We have started our conversion today!

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knousehouse

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LifeTime Supporter
May 30, 2010
19
Salisbury NC
Hi,

We have been reading the boards and information on this site and we have been amazed at the level of support and interaction. We are so glad we found you!

We have started our conversion today from Baqua and will be going to a SWG system. The SWG system has been installed, but is turned off until we get our FC to the correct levels for two days. The salt has not been added yet. We are taking pictures and are happy to share them.

We started with a heavy green algae and got the pool to clear with Baqua and everything was at the proper levels. Within a few days, it was turning green again. We have had the pool for 5 years, the first two were fine, but the last three have been getting more and more difficult and expensive to maintain. We have spent a fortune and have similar stories as a lot of you with our pool store experiences.

I'll have to find the UCP (whatever that is) to add our pool info to our signature, but it is 20k gallons with a 1 yr old vinyl liner and sand filter. Let us know if you need additional info.

We got the Ph to 7.2 and then we started with 4 gallons + 3 quarts of bleach per the calculator and have the water set to recirculate, not filter through the sand. Should we run it through the sand right away or wait a little while? I'm afraid that the sand is already a problem as the pressure seems high and we have backwashed it several times over the last few days. I do have to replace the pressure gauge as it doesn't go to zero, but it does rise and fall from 10-20.

We will check the FC every hour or so today and tomorrow and then will have to do mornings and evenings around work. We are using a wallmart test kit, but have ordered the the TFTestkits TF-100 XL. If anyone has any suggestions, we would be happy to get them. We are novices, but are learning pretty quickly.

Thanks in advance,

Steve & Sabrina
 
S & S,

Welcome! :lol:

You're off to a good start.

1. Unless you have done so, get more bleach....much, much more. 50 gallons is not too much as you can use it during the summer if it is not all used up in the conversion.

2. Replace your guage. They're cheap (<10) and invaluable.

3. Run your system on filter. YOu need to start getting out some of the baquagoo that you will create. Simply backwash when you see the psi rise 8-10 or so from normal and keep filtering. Filtering is one of the most important aspects of this process. YOu'll change out sand at the end.
 
Thanks Duraleigh,

I just switched it over to filter and after the third hour, the FC dropped to 5...after the first hour, it dropped to 0.6.

We are in Salisbury NC which is between Charlotte and Greensboro, so not too far from you!

Thanks for the advise. We'll be posting pictures this evening.

S&S
 
OK, this seems to be going a lot faster than I expected. We started out with pretty low Baqua because I did a lot of vacuuming to waste out and replenished the water before we started the conversion. Since the test kit I currently have only goes to a chlorine level of 5, is there a way to dilute to get a good or usable number when it is 10 to 15? The good test kit should be here by Wednesday.

Also, when should I expect the water to start clearing up? The foam and colors are definitely getting a lot better, but I can't see the bottom. I will start brushing and vacuuming tonight.

I will be going to the store to get the CYA and sand tomorrow. How do I test the levels for CYA when we add it or should I wait for the other test kit to get here? I'll look around Wallmart or Lowes to see if they have one that does that. Also, is it worth getting the liquid CYA, if they have it, so I don't have to wait for it to dissolve? I know it's more expensive, but for the conversion, time is more important to me. I'd like to spend next weekend relaxing and swimming rather than working around the house! :hammer:

Is there anything I am missing? I will get the pictures out soon, but have to get back out to work on the dock before it gets dark!

Thanks,

S&S
 
Right now the FC level will be falling very quickly. So all you really need to do is to wait till the FC level is below 2, which you can measure with your current test, and then add another 15 ppm of chlorine. Later, you will need the fancier test kit to precisely determine high FC levels, but right now that isn't required.

If you are using a common OTO test kit, drops added to the sample turn it various shades of yellow, you want to watch the color of the sample right at the start of adding the drops. The OTO test shows TC, but right at first it shows FC, and then over the next 30 seconds it drifts towards the TC reading. Since your CC level is likely to be fairly high, it is the color right at the start of the test that is the interesting one.

You don't add any CYA till much later. You will need the CYA test one week after you add CYA. You will actually need the FAS-DPD test well before that, since you shouldn't add CYA until the FC level holds at 15 overnight, which requires the precision of the FAS-DPD test.

How quickly things clear up depends a great deal on how frequently you add chlorine. The water might clear up tomorrow or in a couple of weeks. The more often you raise the FC level back up, the sooner that will be.
 
You guys (and gals) are awesome! The foam/scum is gone and I could see the bottom step. When I turn the light on in the pool, now that it is dark, there was a nice orange/red sunburst that is now turning more yellow. We added bleach throughout the afternoon for a total of 12 182oz bottles. I also brushed a few minutes ago.

I guess I should continue to add bleach when it drops into range on my cheap test kit (thanks for the tip on checking it quickly when the drops are added) and wait until I get the good kit Wednesday. Is that correct?

Jason: On a side note, it seems to be a small world. We relocated from Ellicott City MD and we both grew up in Columbia. I used to spend a lot of time in Silver Spring. :cheers:

Thanks again,

S&S

PS. I will get the pictures up. Sabrina took the camera to a party this evening before I could download them.
 
Hi this is Sabrina.

Steve asked me to post some pictures but I am having a bit of trouble getting them on the board - they may be too big. Here is a link to my Facebook album. Steve still has some pictures he needs to send me to add but it is a start. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137836&id=1421900454&l=be7d0aa3e9

We will try to post pictures here again later. Thanks everyone for your help!
 
knousehouse said:
Hi this is Sabrina.

Steve asked me to post some pictures but I am having a bit of trouble getting them on the board - they may be too big. Here is a link to my Facebook album. Steve still has some pictures he needs to send me to add but it is a start. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137836&id=1421900454&l=be7d0aa3e9

We will try to post pictures here again later. Thanks everyone for your help!
Click to expand...
S&S: Keep up with the bleach! You are doing great and with the current sun we're having in NC right now (I'm in Oak Ridge, right up the road!) the baqua-stuff and the sun are going to eat the chlorine fast!

Terry in NC (enjoying the REAL saltwater! :cool: )
 

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Well, this morning in NC it was sunny. By about 11:00 am it started pouring and put a "damper" on our conversion. Posted more pictures on my Facebook link from last night and today when the rain finally stopped. I wish I would have taken pictures before we stirred up the bottom of the pool today because it is looking pretty good. We backwashed and added more bleach. We are optimistic that we will be ready for salt by Friday.

To see more pics, click link. http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137836&id=1421900454&l=be7d0aa3e9 and thanks again for all of your help!

Sabrina
 
I wanted to give a personal recommendation for TFTestkits. We placed the order over the weekend and paid for expedited shipping because the conversion was moving quicker than we expected. They called this morning and told us they could save us some money on the shipping and still get it here by tomorrow! I told them we had signed up for this site and received a discount code after we placed the order. They immediately said they would honor the discount and add it to the refund.

That is just outstanding service. Not too many companies would take the time to call so a customer could save money. I will absolutely recommend them to all of our friends. :-D

Getting ready to go out to the pool, but I can see the bottom from the house! We're not done yet, but wouldn't have gotten through this so well without all of your help. We'll try to get a few more pictures added so you can see the progress.

S&S
 
Hi, Sabrina here again...

Day 3 progressing nicely. Was able to purchase 3 cases of bleach at work so I did not flip out Wal-Mart again. Heck, I bet they have expanded their bleach selection by at least a shelf because of me! Anyway, photos are on my Facebook page and you can see the pool pictures by accessing this link: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137836&id=1421900454&l=be7d0aa3e9

If anyone has trouble seeing, let me know. I was unable to post them to this page - I think because of size.

Thanks again for the great help and great service with the TFTestkits site... :wave:

s
 
OK, we got our TFTestkit today as promised!

I first checked and there was no chlorine, or at least no color change. We did add bleach last night around 9pm. I added 3 gallons of 5% beach, brushed, waited about an hour and retested.

FC=14
CC=2
TC=16 (adding the two together correct?)

There were a few yellow streaks on the bottom which I brushed out and it also looked like I stirred up some goo or something (brown cloud). It settled quickly, but the bottom does not look dirty. Otherwise, the pool is starting to look very good and clear. Looks like we are getting close!

I am adding some water since all of the backwashing has dropped the level to about 1-2" above the bottom of the skimmer frame.

Have I missed anything? I have the company that installed the SWG scheduled to come out on Friday to balance and put the salt in. Heck, I am positive I could balance it myself now, but will let him finish the job. The only thing he wouldn't do is the baqua conversion and I can see why now.

Let me know if there is anything else I should do or if I missed anything. I know that once I can hold the FC and get the CC to 0 I have to replace the sand.

S&S
 
Great! You are moving right along.

When an overnight FC loss test shows a loss of 1.0 of FC or less, you can change the sand and then add CYA. Then, when your CC level is 0.5 or lower two days in a row the conversion is complete.
 

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