opening our pool but we have a few things we want to add

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D

duckduckgoose

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Jul 24, 2014
18
Rural Central South Dakota
Our water temps have been reaching almost 60 on nice days so I need to get my butt in gear. I've been collecting clearance pool chlorine all winter and have a small stash, but I will definitely need more for the summer. I found concentrated chlorine powder, will it work or does it add the stabilizers and other stuff like the 3 in 1 tabs? (I have a whole pail of those that I am going to use only while we are away, the hate for them is real! I've even converted my anti-liquid husband)

Next up is an automatic vacuum, suggestions for a decently priced one, I don't want to kill the bank account. We don't have many trees left so leaves will be at a minimum and we keep a solar cover on it most of the time but we get a slime on the bottom from airborne dirt and gravel dust settling to the bottom. The floor isn't perfect because the location was supposed to be temporary, but will be more permanent as of right now, and has a cove around the edge.

Heaters: We wanted a heat pump but we're told a propane would probably be a better choice because the heat is more instant. We don't have natural gas service or propane currently, but propane would be easy for us to install. Is one better than the other for a South Dakota summer, and how big do we realistically need for a 30ft 54" pool? We have a lot of nice September days but the nights get so cold we can't maintain the water at swimable temps.

Lastly, our pool is not recommended for saltwater but I'm seriously considering it, how fast will it wreck it? Our 3 year old was diagnosed with cancer on Christmas and her skin is super sensitive to everything with chemo, would it be worth it to convert it, or just be really diligent with testing and keeping the chlorine at a minimum?

I think that covers everything, thanks in advance!
 
I'll answer one part, solid chlorine in any form (tab or powder) = extra stuff. CYA or CH depending on the solid form.

Stick with liquid.

Watch out for the clearance chlorine as it may be degraded from age if it's above 8.25%
 
It's from last years stock, a local store that carried it closed so we emptied the shelf in November. I found the solid stiff on in the swim. We have credit that I'm trying to use from our disastrous winter cover. Our cover resembled more of a flying saucer and only lasted 2 weeks before it snapped and ripped off so we left it uncovered all winter and said we'd deal with whatever we had to when it got warm.
 
Why is your pool not recommended for saltwater? I think the most important aspect of chlorine sensitivity is maintaining CYA levels to buffer the chlorine harshness.

Here is a link to some info about pool water chemistry.
ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry

A heat pump is better and more efficient for maintaining water temp for longer periods of time. Gas/propane heaters are better for event heating or spot heating after a cold rain, etc. Propane will get more expensive a lot faster if you are trying to maintain temperature for longer periods of time. Solar panels might be a good option to look into also, around the same up front cost but virtually no operating costs.
 
I believe it's not recommended because the only resin parts are the caps on the top rails. There's a stainless piece under the cap and the top rails are painted metal. Saltwater corrodes those pieces, right? And the skimmer had paperwork that said it was not recommended for saltwater and would void the warranty, but that is all plastic with the exception of the screws.

I think that is what hubby's friends told us also, they have a heat pump and said propane is quicker heat. I'm not entirely sure what he is after, other than a longer swimming season. He's been looking at 300,000 k heaters, is that appropriate or way too big?
 
i am very sorry to hear about your daughter and my best wishes to you and her. As a father it is my worst nightmare to imagine my child going through something like that.

Saltwater is normally not recommeneded when you have certain materials around your pool such as natural stone coping or decking. Having the stone sealed can mitigate most if not all issues, however sealing some stones make them slippery when wet. It is my understanding that some sealed traverteen decking can be slippery when wet.

I recently read the sticky for adding borates which can make the water feel better, however it is an additional chemical so not sure if this is a route you want to go.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/90257-Borates-Why-and-How
 
The 300K BTU heater is a good size for 20k gallons. You could go a little less, but it takes longer to heat the pool. I'd rather have too big than just enough. Salt or chlorine, it's the same thing chemically. Salt pools make Free Chlorine instead of you adding some, p
and few people are sensitive to it. Managed well you will have minimal Combined Chlorine, which can be irritating.
 
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