Intex Pool Questions - Getting Started

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M

mpiliero

0
Mar 14, 2018
118
East Northport, NY
Hi all,

I have already gotten a lot of great advice on here regarding our Intex pool set-up.

We have received the upgraded filter/pump (sand filter, salt generator we plan to use) and the pool itself should arrive on Friday. We have prepped the site and (I think) will be ready to put up the pool when it arrives.

I started to review how to set up & use the filter and salt generator and have a couple of questions:
1. I noticed that both manuals indicate that the filter and salt generator should not be used while people are in the pool. Stupid question - but is this actually a thing/true or just a CYA warning? I obviously don't want to put anyone in our pool in danger, but thought it sounded odd.
2. I have the recommended amounts of salt and sand ready to go. They also recommend starting with the addition of cyanuric acid. Just want to make sure this makes sense?

Finally, I think I have pieced together the following sequence of events, but it would be great if anyone could confirm this sounds reasonable:
- Install pool outlet and inlet, then fill with water.
- Add recommended amount of salt to pool.
- Run backwash function, then rinse function on filter
- Run filter for 24 hours straight (without saltwater generator)
- Start saltwater generator

I also have my FP-100 test kit ready to go! Not sure when I should do my first testing?

Thanks so much for any advice/answers!

Marlise
 
Hi Marlise! Welcome to the forum!!

1st thing you need to do once filled, it add your cyanuric acid. It will normally take about 2-3 days before you will be able to see it on the TF100 test kit. You can add chlorine to the water, but it will probably get eaten by the sun until the cya sets up. As far as the pump/SWG not running while people are in the pool, I run my pump 24/7. I haven't installed my SWG yet, but I don't think it's an issue. Test your water first to see how much salt is in it prior to adding any (You'd be surprised how much is already in there) because it's easier to add more than it is to remove it!
 
I wondered about running the pump too, and wonder if it's because of the suction going back to the pump and them thinking it could pull hair and somehow keep someone from being able to get free and out of the water? Who knows. I think that's why they now have the dual inlets. Mine runs about 4 hours every morning with the swg. If I could set the filter/pump on a timer all by itself without the swg, I"d probably run it most of the time.

I set my pool up and added water and then did the whole backwash and clean. I added the salt after that. I didn't have my test kit yet, so I added probably a bit less than the recommended amount for my size pool. When I got my test and tested, it was at 3200 ppm, which is where it has stayed. I did things backwards though; you should definitely test first before adding anything. The first thing I added after the salt was the cya, then I just needed a small amount of bleach and everything was good. Good luck!
 
Hey fellow long islander. A few things about your plan.

1) The SWG is great at 'maintaining' a chlorine level but to get that initial chlorine level you need to add bleach. You can use pool math to determine how much
2) Yes add the CYA but don't just pour it in the pool and let it sink. Based on pool math put it in an old sock that is in front of the return jet and squeeze the sock often to get the CYA out of the sock, you'll see like a white dust cloud. I used a clamp to keep it in front of my pool
3) You can run the pump and SWG while people are in the pool but you shouldn't need to run it 24 hours (after the initial start up to dissolve the salt)
 
Thanks all for taking the time to respond.

For what it's worth, I also did some more reading on this forum about whether the pumps/filters can/should be run while swimming. Specifically for the Intex pools, it seems there may be some validity to that claim (a lot of technical discussions that I don't completely understand regarding grounding, certifications, etc.). At any rate, just wanted to toss that out there for anyone who comes across this post and is debating the same. Of course each person needs to make their own decision, but we will probably err on the side of caution and try to avoid it.
 
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