New IG owner, need help!

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jwayne42

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Jul 31, 2013
6
Hi all,


Last chem reading:

FC: .5
CYA: 15-20
pH- 7.6
ALK - 90

I heard a lot of about this forum and I decided to finally get on here and be active. I am having one heck of a time with my pool this year and I am about at my wits end. As you can see in my signature it's a pretty decent size in ground, I should also mention it's kidney shaped. I live in a suburb on the outskirts of St. Louis, with any luck maybe someone on this forum is in the same region. I opened the pool late this year I wanted to get the DE filter in and I was hoping that would cure some bad experiences from last year. I have been in this house for two years now and I had a very old and smaller cartridge filter that was cleaning the pool the year before. It was a total nightmare the size could not keep up with the size of the pool and I was cleaning those cartridges several times a week. I believe the previous owner of the pool had something go out on him and he used this as a patchwork fix. When I opened this year I opened to an algae infested green swamp. It has taken so long for it to clear up in comparison to last year. Last year I had it opened and it was solid black...algae gumballs, leaves and all, it was completely disgusting. Honestly I feel like it cleaned up quicker and in worse shape than it has this year! Here are my main problems:

DE Filter: I bought this thing thinking it was going to be a major over haul to the cartridge system I was using before, I am not impressed so far and I feel like it's something I am doing wrong. I was not a fan of every 3 days it felt like spraying off the cartridges and reassembling the lid. The idea of back washing all of the time and re-filling seems like less work but I don't feel like it was as effective. I have a spy glass on the vari-flo valve on the DE filter, my backwash process is this. Backwash until clear, switch to filter for 10-15 seconds, Backwash again, Filter, Backwash, Rinse. When it was really nasty I did it a few more times but it felt like each time I filtered it kicked up more and I wanted it out of there. I literally go maybe a day and the PSI gauge is kicking up to 15 psi and started at 10psi. Once it hits 20psi I have read it's time to backwash and get things going, am I wrong on this? After each backwash I have read that if I go from 20psi down to 10 I am fine, but if I backwash and my starting pressure is around 4-5psi above my normal start I need to take the filter grids out and spray them down. Is this correct? I feel like if I am only getting a day maybe two out of my filter then it feels like the same and I am wasting money on DE. I bought on 7/1/2014 a 25lb box of DE I have already went through that and I am on my second one. Can anyone tell me what the usual amount they go through in a pool season? I feel like this is a lot in one month, not to mention needing to add it every time. The filter calls for 6lbs, I add around that much maybe a little more if I get a big scoop. I like watching videos on youtube from Mrdgvb1, he seems really on it and helped me a few times last year. In his DE filter video's he adds around 8lbs. Can someone please clarify any of this?

Rainbow 320 Chlorinator: I am not sure if it's the type of chlorine I purchased or if there is something wrong with my chlorinator. I put in at the beginning of the month around 7-8 cakes in the chlorinator. Most people I have ran into usually only put in around 3-4 and they are gone in a week or two. I popped the top of the chlorinator and around 4-5 were still in there. Now I don't run it non-stop I like it running for around 9-10 hours a day but it feels like they are dissolving really slow. I will have to check what kind of cakes they are I know they produce CYA. My CYA like I said from above was around 15-20 from my last test. I know a lot of people online experience the "airlock" problem with this chlorinator I just found this out recently and I am looking to test the theory. Is there any other way to see if it's chlorinating at all? I know the cakes are disappearing but maybe it's running only half the time and that's why I cannot maintain my water? I went out to walmart and bout an HTH floating chlorinator and put 3 tablets inside of it. I wanted a patchwork job so my pool didn't turn back to green again.

Water quality: I had crystal clear water and we got a ton of rain and it went right back to nasty aqua and then a light haze of green. Last year I had a Mirage MX robotic cleaner and it went completely out on me. I was less than pleased, I know it was purchased by the previous owner in 2011 and I need to find the receipt for it. I am not running auto-bot cleaner this year and I am wondering is this part of my problem? Should I be doing something DAILY to make up for the fact that the bot isn't running while I was at work last year. Last year my water was excellent, then I ran into a low ALK issue and had some problems but I was able to bring it back before the end of summer. I feel like this year with newer equipment and one year of knowledge I have taken a big step backwards. I keep getting a dust around the edge of the bowl and lightly in the deep end. Two days ago I put in 5lbs of turbo shock and it cleared up immensely, I couldn't see the drain at the bottom but everything was that cool pool blue color just cloudy from all of the dead algae. When I had my water tested above the guy at the pool store tested me for phosphates and I was really high on his chart. I spent $30 or something for a BioGuard pool tonic? I feel like I wasted my money because nothing has improved since I have put it in there. I understand the chlorine is killed by the phosphates but it's been going on a week and still no major increase. I would figure the phosphates would be gone by now and I am in shape with more chlorine from the chlorinator that floats and the rainbow 320.

All in all I am VERY down at the moment and just want to enjoy the pool. I feel like all I have spent my money on this year so far is just to keep it up for a few days and then it's back to looking like garbage, another $50-$75 here for three days of relief and then back to ****. I go out there and I test, I use a 7 way tester and just look at the colors. I hear a lot about the TF-100 and I will invest in one of those next year, I plan on closing the pool the beginning of September so no point in buying one now. Can anyone work out a process as to what I am doing wrong? Should I be out there brushing and scrubbing the walls with the broom each and every day because I do not have a bot to vacuum it up? I know CYA level is important but here in St. Louis we have had a semi cool summer. My pool is mostly exposed to the sunlight anyway, the pool store pro told me most of the problems he had ran into this year was TC. The sunlight wasn't doing it's job of killing off the dead chlorine and people had cloudy water time and time again.

Any help will be greatly appreciated I just would like some guidance because I'd hate to think this giant oasis in my backyard is totally worthless. Should I open up the DE and blast it out? Is that why I don't get long cycles in between running the filter? It feels like it's been that way from day one but it took the pool from green to a light blue in around 48 hours during opening. Chlorine? If my chlorinator isn't running as it should what kind should I get? I believe I have trichlor in there right now. I read online that a pool that size could take 14 - 16oz of granular chlorine every two days and that would be the same as running the automatic. Would it be a good idea to do that just in case, I figure if not anything it will at least help. I'm looking for a daily routine that I go out and get married to so I can keep this pool in tip top shape, I want to compare as to what I do and see what I am doing wrong.

I look forward to any and all posts, anyone from St. Louis can send me a PM if they wanted, local help is always great.

Thanks.
 
Hi Jwayne42,

Welcome to TFP. You have come to the right place for help.

1. You filter issues most likely are due to the fact that you have a lot of organics in the water that its trying to filter out. Both cartridges and DE are excellent, however, they do clog up fast if there is so much stuff in the pool as you describe.

2. The chlorinatior which uses the tabs is most likely a source of the algae problem. As the tabs dissolve, they also raise the CYA level with each tab. At a point, the CYA so high, that the FC in the tabs cannot keep up. As well, trichlor, dichlor and any other type of stabilized chlorine is likely exasperating the situation ... and you dont even know it. When this happens, algae grows even though you are blasting the pool with chlorine. That seems to be what is happening here. There is a definite FC to CYA level relationship and your most likely wayyy out of whack. But we wont know for sure until we can get a reliable test. *here again, is where a GOOD test kit comes in*

3. TFPC is not so much as telling folks what to put in and how much, but teaching people how to most effectively and economically take care of your pool. Its about ONLY putting in the pool what the pool needs.

Here is the deal if you want to get your pool into shape.
1st, forget about everything you have been told by pool stores and chemical makers. You do NOT need all the stuff they push on you. They are there to sell you however much stuff they can whether you need it or not. They have skin in the game of keeping your pool on the edge of disaster. *NO ONE here will try to sell you anything. We only want you to have an enjoyable troublefree pool. Thats it.

Next, you are going to need a GOOD test kit. One that you can rely on and that has a tremendously proven track record. This is the first step. To clear your pool, you are going to have to test several times a day for a lot of days, so skipping on this test kit really is not an option. Pool store testing and test strips are just not accurate enough to get the job done. TFP recommends the TF100 or the Taylor K2006. Given the shape your pool is in, get the TF 100. The Taylor kit wont have enough testing regents for teh FAS DPD chlorine test. you will run out before done. The TF 100 will get you through.
www.tftestkits.net

Next, you need to understand the relationships of the water paramaters and what chemical does what to the water. Its clear that you dont. You dont need to be a scientist, the science is done. You just need to trust the science and trust the method.
The best place to start is reading the ABC's of pool chemistry. Here is a link. Its a bit to learn and no one expects you to learn it all at once. Ask questions if you have them and we'll help you understand.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/123-abc-of-pool-water-chemistry

While you are pondering the ABC's of pool chemistry and waiting on your test kit to arrive, you need to read how to SLAM your pool. Here is a link on how to do it. It works. There are 1000's of testimonials on this website to it. Its going to take time and you will need a lot of patience.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/3913-Turning-Your-Green-Swamp-Back-into-a-Sparkling-Oasis

When your test kits gets here, do a full set of tests and post a full set of reliable results back, and we can help you and give advice and cheer you on.

Once your pool is algae free, we can also help you with how to keep it that way, and you will never ever have this type of problem again.
 
Welcome to TFP!

Sorry to hear about your issues, replies in red.
jwayne42 said:
Hi all,


Last chem reading:

FC: .5
CYA: 15-20
pH- 7.6
ALK - 90

Firstly, your FC is too low for your CYA level. Pool store recommendations of 1-3ppm are from the time before CYA was discovered, CYA buffers how harsh the FC actually is. See the chlorine/CYA chart.
I would recommend you read ABCs of pool water chemistry to get an idea of what your readings mean.

I heard a lot of about this forum and I decided to finally get on here and be active. I am having one heck of a time with my pool this year and I am about at my wits end. As you can see in my signature it's a pretty decent size in ground, I should also mention it's kidney shaped. I live in a suburb on the outskirts of St. Louis, with any luck maybe someone on this forum is in the same region. I opened the pool late this year I wanted to get the DE filter in and I was hoping that would cure some bad experiences from last year. I have been in this house for two years now and I had a very old and smaller cartridge filter that was cleaning the pool the year before. It was a total nightmare the size could not keep up with the size of the pool and I was cleaning those cartridges several times a week. I believe the previous owner of the pool had something go out on him and he used this as a patchwork fix. When I opened this year I opened to an algae infested green swamp. It has taken so long for it to clear up in comparison to last year. Last year I had it opened and it was solid black...algae gumballs, leaves and all, it was completely disgusting. Honestly I feel like it cleaned up quicker and in worse shape than it has this year! Here are my main problems:

DE Filter: I bought this thing thinking it was going to be a major over haul to the cartridge system I was using before, I am not impressed so far and I feel like it's something I am doing wrong. I was not a fan of every 3 days it felt like spraying off the cartridges and reassembling the lid. The idea of back washing all of the time and re-filling seems like less work but I don't feel like it was as effective. I have a spy glass on the vari-flo valve on the DE filter, my backwash process is this. Backwash until clear, switch to filter for 10-15 seconds, Backwash again, Filter, Backwash, Rinse. When it was really nasty I did it a few more times but it felt like each time I filtered it kicked up more and I wanted it out of there. I literally go maybe a day and the PSI gauge is kicking up to 15 psi and started at 10psi. Once it hits 20psi I have read it's time to backwash and get things going, am I wrong on this? After each backwash I have read that if I go from 20psi down to 10 I am fine, but if I backwash and my starting pressure is around 4-5psi above my normal start I need to take the filter grids out and spray them down. Is this correct? I feel like if I am only getting a day maybe two out of my filter then it feels like the same and I am wasting money on DE. I bought on 7/1/2014 a 25lb box of DE I have already went through that and I am on my second one. Can anyone tell me what the usual amount they go through in a pool season? I feel like this is a lot in one month, not to mention needing to add it every time. The filter calls for 6lbs, I add around that much maybe a little more if I get a big scoop. I like watching videos on youtube from Mrdgvb1, he seems really on it and helped me a few times last year. In his DE filter video's he adds around 8lbs. Can someone please clarify any of this?

We recommend backwashing filters once the pressure increases 25% over the clean pressure. It sounds like your clean pressure is 10psi, you should backwash once it reaches 12-13psi. See maintenance and cleaning of pool filters.
DE filters tend to clog quickly when they are filtering out dead algae.
After backwashing, we recommend adding ~80% (~4lb 12 oz) of the DE the filter calls for when new (you stated 6lbs).

Rainbow 320 Chlorinator: I am not sure if it's the type of chlorine I purchased or if there is something wrong with my chlorinator. I put in at the beginning of the month around 7-8 cakes in the chlorinator. Most people I have ran into usually only put in around 3-4 and they are gone in a week or two. I popped the top of the chlorinator and around 4-5 were still in there. Now I don't run it non-stop I like it running for around 9-10 hours a day but it feels like they are dissolving really slow. I will have to check what kind of cakes they are I know they produce CYA. My CYA like I said from above was around 15-20 from my last test. I know a lot of people online experience the "airlock" problem with this chlorinator I just found this out recently and I am looking to test the theory. Is there any other way to see if it's chlorinating at all? I know the cakes are disappearing but maybe it's running only half the time and that's why I cannot maintain my water? I went out to walmart and bout an HTH floating chlorinator and put 3 tablets inside of it. I wanted a patchwork job so my pool didn't turn back to green again.

If pucks are being dissolved, it sounds like the dispenser is working.
However, we do not recommend the routine use of puck dispensers. Pucks are dichlor/trichlor, both contain CYA and FC. The FC is used up but the CYA accumulates.
See also how to chlorinate your pool.

Water quality: I had crystal clear water and we got a ton of rain and it went right back to nasty aqua and then a light haze of green. Last year I had a Mirage MX robotic cleaner and it went completely out on me. I was less than pleased, I know it was purchased by the previous owner in 2011 and I need to find the receipt for it. I am not running auto-bot cleaner this year and I am wondering is this part of my problem? You need to maintain the correct FC for your CYA. Should I be doing something DAILY to make up for the fact that the bot isn't running while I was at work last year. Last year my water was excellent, then I ran into a low ALK issue and had some problems but I was able to bring it back before the end of summer. I feel like this year with newer equipment and one year of knowledge I have taken a big step backwards. I keep getting a dust around the edge of the bowl and lightly in the deep end. Two days ago I put in 5lbs of turbo shock and it cleared up immensely, I couldn't see the drain at the bottom but everything was that cool pool blue color just cloudy from all of the dead algae. When I had my water tested above the guy at the pool store tested me for phosphates and I was really high on his chart. I spent $30 or something for a BioGuard pool tonic? I feel like I wasted my money because nothing has improved since I have put it in there. I understand the chlorine is killed by the phosphates but it's been going on a week and still no major increase. No, chlorine isn't killed by phosphates. Chlorine is consumed by sunlight and organics. I would figure the phosphates would be gone by now and I am in shape with more chlorine from the chlorinator that floats and the rainbow 320.

All in all I am VERY down at the moment and just want to enjoy the pool. I feel like all I have spent my money on this year so far is just to keep it up for a few days and then it's back to looking like garbage, another $50-$75 here for three days of relief and then back to ****. I go out there and I test, I use a 7 way tester and just look at the colors. I hear a lot about the TF-100 and I will invest in one of those next year, I plan on closing the pool the beginning of September so no point in buying one now. Can anyone work out a process as to what I am doing wrong? Should I be out there brushing and scrubbing the walls with the broom each and every day because I do not have a bot to vacuum it up? I know CYA level is important but here in St. Louis we have had a semi cool summer. My pool is mostly exposed to the sunlight anyway, the pool store pro told me most of the problems he had ran into this year was TC. The sunlight wasn't doing it's job of killing off the dead chlorine and people had cloudy water time and time again.

Any help will be greatly appreciated I just would like some guidance because I'd hate to think this giant oasis in my backyard is totally worthless. Should I open up the DE and blast it out? Is that why I don't get long cycles in between running the filter? It feels like it's been that way from day one but it took the pool from green to a light blue in around 48 hours during opening. Chlorine? If my chlorinator isn't running as it should what kind should I get? I believe I have trichlor in there right now. I read online that a pool that size could take 14 - 16oz of granular chlorine every two days and that would be the same as running the automatic. We do not generally recommend the use of granular chlorine as it would be dichlor/trichlor/cal-hypo. Dichlor/trichlor add CYA, cal-hypo adds calcium. Would it be a good idea to do that just in case, I figure if not anything it will at least help. I'm looking for a daily routine that I go out and get married to so I can keep this pool in tip top shape, I want to compare as to what I do and see what I am doing wrong.
See basic pool care schedule.

I look forward to any and all posts, anyone from St. Louis can send me a PM if they wanted, local help is always great.
Please add your location (City, State) to your profile.

Thanks.
Click to expand...
Edit: Took too long to compose reply, Divin Dave replied first.
 
which one of the pool store test results is correct if any
well if you dont want to buy a decent test kit this year you may as well close the pool now
and use the time to read pool school and read the last 12 months of posts
i learnt more reading all of the posts than i ever would have believed
 
Welcome! You have come to the right place for a clear pool!

I would go ahead and buy the test kit.

Once you get the test kit you should SLAM the pool (link in my siggy below). If you do not get it clear this summer it is going to be even harder next year with all of the pretty green stuff growing and thriving.

It can be done and it can be cheap in the long run doing it the TFP way. We can and will help you.

This one of the cases of spending a money now will save you money in the long run.

Kim
 
Divin Dave said:
*NO ONE here will try to sell you anything. We only want you to have an enjoyable troublefree pool. Thats it.

Next, you are going to need a GOOD test kit.
Click to expand...

I'm certainly not looking to start anything, whatsoever (because I own the kit, etc), but the one thing that gets me is when folks say that we won't try and sell them anything, then say they need to buy something.
 
Above you state that "my backwash process is this. Backwash until clear, switch to filter for 10-15 seconds, Backwash again, Filter, Backwash, Rinse".

You need to rinse after each backwash before going back to filter again. Otherwise you are pumping the detritus that the backwash process has stirred up inside your filter directly into your pool. Never go straight from backwash to filter without rinsing first.
Sent from my RM-820_nam_att_100 using Tapatalk
 
Thanks all for the responses. Overall I have a good plan in place I think and I want to start it tonight. To just state this clearly I am not the type of person to just give up or have a defeatist attitude. The post above that mentioned me closing the pool and "reading" as much as I can in the interim is not going to happen. I really wanted to throw that out there because so many times free advice goes unappreciated.

Here is where I am at, I just ordered the TF-100 test kit. I didn't get the XL option because of where I am at in the pool season. After doing the math online I put in around 25,000 in the pool calculator. I am sure my FC is around .5 or 0 now, I didn't even get a reading on the test strip. Judging by the calculator I need to add 132oz of concentrated bleach into my pool to raise the FC level up. Keep in mind I am using the figure based off of 8.25% active ingredients. My question is this, would it be a good idea to buy a few bottles of that and put it in tonight and "super shock" or "slam" the pool in the interim while I wait for my test kit. I read the SLAM procedures and I know it states to check every two hours maximum or twice a day minimum. I just don't want the pool to get WORSE until the kit gets here and then it's going to be an uphill battle. I thought about buying four 96oz bottles of the concentrated bleach from the wal mart up the road.

A few posters before said that putting it in the skimmer is okay, is this true? I feel like dumping 288oz (( three bottles )) could be excessive? I plan on buying four just in case but if I only need 132 oz it seems like it's over kill which is what I need to fully get underneath this thing. Also for some reason the drop down on the FC side I don't think I understand that fully. It says 64oz but when I change to 96oz the amount needed doesn't move at all. Why is that? It moves when I increase the intensity of the product like from 6% to 8.25% but not when I change the dosage.

I am going to head out and buy four of those gallons anyway so please let me know. I don't like the walking around the edge of the pool method but I don't want to burn up my pump by putting in harmful chemicals in the skimmer. If I should put in a 96oz bottle, wait a bit and put in another I get that, i'm just looking for a process. Can't wait until I get the TF-100. Again all comments are welcome! If you try and sell me something I am an adult I can make my own decision, I won't take offense. It can't be any worse than paying 21.99 x 6 this summer and this is my result thus far and I am only in 4 weeks. Hope to hear from you soon.
 

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Thought I would jump in before the baseball game tonight...

I am reminded of the old Fram oil filter commercials, you can pay me now or pay me later. The same wisdom applies to your pool. You can take the approach you will prevent issues from developing (the TFPC method) by testing and maintenance using grocery store and big box items (read cheap), or you can react to issues as they occur (the free water sample testing pool stores) and pay and pay again, until it don't work any more, in which case, you will drain and refill your pool and start the loop all over again.

In order to use the TPFC method, you will need one of the recommended test kits. Yes, the sponsor of this forum happens to sell one, and yes, it happens to be probably the best value you will find of the internet if you are going to use the TFPC method. If you have water clarity issues, go for the XL option on the TF-100 kit. It should be all you need to get you into clear water. But you can buy any kit you want, as long as you get an approved kit. Test Kits Compared.

Casey's post above has all the pertinent links. You just need to decide, is this method for you or not. There are plenty of people on the forum that will help along the way.

I see we crossed posts... I guess you are on board. Welcome!
 
I do NOT put anything in my skimmer.

When I add chemicals to the pool I pour them in front of the return with my pump on high to get it good and mixed in. I run the pump for at least 30 mins. each night when I put in the chlorine for the night.

As far as adding chlorine now to keep it from getting worse that is up to you. It has been done before with good results. I would not go too high to avoid damage.

Kim
 
If it were me I would put a gallon in your pool now to help slow anything down what's going on until you get your test kit. You are going to need a lot more than just the 4 gallons you bought. I have 16 gallons of 12.5% in my garage to get me through the rest of the season for daily additions. I would pour it in front of one of the returns.
 
jeffchap said:
Above you state that "my backwash process is this. Backwash until clear, switch to filter for 10-15 seconds, Backwash again, Filter, Backwash, Rinse".

You need to rinse after each backwash before going back to filter again. Otherwise you are pumping the detritus that the backwash process has stirred up inside your filter directly into your pool. Never go straight from backwash to filter without rinsing first.
Sent from my RM-820_nam_att_100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Not all filters have a rinse setting
 
i hope i didn't offend you
i am glad you have bought a recomended kit and not giving up
you will be much happier in the long run
as for adding any chemicals/ bleach now'
i wouldn't put in too much in case you need to drain your pool due to high CYA or CH
in the beginning i was worried about the expense of the test kit when the pool shop tests for free
then i found the cost of magic potion number 9 this week and number 5 next week soon eclipsed the cost of the test kit
first two months pool store sold me around $500-$600 of chemicals next 8 months using TFP around $50
 
Wayne, Just as encouragement this site does work. I dont have a great fancy pool but because it has water in it and I have plenty of sunshine in the desert of West Texas I am susceptible to algae blooms. I ran my pool for 2 years on the pucks and potions from the pool store and pouring shock in the pool. I was constantly on the edge of a bloom or in the middle of a green monster. After I found this site I tried to save $12 on a test kit from a local spa store. It did not include a test for CYA and the reagent bottles for fas/dpd were very small.
Long story short I read a bunch of articles like pool school and chem 101, and then began "searching" green pools, and such. All in All I have spent less then half the money using the liquid chlorine/bleach as I would have spent taking the pool stores recommendations. I entertain at least twice a month and everyone compliments my water clarity and sparkle. This site is awesome!
The most important thing that I have received is KNOWLEDGE. Now I know what is going on with my pool. I can many times just look at what is going on and know what I need to do. I can sense that my pH is up or that my FC is low. It is an awesome feeling this power of Knowledge.
I just encourage to invest some time in Pool School as you wait for your test kit
I also encourage you to get the speedstir if you haven't ordered yet. It is a great addition to the kit. My wife asked me if I really spent money on something to stir my sample UNTIL she saw it in action. Anyway you are on the way to a pool that is suffering from sparkleitis. Enjoy my friend
 
kimkats said:
We are NOT selling anything to anyone. We are telling them what to buy to take control of their pool.

We are GIVING them knowledge.

Kim
Click to expand...

Please understand, I agree with the philosophy of this method 100%. It was simply a comment about how many say that we don't try to sell things to people, but then push specific test kits. Obviously, it's left up to each person on what they buy as it's not a requirement in order to post here. It was just an observation.
 
Alright,


So I added 3 96oz bottles of 8.25% concentrated chlorox yesterday. After doing a visual inspection I can see that things have cleared up a LITTLE from the most part. Keep in mind my TF-100 hasn't arrived yet and I did not want to waste money on chemicals and test them blindly like I had been doing before with the strip test. Once the test kit arrives I really want to start the SLAM process. Again guys I only added the bleach so I didn't go four - days in a row with only chlorine tabs. I took the floating chlorinator out of the pool last night and put it in the shed. I checked and I was using trichlor in the chlorinator and trichlor in the automatic in line. I am an idiot. I guess the first thing I will check when I get the TF-100 is the CYA level, hopefully with all of the backwashing I have been doing over the past few weeks has kept my CYA level in check. I am very thorough with it and don't just click it on for a few seconds and call it good because the PSI guage dropped.

The big change from Backwash>Rinse>Filter will probably pay off some dividends as well, I can't believe I was doing it the other way all July long. Here is my question. When I start the SLAM process how often am I to add chemicals into the pool? I read the process a few times but I wanted to get a hands on answer, it says to raise the FC up to 18 and check every few hours. This will not be a problem when I get home from work. I work 9am - 6pm M-F typically every week. So I will check in the morning before I go to work and when I get home i'll baby it. I read a few threads and one guy said he had 16 FC and was wondering if adding too much more would hurt since he was two days in the SLAM process. I figured if it's that high and then adding more would probably be wasteful? The opinions were pretty neutral but most said 16 was fine.

I am going to assume the worst so I can stock up on as much bleach as possible. So when the test kit arrives I will adjust my ph to 7.2, upon testing if my FC is .5 like it has been all summer the pool calculator calls for 660oz of 8.25% concentrated bleach. Roughly thats 7 jugs, I will probably just buy 10 total so I don't have to run to the store every day. My question is this, when I add the bleach to the pool is it okay to cycle in between return lines? I have two, one in the shallow and one over the deep, I just didn't want to stain by pouring 7 gallons of bleach in at once. If I come out a few hours later and I have reached my goal FC of 18, what level do I need to maintain it at for it to be okay? I know I will experience big drops in FC at first and I will have to continually put in bleach to get everything dead and stir up. Will back washing every morning to freshen up the filter slow down this process because chlorinated water is going out of the pool?

I'm just sort of looking for a Q&A sort of answer. Eventually through brushing and over chlorinating the pool the organics will die and go away. So if someone could answer my question like this. Night 1 of the slam, going to bed and I am at 18 FC. Next morning I wake up and FC is down to 12, at that time do I add enough bleach to raise it back up to 18 and check it when I get back from work? Based off the calculator if it dropped down to 12 I would need to add roughly 2.5 more jugs of 96 oz to the pool and let it run all day. Of course when the algae is gone I need to let the FC levels drift back down to normal and monitor it from there, I am just wondering where I need to keep the throttle at and not let up.

So far this forum in the last three days has REALLY opened my eyes, every opinion has come under considerating and no offense has been taken. Once I get going on the SLAM I wil send pictures to update, I always did like a good visual.
 
It may be easier to nurse it along and start the slam on a weekend when you can test every couple hours. Even after the slam you will need bleach every day, so find it on sale and stock up. I bought 40 gallons when it was on sale. Good luck.
 
Try to start when you are going to be home and able to babysit the pool.

-Buy lots of chlorine

-come home, test, add chlorine

-30 mins. test again, add more chlorine, have a beer

-repeat above until you go to bed

-wake up, drink coffee, test, add chlorine

-go to work to make money to buy more chlorine LOL

-Repeat above

-once you see the the chlorine stop dropping FAST you can back off on the testing. The first two or three days are the worst.

Kim
 

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