Want to convert to TFPC

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Ceejay

Ceejay

0
Bronze Supporter
Jul 25, 2013
20
Pocola, OK
I'm a non-pool person with a pool. It's what grandmas do when all their grandchildren want to do is swim. When I first got the pool, I joined here and read a lot but was intimidated by the testing and the chemistry and decided to just do what the pool store recommended. I seemed to have no real problems until I uncovered it last week and it was green. I started adding water and scrubbing and the green seemed to turn to just cloudy water, sort of blue, but the liner is blue so that's hard to tell. I can't see the bottom. On Friday, I took a water sample to the pool store and returned home with instructions to use 10 lbs of Burnout 73 and 22 oz of Banish algaecide. I have Smart Sticks in the skimmer basket. The water test showed pH of 7.5, free chlorine of 0.4, and CYA of 2. Monday's water sample showed little improvement with the chlorine level at 0.6. They sold me 50 lbs of calcium hydrochlorite, but they were out of any products for me to test for chlorine, so it just seemed too vague for me. I came back here and read success stories till 3:00 this morning, and I'm ready to give it a try. I ordered the test kit. I went to Walmart and bought bleach.

Do I just wait on the test kit, or is there something I can do in the mean time, other than vacuuming and scrubbing? It's a 24' round AG, 14,000 gallons, sand filter. This will be my fourth summer with it. I am continuing to read here, it's a lot to digest at once. I'm sure I'll have more questions, but it's a start.
 
I'd see if I could take back any of those chemicals you bought that are unopened. You can backwash that filter to start too. You're waaaaaay ahead of the game with a test kit coming. Welcome to the forum.
 
Thanks woodyp. I did return the 50 lbs of calcium hydrochlorite. That $175 will buy a lot of bleach! The rest has been used or at least opened. I hope I can eventually incorporate the leftovers a little at a time into my care routine without causing a problem. Maybe.
 
About all you can do at the moment is vacuum and brush and blindly add bleach. 1/2 jug of plain 8.25% twice a day. Maybe once at noon and once after sunset so it can work without the sun attacking it. Let the pump run at least half an hour after additions. Once you get the test kit, we'll let it have it!
 
Test kit arrived a day early!
First test results:
CYA is 20 I think. The dot disappears just before the solution reaches the top of the vial. PoolMath says add 37 oz. of stabilizer. Sock in front of skimmer basket.
pH is 7. To raise this, does it matter if you use borax or soda? I've read a lot but I must have missed that. I have plenty of soda but no borax. But I'm headed to Walmart anyway.
TA is 110 or 120. Shaky hand day, so I dropped two drops at once.
FC is 1.5 and CC is .5, for TC of 2. Add 41 oz. of 8.25 bleach.
The chlorine test where you match the color to the scale shows 1 or slightly less for the chlorine.
Where do I start, with CYA, or just try to correct everything at once? Keep adding bleach?
I got bleach but not stabilizer, so off to Walmart I go.
 
Good on the stabilizer - hang the sock in front of a return. Better than in the skimmer.
Use aeration to raise your pH, with a TA of 110 it should come right up. Aim the return at the surface or throw a couple of the grand kids in to splash around. Be sure you can see the bottom. As long as the FC is at shock or less it is OK for them to be in the pool.
Add the bleach. Follow the FC/CYA chart to get to shock level for CYA of 40 (FC 16).
Follow the SLAM until you meet the three criteria -- Pool School - SLAM - Shock Level And Maintain

Hope that helps - keep asking questions.

Take care.
 
Good morning.
Here are my test results from yesterday morning. I had turned the return up to get some aeration and threw a kid in as mknauss suggested. The pH had come up to 7.2. Basically no choline again. After having the sock hanging overnight with stabilizer in it, I re-tested the CYA. That is certainly a hard test to feel confident about. It looked like 40 to me, but I poured the solution back and forth a few times and sometimes it looked like 50. I started with 40 as my reading and used the PoolMath to determine my bleach to add to reach 16. I tested chlorine 1.5-2 hours later and it was down to 11. Most of the day, when I rechecked the choline, it would be back down to 10 or 11 and I would bring it back up to 16. Late afternoon, I decided maybe the CYA reading was 50 instead of 40, so I changed my target to 20 instead of 16. Wishy washy, that's me. At 6 p.m., I got it up to 22, I guess my pouring was not accurate, or maybe my measuring. At any rate, my test at 9 p.m. was 21. That was the last of the day. This morning it is at 15. We are having a little thunderstorm, so I haven't been out except to grab the water sample. I'm not sweet enough to melt, but I'm sure tall enough to get struck by lightning!

Is my goal for today to get the chlorine back up to 16 (or 20) and have it stay there all day? The pool looks clearer each day. I am vacuuming daily and trying to brush too. The brushing is my weak link, because of arthritis in my hands and wrists. Is there a trick or a tool that makes it easier?

Thanks.
 
Okay, back on track with the bleach. 1.5 cups seems like nothing after all the gallon jugs I've emptied! Not an ark-building storm, so far mostly wind and lightning. I have one 11 year old granddaughter, but she has other things going on today. She's usually a lot of help if you can get her to put her phone down.
 

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I continue to SLAM, and I have a few questions.
I have ordered a Dolphin E10 vacuum, ETA Thursday. Can I use it while slamming, or will the high levels of chlorine do damage to it?
Other than the cost of the chlorine, is there a down side to going over the SLAM level of chlorine? As careful as I try to be, there must be a discrepancy somewhere in either my testing or my dosing, because the PoolMath amount will often get me higher than my target. Better than too low I guess. Does this cause damage to equipment?
I will test again tomorrow for CYA. My ability to judge that test is questionable. I wonder if my level is higher that I originally thought, since I seem to be at a standstill after 5 days. I'm testing about every 2 to 4 hours, and having to add smaller amounts of chlorine now, but CC stays at 1 and the little black streaks which must be algae return every morning. I thought it was just dirt settling, but another thread I read had a photo that looked exactly like mine, and they were told it was algae. I am vacuuming and brushing. The water cleared some, but there is still a slight cloudiness. What am I missing? At what point do I consider adding DE to the filter?
I try to will post a photo tomorrow.
Thanks for your advice.
 
Ceejay said:
I continue to SLAM, and I have a few questions.
I have ordered a Dolphin E10 vacuum, ETA Thursday. Can I use it while slamming, or will the high levels of chlorine do damage to it?
Click to expand...

I have the Dolphin DX5 Plus and I use it up to Shock level for my CYA...Three years and still going strong! Your mileage may vary...

Ceejay said:
Other than the cost of the chlorine, is there a down side to going over the SLAM level of chlorine?
Click to expand...

Cost of chlorine and extra reagent cost...If you are going over by 1 or 2 ppm I would not be concerned.

Ceejay said:
As careful as I try to be, there must be a discrepancy somewhere in either my testing or my dosing, because the PoolMath amount will often get me higher than my target. Better than too low I guess. Does this cause damage to equipment?
Click to expand...

Way over could damage equipment/bleach liner. The Speed Stir helps with testing accuracy...I would suggest you purchase one! Use PoolMath to recalculate your pool volume and check the dates of your bleach as well.

Ceejay said:
I will test again tomorrow for CYA. My ability to judge that test is questionable.
Click to expand...

The CYA test is very subjective and can be a pain! Make sure it is sunny when testing and the sun is to your back. The tube should be waist high. Glance at the dot don't stare. Add 10 ppm to the tube at a time, glance at the dot, if you see the dot at a glance add 10 ppm, glance, repeat until you can't see the dot.

Ceejay said:
I wonder if my level is higher that I originally thought, since I seem to be at a standstill after 5 days. I'm testing about every 2 to 4 hours, and having to add smaller amounts of chlorine now, but CC stays at 1 and the little black streaks which must be algae return every morning.
Click to expand...

Just stick at 50 CYA until you retest using the above method! You are doing fine with the testing, no worries! Just keep up the SLAM. It took longer than 5 days to make it a mess, it will take longer to clear it up!

Ceejay said:
The water cleared some, but there is still a slight cloudiness. What am I missing?
Click to expand...

Nothing, I think you are doing the right things and asking the right questions!

Ceejay said:
At what point do I consider adding DE to the filter?
Click to expand...

I think you are progressing fine! You can add DE now, but I would wait a little longer...seems to be clearing up at a good pace now.

HTH

Tony
 
Thanks Tony! Good to hear. I wondered if I was spinning my wheels! The pool was much clearer this morning, not perfect but better even than yesterday. Still brushing dark spots every day, but fewer. Still reading and learning, I WILL get this! Today's nugget of info is how to decipher the date on the bleach bottle. I will order the Speed Stir.
Thanks for your help.
Carol
 
Ceejay said:
Thanks Tony! Good to hear. I wondered if I was spinning my wheels! The pool was much clearer this morning, not perfect but better even than yesterday. Still brushing dark spots every day, but fewer. Still reading and learning, I WILL get this! Today's nugget of info is how to decipher the date on the bleach bottle. I will order the Speed Stir.
Thanks for your help.
Carol
Click to expand...

Your wish is my command!

Chlorine Date Code Decoder/Easy Way to Measure Strength.
 
IMG_0731.jpg

Pool photo from yesterday morning, before vacuuming. The water is clearing more each day. Crossing my fingers that it will be clear enough by Saturday to do the OCLT. My CC was zero this morning! Meantime, I am keeping the chlorine at SLAM level and brushing daily. I'll report back after my OCLT, or before if I run into trouble. My E10 robot came yesterday and is hard at work. Now it does the vacuuming. I love that thing! Nothing is perfect, but it seems like it's doing a great job. I believe I will be able to manage with this system and I thank all of you who have shared your experience and answered my questions. There are so many kind voices here, it makes it easier to show my ignorance. But I'm learning!
 
Ceejay said:
View attachment 64202

Pool photo from yesterday morning, before vacuuming. The water is clearing more each day. Crossing my fingers that it will be clear enough by Saturday to do the OCLT. My CC was zero this morning! Meantime, I am keeping the chlorine at SLAM level and brushing daily. I'll report back after my OCLT, or before if I run into trouble. My E10 robot came yesterday and is hard at work. Now it does the vacuuming. I love that thing! Nothing is perfect, but it seems like it's doing a great job. I believe I will be able to manage with this system and I thank all of you who have shared your experience and answered my questions. There are so many kind voices here, it makes it easier to show my ignorance. But I'm learning!
Click to expand...
That already looks better than 95% of the pools in America, and probably 99% of the public pools.
 

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