Blue milky water & no FC

[Mybay]

I have an 25,000 gal. IG pool with a vinyl liner that is a milky blue color and won't hold FC no matter how many lbs. Of shock that is added. Every time I go to the pool store I'm told something different. The last being that I should ignore my pH until FC holds. My levels are as follows:
CYA 72
TC 1.6
FC 0
PH 6.8
TA 133
can you help? We have $400 in chemicals & haven't put one foot in! Funds are running out & husband wants to fill it in!
Thanks

 

[linen]

Welcome to tfp, Mybay

First adjust you ph until it is 7.2-7.4 using borax (20 mule team stuff from walmart, grocery store, etc.) or ph up. Use poolcalculator.com to figure out how much to put in.

Then you look at this thread, it explains how to clear your pool including the shocking process (it is a process not a one time application of some product) that we recommend: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/defeating_algae

A couple of things to keep in mind:
1. Your cya (cyanuric acid) level is pretty high. I would not put anymore in. It is in trichlor pucks and dichlor powder, so stop using those for now. Liquid chlorine/bleach is all you need for now.

2. Get an appropriate test kit, pool stores are notoriously unrelaible. There is a link my sig...I like the TF100.

 

[Mybay]

Thank you. I'm a little confused by the pool calculator. Is there some help for that somewhere?

 

[JasonLion]

There is an article in Pool School on using the Pool Calculator.

 

[Mybay]

Awesome. Thanks.

 

[Mybay]

Ok so my levels are up! PH is 7.2 & FC is a 3. Do I understand the instructions right that I continue to test every couple hours & add bleach if my level drops and do nothing if it is holding?

 

[linen]

At 72 ppm cya, your FC shock level is 20 ppm. You need to dose to that level then test in an hour and add again, until your FC remains at/slightly above 20 ppm. Make sure and read/reread the shocking process

 

[Mybay]

Thanks for your help. We are getting there. FC is holding, not at 20 but close!

 

[Siamese]

The FC must be held at 20, if it starts to drop below, you are giving the algae a chance to get restarted. Check the FC level every hour and use the pool calculator to determine how much more needs to added. It should start to hold better after a few hours at that point you can check it less frequently.

Good luck!