Newb in Need of Assistance

[joe7670]

I have a kidney shaped pool with about 18K gallons in Miami FL. Had a pool guys taking care of it but fired him due to some green areas on the wall.

Orderd a test kit and the readings are as follows:
FC 4.5
CC 0
TC 4.5
Ph 7.2
T/A 60
CH 460
CYA 50

How can I figure out if I need to add anything to it now?
More importantly I'll be out for 4 days beginnig tomorrow and was wondering what I need to do to make sure it's not out of whack when I get back.

Lastly, the pool guy was keeping the water in what seemed to be ok state, but these green patches kept showing up on the walls. Any ideas why this is happening? I asked him and he didn't know which I found unacceptable for someone that does this every day.

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

 

[lsbarkley]

I am just a novice here but I guess I will try my best.

What type of pool do you have? vinyl? fiberglass? etc.

What type of chlorine do you use? Pucks, Salt Generator, etc.

How long is your pump run time?

Have you shocked the pool recently and how often do/did you shock and how much did you use?

My guess is that your chlorine is in the 4.5 or below range. I think at some point it got a little low and allowed algae to start up. Since you have noticed the "green" have you shocked? I am in a battle with algae as we speak but seeing the end soon. The other info should help the others in this forum guide you as to what to do. My guess is that it will be to shock the pool and then keep a watch and shock again until the Chlorine holds at the shock level. I am sure someone will come rescue my efforts soon...lol.

Very soon you will be on the right track.

Ls

 

[gonefishin]

Hi Joe...you'll get plenty of good advice from the members here. They're a great bunch with a good deal of knowledge and experience.

One reason why the algae could have kept coming back is that you may have had a bloom that he treated with a single "shock attack", which may have been enough to knock the algae off it's feet...but not enough to kill it. From there your maintenance levels of chlorine may have been a bit weak to finish the algae off. But without knowing everything he did...it's purely speculation.

When you shock...you want to shock to the proper level (based on your CYA) and continue to maintain that level until all the algae is gone. A way to test when the algae is gone is to take a chlorine reading at night (after the sun goes down)...then take another reading early in the morning (before the sun comes up). If your chlorine level has dropped more than 1ppm, then you still have something "consuming" the chlorine. Most likely your algae. If your chlorine drop is less than 1ppm then you can let your chlorine levels naturally drop to the maintenance level (based on your CYA). Also...keep your solar cover off when you shock.

To find out what level you should maintain your pool at AND what level you need for the most effective shock levels you can look at ChemGeeks CYA chart in my signature.


To find out how much chlorine to add based on the ppm that you have...the goal at which you would like to bring your chlorine up to...all based on the gallonage of your pool look for JasonLions Pool Calculator also in my link.

Welcome to the forum!

dan

 

[joe7670]

Pool is in ground and diamond bright finish.

Hasn't been touched in 9 days which was the last time the pool guy came by.

Trying to understand how to read chem geeks chart.

My CYA is at 50 so it looks like I need to raise my FC to 5.7 correct?
What does the shock FC column stand for? And how do I relate that to how much needs added?

Does anyone shock with the powder stuff? Or should liquid be the one used?

On Jason's calculator asside from the FC Goal which is found on the CYA chart how do I know what my goal for the rest of the items are?

Lastly, is there a target CYA to shoot for?

 

[lsbarkley]

Take a look at the stickies....they will help out alot. I would try to shock the pool up to the shock level based on your cya reading and brush the pool sides and floor well to knock off any algae. Shocking should generally be done at night when it is most effective. If FC falls overnight you need to reshock to keep the level up until you can maintain a FC reading at night and next morning have it remain the same. If it goes down the algae are more then likely using it up. Using the pool calculator will tell you how much muriatic acid to add to lower pH. I would try to get your FC in order first though. Keep us informed as to your progress.

Ls