all day long. I was encouraged.

After that my two kiddies and their cousin saw me take off the cover and begged to swim even though I was standing there poised to spring the Dichlor into action. Since I was feeling positive about the FC level I let two of them swim for about 30 minutes. After that I added 12oz of dissolved Dichlor, hooked up the vacuum/brush, and proceeded to give the pool a good work over.

An hour later these were my test results, and then the morning read follows.

EVE
FC = 13
CC = .5
CYA = 20ish

MORN.
FC = 12
CC = .5
CYA = Not tested

I was strictly literal about the CC test. Even though the test water was essentially clear after adding the 5 drops of re-agent, it did have a very slight rose colored tint that completely cleared up with one drop of the (081?) re-agent. So I called it .5

As to the CYA test, I could barely see the black dot with the test tube filled to 20, but I could still see a faint outline and called it 20ish.

So am I "livin' on the edge" with these results ?
Should I shock the pool again tonight?
And most importantly, can the kiddies swim today??

In a likely unrelated incident, my 7YO DD came down with swimmer's ear Sunday and is being treated with antibiotic drops. The whole family is suspect about my pool tending skills even though I am constantly out there testing the water and assuring them I have got it under control

Thanks again for all of your help!

 

[reebok]

you passed the overnight fc loss test, however your cya is too low. swimmer's ear happens. it's the bacteria that's already in your ear that multiplies due to water stuck in the ear that the person doesn't get out. it can happen in the shower, etc. but it's obviously a lot more common with people who swim. I just got it the other month, as well as someone else here. here is a link to the thread:
ear-infection-from-the-pool-t15502.html
http://www.poolsolutions.com/gd/swimear.html

 

[Livinright]

Thanks for the links Reebok! They will help me build a defense to show my skeptical wife

I'll be adding more Dichlor each night for three more nights to build up the CYA to a target of 30.

Do you think it would be OK to let the kids swim today with the FC at 12 which is 2 above the shock level ? My DD with swimmer's ear is out of the pool for a week, but they have cousins staying with us this week that all love to swim every day.

Thanks!

Jim

 

[reebok]

I would be comfortable up to shock level (10ppm or less for cya of 20), but I would be dang sure of your cya. with it pretty low, the chlorine is a lot stronger than usual. so make sure you know "20ish" really is 20. if you're under 20, I don't know that I would let them in above pool industry standards which is 1-3 or 2-4ppm depending on the company. it should go down fairly quickly if you're getting enough sun on it.
pool-school/chlorine_cya_chart_shock

 

[Livinright]

Thanks for the info and opinion Reebok. It's appreciated.

My gut feeling was to keep them out and keep the cover on to further shock the pool. My FC only dropped .5 all day yesterday with the cover on, so I'm thinking that by leaving the cover on today the FC will still be above 10 (shock level) and continue to shock the pool.

I did lose 1ppm of FC in the overnight loss test which is technically as pass, but right on the line. So my thinking is that there is still some biological activity going on that could be further reduced. I would love to see the loss at no more that .5. Am I thinking correct? Hopefully hanging around all you smart people will rub off!

Thanks!

Jim

 

[reebok]

you are done shocking when you lose 1ppm or less overnight and cc's are .5 or less.
pool-school/shocking_your_pool
if I were you, I would call it done.

 

[Livinright]

Okay, cool.

I'll go ahead and pull the cover off then so the sun can do it's work lowering the FC today. I'll be adding a bit of Dichlor for thee more nights to bring up the CYA, but this will also add more chlorine too. I want the FC to drop below shock level so the gang (and I !) can swim.

Thanks !

Jim

 

[reebok]

have you checked yet? you may have lost enough to get down to 10ppm by now (again, if you're sure the cya is 20).

 

[Livinright]

I'm at work now so I can't check until I get home later today. I did have the gang who is at home pull the cover off so the sun can get to it. I suppose with a CYA of about 20 I should be able to drop 2FC pretty easy this afternoon to get back down to shock level. Hopefully lower.

My 10 DD is pretty sharp and I'm going to train her how to do the FAS-DPD test while I'm away so I can advise her if she can swim or not. This may all be moot point after today though

 

[Livinright]

Good grief, my pool is a chlorine monster! It dropped from an FC of 12 this morning to 5 when I checked it this afternoon! And that was before I gave the kids the go-ahead to swim. Hopefully this thing will stabilize soon.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

That kind of daytime drop when the CYA is low and the chlorine is that high is not unusual.

 

[Livinright]

Thanks FPM

I added another 1/2 cup of Dichlor tonight and 1 hour later my FC was at 7.5. I'm going to leave it like that and uncovered too and see what happens by tomorrow afternoon when I come home. Hopefully it's at least at 2 !

2 more nights of Dichlor to go.

Jim

 

[Livinright]

FC of 6.5 this morning so still losing 1 in the overnight test. Will check again later today for daytime swimming/sun loss.