Old pool new to me - advice appreciated

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A

adolson

0
Jan 24, 2014
17
Toronto, Canada
Alright, I'm new to the forum, new to pool ownership, and half a week into my backyard pool adventure. So here's what I've accomplished so far,

-Took off winter safety cover (the kind that looks like a trampoline) washed it, let it dry and folded it. Hands down the easiest part so far but I was greeted by a very green pool.

-Took a while to get the pump primed and running, but it seems to be working fine now. I guess I ripped the polystyrene foam tubing used to winterize the skimmer plumbing a big chunk got stuck in there. Eventually, I sucked it out through the line and into the pump. Pressure guage reads too high now (around 23 when the previous owners instructions say it should be at 15) but it also doesn't move when I turn the pump off so I think I might have broken it when we had to suck the polystyrene through. *Oops

-Next I'm trying to go from green to clear. Previous owners instructions said to put a bunch of chlorine pucks in the basket. So I've done that, and I've started shocking the pool with the powdered chlorine shock he left. No visible results yet after 2 days. I've added about 3 cups now and truthfully it hasn't been a very measured approach, though I have been good about diluting it in a bucket before dumping it in. I've also backwashed the filter a couple of times which seemed to go alright. At least there's lots of water on that part of my lawn now...

-Finally, I ordered a Taylor-2006 test kit yesterday realizing I have no idea how much chlorine I should be adding and what I might be doing to CYA levels using the potentially worthless chemicals previous owner left me.

I haven't vacummed the pool yet, it seems like a tough job when I can't see the bottom but maybe not. Should I do that right away? I guess I should probably get the brush out and scrub the walls too right?

Should I throw out all of the chemicals previous homeowner left me? He worked hard on instructions which I tried to attach but they're too big (lots of pictures, I guess the guy was an engineer). PM if anyone wants to see them or let me know how to attach bigger files.

And that's where I'm at. Any advice would be super useful. I'm excited to be (hopefully) moving towards a trouble free pool.
 
:wave: Welcome to TFP!!!

It does sound like the pressure gauge is broken, not likely due to the foam though. These are really nice: http://tftestkits.net/Flow-Meters-and-psi-Gauges-c12/

I would highly suggest you stop using solid forms of chlorine and switch to liquid chlorine / bleach. You need to get s set of test results to know if the added CYA is going to be a problem. Save the chemicals as they might be useful in the future.

You need to follow the SLAM Process, but will need the test kit to arrive. BTW, I would highly suggest you order more R-0870, R-0871, and R-0013 as the K-2006 does not come with enough and you will quickly run out. See Recommended Test Kits for a comparison. You can get the refills from tftestkits when you order your gauge ;)

How much Pool School have you read? Start with these:
ABCs of Water Chemistry
Recommended Pool Chemicals
How to Chlorinate Your Pool

And this may be helpful: How To Post Pictures
 
Thanks for the quick reply! I'll order the re-agents as soon as I get my test kit (hopefully this week) but because I'm in Canada, I can't order through tftestkits which is a bummer (and quite a bit more expensive). I ordered through http://piscines-apollo.com/cubecart/chlorine.html.

I'll probably just pop into a local pool store for the pressure gauge. Is it something I should be able to install on my own?

I have read through the links you posted above. I guess l'll pick up some bleach or liquid chlorine and sit tight until the test kit arrives.
 
Welcome! :wave:

Vacuuming blindly, dragging the bottom with a leaf rake
Casey-LeafRake.jpg
and brushing are all good ideas until you can really attack the chemistry armed with the test kit. The less crud in the water, the less the bleach has to kill.

Hang onto those chemicals. The dry forms of chlorine will last years if kept dry. Some of them might be useful, but withoput test results, it's just a wild guess.

If the gauge doesn't move, it's broken. Very common, especially if it got below freezing over the winter. It's not much harder to change than a light bulb. Just wrap the threads with teflon tape.

Take lots of pictures as you go through the process. You could end up in my list of Inspirational Links.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/threa...glorious-swamp!
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threa...28-TFP-Success
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threa...ool-is-winning
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threa...ark-Green-Pool
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threa...st-give-up-Can
First Time Shocking with Bleach
Pretty black pool
A little encouragement for those with algae and new to BBB
Frog Filled Green Swamp to Oasis---Work in Progress!!!
Before and After Pool Pics
Before and after!
A final picture set of how well the BBB method works!
 
Update:

Canada post tracking said the test kit wasn't supposed to show up until Monday (today) and impatient as I am, I took a sample to the local pool store last Thursday. They tested and found the alkalinity very low, the PH a bit low and everything else pretty close to where it needed to be. We bought two buckets of Balancing powder for the alkalinity, A container of PH+, A container of chlonine shock and a container of algecide. Over $100 later at least I felt like I'd have a head start when the test kit arrived.

Fast forward a day and the pool is no longer dark green. More of a teel blue. Still can't see the bottom but definite progress.

Saturday morning, the test kit arrives ahead of schedule but I have a tee time so pool school needed to wait.

Sunday morning was testing time.
-chlorine level had fallen to 1 ppm because I hadn't put any in since Thursday's shock
-alkalinity was high at 190,
-PH was a bit high at 7.6,
-CYA is 60 which I was pretty happy about
-pool was teel blue but still opaque. Then I brushed the bottom and it reverted to a deep green. Sigh.

I took another sample into the pool supply store because I was curious how close my testing results were to there's and was pleased to see everything lined up. I bought a jug of muriatic acid to bring down the PH and another tube of shock (I was curious how high it brought the free chlorine level).

Retested after adding the pool store's shock and saw that it brought the pool to 9 ppm. Added 7 jugs of walmart bleach to get it to 24. This morning It was down to 16 so I added another 4 jugs.

Will retest and add more tonight but I feel pretty good about the program so far. Here's a pic of the pool before hitting it with chlorine. More to come once it's cleared up.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/124347011@N06/14350881253/

Also as Jason suggested above, I just ordered more more R-0870, R-0871, and R-0013.
 
You need to realize that Alk up is just baking soda and pH up is just washing soda, with a very expensive packaging. Read: Recommended Pool Chemicals

Stop going to the pool store and trust your own testing. You will just make yourself feel :crazy:
And stop adding "shock". What is the ingredient, your CYA is already a little high and that powder might be making things worse.
 
Update:

Tried to hold at/above shock level (25) for 9 days and the pool is blue but remains cloudy. Yesterday morning I could successfully make out a rubber washer dropped into the shallow end, but definitely can't see the wrinkles in the deep end (wrinkles are another problem for another day).

Saturday morning, I started adding DE to the sand filter. First time, it took a long time to notice any pressure increase (4 cups) but with that I brought the pressure up from 14 to 24 in about 3 hours. I back washed and repeated with 3 cups, then eventually 2 cups and found that I was still able to bring pressure up over 20 over a 3-4 hour period. What surprised me was finding that I could bring pressure back down to normal operating level just be resetting the pump (turning it off and back on, no back wash required). Through reading other's experiences this seems new? I know the sand in my filter isn't channeled because I just replaced it (long story involving a late Tuesday night and cancelled tee time on Wednesday).

Anyway, I've returned to work today without backwashing or adding any new DE and hope things are looking clearer when I get home.

I'm pretty confident the algae is dead so I'm also letting the FC levels slide back down (I've been holding around 25 given my higher CYA levels (60-80)). I pass o/n loss tests and feel like I've shocked the pool enough. I'll take a full set of tests when I get home and enter my levels for ppl to see and comment on. Planning to hold FC level at 8-10 until things are cleared up.

I'm hosting a party next weekend and I really want the pool to be open so if things haven't improved by Wednesday, I'll probably try floc. Thoughts?

Support/feedback/criticism all welcome.
 
adolson said:
I'm hosting a party next weekend and I really want the pool to be open so if things haven't improved by Wednesday, I'll probably try floc. Thoughts?

Support/feedback/criticism all welcome.
Click to expand...
I applaud your patience. Really!
clapping-happy-smiley-emoticon.gif


If it still looks hazy by then, I'd start investigating flocculents and clarifiers, myself.

And use the search box for party. You'll want to raise FC before hand, maybe purchase a scumball, and brace yourself for haziness to return, if only overnight. If yours is an inground pool (Fill out the signature!) I could even see vacuuming or mopping the deck to minimize the amount of dirt tracked in by wet feet.
 

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Can clearly see wrinkles in the deep end now. Went for a swim last night. We also put the solar blanket on for the first time last night (because the swim was cold). And let the pump have a rest. I'm going to start running it 8 hours a day (from 6AM till 2PM) I hope that doesn't create any new issues.

Re-tested CYA and it came in at 80 so I'm maintaining FC levels around 10. I told my wife that because our pool is so well "stabalized" the high FC levels are still safe and comfortable to swim in. Let me know if I lied...

TA is really high (190) and I want to add Borates so I need to get that brought down. To aerate, I think I need to pick up a utility water pump. I have an aquagenie skimmer with no jets so my options seem limited but suggestions are welcome.

All in all though, I have a clear/blue pool and life is good. :)
 
You did not lie ... that is a pretty good explanation.
If you really want to wow her, show her this chart which is the active chlorine level: https://www.troublefreepool.com/~richardfalk/pool/HOCl.htm

At a CYA of 80ppm with a FC of 10ppm, the active chlorine level is ~0.058
At a public indoor pool with NO CYA, the FC may be 2ppm ... with an active level of 0.967

So swimming at the public pool would be 16 times more active chlorine and cause 16 times more damage to suits and hair than in your pool with 10ppm of FC.

You could also blow air into the water to aerate.

Oh, also remember that the pH test gives a false reading when the FC get to be higher than 10ppm.
 
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