Hey guys, name is Jim. I've had my pool a little over a year now. I had growing concerns about the pool guy I was using....it started with a flat $90 a month. Eventually he started adding charges for 'extra' chemicals. I would ask him not to add them(and not pay for them) until they were explained to me. I was never charged, but also never got any explanations. I'm assuming he does it with all customers and just hopes they pay it? I don't know, but one time he thought it was wise to talk down to me. I then fired him and cussed him out...lol...maybe not the best course of action. He then said he was sorry, said it would never happen again, so I re hired him. Things were fine, but when filter cleaning was due this time around I asked for it to be scheduled so I could learn the process. Well it was never scheduled, so I just let him go again.
I just purchased a bunch of cleaning equipment from Amazon....including a basic pool test kit.....and two gallons of M. acid.[h=1]Poolmaster 22260 5-Way Test Kit with Case - Basic Collection[/h]
I got this just to get started, my neighbor recommended just starting with chlorine and PH levels....and for the most part I should be fine. I'm willing to later get a more 'advanced' test kit. I'm hoping there is one out there that will quickly give me accurate digital readings...that isn't super expensive. Anyway, first thing I noticed is my chlorine is super high and my PH is around 8. I'm not sure why the pool guy never did this, but I started looking at my pump settings. The Intellichlor was set at 45%, and the pump was set for 12 hours. I'm told the IC40 is usually used on larger pools? So I decreased it to 15%. The pump was set for 2 hours of max speed in the morning(super off-peak rates 6am-8am) then the spillway at moderate speed from 12pm-2pm. The rest of the time the pump is at lowest speed(1800). I shortened that lowest speed by two hours, so the pump is on from 6am-4pm in total. The chlorine looks like it's coming back to normal....it's more of a bright yellow than a dark orange. The first night I added 1 cup of acid. The next day i tested again, still was high....so I did the acid demand test. I then added 2 cups based on the chart. The next day, same thing......added 2 more cups of acid. I was concerned about adding too much acid.....so I waited a week. Today I tested again, still high PH....added another 2 cups. Then I decided to log in here. Any guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks!
I just purchased a bunch of cleaning equipment from Amazon....including a basic pool test kit.....and two gallons of M. acid.[h=1]Poolmaster 22260 5-Way Test Kit with Case - Basic Collection[/h]
I got this just to get started, my neighbor recommended just starting with chlorine and PH levels....and for the most part I should be fine. I'm willing to later get a more 'advanced' test kit. I'm hoping there is one out there that will quickly give me accurate digital readings...that isn't super expensive. Anyway, first thing I noticed is my chlorine is super high and my PH is around 8. I'm not sure why the pool guy never did this, but I started looking at my pump settings. The Intellichlor was set at 45%, and the pump was set for 12 hours. I'm told the IC40 is usually used on larger pools? So I decreased it to 15%. The pump was set for 2 hours of max speed in the morning(super off-peak rates 6am-8am) then the spillway at moderate speed from 12pm-2pm. The rest of the time the pump is at lowest speed(1800). I shortened that lowest speed by two hours, so the pump is on from 6am-4pm in total. The chlorine looks like it's coming back to normal....it's more of a bright yellow than a dark orange. The first night I added 1 cup of acid. The next day i tested again, still was high....so I did the acid demand test. I then added 2 cups based on the chart. The next day, same thing......added 2 more cups of acid. I was concerned about adding too much acid.....so I waited a week. Today I tested again, still high PH....added another 2 cups. Then I decided to log in here. Any guidance would be appreciated.
Thanks!