Green pool!

[seriousnewbie]

We just bought a place that has an above ground pool. The previous owners had it looking very nice and now we've lived here about a week and a half and it is all green looking We have never owned a pool before, so are very new at it. I hope everyone can bear with me here. I did run my first water test, so I'll post that. Thanks in advance for your help!

Free chlorine between 1.5 and 5 I know this is pretty broad, but i couldn't tell much diff
Combined chlorine 1.0
Bromine 3.4-11.0
PH 8.2

 

[RobbieH]

Re: GREEN POOL

You need to shock your pool. Don't go to a pool store and ask about how to do this, follow these instructions:
pool-school/shocking_your_pool

You are going to need a quality test kit. I recommend this one:
http://tftestkits.net/TF-100-Test-Kit-p4.html

You need to know your CYA level also, it will affect how much chlorine you need to use during the shocking process.

Welcome to the forum, be prepared to show some patience during the shock process!

 

[JohnT]

Re: GREEN POOL

Welcome to TFP!

If your pool is a chlorine pool, the bromine test is not used, and you need to know your CYA level to take action. Check out
ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry



http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/defeating_algae

Turning Your Green Swamp Back into a Sparkling Oasis

Shocking Your Pool

 

[seriousnewbie]

Re: GREEN POOL

What is the CYA level??:/

 

[seriousnewbie]

Re: GREEN POOL

Ok, I see it's explained in ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry

 

[RobbieH]

Re: GREEN POOL

You'll have to measure that and report back! It might be beneficial for you to take a water sample to a pool store, BUT, I don't trust their results generally, especially for CYA. The pool store might call it "stabilizer". It buffers your free chlorine, so you need to know that level to know how much chlorine to add to shock your pool.

You can learn more in Pool School, specifically under the ABC's of Pool Chemistry.
pool-school/pool_water_chemistry

 

[woodyp]

Re: GREEN POOL

Lower your PH to low 7 range-----------NOW! Muriatic acid will get it done. THEN start the shock process.

 

[seriousnewbie]

Re: GREEN POOL

The test kit I have does not go up to shock level. Is there any other way to figure it or do I just have to buy a high priced test kit? Also I worry about putting too many chemicals in the water that will make it unhealthy. Is there anything I need to know about that besides following directions on the packages? I'm planning to just use household bleach to shock if I can.

 

[RobbieH]

Re: GREEN POOL

As JasonLion just said on another thread, purchasing a quality pool kit will be one of the best money-saving things you can do. You can just order the FAS-DPD test if that's all you need.
http://tftestkits.net/FAS-DPD-Chlorine- ... t-p47.html

Yes, use household bleach, make sure it's not scented or anything weird. Just bleach.

 

[Smykowski]

Re: GREEN POOL

If you plan on just using bleach (an idea I live by, by the way), buying a TF100 or K2006 will be the best investment you make. You'll want your own accurate tests to determine how to dose. The long term savings will (several-fold) make up for the upfront cost of the kit.

Don't even bother asking a pool store how much laundry bleach to put in your pool....

 

[jblizzle]

Re: GREEN POOL

Also I worry about putting too many chemicals in the water that will make it unhealthy. Is there anything I need to know about that besides following directions on the packages? I'm planning to just use household bleach to shock if I can.

I would recommend NOT following the direction on any packages, but following the advice you get here. If you keep all the levels in the recommended ranges, your pool will be safe, clear, and the envy of the neighborhood. Liquid chlorine/bleach is the best form of chlorine to use to shock as it adds nothing else to the pool to worry about ... as you should be learning by reading through Pool School as it sounds like you are

You really do have to invest in a good test kit (or at least the FAS-DPD test) to accurately determine your chlorine levels for shocking. Until you can measure everything, you are just guessing.

 

[Isaac-1]

Re: GREEN POOL

Like others have said, a good test kit like the TF-100 will more than pay for itself in what it saves you on guessing and wasted chemicals. Is it possible to shock your pool without a good test kit, the answer is yes, you can shock using just a cheap $10 OTO drop based chlorine test (I would not try it with strips though), but doing so is like driving a car with no speedometer, no mirrors and the side and rear windows painted black, you can kind of tell where your going, but not how fast your getting there, and there may be a few mystery bumps along the way.

 

[seriousnewbie]

So will this kit do the job ok? http://www.amazon.com/Taylor-K-1515-A-C ... B00785UKZK
And for lowering the ph I have some ph minus. I guess thats what I need? And how much? Our pool is approx. 8,600 gallons

 

[jblizzle]

That will add the FAS-DPD test to test for FC and CC, but you still do not seem to have a method to determine the CYA level ... which is critical.

Either the K-2006 or the TF-100 (from TFtestkits.net) are the complete test kits we recommend.

 

[Isaac-1]

The kit you showed would work in a pinch if $$$ are tight, but with as small as those bottles are you would need another one very soon. Compare it to the FAS-DPD kit that TFTestkits sells (they both use Taylor brand reagents) http://tftestkits.net/FAS-DPD-Chlorine- ... t-p47.html see how much larger the bottle of R-0871 is (this is the reagent you use the most drops of while testing). If $$$ really are tight TF testkits does make the TF-50 http://tftestkits.net/TF-50-Test-Kit-p55.html, but again your likely to need to buy refills midway through the swim season.