My current plans are to have the Kool deck applied to the concrete decking. It has to be done before the concrete sets up and the cost is an additional $3.50 per square foot. I went to a pool where it was done and it looked great the way they textured the concrete and there was a color additive, don't know whether it's part of the Kool deck or if it was in the concrete itself. The concrete contractor said it was 'T5'. In Georgia where we have red clay, it is beneficial in hiding stains. Also the builder claims it will lower the deck temp by 20 degrees in the summer. Anyone here have it, what are your thoughts?

Below is the one I saw with the T5 Kool deck. Ours would be very similiar.

I have 25 acre field behind my house. I can’t get the winter cover to not catch the wind in the winter. Has anyone used the hurricane pocket cover before? It has a center drain and don’t really want the water draining in my pool. I’ve drained the pool in the past but think I’ll leave it this year and plug the return and skimmer.

So we are about 2 months in to owning a brand new pool, just converted to salt not long ago. Pump stopped working the other nigh, and prior to that we had received a couple of the email alerts saying that the communications cable was not communicating between the pump and the Intellicenter. We checked all connections, and they were secure and good. Power connections to the pump are good. We had an electrician out today before the PB comes back out tomorrow, just to check and verify that we had good power all the way to the pump, which we do.

My wife had called Pentair on Friday (this all happened Friday), and the guy on the phone immediately said it sounds like a bad drive, which he said has been an issue, and he started the warranty process right then without even verifying what it was. At that point we had not even checked the power. He assigned a ticket and another pool company, and we talked to them and they were confused as well. Our PB called and said they were looking into all this today, and talking with their Pentair rep, and they seem to think it's something else, but have not said what. I guess my question at this point is, has anyone here experienced this? None of the lights for power come on at the pump itself, but the electrician verified the power to it today. I'm really surprised that the pump went out that quick. The PB is sending a guy out in the morning to replace something, but they have not said what.

Just picked up an Elantra Limited Hybrid for my boy as his first car and I wanted so share that I'm really impressed with this car. The car is loaded with safety features including semiautonomous driving (we tested on highway and it works really well), drives very nice and gets off the charts gas mileage. We have been getting 55mpg routinely in the first couple of weeks. The warranty is phenomenal at 5/60k- 100k for powertrain and tranny. No CVT transmission but a DCT which will last longer too. We took on road to Penn State and drove very nice and quieter than I thought it would be and two teenagers fit comfortably in the back.

So if you are considering one of these I would highly recommend them in terms of a value prop for what is considered a compact sedan. Only thing missing in my opinion is a HUD and wireless carplay vs wired but for an economy car segment they had to keep costs down at some point so likely why no HUD.

I've had my pool and separate spa setup with ORP/Ph controlled SWCGs for the past 10 years and finally have had it with the hassles the ORP sensors bring to the system. After a lot of reading here I've disconnected the HCC2000 (pool) and Sense & Dispense (spa) systems and am getting things on track without them. Concerning the T-cell outputs I am wondering how the % settings actually work. It seems the cell is either on or off and the % setting refers to how long the cell runs per hour of pump time. ls this correct? If so how does this work? For example, if the t-cell is set at 10% does it run for 6 minutes out of every hour the pump is on? Do the t-cells keep track of the time? Thank you in advance for your help! This site has been a great help. This morning the pool is at 92*f, FC 6.0, TC 6.0, pH 7.7, TA 80, CH 350, CYA 80, NaCl 3000. Just need to get the t-cell (T-15) dialed in to maintain FC at 6-11. I have a single speed pump running 24/7 (electricity is very cheap here!)

My question is this. When closing for the winter, I remove drain plugs in my Triton sand filter and Pentair Pool pump. When the water drains from those two devices, does that also empty all water in the other piping that is in the picture?

We went on vacation lost power came back to a green swampy pool. Its an above ground 6500 gallons took out all the green nasty old sand substituted it with zeolite. Pool is finally blue but very milky cloudy. I’ve tested the water I’ve done all the chemicals still very cloudy. Is it the zeolite?

Has anyone had experience installing pavers over an auto box cover? We are not getting a lot of guidance from our pool builder. What bridges between the stone brackets?

So, not sure if this is efflorence, scaling, a combination or what, but it seems to have become a real problem this summer. I had someone tell me our excessive hot summer is the culprit. I have found the easiest way to get rid of it is using a paint scraper and regularly changing the blades. In the past I have tried acid, pummice - none which were as effective as just using a blade scraper - keeping it wet. I am unclear if it is scale from the water, why it is so much worse above the water line. Also some tiles on my spa have it that are a foot above the water line. So, I am wondering if I take it all off - is there anything I can do to keep it from coming back. My CYA is off the chart, but using pool math ( and looking at my water) I see to be staying in the magic CSI good range. I have attached some before and after removal pictures and some showing the tiles which are high up on the spa which have the "stuff" on them. You can see where I have scraped some of it off.

With our pool season coming to a close soon, I've got a few issues that I need to address before opening next spring. There are the issues:

• Deep end of pool has sunk 2-3" over the past few years
• One section of our concrete pad has separated
• New liner is required

What I'd like to do during closing this year is:

• Drain the pool
• Remove the liner
• Inspect the concrete structure for any areas that need repairing and fix them now or in the early spring. This would give me time to book a company if more serious structural repair is required (eg sinking issue).

Then, next spring I'd have the new liner installed.

Are there any issues with leaving the concrete pool exposed from Oct-Mar without a liner on top of it? Would the snow/rain etc during the winter season cause any issues I should be aware of?

So I'm almost ready to close my pool. This will be my first go at this. I know that I drain water below return and skimmer. I know that I detach hoses and store filter/pump indoors.

I will be using a winter cover with a pillow under it. I know to remove the steps also. Do I need to remove the return/jet fittings from the pool? Do I remove the skimmer? Also all I read was to bring water to SLAM levels. Is that all that's needed chemical wise?

I have the Hayward OmniLogic system. I have a schedule for the pool from 9am - 9pm and one for the spa from 3pm - 9pm. The pool schedule seems to work consistently but the spa schedule does not work at all. I can turn it on via the app and it works just fine so the spa pump does work. Any tips?

I will have a spa installed. Next to my pool. It has a waterfall. My contractor said that Hayward only does waterfall lights with a waterfall already in it, but I already have a waterfall (it is an acrylic spa with its own waterfall, see picture below for an example, I will put stones all around as in picture). I want to put a light on the exterior wall behind the waterfall, with option to change color and possibly dimming it. And I want it to have it connected to my HLPLUS4W Omnilogic. Any suggestion?

Hi all,

I have a new 10,000 gallon in ground fibreglass pool here in Charlotte.

This is my first winter and we are about to have 3/4 day cold snap, with night temps dipping into teens and even a day sub 32° temps.

After speaking to other pool owners here I was advised that closing and winterizing here is not needed, so I have been running my pump on low RPMs overnight. My omnilogic system and pump also have freeze protection which kicks in at 37° anyway.

But now we have this cold snap coming I am getting a little worried. I was going to tarp my equipment and add a work light just to keep the temps up, but maybe I should drain my equipment in case of power outage?

I have a simple set up - no drains or valves just a skimmer and 2 returns. Water in from the skimmer (right pipe on pics) and out from the heater/SWG (left pipe) to returns. I have a Hayward VSP pump, Hayward cartridge filter and Hayward heater (not in use). Should I drain these to be on the safe side?

I must admit I’m not familiar with how to do this but am researching as we speak. Thanks!

I get a FAULT- CHECK IGN CONTROL error on the display.

I followed the LXI Troubleshooting Guide all the way to step 12 (Check Blower). When I check the voltage between the F2 terminal on the Ignition Control and ground (A) I get nothing (same for F1). But, when I test the voltage between (A) and F2 coming from the power distribution board, I get 120V (same for F1). Shouldn't F2 from the PDB be 0? Does this suggest a bad/shorted blower/capacitor or bad PDB?

The Fenwal diagnostic LED only blinks once when restarted. Any ideas?

I'm in the middle of a build, and would love some opinions on the best way to go about this...

We want to get something around the pool in order to listen to music. I want anyone to be able to change the music... (Meaning I don't want my phone to be the ONLY way to do it)

I also want to be able to watch a sports ball game on the TV outside, and have the audio take over the speakers... for example I want to hear the football game I'm watching.

I have been doing a lot of research on creating a "home assistant" dashboard on a android tablet.

I am new to TroubleFreePool and grateful for any input. I have had my 28,000 gallon inground pool and 1,000 gallon inground hot tub for just over a year now. The pool and hot tub are separate bodies of water. I am just now learning how to adjust my iAqualink and noticed that both my 2.7hp Jandy epump pool pump and 2.7hp Jandy epump hot tub pump have been running at 3450 rpm 24/7. Any advice on a time schedule and rpms for the pool and hot tub?

Also, my pool company seems to have a difficult time keeping the chlorine and pH levels within normal range. I have Powerclean Ultra off-line chlorinators for both pool and hot tub. Any advice if I attempt to manage the chemicals myself?

Thank you very much!

Replacing my 19 year old pool, going from a 27' to a 24' diameter. Installer said I need 2-1/2 tons each of mason sand and lime dust.

Do I really need more lime dust? The current pool bottom is no longer smooth, some cracks/ crevices. I know the sand will likely mostly be used but not sure I need more lime dust.

Thoughts or comments?

I finally got my pool to a sweet spot and then suddenly it started turning green. I had this trouble last fall, but it seemed much easier to get under control. The summer heat I am sure has something to do with it. I am out of a few parts of my TFP testing kit and so have had to rely on my local pool shop to run my tests (which of course I am unsure about ALL the chemcial recs their giving to get rid of green pool water - something called green to clean)

Here are my numbers:

FC - .13
TC - .13
pH - 7.8
TA - 89
CH - 280
CYA - 5

Alright, here's some background, after going through the SLAM process a couple of times before it "took" (clearly I missed something the first time despite passing the OCLT) I think that I've got the pool free of anything actively consuming my FC (evidenced by my passing the OCLT last night with 0 loss).

I'm having the most difficult time dialing in my SWG, it feels like my chorine demand is going up, but I don't see how that's possible if I'm passing the OCLT. The only thing that I can think of is maybe the UV reaching the pool through the auto cover is a lot stronger than I think it should be? If I had to guess I would have said little-to-no UV is reaching the water with the pool covered, however yesterday the cover was only removed before sun was on the pool (for testing) and after sunset (for testing) with no bather load at all for 48 hours. Let me break down those 48 hours:

1. Tested FC and found it to be at 6.5ppm (low end of target)
2. Added 165oz of bleach (adds 5.9ppm FC per poolmath)
3. Increased SWG Percentage (with cover on) to 40% up from 35%
4. Increased SWG Percentage (with cover off) to 70%...This is irrelevant because cover was on for all of this data
5. Waited 24 hours (adds 4.4ppm FC per poolmath)
6. Tested FC and found it to be at 11.5 (with bleach and SWG we should have had a cumulative addition of 10.3ppm FC from bleach + SWG, so if we round that down to 10 that means we had a daily loss of 5ppm which seems on the extreme end even for an uncovered pool, let alone one that was covered 100% of the daylight hours).
7. Waited 14 hours (adds 2.5ppm FC per poolmath)
8. Turned off SWG
9. Waited 2 hours
10. Tested FC and found it to be at 9.5 (which means we had a loss of 4.5 over the preceding 16 hours when factoring in the 2.5 added by the SWG)
11. Waited 8 hours
12. Tested FC and found it to be at 9.5 (which means nothing was lost overnight)
13. Turned on the SWG

So here's where I'm stuck. It feels like my pool is currently burning through ~5ppm of FC per day while covered which feels excessive, but on the other hand I passed an OCLT last night. So should I be turning up my SWG to ~50% when the cover is closed to be making 5.4ppm FC per day? Is it possible that little-to-no UV is being blocked by the safety cover and that this is all UV related loss (even with 70 CYA)? Is something else going on?

This pool is new, just finished in May, I've been adhering to the TFP method as diligently as possible, but between the weirdness that caused my SLAMs previously and the pool being new I've never felt like I truly had my SWG dialed in. I do have the Cover Expansion Card for the Intellicenter which allows me to set different SWG percentages for when the cover is open vs when it is closed. All lights on the SWG are working as expected, and there are small bubbles visible from the returns when the SWG indicates the cell is on, so I don't (as of now) suspect that anything is wrong with the cell...

Hey folks,

So I, like an idiot, put phosphate remover in my pool because my phosphates were incredibly high (3000+ ppb).

This clouded the water, as expected, and I cleaned my filter cartridges everyday for the last couple of days.

I noticed today that my filter pressure was still +10 psi higher than it should be, even after cleaning. After removing the cartridges and running the pump on its own the PSI went back down to the normal level it should be...meaning that my cartridges are clogged AF with lanthanum phosphate.

The filters are basically brand new (installed them 5 months ago). They still look like they just came out of the box, but when I look into the pleats I can see that there is a ton of lanthanum phosphate right in the inner most part of the pleats that my hose cannot seem to wash out.

I am soaking them in 1:20 muriatic acid for 2 hours to see if this clears the issue, but it got me wondering:

Is the 1:20 muriatic acid treatment going to help out?
Is there some other chemical that will dissolve these stuff that is safe to use?
Perhaps a different procedure that I can do to remove this stuff?

Or are my cartridges just ruined and I need to get new ones?

I have a pool that is about 11 years old and I would like to update the automation side of things. I do not even know what I have, lol, but I will post pictures at the bottom of the post.

I know my system is all Jandy. I have the Handy PDA remote, a variable speed pump, a CS200 filter, Gulfstream 5 ton heater and a Jandy salt cell (1400 iirc) along with a couple of automated valves.

What I would like to achieve with this update is the following:
- Be able to control things with my phone instead of the old remote control
- Be able to easily program my variable speed pump to run at different speeds throughout the day. Say low speed for 8 hrs to keep the cell happy and then high speed for another 2 hrs to turn over the water.

What is the easiest/cheapest way to accomplish this? iAqualink? Do I need an add on or a whole new control system?

Thanks!

My barracuda keeps getting stuck on the pool drain (photo attached). What can I do to stop it getting stuck on this drain?

So our cover is completely dead. No little kids, nobody goes on the back over winter. Don't want to spend too much- saw Dohenys has solid covers for inground for under 2k. Anyone use this brand? The company that installed our pool is outrageous for anything cost wise. I just want something that can last 5 or so years before we sell the house. Any input is appreciated.
I do know that the anchors will not necessarily be in the same spots, but half of the anchors are currently busted anyways. The concrete is our spring project- we had the safety cover with the elephant in the ad.
TBH I am so over the pool, or kid are older and don't use it. This summer has been an utter waste of the pool.. just want to get it covered

So the pump has its own timer settings so what does adding to the Prologic benefit me? Does it offer heater protection if flow too low? Any advantage at all?

Hi all,I am thinking about just running my pool all year. What are some you your thoughts on this?

Hello! I have a Pentair Clean and Clear Cartridge Filter and was reading that some people bring their cartridge filters inside for the winter. (I live in NY). I've never done that and its been OK as far as I can tell but now Im wondering if I should take them inside this season?

Is there any pool equipment that you recommend be moved inside for the winter?

Thank you!

Hello. New pool owner here. I have a 4500 gal above ground pool. We have tried everything to get our pool un cloudy. We upgraded the pump to a sand filter pump which is working great but the pool is still cloudy. So upon testing it the ph and alkalinity is zero. So I added baking soda. Well I added way to much. I put the entire 10lb bag in. Yep way to much. Now I don't know what to do. It's been almost 24hrs since I added it and the pool is still really cloudy. Can someone please advise me on what to do. I'm at a loss and don't know what to do.

I’ve got a 1 week old Pebble pool. I’ve been using a TF Pro every day to familiarize myself and to keep a close eye on test results. It seems like the last few days I’ve had stable CH and TA levels. CYA is a slow work in progress to get up to an ideal level so will check that every couple of days I think. Just added enough stabilizer via the sock method last night to bring me up to 30.

Am I ok to check PH and FC every day and perform the rest of the tests weekly? Or is it too soon and I still need to run them all?

Also, if I use the OTO test, how do I know how much liquid chlorine to add? I can run FAS-DPD every day but not sure if it’s necessary?

HI All,

Ive got a 13k gallon inground pool, had it newly plastered about a year ago now.
Im getting tired of the vacuum cleaner and the time it takes to brush the pool so im going to bite the bullet and get a robot.

Can anyone reccomend a good robot cleaner preferably under $1k?
Id like one that can brush as well as vacuum if that exists and does the waterline as well.

Ill probably turn this into a rental the next few years so set and forget would be a nice to have as well.

Thanks!