Help with BBB!

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Jenm213

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May 19, 2015
5
Covington, GA
Hello! This is my second season with a pool and I am having a difficult time! I am trying to get my ph and alkalinity in the right range so I can shock my pool and get my water clear. I've been trying on my own for a few weeks with no success. I need a good test kit. We've had a few crazy downpours so I know that hasn't helped me any. I took a water sample to the pool store today to get a decent reading and to my dismay it's looking pretty bad. I want to go the BBB route to fix this. After all of my reading I have concluded this. Its a probability I'm wrong so that's why this pool dummy is posting.

CYA 30
PH 6.2
TA 36
TC 0
FC 0

I know those results are horrible! My thinking is first add baking soda to raise alkalinity to proper levels and then add borax to raise ph to proper levels and then bleach to get the chlorine levels to shock mode to kill any algae. I have read so many different things including the pool school. I know I need to read it again, I'm just wondering if I am on the right path with my treatment plan or if I need to regroup and start over? I have an above ground 13,500 gallon pool. 24' round and 4' deep. We replaced the cheesy filter pump that came with the pool with a sand filter pump this year. Thanks!
 
At this point using pool store testing I would get some chlorine in the pool and maybe adjust the pH up a little. Do you even have an inexpensive Chlorine/pH test kit? That would keep you clear of algae until you could get a quality test kit.
 
Jenm213 said:
I do have a cheap pack of test strips I can use until I get a good kit.
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Test strips are generally useless. They give you reading in wide ranges and even then are most time incorrect. How big is the pool? You want to get some chlorine in there and laundry bleach will fit the bill. But we want you to add the right amount.

Order one of the recommended test kits. We really recomend the TF100 on the list. To effectively practice the TFPC methods, the FAS/DPD chlorine test is essential. All the kits on the list contain that test while very few other kits do. The kits sold at the pool store generally won't won't cut it, but be careful pool store employees are known to say “it's the same thing”. Generally it's not!

Stop by WalMart and pick up an inexpensive chlorine/pH test kit. It generally looks like two tubes tied together with two bottles of liquid, one red one yellow. While you are there pick up a couple bottle of Great Valu Bleach (it says 8.25% onthe side) and a box of Borax, which is available as 20 Mule Team® Borax Natural Laundry Booster. It is sold in the laundry detergent section near the bleach.
 
Welcome to TFP!

The most important thing is to keep your chlorine level above the minimum level for your CYA level on the Chlorine CYA Chart. Allowing FC to drop below the min will let algae start growing. The next most important is to keep your PH between 7.2 and 7.8. We can work on TA and CH later.

Here are some intro Pool School articles to read while you wait for your test kit
TFPC for Beginners
ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry

Here are the Recommended Levels for your pool.
Here are the Recommended Pool Chemicals to maintain your pool and how to add them.
Use PoolMath to figure out how much to add.
 
Jenm213 said:
Thank you so much for all the advice! I am working to raise ph now and will go from there. In the meantime I have added some bleach to get some chlorine in so my problem doesn't get any worse.
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Some times a holding pattern waiting for the real test kit is not a bad thing. Take the time to read some of the articles and ask questions if anything is confusing.
 

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I swear I sometimes think the testing pool stores do is tampered with or blatantly done wrong to sell chemicals. Just conduct your own test from the TF100 kit and always remember, there's no pool problem bleach can't fix. Just ask me when I converted from Baquacil to BBB. Haha, should've bought stock in Wal-Mart when I was clearing off there bleach shelves.
 
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