New Intex build...the good and the bad:)

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kidaround

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May 2, 2013
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Hi Everyone, This all may sound so rambled as I'm trying to unscramble all the thoughts going through my head at once! I've never EVER have owned a pool before...well I guess that's not entirely true 8 years ago we had purchased a used doughboy. Not knowing what we were doing we hired someone to help us, but instead we were way too niave paid him upfront, and never saw him again. At that point we figured we couldn't spend any further money, and got rid of the idea of a pool + the pool.
Full speed ahead my son loves to swim, my husband and I thought it was about time to approach the pool idea again. I searched and searched, and have found many good reviews on these ultra frame intex pools w/ the obvious glitches here and there, and it sounded easy enough to install ourselves:) Well the pool is easy enough, but everything else that goes along with it, like leveling, not so much!
WHAT A PITA this can be, lol
I will post some pictures, but this is how it has gone....
Ordered pool, Have a truck because you will need one!
Leveled ground....thought maybe 6".... WRONG 13" now you will need a retaining wall (cha-ching)
Bought 12 boards of foam insulation (good info for other 18' builds:) (not cheap, but this forum persuaded me, and I have no doubt you all are right:)!!!!
Taped all seems w/ gorilla tape (p.s. by the time I was done I think it was around 4 rolls triple taped)
We have had the worst weather lately so as we had finished taping it had poured for 5 days.....Finally had a clearing, and I wanted to get this foam placed in the leveled area when a wind gust came and just took me and my son with it. It destroyed my foam:( Needless to say at this point I wanted to cry! Nope wait, I'm pretty sure I did have a break down!
I decided I wasn't going to let it get the best of me, and at this point we went out and bought 4 more rolls of gorilla tape, and puzzle pieced it all back together! I figure I probably only have 3 months of swimming time (WI), and I guess I will replace it next year. I don't want anyone to think this is a pity party for me....just thought the process could be helpful to someone, and a good reminder to keep your pocket book a bit fuller for the unexpected!
Here is where I am newly frazzled, and would just love some understanding of this! We finally have had another break in weather, and have finally began filling!!! (process 2 months from the point of purchase) my son is getting impatient, and so am I!!!
I have chemical kit from bioguard that a friend gave me:
I have no chlorine reading
PH at 7.8
CYA (I don't think I have a test that does this, the bioguard test 5 things, but not this??) (my pool came w/ strips so I might use them when needed for now, but I would imagine the reading is 0 since I haven't done anything yet)
My pool came w/ the saltwater sand filter combo (18'x52")
I have purchased the correct 20# silica sand for filter
I have 3 bags of pool salt on hand, 3 jugs of bleach on hand, and some CYA (stabilizer/conditioner)
Pool is almost half full w/ daylight running out at the moment. No, filter is not running yet because of water level, and plan on shutting it off throughout the night. Here I am confused....
I have played with calculator and have imputed 6900 gallons of water it shows for me to add 49oz of bleach, and 55oz of stabilizer. Do I add both of these now, and does that sound right?? Before the pump is set up and running + my salt. Do I wait to add salt since my saltwater cannot run for 24 hours after my pump is running. I'm just jumping into the chemical part of things, and I am terrified if I am doing this right, and want to make sure I'm using the calculator accordingly. I really appreciate the help. Thanks
 

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Couple of things I can answer..

1. Order the tf100 test kit... Best thing ever and you dont want 2 months of work down the drain ;)

2. Put the stabilizer in knee high (i did) and set it in front of return and start squeezing.. Took me about an hour to get it dissolved.

3. Add the bleach after it dissolves to the cya level you added for :)




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Clambert is right. Get the TF 100. It has been my absolute best investment in my pool.

My cya didnt dissolve as fast as Clamberts so, I personally would add chlorine first (wait for your pool to fill and the pump/filter to start up) then the other necessary chemicals. It could be protecting against algae while you get the other chemicals balanced and the salt dissolved since you cannot run the swg until the salt dissolves.

The TF100 will have all the pertinent tests you will need (including the one for CYA) and it will last a long time. It's a great value.

Also, I believe it is recommended to wait 30 minutes or so between additions of different chemicals this allows them to circulate between additions.

I love my intex ultra frame and I hope your experience is wonderful as well.
 
Thanks guys. I didn't realize until I went to test the cya that my kit didn't test for it:( On my way to order the TF-100. I really wanted to verify that I'm using the calculator correctly. Just didn't seem like enough bleach? I put some in and will test in a bit. Pool is 3/4 of the way full. So, my next venture is figuring out this pump saltwater combo system!
 
Thanks Angie. I have removed the copper, but I cannot figure out why Intex would include this if we shouldn't use it?? I unplugged it after you told me, but can I ask why? I trust what I've been told on this site, but would love to learn the reasoning behind such things.

Also, my son couldn't help himself, but to jump in the pool today! I only allowed him in it for 5 minutes, as it's obviously still very frigid. I need to be told if I'm being too paranoid... He was swimming back and forth from one side to the other, and the whole pool was moving. It kind of made me uneasy watching, and then to add more people, Crud:( I'm guessing this in normal since it's only a liner and legs, but is this safe??
 
Copper helps prevent algae growth. However, at the levels needed to be an effective algaecide, it also can cause staining of the pool and hair. If you keep chlorine at the proper level, there is no need for anything else to keep algae away, especially copper.
 

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JohnN said:
Copper helps prevent algae growth. However, at the levels needed to be an effective algaecide, it also can cause staining of the pool and hair. If you keep chlorine at the proper level, there is no need for anything else to keep algae away, especially copper.
Click to expand...

Exactly, what I wanted to know. Thanks!
 
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