Trying to test run our pump on a generator if needed during a freeze. It’s a Hayward eco star variable speed. The display goes blank when plugged into the generator but the buttons are lit up. Does anyone know a solution to this or why it’s happening,

Well what a year 2020 has been for the world. Starting off the new year with great food and friends. Our usual New Year's Eve dinner. Crab cakes for appertizer, Filet Mignon with Shrimp and Scallop De Jonghe. For dessert Champagne Blondies, Fancy Brownies made toffee chips and Rolo chocolates and mini cherry Cheescakes. Let's all cook some Great food. Happy New year to all

This is our attempt at having one place that we can view the finished product of various Plaster/Pebble/Quartz/Vinyl/FG/etc. pool finishes. Simply attach a good pic looking down at the steps and another one looking at the deep end to share how it looks at different depths. Make sure to share the Brand and type of your pool finish along with color and any extras you had added.
For specific questions please use the TFP direct message feature to the poster and not here... thanks

This will help all of our new users with potentially the hardest decision of the process. As well as show off our TFP pools.

Added by MOD:
** You need go look at a real pool, in different light, at different times of the day, to make a real decision. Morning, noon, afternoon, night, cloudy, bright, etc. Color really changes throughout the day. Maybe more so for a darker pool. So see if you can find a showroom, or if your finisher can get you in to see some of his customers' pools.

Depth is also an issue. Plaster/pebble color will look different at different depths. So your bottom step will look bluer than your top step. And your deep end will not match your sun deck! Just keep that in mind when looking at others' pools.

This weekend I finally installed my RJ-45. I've been stalling on this for a long time, but the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and resulting chlorine shortage finally pushed me over the edge. Plus, it was simply time. The Circupool Installation and Operation Guide is quite good, but here are some notes and images of my own experience.

Here is mt BEFORE shot. My pad is very simple. All power is currently 120V, with an option to change to 220V later if I need to. In this pic you see an outlet at the lower right (for the SWG and pool lights) and my LED light transformer at the top.


I will be replacing this inline chlorinator that I haven't used in some 6 years. My biggest challenge was positioning everything on that single straight run where the old chlorinator is since I don't have enough room elsewhere. The line out of the filter is too short for anything. The Circupool Installation and Operation Guide show various install options based on your set-up (check valves, spa, etc). The flow switch is required to have at least 6-12 inches of straight pipe before it, so in my case I put the flow switch after the cell because the cell is then considered part of that straight line measurement of 12 inches.


This is what you get in the package. I point-out the O-ring and union groove to let you know that the O-ring barely stays in place. In fact, it actually sticks-out of the groove a bit and kept wanting to fall-out (when installed horizontally) which made my last bit of assembly a bit challenging. The yellow plug on the control module power cord is something I installed since I had already planned to simply plug my unit to an outlet without a timer. Not shown in this picture is one black "jumper" included with the contents that is used to convert the factory-configured unit from 240V to 120V. You'll see it below. I had already installed mine.


The Circupool manual is quite clear, but here's a pic of my jumpers installed and configured for 120V. It's a little tight for fingers, but take your time.


Ideally, it would be nice to have enough PVC (movement) on each end of the SWG to move/manipulate the pipes a bit. In my case I did not have that luxury - no flex at all. So with little room for error, and after removing the old chlorinator, I installed the adapter on the right with blue collar first, then installed the flow switch to the far left. This would then leave me with the final pieces to glue - the small 5-inch piece of pipe and left adapter to the cell. The arrows point to the edge of the cell itself (see next image) which is what meets-up with the face of the adapter and O-ring.


Here is the cell itself without the blue threaded collars. When you measure and cut your PVC for this to fit, these will come very close to the face of the gray adapters and O-rings.


Here is my AFTER shot with install completed. Hanging the control module on the wall was easy. It's about 22 lbs, so make sure the supporting bracket goes into some solid wood or studs. Of course your #8 copper ground needs to go the pool's bonding system. I used a "Split Bolt" from the local hardware store to connect the control module's #8 ground to the exiting pool ground near the pump. Since I converted my computer module to 120V, and already installed a plug on the end of the power cord, all I had to do was plug it in. My pump runs 24/7 (on low) because we live in the country with lots of junk in the air settling, so I need that constant surface skimming. So for now, I didn't need to use a timer. I'll just set my SWG to a very low output % setting.


Here is the split-bolt:


And for my final trick, I made this tiny piece to go over the SWG. My equipment pad is on the west end of the shed - full Texas sun. The lean-to and lattice help eliminate most sun & UV light, but for about 3-4 hours early each day, some light enters from the side, so I put this in to shade the SWG. Because my equipment pad area is a bit small with limited space, this also reminds us to be careful when stepping over the SWG and flow switch to pick-up our feet and not accidentally kick the unit or pull a wire by mistake.


Hope this helps anyone else about to do a similar install. If you have any questions, let me know.

Hi All,

I have a TRi pH unit, I like it.

Anyway after 8 years, in the winter, the peristaltic pump gave up the ghost, it was a while before I noticed, probably quite a few months, the pool had started to go green.

So I go to fix thing up and I remove the 20L acid (32% strength) bottle, its nearly full, its not airtight when plumbed in. Also I noticed some brittleness/cracking in the rubber seal on the special acid bottle lid that the acid delivery hose goes through.

It's been winter here and we haven't been swimming and so the acid has probably been slowly off-gassing for over 6 months, this added to the fact that the acid pump was broken, perfect storm really.

The acid was basically water, I poured some on concrete, nothing, no vapour coming out of the bottle at all. After that I got really confident and put a tiny amount of acid on the back of my hand, nothing.

So I started searching and sure enough the shelf life is amazing when the bottle is airtight but HCI, the acid part is hydrogen chloride, it's a gas, so if the container ain't airtight, the gas escapes, eventually leaving just water.

No doubt my all the acid I've ever plumbed into the system has been gradually losing its potency but the system is measuring pH and so would compensate for weaker acid by adding more.

Just posting here in case this bites someone else. I saw this (I know its a bit old) and the consensus seemed to be it doesn't really lose its strength much, I'm saying that's not right but I didn't want to necro a 12yo thread.

Anyway hope this helps someone.

Cheers
Richard

I just wanted to share the news, and to offer a note of thanks to @drglanton for sharing so much helpful info, and to @JamesW for coming up with the "solar impersonation" method.

After many false starts, the installation of my Hotspot "Free Pool Heater" (FPH) was finally finished yesterday. The HVAC guy was able to fit the specialty valves into the body of the condenser unit so it looks very clean. It wasn't an especially warm day but still, we cranked the AC in the house down low and watched it fire up. We pretty quickly had warm water flowing into the pool.

Even the guy was amazed that it worked on the first try. The installation is pretty complex and he said that he expected to get it working "eventually" after some amount of troubleshooting. But as soon as I set the thermostat down, the FPH kicked in and everything just started working.

Attached are a few pictures that show the finished installation. The relay is a 24VAC DPDT relay that switches between a 5kΩ resistor (106°F) and a 20kΩ resistor (50°F) feeding my controller's solar input sensor. There's an actuated valve which opens when the FPH is calling for water, and it kicks my pump up to high speed as well.

We're now at the end of the typical AC season here and will be closing the pool any day, but I'm looking forward to an early opening in the spring. Of course I don't yet have any experience using the thing, but if you're considering getting one and have questions about the installation process, I can do my best to answer them!

There's a statement from one of our members that I find very useful (Catanzaro).

As you can see from the image attached, this is my pool equipment set up.

I will be closing my pool for the first time this year. I have to. No choice. Here are the steps I've created to close my pool. I know...I know... it's a lot to read, but I'm just trying to make sure I hit all the spots here. My pool equipment is very unique and I can't seem to find anyone else that has similar set ups. Questions I have are in bold letters. Please help me.

Steps to Closing Pool:

• Pool should be below 60 degrees.
• SLAM pool 4 days before closing and do an overnight test. Link here:
• Perform the Overnight FC Loss Test (OCLT)
• If OCLT passes, then let FC drift half way down normal range depending on your CYA. For instance, if your CYA is 30 (4-6 normal target), then let your FC drift down to 8. Again, you SLAM your pool at 12. Normal is 4. What is halfway between 12 and 4? Ans = 8.
• Once OCLT passes, skim, brush, vacuum and clean filter.
• Let pool mix for 30min after cleaning it.
• Test Pool (FC, CC, CYA, TA, CH, pH). Note: pH should between 7.4-7.6 before closing and other testings should be within range (make sure your FC has drifted down half way your normal level (additional FC and pH testing may be necessary).
• Once everything is clean and pool chemicals are within range, add Polyquat to the pool water and let your pool mix for 2 hours. You’ll only be adding this one time before closing. The amount you add is dependent on your pool. For instance, add 1 quart (32oz) to a 20,000 gallon pool, and so forth. Note: you want to add PQ no later than 5pm (I would start earlier if you can).
• In the mean time, lay out backwash hose. After 2 hours of mixing, it is time to drain your pool.
• IT’S TIME TO DRAIN YOUR POOL
• After 2 hours of adding PQ, turn off pump and set the multivalve to “backwash”
• Remember to set valve to “main drain”.
• Turn on pump and watch site glass until it’s clear (approx. 2min or until clear).
• Turn off pump and set multivalve to rinse (approx. 2min or until water at end of hose is clear)
• Turn off pump and set multivalve to waste to drain the pool.
• Turn on pump and drain the pool right below the return jets (4”). Again, make sure lever for skimmer/drain is set on main drain only. That way the water is drained from the main drain and not the skimmer.
• After draining below return jets, turn off pump and place multivalve on recirculate (this will bypass the sand filter while blowing out your pipelines.

REMOVE PLUGS

• Take plugs out from the sand filter, pump filter, heater, chlorinator and also remove site glass, pressure gauge and hose fittings from the multivalve section.

AIR COMPRESSOR....

• Plug air compressor to the pressure gauge site. Note: there is a 1/4 pressure gauge opening.

• Verify that your lever is set on main drain

• Turn on air compressor. This will blow air into the main drain pipeline until the water bubbles are at the surface of the pool. Blow air (using an air compressor) for at least 1 minute (depending on how powerful the blower is) and the quickly close the main drain valve. You might hear the "air lock" when you do this. Q. when I close the main drain, should I leave the air compressor on while I close the main drain? That way, water does not go into the pipeline of the main drain?
• While the air compressor is still on, set lever to skimmer and blow out pipelines for the skimmer (again, you’ll see a mist of water to indicate that you’ve blown out the skimmer pipelines). Remove excess water from the skimmer with cup if neccessary. Note: as the compressor is blowing all the water out of the skimmer, it should also be blowing air into the return jet pipe lines as well? [not sure, but I think so 'cause that's how the pool store has been doing it for 4 years]
• Once water is out of skimmer and return jet (misty or air coming out of both), start plugging the return jets (all three of them).
• Turn off air compressor.
• Install Gizmo in the skimmer.
• Move multivalve to “winter”
• Remove stoppers from timer
• Turn off pool breaker

ADDING ANTI-FREEZE (WHERE AND HOW)???

Since we hijacked the thread located here (IntelliCenter Webclient and Possible Alternatives)(credit: @MyAZPool), I decided to open a new thread for the IntelliCenter Gateway and Control Apps.

IntelliCenter Gateway Repo is located here: IntelliCenter Gateway
Credit: @guinness

IntelliCenter Control Repo is located here: IntelliCenter Control Repo
(If you want to contribute, let me know)

IntelliCenter Control Google Play Listing is located here: IntelliCenter Control Google Play

This is a work in progress currently, but the releases should be stable enough for daily use. Android only at the moment (desktop can be done through BlueStacks emulator). I have been using this app daily and it is much faster connect/response than supplier provided apps.

Gateway setup is explained in the above IntelliCenter Gateway link.

To connect using the Control app, click the sprocket icon in the upper right corner of the Controller tab. Enter the ip address of the Gateway as explained in it's setup, or you can connect directly to the IntelliCenter Panel when at home using ws://ipaddressofpanel:6680/

To sign up for internal test, PM me your email address and visit this site IntelliCenter Control Internal Test

Releasing to an open Beta in Google Play soon, but want to get a few more things cleaned up. Some items we are working on in the background:
Authentication through Gateway - this will allow you to run the Gateway on a home computer or Raspberry PI and authenticate communications to allow use when at or away from home.
Control App authentication entry for Gateway
Control App IP address setup and selection improvements
Better error handling in Control App and user notifications.
Additional features as requested
iOS version (once I can get a viable Mac in hand)
Possible desktop version but BlueStacks can be used as a alternative for now.
Working on Raspberry PI downloadable image for Gateway

Some screenshots:



Appreciate any feedback! Thanks!

Ryan

Calling all in-ground vinyl liner peeps! Whether its old or new, if you know the name of your liner pattern, please post a pic of your pool with water in it, with mfg and pattern name.

Editor: We welcome pics of your liner (liner name and manufacturer, if known), but no comments please. If you have questions or comments please send them to the OP via DM. Thanks!

Hi all - I asked a similar question before but want to get more clarification. I am using my auto cover as my winter cover - should I still bring the FC up to full SLAM level when closing? Reason I ask is I know a lot of people drain some water after doing this, I won't be draining any water as I need it to support the cover, so my FC won't drop quite as much since I won't be draining anything. Just wondering if I should still use the same recommendation of bringing to SLAM level 2-3 days before closing or bring it to a different level, like 1/2 of SLAM.

Thanks for the help!

Thank for all the help from this site, I got up the nerve to close my pool on my own this year. Took me a few days getting the chlorine up and hand vacuuming the bottom and waiting for the temp to hit 60, but yesterday was go time. All I have is a skimmer and three outlets. I repeated what the pool builder did last year closing and pushed the air through the skimmer and closed off the outlets after they were clear. All seemed to work well. I did pour some antifreeze in through the skimmer opening. Of course I’m a little nervous that I got the water all out and will have no leaks, but at some point, I guess you just have to trust the process. Took the plugs out of the heater and the pump, shut off the gas and electric, put the cover on and called it a day.

Thanks for a great site with good information and very helpful members!

until next year . . .

If I mix a 1lb bag of calcium hypochlorite into 1gallon of water, what is the equivalent % strength to 1 gallon of bleach?

So, long story short, I had my new pool plastered in May. After months of stressing over the color, I opted for a DiamondBrite Quartz Manzanita. The color turned out perfect. (see first picture). Jump ahead to August. Pool service guy screwed up and poured too much muriatic acid in water. Left a black stain on the front shelf right under the water jet. Got supervisor out and he was able to "fix" the problem, however, I gradually began to notice that lovely blue was turning into a blah grey. (see middle picture). Deep end of pool was now more of a greenish color and water was very cloudy. (Best way to judge color difference is compare the blue tile over the rear shelf - it matches blue on shelf in first picture but stands out in the middle picture). I needed to leave home shortly after supervisor arrived but could notice a little difference had occurred. Once I came home water was much clearer but the plaster is still overly grey. Unfortunately, these pictures make the pool look great, in real life the grey is much more prevalent. Supervisor probably knows what he's doing, says higher pH (along with some other factor) is key to trying to reduce the effect escaping calcium is having on the plaster. Plaster guy says acid was responsible for drawing out the blue pigment. Anyway, I'm done with trying to convince myself to be satisfied with this "new" color. I have tried some sanding and even using a pumice stone to see if sanding the plaster can reveal the original color. All it does is just get darker, but at least it's a dark blue. Replastering will cost me more than the original coat, around $5000. I think the pool service company needs to cover this so I let the supervisor know I wanted him to come by again and I'll see what his reaction is. Is there anything mechanical that might work to reveal the original plaster color? I'm leaning towards using some "diamond sanding blocks", like hand-held sanding sponges, or purchasing a pool plaster polishing/sanding pad and going at it with an angle grinder.

Good morning, I continue to have challenges finding regular liquid chlorine at any locations but I came across this regular bleach at a market. Has anyone else use this particular product? The container doesn’t say anything about the strength of The sodium Hydro chlorine. I even checked the safety data sheets and it doesn’t indicate the percentage of strength just wondering thanks

We built our home just prior to the last real estate market collapse and while we had plans for a pool it never happened. Fast forward to today and like others we have found ourselves at home staring at our undone yard much more often. As such we started doing landscaping trees etc this year and have reached the decision to have a pool built. We tried for months to get several quotes for a pool but they are all crazy busy and only two actually showed up

We chose our pb and signed the contract 08-09-21 and where quoted a 3 month build time (ya, not so much, we are now 5 11 months in lol). We are doing a 15x35 freeform with raised 8' spa, baja ledge, cave/grotto and slide. Equipment is currently specified as :
2 - 11056 pentair intelliflo vsf pumps
Pentair clean and clear plus 420 filter
Intellichlor ic40
Mastertemp 400 lpg
Intellitouch control system i10ps intellicenter
5 intellibrite microbrite led lights (1 spa, 3 pool, 1 grotto)
Auto fill - with secondary sprinkler valve controlled by intellicenter
10x 4x12.5 SwimJoy pool solar panels on superstrut ground rack
Auto heater bypass
Auto solar bypass

We are planning on a pebble finish with quartscapes reflections series in Barbados blue, stonescape tahoe blue puerto rico blend, grey flagstone coping and are still working thru tile and bond beam finishes.
PB started excavation the monday following contract and that took them about a week. They are currently working on steel. In reading it appears in maybe should be asking them about adding a second skimmer as there is only one. This is in the deep end on the end of the pool that , with the exception of santa ana's, should be where the wind pushes everything.

What’s up ya’ll! My girlfriend and I are underway with construction for our IG fiberglass pool.

- 14’x30’ Latham Majesty Ocean Blue G2
- Jandy CL460 Filter
- Jandy 1.65HP VS Pump
- 2 PAL LED lights
- 1 shelf bubbler

Going for a very simple clean/modern build and look. So far we have taken deliver of the pool and the backfill is complete up to return jets. Waiting on plumbing to come through and do their thing.
Our backyard is pretty small so it has been fascinating to watch the crews navigate the tight working space!

I’ll do my best to post updates as they happen!

Thanks y’all!

I want to give a huge THANK YOU to @MyAZPool for taking the time out of his busy day today. This guy went out of his way to help me learn the Intellicenter, made a diagram to rewire my system and then called today, to walk me through some different ideas that he had, to make my system run better. I went from not knowing a thing about our pool to actually understanding whats going on now. Its hard to find people these days that still go out of their way to help others but @MyAZPool did just that and took it to another level for me. He is a huge benefit to me and TFP!!

Thank you so much and I owe you a couple...LOL

Greetings all,

Been a long time follower here and have not needed to post as I usually can find the answers on here with a quick search. This one seems to be a little more tricky and all of the previous posts on this controversial topic point to bad testing or water loss. I have put 35-40lbs of CYA in my pool this year and its keeps disappearing!

I tested my CH yesterday around 4pm and found that my CL was at 2-4ppm with a Taylor quick test (k-1000). This seemed off to me as it was just at 6ppm a couple days prior as I was having issues with my SWG and constantly checking to make sure it was working. I checked it again to confirm my results and also tested the water directly out of the return to confirm the SWG was making chlorine. Results where the same and I confirmed that the SWG was working. Based on the results I decided that the stabilizer had to be off.

I tested and confirmed low CYA. I had a CYA of maybe 10, as I filled the viewing tube I could still clearly see the black dot but it was a little hazy. Last test a month ago (yes I have been lazy not testing) my CYA was at 70. Now ruling out any type of water loss my CH tested at 425, the last test a month ago was 375. This is a new plaster pool 5 months old now.

Now let me rule out the typical answers.

Its not added water or loss of water. We have had quite a bit a rain but if it was because of that my CH would also go down and it went up. I have not had to add water to the pool and do not have an auto fill.

Let me rule out testing. I have registered good CYA levels with my test kit before and when this happened the first time I thought I was going crazy so i took a sample to PP and they returned the same results. I checked this last time twice to confirm results the same.

I have never had algae in the pool and the CH has never dropped below 2. I always keep 10gal of chlorine on had for manual dosing when needed.
I have done the SLAM process multiple times trying to figure this out as well as overnight chlorine loss test.

Last tests with TF-100 (24 Jun 2021 830PM)
CL 2ppm
PH 7.68 (with meter)
CH 425ppm
AK 50ppm
CYA 10ppm

This is driving me NUTS what could possibly be causing my CYA to disappear?

Just wondering if you can have too much yellow algae to treat or not! We had a bloom earlier this year and performed a SLAM. Well we went out of town recently and loaded the pool with liquid chlorine while we were gone. Looked ok when we got back but this week it is loaded with yellow algae! We need to close our pool but wondered if you can have too much algae to treat and if its best to start over next season if thats the case. Thanks for your help.

Can anyone give me the "skinny" on maintaining proper water chemistry with bromine? I am starting to help with an indoor condo pool that uses bromine and have never mainatined a bromine pool. What are the bromine levels I want to maintain? Do I do all the same tests that I would do on a chlorine pool with the exception of CYA.... and aim to maintain the same target levels as a chlorine pool? Can you do the FAS-DPD test with bromine? Do you shock regularly or not necessarily if proper bromine levels are consistently maintained? Any available overview that I can read on maintaining a bromine pool? Thanks.

Water is balanced and has been for some time now because I keep a watchful eye on it.
BUT phosphates are around 3200ppm on fresh water 8700 gallon pool. Free CL is 3.7, PH 7.6, TA 110, CH 225, CYA 100.
DE filter was just cleaned as well.
Water looks good, nice and clear with occasional alge growth due to not brushing on a daily basis.

Using the prescribed dose of Natural Chemistry PRO SERIES Phos Remove of 4 oz.

Check water next day and phosphates read the same (~3200ppm).

Testing with test strips and got checked for verification at Leslie's as well.

I am baffled. I have always been able to knock down the phosphates before using PRO SERIES Phos Remove but not this time.

What in the world is going on???

Having the same issue now for nearly 2 months. FC doesn’t stay above 3 unless I shock it. CYA is nearly 0. I don’t know how it dropped, I didn’t swap out the water. I even changed out the CYA chems. I hear that some algae eats it. I need to shock it likely to try to get CYA up. Here’s a video of my ‘algae powder’.

Login to view embedded media

Pardon the pic, I haven’t linked my TFP data.

OK - so not quite on topic - but having recently installed a whole-house carbon filter, and now wondering if my 10-year-old water softener resin might need replacing - is the TF100 or K2006C test kit useful in testing your household tap water?

Specifically:
1) is the calcium hardness test equivalent/useful for testing the hardness of city water? Does it correlate to 'grains' of hardness?
2) Is the CL test sensitive enough to test the amt of chlorine typically added to city water for sanitization? And therefore I could measure it before/after the water filter.

Thanks!

Looking for a new Meyco Saftey Cover for a 25' x 50' pool. What should I expect to pay for just the cover? Any thoughts on solid vs. mesh covers.... pros and cons? I'm assuming a solid cover would keep the pool cleaner, but would have to continuously pump water off of the cover, whereas mesh would be less maintenance, but would allow a lot of fine stuff to seep into the pool over the winter. Is it necessary to pump water off of a solid safety cover if you leave the pool mostly full? I understand there is a type of plug for the return lines that allows them to be blown out even when water is above the return. Do they work? Thanks for any guidance on this.

I'm considering a skimmer block off for winterizing. I'm hoping this will allow to keep the water level just below the top edge.(just like it is now) so my winter cover won't allow as much water/snow to pile up on top of the frozen pool. Also not having to add water in the spring. Anyone have any input or pro's/con's ? TIA!!!

My pool is sparkling and clear but when I brush I have green powder in spots again I really want to swim today, can I or is it dangerous

cya at 100
Free and reg chlorine at 9

Hi! I am new here and have had our above ground pool for one year. Started with bacaquil and have already dealt with 3 rounds(or the same round) of white and pink mold. I am 100% ready to convert BUT my sand filter is already packed in and surely won't filter through a conversion.
I have done a deep clean of the sand, which helped for about one week. I currently have a cloudy pool, mold on/in my ladder and probably in my pipes. I cannot stand to put more money and chemical in to clear it up and I dont want to let it stew until spring. I dont think I can "close" for at least another month in TX.

So, do I change the sand filter, do the conversion, and change the sand again after??

Hello all. Been a member for a little while but don’t post much. Water has been green for the past month. After brushing and shocking a few times, it’s a little green but mostly cloudy. Hoping to clear up the water before closing it for the winter.
I’ve shocked the pool twice this past week, one pound each time, Cal hypo, which is rated for 13,500 gallons, couple days apart. I’m using a 150sqft cartridge filter with a brand new cartridge installed a couple days ago and I’m seeing no pressure change in the output of the filter. I’m alternating the filter intake between using my auto floor vacuum and just pulling water thru the skimmer Pool is a 21ft round above ground, approximately 10,000 gallons. I’ve generally had good luck with brushing, shocking, and then running the filter with a clean cartridge to get clear, but not having success this time. Tested levels last night.
Current test levels:
FC: 0
Alkalinity: 40
pH: 6.8
CYA: 0
I shocked the pool one day prior to this.
I don’t have test parameters for calcium or TC. Already looking into getting a more reliable testing setup.

Obviously my water is way out of balance. I had the water balanced, but I got laxed in pool care since it hasn’t been getting used the last month and we’ve had several multi inch rain storms that I’m sure threw it off.
I began by adding 3lbs baking soda last night to try and up the alkalinity and pH. Will retest tonight. And adjust as needed.

My questions are:
I’m considering trying the slam method.
Should I be adding stabilizer to the pool prior to this? After? I also have algaecide and clarifier. I read that clarifier isn’t necessary, but Should I be using either these at any point before, during, or after the process?

And finally, I’ve just started using this shock, it’s HTH brand cal hypo shock. I used to use the stuff available at my pool store, or the Clorox brand from Lowe’s and always had success with shocking and running the filter. I’m reading that hypo cal can cause cloudy water. Is that another possible cause? And if so, how would I clear the water from the cal hypo?

I know it’s a long read, sorry. And thanks to all for the help.

Members frequently ask "Where is the best place to buy liquid chlorine where I live?"

This thread is an attempt to consolidate all of the places you know of in your town so others can share in your good deal.

If you know a place that has a good deal on liquid chlorine, whether it is a pool store, janitorial supplier or whatever, reply to this thread with the name of the business, the details including price, concentration and quantity, and we'll add it to this list.

US Wide:

Walmart: $2.94 for 121oz of 8.25%. 29.5 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.
Sams Club: $9.47 for 3 count 121oz of 8.25%. 31.6 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.
Aldi's: ????

---

Alabama

Mobile: Pinch-A-Penny 2.5 gal refillable (10.5%) $8.99 initial, $6.08 refill ... 18.1 cents/oz of sodium hypochlorite

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Alaska

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Arizona

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

Tucson: E-Konomy Pool, 4912 E 22nd St, Refillable 4 gallons of 12% for $13.96 = 22.7 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.

---

Arkansas

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California

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

San Rafael/Petaluma: Herb's Pool Service Refillable 4 gallons of 12.5% for $17.32. 27.1 cents/oz. of sodium hypochlorite

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Colorado

---

Connecticut

---

Delaware

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Florida

Orlando: Pinch a Penny and Leslie's refillable 2.5 gallons of 10% for $5 after tax. 15.6 cents/oz. of sodium hypochlorite

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Georgia

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Hawaii

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Idaho

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

Idaho: Fred Meyer has their 8.25% 121 oz jugs on sale for $2.69. 26.9 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.

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Illinois

Rural King stores: $9.99 for 4 gallons of 10%. Frequently on sale for $7.99 and even $6.99 around Memorial Day. 19.5 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $9.99. 15.6 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $7.99. 13.7 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $6.99.

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Indiana

Rural King stores: $9.99 for 4 gallons of 10%. Frequently on sale for $7.99 and even $6.99 around Memorial Day. 19.5 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $9.99. 15.6 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $7.99. 13.7 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite at $6.99.

Menards: $3.99 for one gallon of 12%. 26 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite. On sale around Memorial Day as BOGO making it 13 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.

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Iowa

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Kansas

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Kentucky

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Louisiana

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Maine

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Maryland

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Massachusetts

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Michigan

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Minnesota

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Mississippi

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Missouri

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Montana

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Nebraska

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Nevada

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New Hampshire

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New Jersey

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New Mexico

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New York

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North Carolina

Raleigh: MVP Services, 5813 Triangle Dr $13.50 for 5 gallons. of 12%. 17.6 cents per ounce of sodium hypochlorite.

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North Dakota

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Ohio

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Oklahoma

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Oregon

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

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Pennsylvania

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Rhode Island

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South Carolina

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South Dakota

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Tennessee

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Texas

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

Dallas: Riviera Pools 12.6% HASA Chlorine for $22 for 4 gallons. 34.1 cents per gallon of sodium hypochlorite.

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Utah

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Vermont

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Virginia

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Washington

Check for a local HASA dealer who generally sell bulk chlorine at a good price

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West Virginia

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Wisconsin

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Wyoming

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I know I'm preaching to the choir, but it is still amazing how quickly you see results.

Our pool was completed a few weeks ago and was a green lake due to our tap water. Once the builder was able to introduce chlorine, it turned blue, but was still kinda cloudy. Their "pool school" started with a bottle of test strips and I just kind of rolled my eyes. Once the pool was handed over to me, I broke out the Taylor test kit and started measuring and adjusting to get everything within TPF guidelines. Within a day of getting the levels corrected, the cloudiness went away and the water was beautiful. I've been monitoring it for a little over a week and happened to glance into the pool this morning on my way out the door. The pumps were off and the water was perfectly still. I had to take a couple of pictures to share - the water clarity blew me away.

The builder just finished the dirt work. He still has to come out and fix the one scupper line that was installed about 3/4" low and put the actual scuppers in place (back ordered, like everything else in the world right now). But hey, we're swimming!

For reference, the stool tops are about 18" below the water's surface and the drains are at 6' deep. Please ignore the leaves, my pecan is dropping them like crazy. I'm sure they're in the skimmers by now, waiting for me to get home and dump them.