I have the same issue. I cleaned it out and it’s back…it’s hard but turns to a paste in fingers when squished..like wet chalk almost. What is going on? I kept finding blue stuff in the bottom of the pool and realize my chlorine generator wasn’t working after levels kept going out. I stripped the chlorine generator down and found this blue gunk build up pressure washed it out put it back together 24 hours later it’s building back up.

Moved from here.

I'm in a weird place with an insurance claim and in need of a certified pool contractor that would be willing to write a statement that I could submit to my insurance company. I am willing to compensate you for your time. My situation is as follows... When opening the pool, while the water was still low from the winter, the wind pulled the cover and concrete blocks into my 18x36 inground vinyl liner pool. The insurance company is willing to cover the loss of the liner, but that's all (not even the pool damaged base that had been submerged in water). This happened 6/13/22 and I had a heck of a time getting any contractors to even come look at the damage because they were all so busy with new installs after covid. Finally got someone out 5 weeks later and told me that because of all the pool water escaping and erosion of backfill to the inside of the pool that the metal walls would be too unstable to guarantee pool wouldn't fail once refilled. The only way he could warranty his work would be to completely rebuild the pool. The insurance company sent out a forensic engineer over 3 months after the pool had been setting empty and he stated that the walls hadn't shifted, so it was ok to be repaired. The liner was still hanging and there was no way he could determine that. I finally removed the liner and have plenty of images showing the wall are out of plumb and bowing. So what I am looking for is a certified pool contractor to state that after a metal walled pool has sat empty for a certain period of time it cannot be repaired, but must be rebuilt. I have plenty of images that demonstrate soil compaction under the walls has been compromised and that hydrostatic pressure from the ground water has compromised the structural integrity of the walls. We can discuss the particulars outside of the forum. PM me for my contact info. Praying someone can help, thank you!

New to this community. Had some algae problems last month, had to drain and refill then to Leslie's to get water tested. I know, invested in a water testing kit after reading tons of posts in the forum, the pool school threads and browsing around. The pool is clear but FC (.3) is not staying in and TC is about 2.5. This all after last week it was
FC 3.95
TC 3.95,
PH is 7.5,
TA is 86,
CH is 127 (little low),
CYA is 42

This week I had no FC in it so something is eating it. Guessing the algae is still around, even the pool looks great. I have been putting in 2 lbs of trichlor a day until I can get some liquid chlorine. I know I have to SLAM it, waiting on my test kits to arrive especially the FSA/DPD so I can get accurate readings. Until Then I plan on keeping the chlorine high (about 2 gallons to get it to 17 and add daily until those tests arrive. Anything else I should be doing besides brushing the walls, vacuuming and running the pump 24/7?

Thanks in advance,

I am losing the little hair I got left. There is air in the pool, and the pump is not priming all way (1/3 of the pump basket has no water), and yes, the water level is mid-level to the skimmer. To try and fix it this is what I have tried:

1. Replaced the pump. The old was over 15 years old. The new pump is the INTELLIFLO3 VSF VARIABLE SPEED AND FLOW POOL PUMP
2. . All the seals were checked, and no air leak was detected (tested with water and smoke)
3. All the connections and values were replaced. Again, all the seals were checked, and no air leak was detected (tested with water and smoke)
4. A professional checked every line for obstructions using air and water. Again, nothing.
5. The skimmer was checked for air leaks, and nothing was found. However, it is the only piece of equipment that has not changed.

Does anyone have a suggestion that I still need to try?

JP

I came across TFP while searching for these plans. Anyone still have them? They don't seem to still be on the PopSci website any longer. Thanks!


http://www.popsci.com/archive-viewer?id ... mming+pool

Working on getting my TA down (before I found this fabulous place I'd gone to the pool store where of course they told me I needed to put in Alkalinity Up) - I added the first dose of acid last night - brought TA down from 150 to 130 and pH down to 7.2...so now I'm getting that pH back up so I can re-dose with acid.

My eyeballs point up and break the surface but not enough for strong aeration, so thanks to Rangeball and dmanb2b's pictures and guidance, I was able to build this today. Hopefully this will make a difference!

[attachment=1:1t055b37]aerator1.jpg[/attachment:1t055b37]

[attachment=0:1t055b37]aerator2.jpg[/attachment:1t055b37]

Hello. I have an infinity edge pool that empties into a trough. The trough is about 18 or so inches wide, about 28 feet long. It gets flithy! I have a cover for the pool that keeps that clean but the trough is open to all the elements and trees. I wish I knew what a pain it would be to keep clean (although I think I still would have gotten it anyways). Debris is constantly floating on top and falling to the bottom. I even have raccoons that come nightly for their daily drink and drop marsh sand into the trough. I am open to any suggestions to keep it clean besides vacuuming it manually daily. I tried 2 different automatic robotic pool cleaners. They dont clean in a straight line. They both attempt to turn almost immediately and get stuck. Any ideas? Thanks!

Help!

We are watching my moms pool while on vacation. My brother added 2 bags of pH down instead of shock. The pH was high, but not high enough for 2 5lb bags of pH down!!!! What do we do?! Can we just add pH up??

Hello from Indiana! This is our first pool and I am so incredibly thankful for this resource. I have been reading and searching the the forum the past few weeks and have learned so so much!!

Hi. Here in the North East, at the end of the summer, I take the solar cover off the reel, fold and store it. I used to also take the reel apart in order to fit it into the pool house. However, as most know, over time that disassembly and reassembly causes it to weaken and sag. This year I am considering hanging it in the garage assembled (without the cover). It's about 19' long. Any ideas on how to suspend it or hang on a side wall. ?? Looking for solutions that others may have come up with. Please not that this solar reel (Seen in picture) does have gears on the end. It is an automatic reel. (Not that it makes a difference .. other than maybe not wanting to store it outside).

Thanks
Rich

This was an area in the shotcrete that was weeping from ground water. The PB put some hydraulic cement and water proofing over it but as you can see it still weeped. Will this be an issue once the pebble aggregate is installed?

Thanks in advance for the help.

On Sunday morning, I tested my water and there was zero chlorine. I used the Taylor FAS-DPD test kit (no pink). I usually have my pump on 24/7 around 1,500 RPMs unless we are using the pool and the salt cell is set to 25%, so there is no way it should be zero. I turned on the BOOST setting Sunday AM and then tested again Sunday night and still zero chlorine. I powered everything off, checked the salt cell (no buildup at all), checked the electrical connections, and turned it back on. I tested the salt in the water and it was 3,400ppm. I kept the BOOST setting on overnight and when I tested Monday AM there was still zero chlorine. Just to make sure my test kits were good, I shocked the pool Monday AM. Monday evening, the test showed 2.5-3PPM of chlorine, about what I would expect from the shock. I did a hard power off again and then ran the SWG at 100% overnight. This morning the chlorine level was still 2.5-3PPM, where it should have been closer to 6PPM. There have been no error messages on the SWG the entire time. Not sure what to do next.

have a jandy lxi. Run on propane. it started by giving me a check ignition control error after it would fire up and start to heat. Then it would kick off and show check ignition control. Had a pool guy out and he suggested to replace the control power interface board. Well that worked! But now it will start, will run again, fires up and starts to help and then shows check ignition steps. I have ordered a new hot surface ignitor for it as well but it came broken. Any other ideas?
Thanks

First I just want to say that it's been about two-three weeks since I got my first robot, Active 30, from Marina and I love it.

My question... is there any reason I shouldn't be able to run it at low RPMs (under 1000) or pump off?

Hello again, fellow TFP'ers!

So my SWG bit the dust and I'm waiting on Pentair to send someone out (my 3 year warranty is up next month, talk about timing!).
I've been adding liquid chlorine every day....seems my pool eats about 3-4ppm daily. While I dont mind continuing to add liquid chlorine till the SWG gets replaced, we leave on vacation in a couple of days for 1 week.

So my question is, about how many tabs would be required to maintain my FC in the 7-9 range for a pool my size (>30kgall)?
Currently it's at 9 with 0 CC and I've been trying to maintain it within that range since my CYA is 50-60. I previously added stabilizer to raise it but with the SWG not working I decided against adding more since I'll need to rely on tabs while we're gone and that will help increase CYA a bit.

I have one floater that I can add 3 jumbo tabs but I'm nervous that will not be enough to get us through the whole week without dropping to lower FC levels. I can get another floater and double the tabs but not sure if that's overkill?

What is the best position to have my Jandy valve in, to get most of the debris floating on the pool surface to go into the skimmer?

I grabbed out my pump filter to replace it and when I went to replace it I saw a frog swimming where the filter goes so I stuck my hand in towards the frog and it swam down and got sucked in now the pump is making a weird noise and the water pressure coming out of the pump is very little WHAT DO I DO ?

Brand new to pool ownership and have learned so much from you all already! I have a couple of questions I hope it’s ok if I put them in 1 post.

1. I had Leslie’s test my water yesterday to see how their results measures against mine and a confusing difference was the salt level which I was not expecting at all. I know I need to add salt, but I’m not sure which results to go by. We have an AquaPure 1400 and that says the salinity is 2.6 gpl (I looked up a gpl to ppm conversion and it said that is 2603ppm). I got 2200 with the Taylor test, and Leslie’s got 1748?? I was really surprised by the difference.

2. I also need to lower our TA some more. Can I add Muriatic Acid and salt at the same time?

3. Calcium Hardness - I learned from Leslie’s test that we have .8 ppm copper levels. I saw the pool guy with algaecide so after everything I’ve read here that didn’t surprise me. My CH test turns purple and per Taylor’s instructions I added 6 drops of the hardness reagent before adding the other drops. My test still turned purple so do I add more of the hardness reagent before the 20 drops of calcium buffer? After it turned purple I kept going to see what would happen and after 35 total drops (including ones before) it was turning blue. Leslie’s CH results were 87. Oh, also, I read a lot on here about the CH test and the Taylor Speed Stir was suggested a lot so I bought and have been using that.

I know in a lot of posts I’ve read you are to trust your results more than the pool store, but I don’t have that confidence in myself yet..I really wanted our results to match! I was proud though that I didn’t stress when they handed me an extensive list of products they said I needed to buy!

Levels from this morning’s test:
FC 3.5
CC 0
TA 100
PH 7.6
CYA 70
Salt 2200
CSI .02

Hi! We have a Hayward multiport and Hayward S310S sand filter. We are having multiple problems:

1) The bottom bulkhead is leaking profusely (5 gallons in a couple hours). We have tried to clean and tighten the bottom bulkhead (which is relatively new and does not appear cracked) but it does not seem to want to tighten enough because the inside elbow assembly is notched on top and bottom and when we thread it from the outside, we can only tighten it so much in order to make the notches line up (if that makes any sense).

2) When we put cyanuric acid granules in the skimmer basket without a sock (we have learned to use a sock) they spit back into the pool through the returns in about a minute.
We opened the multiport and do not believe there are any issues with the valve or the spider gasket. We have emptied the sand filter and did not see any tunneling or damaged laterals. We can not figure out how the granules are getting through.

3) The water chemistry is good (according to the local pool store) but the pool is green

Thanks in advance!

My Hayward DE 4800 backwash valve needs replacing. From searching the net I believe Hayward SP0410X502S is the part # for this filter. There are quite a few negative reviews on this valve, mostly stating the steel slide in the valve fails due to substandard material for the environment(rusts within a few months then begins leaking). The valve with the slide is about $120 or the slide alone is $90, makes sense to get the complete unit. Is there an alternative, does anyone have experience(good or bad) with this valve? thanks, Brian

Hi,
I did an acid wash on my salt cell, exactly per the pentair manual with a 4:1 water:acid solution since i had a bit of scaling on the plates. After that, I now have the issue that the salt detection doesn't work maybe 7 out of 10 times. If I turn everything off, turn it back on, the salt reading might all of a sudden work, or not. Some days it never works, next day it could work three times in a row. This makes salt production pretty unpredictable.

I read the various posts on here regarding the flow switch, but doing the diagnostics it looks like the temp sensor is rock solid.

You can watch the 30 sec video here going through the diagnostic features when salt was properly detected

And here a 30 sec video when the salt reading is 0 and the cell is not producing. The temp reading remains the same, so I doubt replacing the flow switch would solve this issue? Or might it still?

Since the cell still has 6000 hours of remaining life, I would hate to just toss it. Any ideas on how to fix this or further troubleshoot?
And yes, I learned my lesson and will next time try a less harsh solution first ...

Thanks,

Robert

Howdy everyone,

I'm new to TFP and I have to say I wish I had found out about y'all much earlier. We built a 30' round above ground pool last September so didn't get much time to use it before closing.

And by closing, I mean I stopped looking at the pool until April of this year and left the pump off.

So of course, came back to the pool this year, dark green, big mess. I spent a lot of money, bought a lot of unnecessary things, just wasted time in general.

Eventually I got the pool mostly clean, or so I thought. Although the pool looked clean and clear, there was some left over algae that was and is growing back. I'm using 10% liquid chlorine for the SLAM process. So I'm currently in my third day of SLAMing. Here are my numbers as of this morning:

FC: 11
CC: 1
PH: Not checking during SLAM
TA: 130
CH: 260
CYA: 30

I've added the suggested amount of chlorine to get back to 12 since this check but haven't checked again, going to do so again shortly. Last night, my FC was 15 and my CC was 0.5.

Couple things about CYA, I was originally testing at Leslie's before I bought the TF-PRO. Don't shoot me. But my original reading from them was 9. So I added 4 pounds of Pool Mate 1-2604B Swimming Pool Stabilizer and Conditioner, added that to a sock, soaked it in the skimmer for 30 minutes, then released it on recirculate through the pump. Was still super low, below the 30ppm reading, so I added 1 gallon of Liquid Stabilizer, was reading around 30, then another gallon of Liquid Stabilizer, and I'm still reading around 30. I followed the directions which for the liquid stabilizer, says that 1 gallon should treat 32ppm for 10k gallons. For my size pool, 2 gallons should raise it roughly 30ppm but it's still really low. Am I doing something wrong here or what am I missing?

In regards to PH, once I'm done SLAMing, should I use muriatic acid to bring the PH back down, or will it come down naturally once I get my FC to 4?

Also, my TA is 130, is that acceptable? If I do use muriatic acid after the SLAM, that should bring my TA down too so that seems like the correct route.

All that being said, my pool has never looked better. There always seemed to be a dullness on the top layer of the water that's been removed and it really does sparkle now. My wife can't wait to get in the pool but I told her that her skin may melt off if she gets in during the SLAM so that's definitely helped keep it closed the last few days. Appreciate the help! I think I have a couple other questions but the coffee hasn't kicked in yet.

2.2 inches in less than two hours. Got pretty nuts last night here in Vail, AZ. Lost power for a few hours.

After a lot of pressure testing, dye testing, etc., I found that I've got water flowing into the electrical conduit in the back of one of my light niche's (wet niche, Pentair Intellibright LED light fixture).
There is a bonding (ground) wire and the light cable running into the conduit from the pool back to the pad. The conduit is also designed as "wet"... but somewhere between the pool and the equipment pad, there must be a leak in the conduit as dye is drawn into it.

The question is: what do I do about it?

The diameter is too small to use typical leak locators designed for PVC piping (like the leaktronics pipe mic). So, finding out exactly where the leas is along the conduit might be a problem. Adding to that is the fact that I've got a pool cover well behind this wall of the pool, so the conduit is underneath that.

I'm thinking I can just seal it off at the niche and be done? Silicone caulk? I'd probably have to drain to below the conduit to get it dry before applying caulk but any reason to think this is not going to work? (Somethign tells me that if it would work, they would have just done it when installing the pool - so... ) I don't want to apply epoxy or something that can't be removed because I may need to replace the light and have to pull the wire through the conduit in the future...

Anyone with experience or ideas in this area?

Also, I'm curious about this "wet conduit" design -- this can't be winterized (I live in WI) and the light niche is only about 24" below the pool deck... isn't that in the "freeze zone"?

Since opening in May, the chlorine pool has remained clear and mostly a TFP thanks to the advice from this group, use of Taylor K-2006C and poolmath.
The chemical requirements have been mostly +2gal Liquid Chlorine about every week, with pH/Alkalinity/Hardness moving in and out of range when it rains, or having to add 500gallons of city water to counter evaporation (have a flow meter attached to hose), so I am letting them fluctuate instead of actively treating it with chemicals to reach a target level. I also add 3 tricolor tablets to the floater about every 2 weeks.

I often get the water tested at Leslies pool to have a read on Copper (0.5), Phosphates (116) and TDC (1400) (7/18/2023 values), however I follow the Taylor K-2006 and pool math app for any action.

Why this post? While the pool remains clear, I have noticed a slow increase in Phosphates and TDS and seeking advice if there is any indicated action to take.

Additional observations:
a) Prior owners did a poor job painting the gunite pool white, as the paint keeps flacking off every time the Dolphin Explorer E70 robot cleaner is used
b) Overnight test shows no Chlorine loss
c) The submerged walls, while no visible off-color, feel slick to touch, so I have began to brush the sides and floor with a pole/brush. Occasionally I noticed white clouds being formed when brushing the floor, suggesting some sort of floor deposit. (LIKELY THE SOURCE OF INCREASED TDS)
d) Backwashing every 2-3 weeks does not show much visible cloudiness
e) New variable speed pump running 2,900rpm 24/7 (have not tested variable speeds yet)

Its me again- more advice needed. Can you please recommend the best pool steps to purchase for a 16x32 rectangle n ground pool? the steps will go in the shallow end which is a few feet deep- waist high on an adult.

We want steps that look nice, are sturdy and dont require much assembly. Please share your ideas. Not sure if we should buy steps on Amazon or through a pool company? Thanks all!

Small Saltwater Pool, are my numbers looking good? I was a little concerned about the pH. Should I be? My numbers are mostly the same 98% of the time.
FC 9
CC 0
TC 9
TA 70
pH 7.8
Salt 2400
Calcium 50 - I normally don't check this, did it for fun today
CYA 70
Temp 88

Hi Guys. My old Hayward Northstar single speed pump (2006 vintage) died and I have purchased a new Hayward Tristar SP3202VSP to replace. Pool uses an Aqualogic AQL-P-4 controller (see picture). I need help with wiring the new VS pump with my older Aqualogic AQL-P-4. I tried contacting Hayward, but they only offered to connect me with local Hayward authorized service providers. Any thoughts or available wiring diagrams ?

So had an algae bloom and tried to clean pool, used lots of shock, and then used green to blue. I have vacuumed it twice to waste but pool is still cloudy not sure if all the floc is gone or not. How can I counteract the floc so I can turn my filter back on?
12X24 above ground pool with a sand filter pump currently readings are
Free chlorine and CYA are low all other levels are within normal range

Hello TFP!

We are looking for some general advice and an overall sanity check (pricing / contract review) before moving forward with our project. We've gotten quotes from 5 PB's between last summer and now. Four were in the same general range (~$85K), and one was $20K less (not going with them). We are close to getting started with one (of the final 4) that some friends used (along with other references in the area).

Here's what we have to work with --






Here's the design we've currently settled on --











> Spreadsheet PDF attached with PB spec's and cost details (recreated from PB's form), along with PB's standard contract terms.

> I can update the post with the details in text format if that's preferred. I was hoping the actual spreadsheet could be attached.

*Note: The landscaping in the last rendering is not included. Just artistic conception of what could be done in that back area (utility easement).

We'd appreciate any input / suggestions on --

• General layout given the space and existing patio
  • Note that we have an additional 20' x 30' grass area on the right side of the house (will remain as-is).
• Equipment as spec'd by PB
• Tanning ledge (seems like a nice idea, but have noticed a fair number of folks here saying they'd nix it if they had a do-over)
• Decking
  • Initially stamped concrete
  • Now opting for travertine pavers with polymeric sand base (add $4,800)
    • Have read that the sand can be problematic (shifting, requires annual cleaning / refresh??)
    • May start with the stamped concrete, and add pavers on top of that in 1-2 years?
• Integrated spa vs standalone (and if standalone, best location?)
  • Spa was originally pushed back closer to the house.
  • We chose to move it forward into the pool area, to keep the rectangular perimeter.
  • Looks a bit odd with the wall going into the tanning ledge / stairs
    • ... but prefer not to shrink the 7.5' x 7.5' usable space
• Sport pool layout
  • Considering 2 steps from tanning ledge down to 3.5 or 4' ... slope to 6' ... back up to 4.5'
  • The dip in the middle is supposedly good for volleyball, though not sure we understand the rationalization?
  • May want to have consistent depth of 4.5 to 5'
  • We have 1 teenage son. (5' should be sufficient for cannonballs?)
  • No real need for a "deep end", which is typically only 7' per PB's. (Still not deep enough for diving, per the Red Cross recommendation of 9'.)
• Chiller recommended?
  • Will be in direct sunlight all day. Will likely add 1-2 sail coverings. PB says running water features at night is helpful and may negate the benefit of a chiller. (I've seen various threads here that seem to confirm that.) Regardless, will leave space on the equipment pad.
• Turf on left side of patio, between deck and fence
  • This is a recent consideration (+ $3K), to avoid having a single strip of grass (roughly 9' x 45') on that side
  • Would be a thinner, cooler turf that is used for putting greens, with holes added where we'd like
  • Turf to the corner of the house (22' x 9'), then gravel for the rest of that ~25' run along the side of the house
    • Could turf the entire run, but it's costly and likely wouldn't be used.

As for general costs, we understand that pricing has increased significantly over the past ~5 years, esp. with COVID, supply chain issues, and inflation -- and of course overall demand.

We found an older thread (2016 - 2018) that had various costs related to different layouts, sizes, and locations. This one (from 2020) would be somewhat similar to ours, but was roughly ~$25K less. And yet another (from 2020) that is similar and $5-10K more than what we're currently looking at. Obviously, there are many factors and considerations; it seems that our pricing is in the right ballpark and reasonable (although it's more than we anticipated spending).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

-STP2023