I have constantly a difference between total chlorine and free chlorine of around 0.5 - 0.6 ppm. I have heard that this level should preferably be lower. I have tried chock chlorination but it did not lower the level. Any ideas on how to lower it?

Hey all, I'm currently slamming my green pool. I'm on Day 2.

On day 1 at sunset, using pool calculator, I dropped enough bleach for 24 FC (64 CYA). By morning, it was around 4 FC. I just added enough to get it back up and will retest at sunset. Is this pretty normal for a day 1?

As far as CYA, I just had to drain a bunch of water (prior to slam) to get it down so my numbers may be wacky (chem tests attached). I noticed my Taylor kit seems to read CYA higher than Leslie's (70 vs 53 today).

Anyway, my TA is 57. Do I need to worry about it during my SLAM? I do have baking soda.

How often do I need to backwash/rinse? I can't use the "backwash til clear" method because it starts out green anyway.

Also, the manager at Leslie's wants me to use Black Algae Killer so bad that he gave me a bottle for free. I've attached the ingredients. I know the general consensus is to not trust Leslie's guys, but him giving it to me for free threw me off. I go in all the time and don't buy anything, so I don't think he's trying to get me to buy more chemicals. I've read the SLAM articles, but I didn't find an article on this particular product.

Hello All

Thanks in advance for the help. My AquaRite panel went dark this week. I am a novice on these boards but I have replaced the limiter in the past. I couldn’t find a parts diagram that shows what I think is the problem. However I am sure the experts here can confirm if this is the cause or the effect. In the attached picture it looks like the red piece (technical name) is burnt out and needs replacing.

Would appreciate if someone could point me to the part name and whether this may indicate a larger issue that needs to be resolved.

Thank you!
Brian

I just finished up a DIY installation of a Hayward Max-Flo VS pump (model IS2303VSP3) which replaced an old single speed pump. I set it up to be controlled by my ProLogic controller. I followed the wiring instructions to a tee. Everything seems to go fine. Pump started up just fine after fiddling around with the (admittedly lackluster) variable speed settings in ProLogic. I started the pump up and let it run for about 45 minutes. That’s when the craziness began…

After it ran for 45 min, the lights began flashing disco style in my pool. They were programmed with a solid aqua on the timer but they started flashing red on and off. After doing that for about 5 minutes they shut off completely. ProLogic still indicated they were on. I turned them off and then back on but nothing. When I tried to turn them back on, I can hear the ‘ballast’ energize to activate them but they do not turn on. If I stop the pump and restart it, ProLogic will allow me to turn the lights back on but they don’t come on with the programmed color (more of a light blue). They stay on for about 2 minutes and then shut off again. Again, the ProLogic says they are still on. After this, the cycle repeats.

I did leave the 1 position on the dipswitches on at the pump since that’s how they came from the factory. After these issues, I turned it off which had no effect on the craziness above.

Another issue I noticed:

The pump doesn’t seem to be giving as much output as I would expect. It’s supposedly a larger pump than the old one (1.64 THP vs 1.25) but the pressure on the filter is lower than with the old pump. That’s at 100%. If I turn it down to 40%, I get no flow at all. Zero pressure on the filter. No flow from the jets. That should be about 1460 rpm, so I would think I would still get decent flow at that speed.

Any thoughts on these two issues?

Lucas

I've been battling the green stuff on the walls of my pool for about three months. For the years I've owned my pool I was quite casual (lazy) about maintenance. Test the water about once a month and add three gallons of chlorine per day in the summers (when I remembered) and two gallons per day during the winters. I guess I've been quite lucky, because I've never had any algae problems. 2023 is the year my laziness caught up with me.

Around early June I noticed green stuff on the shaded walls of the pool. Dr. Google informed me that it was algae, so I bought 5 pounds of shock from Lowes and took care of the problem. As most here can predict, the problem returned a week later. On que, Dr. Google informed me I should shock the pool once a week. I obliged just like a good sheeple until I became fed up with my weekly investment in Lowes (that was yesterday). That's when I recalled the great information I had learned from TFP. So I came back to TFP and learned all about my algae problems. So, last night I began my SLAM.

Here's my readings before I SLAMed. Visually, the water was clear, with the algae visible only on the pool walls.

TA 110 ppm
FC .6 ppm (aha!)
No CC
CH 300
CY 40
PH 8
Water temp 86f

Because of the high PH, I added MA and lowered it to 7.6 before the SLAM, and I thoroughly brushed the pool. Yesterday evening I added 3.5 gallons of Suncoast liquid chlorine, and let it run through the system for an hour. One thing I did not expect was for the water to remain clear. Whenever I previously dumped in the CalHypo stuff, the water would cloud up. Nevertheless, I then checked the FC, and it stood at 20.8. My target was 16 in accordance with the TFP Chlorine Chart (CY at 40), but 20.8 should be fine as a starting point.

This morning before sunrise I checked the FC and it was 19.8, a full 1 ppm decrease overnight. The little algae nasties had a feast last night. My plan is to let it drift down to 16 ppm over the next few hour/days then hover there until my OTLC reads zero. An odd thing I noticed this morning was it seems there is still green on some of the walls. Oddly, I tried brushing it off, and it does not come off. I will check it later this morning with a hand brush to see if it's actually green, or simply a reflection of the surrounding trees. My old eyes can play tricks on me. I'll report back in the coming moments. Thanks! -Geo

New member, long-time watcher. I've had my pool for about 6 years and have been following the TFP methods for the last 4. Was pool-stored for the first two years, and have enjoyed our break-up. You have a fantastic community here. I've learned a lot, and hope to contribute. I will get into my recent algae issue in that thread. Cheers! -Geo

I’ve been either maintaining my own chlorine swimming pools and spas, or tinkering with salt equipment and now thermal solar for about 25 years on and off. LOVE technology.

I currently have a pool in my existing house but building on property in Weatherford, TX. I know it’s a crazy time to build but I am building with my daughter and her other half and they agreed to let me tag along and build my MIL retirement home on their property.

since I currently have a pool I couldn’t imagine living in Texas without one so a new pool at the new property it is. Joining here to to get insights on new pool builds and all the advice I can absorb while the house is being built and before talking to pool builders.

thanks for the add……

The wife used to take care of the pool with test strips. Green half the time. When I retired I got your kit, read this forum a lot and have solved my problems....well almost.

Within a week after opening the pool I religiously adjust ALL of your recommended parameters (i.e, pH, CYA, CL, etc etc) to the middle of the ranges. All is OK. I'm using bleach, test every day and add as necessary.

Everything is fine until early July when we go on vacation. I add slow dissolve pucks to a auto chlorinator and the CL level is fine when we get home. However, as expected the CYA has jumped up. Now at about 85. So, I up the CL to meet the requirement of the CYA, per your specifications for that CYA.

I always have a little brown "dirt" on some depressions in the pool liner bottom. I can disturb them with my feet and see brown. Probably a lot of pollen. I vacuum every few days. However, NOW, it's obvious they are green. It's not stuck to the sides, it's all loose particles, which I assume are algae.

I know how to fix it from this site, and I will. My question is, short of hiring a pool boy for a week while on vacation, and having him test and add bleach, how can I PREVENT it in the future?

Can someone give input on a pool build in process? We are in the final stages and just got our pool plaster pebble sheen installed on Thursday . The pool co. sent out an employee to acid wash the shell . He started in the spa and we noticed as we are filling it with water the glass tile looks dulled and grout color seems to have changed from gray to white on the spillover . Any input on what might have happened ? It also seems to be discolored on front of spa tile where flows from spa. Thank you .

Hello
What’s the best test kit to get? I have a inground pool. 14200 gallons, salt water generator.

Hi all,

On July 26, I successfully completed a SLAM (see: Small spots of algae causing heavy chlorine consumption?).

However, I noticed that my water was again becoming less clear (drop in translucency when the sun hits it) and started measuring overnight loss again - yesterday night, I lost 2.2 so I've kicked off a new cycle of SLAM'ing.

I suspect that I made one mistake during my previous SLAM: I have a waterfall feature that had been switched off for about 2 years and I did not switch it on during my SLAM. While it's always been dripping (see pictures I took as part of my previous SLAM - see the above link) and I have replaced the valve (not the pipe just the mechanism inside it), I took the step of at least weekly switching it on to cycle the water and did just that last weekend.

For this current SLAM, I have opened the valve to cycle the high chlorine water through it - it will obviously increase my pH quite dramatically (I also made the mistake of not lowering my pH ahead of the SLAM, I know, stupid) but I'll take care of that after the SLAM.

My questions:
1° While the water that comes out of the waterfall is clear (not green or anything like it), is it possible that there's something in there that's causing this? And every time I switch it on it releases stuff that's contaminating my pool?
2° As I can't scrub the insides, I guess I'll have to hope that the SLAM chlorine levels will clean it sufficiently?
3° How do I prevent this? We switch off the waterfall because we're not a fan of the noise it makes so perhaps we just need to keep it active just a little bit (but then it will run down the tiles)?

Thanks,
Bernard

Does anyone know why my onyx vinyl pool liner is turning dark in the areas that people walk on in the pool. Once someone walks or presses the liner with a part of their body it turns completely dark. The other areas stay the original color of the liner. Liner is just 3 years old.

I have a 3 1/2 year old in-ground liner salt pool with the liner manufactured by GLI pool products. I have followed TFP religiously and was told by GLI this is not covered under warranty because it is due to “excessive chlorine”. My ph is maintained between 7.6-7.7, CYA 70, chlorine 3-5, Alkalinity 70-80, CH225. I think their response is lousy, but I would be curious on any TFP community thoughts.

Hi there

I have a similar problem. I live in CT and I was having 1/2” to 3/4” water loss from my pool. Interestingly, when we opened it, it was quite full. We just bought this house with the pool and it is our first experience with the pool.

The loss could not be attributed to evaporation. The pool guys determined that I had a leak from return jets (the ones closer to surface) , which we fixed. The liner was also faded, so we changed it. After the pool was refilled, we notice at least 1” of water loss per day.

We have already pressure tested all the lines, including the new return jets, and they were all good.
The main drain pipe was not pressure tested. Instead, they cut the pipe open, plugged both ends at the deep end of the pool and filled the pipe with water. The pipe was holding water ok (just little loss which the guy felt was from evaporation, not sure if that is accurate )

It is so frustrating ! I am suspecting the leak could be from the site of the liner attachment to stairs, but I can see how the ink test could be useless !
I am also concerned about the main drains, but maybe a leak that is high up in the pipe.

By the way, it’s not necessary that your pool would be completely empty with main drain leaks.
Only leaks in the pipe part that is under the pool would lead to an empty pool. If the leak is in the part that is running upward, or the part that is closer to the pump, the water level will stop at the same level of the leak when the water pressure in the pool equalizes with the water pressure in the pipe.

Any updates on your pool situation ? Did you figure it out ?

Hello everyone, we sprung a leak in our shutoff valve that connects to the heater to send the water back to the pool. Because all of the connections are glued, we will need to replace the gray piece that connects to the heater (header, I think). the gray pieces in this photo came with the heater from Raypak. We called Leslie's and they said these gray pieces are only sold in pairs and are $99. Does anyone here know of any alternatives we can source elsewhere? Or is ordering them really our only option?

Thank you!

JamesW said:

Click to expand...

I have one of these, what exactly does it do?

Ok, it’s been a terrible year for mosquitoes. I’m even seeing them inside my office building. But they are driving me crazy in the house. We’re checking everywhere for sealing up spots they could be using to get in, but has anyone found an effective way to trap and kill inside the house? I have one of these and it seemed to work at first, but now they just laugh at it as they zoom on by.

Looking for a little guidance . I have a whisperflo 1.5hp pump and the century 2 speed pump . Has been running o. Low speed ever since I bought my house in 2015 and the pool was installed in 1990. The pump stopped flowing water and the motor humming . Swapped both the start and run capacitor and working good now. I hooked up highspeed to see how it would run and the whisperflo unit sounds like it's drawing in air . On low I can only run my returns or waterfall. Not both . On high I can run them both . On low to get my "the pool cleaner" working I have to have the skimmer pretty much doing nothing . On high both are working properly. I pulled the motor and pump off and inspected and all looks fine . Thinking I might need a seal kit . Here are some videos . One is on low , other is wired on high and the pre filter is when on high . i took the pump to a local pool pump repair place and when the motor is on high not in the pump it sounds fine so its definitely in the pump assembly.
No water leaking but does it sound like a seal kit for the mounting plate and impeller would fix this noise ?
Filter is clean with 4 new filters . On low pressure is 1 -2 psi on high it's 10psi

on low
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on high
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Hello I need a new start capacitor for my Hayward super pump but I am having issue finding same type here are some pics hopefully someone can help , thanks

I recently bought the Cyclone for this years closing, (first time) I have one concern regarding the cyclone, will it blow thru a a plug with the Blow Thru Stem if I buy the proper adapters?
I have a Paramount In Floor Pool 6 Port Module that uses the blow thru stem plug to lock the air. I can buy another compressor just for that at $180.00 or I kit I put together for adapting the cyclone at $44.00.
Thought on the cyclone pushing the air thru the Blow Thru Stem appreciated.
Thanks,
Drew

This is my first year as a pool owner. I have a 12-16' x 32' inground. I bought a set of two solar heating mats (each 2' x 20'). I set them up on the ground behind the pool to see if it made a difference and the answer was yes. Even with that area being partially shaded at times the pool gained about 8 degrees over the course of the week in early August. I ran this off a solar powered 15w pond pump, which worked great as there was no elevation change. If you have a good spot for a ground level system I would recommend this.

However, the mats aren't really in a good spot (partial shade, awkwardly obscuring the deck, unattractive). But now I know it works I'm going to move it to the roof. I'd like to use a separate pump because the available roof is on the opposite end of the pool from the main pump, also I don't want to void the warranty on my pump by messing with it.

My question is, would a 1/10 hp pump be enough power to lift the water 10'? I found one at harbor freight which has 320 gph with 3/4" in and out garden hose style connectors. It states i think 32' lift, and the solar mats are to be used wirh no more than 1/2 hp. Obviously I would use a heat tolerant hose for the outlet. The solar mats have 1 1/2" headers so I would need to use an adapter at the start of the system.

Any thoughts on my idea? Surely someone has rigged something like this before. Thank you!

I have the same problem, the stairs have water and they are too heavy to be removed. Last year I got 3 men to help remove them but I need to be able to do it for myself and easier way.

Pool temp has dropped to 84 degrees. Brrrr! New solar cover going on this afternoon.

Hi guys! I've been looking up what cya means and whether I need to keep an eye on it if I have an ionizer. I'm finding a lot of info here on ionizers not working. We've had our pool 6 weeks in hot weather and we're happy with our system so far. When is it that ionizers start to not work?

Hello friends,

Still in my first summer of owning a pool and I’ve learned a lot from TFP. Some recent rain, a lot of splashout and maybe a touch of inattentiveness and my test results seem out of whack. I’m re-reading the chemistry basics and I have the pool math app but I would appreciate any advice on these results from my Taylor k-2006c:

FC 15.5
Total combined Cl 1.5
CYA 45
pH 7.0
TA 40
Ca hardness 40
Salt 3400 (2900 reading on SwG)

The FC has been reading high since i started testing maybe 2 months ago. I have the Hayward aqua trol at 70% output and run the pump around 8 h a day. It’s been in the high 80s-90s here on Long Island.

Thanks for any advice you can provide!!

Hi TFP,

New to this forum and 6 months into owning my first pool.

I went to go clean the debris out my pentair inteliflo pump basket after a bad storm. I did it as I normally would, put into service mode using my Easytouch system, allow the air to clear out from the filter valve, and went to open the pump basket.

Normally, the water drains down and back into the pool, but this time water started overflowing out of the pump which never has happened. From my understanding, this usually happens if your pool is higher in elevation than your pool equipment, which mine is not. Could there be something else that could be causing it?

Luckily, I was able to put the lid back on as best I could. There is still a small amount of water leaking out of it, probably because the o-ring was not properly secured with all of the water flowing out of the pump.

Any ideas or insight? I can provide more information if needed.

Hello,
I have a frustrating problem with my Goldline ProLogic PS - 4 for the past few months. When the main power cycles, either with the breaker or during an electrical storm (many here in FL) it won't power back on.

I went through the troubleshooting guide, and it appears that the voltages etc. are OK. I can list my results here if needed.

The behavior is odd. If I turn on the power to the unit all I see is the main display panel blinking all the LED's rapidly. Nothing on the readout. I have been successful with a work around. If I leave the power off overnight and disconnect the remote wired control display (inside the house) then turn the main power back on it will fire up and function normally. Then I can plug the remote wired control panel back into the board and both work normally until the next power outage. I suspect it is something going on with the main board but can't be sure. Relay? Voltage regulator or cap?

I will provide additional info if needed.
Appreciate hearing if anyone else has experienced this weird glitch.

Thanks for any help.
Mark

I'm about to pull the trigger on a Pentair 011533 WhisperFlo VST pump 2.6HP to replace old bessie which was a 0.75HP single-speed. The problem that I am foreseeing though is the inlet looks to be threaded onto the valve. All of the videos I've seen include them sawing off a portion of the inlet PVC but in my case there is 0 amount to do so. I'm unsure how to remove the pump without rotating it to unthread it. I've attached some pictures of the situation.

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