New Here. Drained/refilling pool. Test results are in!

[jmp828]

Hi, I'm new here! I drained my pool and scrubbed it down with a diluted bleach solution and rinsed to hopefully kill off the rest of the algae that had grown over the last 2 months. I tested my fill water with the TFT100 and here are the results:

CH 300ppm
TA 120
PH 7.8
Chlorine 0.5
CYA 0

The pool is currently still filling. So here are my questions:

1. Do I wait until the pool is completely full to add all needed chemicals?

2. Since I had an algae problem do I SLAM the pool to get rid of any residual algae growth?

3. What "Stabilizer" should I use?

Thank you! I'm looking forward to my first happy summer with a TFP!

 

[JasonLion]

1) Wait for the pool to be full and the pump running.
2) Yes, however it should go very quickly
3) Granular cyanuric acid is the most cost effective.

 

[Richard320]

The readings aren't too bad. Considering the heat wave we're having, I'd be tempted to pour half a jug of Clorox into the hose stream when it's halfway full.

By the time it's full and circulating, your pH will likely have climbed some. My advice is pretty much the same as I gave in post 6 in this thread, except you won't be adding salt and your target CYA should be closer to 50. If you've already killed all the algae, your SLAM process could be as brief as overnight. But do not raise the CYA above 30 until it's had a week or so to dissolve. It might turn out to be 40 or 45, and you'd overshoot and have to drain again. You don't want that.

 

[jmp828]

A few more questions...

Do I add chemicals & CYA to get to normal levels first are at least 30 fir CYA, and then SLAM?
Whats the SLAM process if my CYA is 0?

There should be very little algae left in the pool, its just whatever is currently sitting in the lines. We cleaned the filter yesterday and the pump ran for maybe 3 hours after cleaning. Should we clean again? or just backwash briefly?

 

[Richard320]

A few more questions...

Do I add chemicals & CYA to get to normal levels first are at least 30 fir CYA, and then SLAM?
Whats the SLAM process if my CYA is 0?

There should be very little algae left in the pool, its just whatever is currently sitting in the lines. We cleaned the filter yesterday and the pump ran for maybe 3 hours after cleaning. Should we clean again? or just backwash briefly?

Add the CYA and then just assume it's all dissolved, even when you can plainly see it's not. Immediately take it up to SLAM level for 30 CYA, which is 12FC. Test and replenish every couple hours. You will lose a whole lot to the sun, so don't panic thinking you still have gobs of algae lurking somewhere. Sometime after sunset, check the FC & CC again. If CC is .5 or less, do the overnight loss test. You'll want a respectable amount of FC - ideally 10 or above, but at least 5. If you lost less than 1 overnight - meaning the sun didn't get any of it -- you're done. If not, keep on hitting it with bleach. After you pass the overnight test, maintain FC for 30 CYA and a week after you added the CYA, test it again and see how much more you really need. It'll make sense once you start doing it.

 

[Kiss4aFrog]

When you add CYA, put it in a sock and hang it in front of a return or toss it in a skimmer. If you knead the sock it will force it to dissolve faster. Your choice to add enough to get to 20 or 30 depending on how accurate you think your calculations are. It's easier to add then it is to drain water and refill. Since you're at zero I personally would toss in enough to go right to thirty.

However much you add go ahead and do all your calculations using that CYA number you're going for. If you add enough to get to 20 go ahead and use 20 as the present level. If thirty, use thirty. Don't bother to re-test for a week as it can take that long for the CYA to break down fully and mix with the water even though the stuff in the sock dissolves in a day or two.