New pool owner- FC won't show up

[PoolGuy87]

Hi guys,

I just got an Intex 15', 48'' (~4500 gallons) agp and got it filled yesterday. I bought the 4 step hth system (1. ph minus, 2. chlorinating granules, 3. shock and swim, 4. algecide) from Wal-Mart and tried to balance the pool tonight. I adjusted PH to 7.5 and TA to 100. I then added the granules (1 ounce per 1,000 gallons) as recommended. This didn't seem like a lot for 4500 gallons, but I went with it. Then I added the shock and swim and waited two hours. These are the test results then:

PH: 7.5
TA: 100
CYA: 30
FC: 0

Am I missing an obvious step here as to why the FC won't show up? I figured the shock would elevate the levels to 8ish and then it would come back down. Any advice is helpful at this point!!

Feels good to be here!

 

[mpacheco72]

How are you testing?

 

[257WbyMag]

Welcome to TFP!

Have you read pool-school/temporary_pool_guide? You may need to shock your pool. If your CYA is, in fact, 30 ppm, your shock level FC is 12 ppm.

One good thing to use is the Pool Calculator (see the link in my sig line). It makes calculating dosages a breeze.

 

[PoolGuy87]

Right now, using test strips that I used on my hot tub. I have ordered the Taylor K-2006 kit and should be here Wednesday. I know the test strips aren't very accurate, but I figured something would show up on it.

Did I just not add enough chlorine?

 

[PoolGuy87]

Thanks for that link. I saw the pool calculator but I tried to follow the directions on the back of the chemicals. Should I just ignore those and just goo by the test results?

 

[mpacheco72]

I would use the pool calculator. It's a lot more accurate than the instructions on the packaging. I also suggest that you stick to bleach since you're going to be increasing your CYA with each addition of powdered shock and granules.

 

[257WbyMag]

Right now, you might go ahead and dump about 1/2 a small bottle of bleach in there at the end of each day and run the pump. That should get you to a FC of around 5-ish. Secondly, to get by for a few days, you might try going to a pool store and have them run a set of tests for comparison's sake. Once you get your K-2006, you will know exactly what you have happening in there and you can then attack it accordingly.

 

[PoolGuy87]

Ok, should I add chemical at night and run the pump overnight, then turn off during the day when we swim? At this point, is it critical that I get the FC to exactly 5 or can I go higher?

 

[257WbyMag]

You can go higher.

It's is a good idea to add your chemicals in the evening anyway since the sun goes down and is less likely to contribute to your chlorine loss as it would be if it were during the daytime.

 

[jblizzle]

You just want to run the pump for at least an hour after adding any chemical. And going a little above 5ppm is not a problem. I think shock level is about 10-12ppm for a CYA of 30ppm so anything under ~10 is safe for swimming. (Sorry can't remember off the top of my head. Check the chart in Pool School)

Edit : although if your water is not clear then you really should not be swimming.

Posted with Tapatalk ... sorry if I sound short ... hate typing on phone

 

[aqua_mike]

This is happening to me, too. I'm a new owner as well, and I was baffled at how it seemed that I couldn't get chlorine up, so I eventually put some bleach using the pool calculate, and I overshot by a factor of 3. Clearly, my strip was less sensitive at lower levels than higher ones.

I'm a little confused as to what is considered safe. On the bottles, it has in very big red letters, DO NOT ENTER POOL THAT IS HIGHER THAN 4ppm FC. Other web sites say the same thing. You guys are saying it's OK up to 10??

I'm new and learning, too... have had a lot of late nights worrying about my pool turning green.

 

[jblizzle]

This is happening to me, too. I'm a new owner as well, and I was baffled at how it seemed that I couldn't get chlorine up, so I eventually put some bleach using the pool calculate, and I overshot by a factor of 3. Clearly, my strip was less sensitive at lower levels than higher ones.

I'm a little confused as to what is considered safe. On the bottles, it has in very big red letters, DO NOT ENTER POOL THAT IS HIGHER THAN 4ppm FC. Other web sites say the same thing. You guys are saying it's OK up to 10??

I'm new and learning, too... have had a lot of late nights worrying about my pool turning green.

1. Get a good test kit ... strips are the worst, pool stores are the 2nd worst
2. Read Pool School (button at upper right)

All pool products assume that there is no stabilizer (CYA) in the pool, that is where the 4ppm comes from. But there is a VERY slow acceptance/ignorance of the CYA/chlorine relationship (pool stores never seem to acknowledge this since they can then sell more product) which actually makes the active chlorine in a stabilized (CYA) pool lower than a non-stabilized pool with FC up to 3ppm. See the Chlorine CYA Chart in Pool School which shows appropriate FC levels for CYA

If you are interested in the gory details ... head over to The Deep End forum.