IceShadow Pool Opening 2021

[IceShadow]

Well, pool hit 53 over the last week, so I planned to open this weekend.

Yesterday I had a buddy over to help file his taxes, so he helped me get the cover off. Water isn’t too awful.




Next I opened up the filter to deep clean it. Got the hose out. Scratched my head a bit because the hose bib shutoff inside the house was open. (Guess I didn’t close it for winter?) Turned on the hose bib - and got a frantic call from my wife inside the house as apparently it was like a waterfall turned on in our finished basement. So I will need a plumber to fix the hose bib that I jacked up by forgetting to turn off the shutoff in the fall.

Looks like I did the same on the second hose bib connection, but that one didn’t bust. So run a long hose from the other side of the house over and clean out the filter that way. All done, hooking it back up - got the connections in the equipment all set, and rain picked up harder. Forecast for Sunday was more clear, so decided to wait until today to finish opening. More to come!

 

[newdude]

Oh man that sucks !!!! Get these and never forget again. It puts the shut off part of the hose bib, 12 inches inside the house. Everytime you shut off the hose it basically winterized itself.

The Plumber's Choice 12 in. Anti-Siphon Sillcock Frost Free Outdoor Faucet with 1/2 in. MIP/Sweat Connection and 3/4 in. Hose Bib SILLVAC12 - The Home Depot

This 12 in. L outdoor faucet is the ideal choice for transferring water from your indoor water supply to the outside of your house. It connects to 3/4 in. garden hose, allowing the water to be sprayed

www.homedepot.com

no need for a plumber at all. With shark bite fittings it’s like a grown up version of legos that snap together. Check YouTube, it is stupid easy to do. There are purists out there that stick their nose up at the shark bite, But 15+ years later, if they didn’t work just as well, there would be flood stories and pictures all over.

 

[IceShadow]

I think we have something like that, perhaps without the connection. The leak is a ways inside the house, maybe 12” or so, and doesn’t start unless the bib is open. So it has to be one of the anti-freeze ones. Maybe I can do my own replacement after all. I’m going to look at the connection now.

 

[newdude]

The leak is a ways inside the house, maybe 12” or so, and doesn’t start unless the bib is open. So it has to be one of the anti-freeze ones.

Wow. You froze it anyway !!! It is usually either drafty or not properly insulated if that happens.

Maybe I can do my own replacement after all. I’m going to look at the connection now.

If it’s screw on it’s easy. If not you can convert it to shark bite. Even the bib itself is available from them. Sweating pipe is fairly easy too but not advisable for a beginner in tight areas like the floor joists.

although you could buy a 6 ft pipe and fittings and practice and be plenty good enough in 15 mins. They make a special fire proof rag that you put between the pipe and anything you don’t want torching. Like the upstairs floor.

 

[IceShadow]

Yep, maybe I can replace this myself after all!

 

[IceShadow]

Wow. You froze it anyway !!! It is usually either drafty or not properly insulated if that happens.

I probably left the hose attached, so it never drained before winter hit and it froze. The freeze is on the bib portion so it is inside there. If it were behind the valve in the pipe itself I would have noticed a leak a lot sooner than when I turned it on....

 

[IceShadow]

Yep, should be able to replace this ourselves.

 

[IceShadow]

So - I found the exact same model at Menards. Tried to put it in but it wouldn’t connect. The old one was only on by a couple of threads and now it was so stripped out it wouldn’t connect. I ended up getting a longer shark bite connector and cutting off the female end in our house, then using the longer shark bite hose bib instead. Done.

 

[IceShadow]

I had a very hard time with the plug in the skimmer. I tried bungee-style plugs the last year at closing. My channel locks could get the ones in the pool off, but the limited space in the skimmer basin wouldn’t let me get a grip with them.
Finally got it off by using a work glove - it gave me enough grip to remove the plug. Everything else went pretty well and I got the pump up and running.
Tomorrow I will vacuum the pool out and start balancing. Letting the pump run for now overnight to get the water mixed for more accurate testing.

 

[kellyfair]

Good to see your pool again! You’ll be up and running in no time!

 

[IceShadow]

Today was mostly vacuuming out all the leaves and worms and stuff on the bottom. I also got most of the dust and dirt off the bottom and sloped sides. I have a few gallons of chlorine left from last fall - probably degraded, but I added one of those. I’ll test chems tomorrow. Water is a balmy 48 so not too worried about algae yet.

 

[IceShadow]

Today I ran tests. All pretty good but CYA was 0 and FC was 1.5. To be expected. So I added the rest of the 3.5lbs of CYA I had in one bag, and I’ll let that dissolve before adding more from a new bag I have. Added another gallon of the old chlorine as well.

 

[IceShadow]

Also, I turned the heater on, just to help the CYA dissolve. It’s pretty hard to get it to dissolve in 50° water. Had to order a new pressure gauge too - found out mine had been left in place and now doesn’t read 0 when off.
Finally I brushed the whole pool down, sides, bottom, everything. Can’t wait until my wife relents and lets me get a robot.

 

[kellyfair]

You could be like Ralphie in A Christmas Story and leave pool robot flyers everywhere...

 

[IceShadow]

I think the modern day version of that would be to borrow her phone and browse websites for them so they start showing up in her Google and Facebook ads

 

[kellyfair]

I think the modern day version of that would be to borrow her phone and browse websites for them so they start showing up in her Google and Facebook ads

I like the way you think! Heck, just start talking about it around her phone. She should start seeing ads immediately.

 

[newdude]

just start talking about it around her phone. She should start seeing ads immediately.

Heck I only have to THINK about stuff and POOF.......... ads everywhere.

it must have been the chip they inserted in the 1st Covid shot.

 

[IceShadow]

Tested chems today. Must have been some CYA in there to start because I’m showing about 30 now. I’ll want that to 40 but that can come later. It’s 50° in there now so chlorine consumption from sun is likely lowered.

No visible algae and it’s looking pretty clear.

Don’t have time to vacuum again today, but probably tomorrow. Then I can see if I get any more crud on the bottom. I should do an OCLT too - maybe I’ll add another gallon of the old chlorine and do that tonight.

 

[IceShadow]

OCLT control: 9ppm FC night before.

 

[Mdragger88]

Glad to see u back in action! Just so u know I call u Ice Bear every time i see your screen name