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Too bad about Snow Joe. Here's one from a previous discussion that I had saved in Amazon. Never used, and more expensive, but it looks like I might get it now: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B012B9HU8W/?coliid=IFE3SP3IUP3BT&colid=3J7863F0AHBQ1&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it&th=1

Most here tend to look sideways at meters, but the comments on this one are better than other non-lab quality alternatives. tftestkits does sell calibration solutions, if needed, to verify the meter. Use both methods (drops and meter) to get familiar with both. When in doubt, always, always...

As a prior poster asked, but to make sure - what, if anything, is showing up on surfaces outside the pool? Dirty table tops, similar accumulations in corners/edges of the surrounding area, etc.? Dirt/dust isn't magnetically attracted to the water. It may appear to accumulate less elsewhere as...

I roughed it out based on that 1 degree per hour, and a 20 degree rise - in the Minneapolis area the cost would be $3.40/hr or $68 to get to temp. that first day. The thermodynamics defeat me as to how to guess the ongoing cost to maintain. All I know is after the very first summer with the...

I see that it is a really new pool. $170 per month is a pretty cheap insurance plan to protect the very recent big investment. Draining is one of the most risky ways to deal with a pool - ground water forces, with nothing to oppose them, can break the structure or even cause it all to pop out...

Another Minnesotan here. You are definitely pushing it. The ice just came off the lakes not too long ago in the Metro area! There are still chances for snow in late April. (My Bday is then, and it snows a bit on the majority of them!) Me? I tend not to fire up the heater until near Memorial...

Nah, just that we ALL think about doing that as a way to avoid a big expense down the road. But of course, the liner company wants to avoid their expense right now. It may turn "interesting" over what labor to install will be paid for, by who.....

The factory. One hopes the installer noticed, but it could have been very normal appearing when installed, except for the mismatch of the pattern. Then shrinkage of the liner over the winter caused the poor seam construction to pull apart.

Check your warranty coverage. That looks to be a defective seam "weld". Even the matching of the panels is defective. I would strongly push for a replaced liner. But, given the time between the finish of construction and when this was noticed, it might be a point of contention. The...

Is you motor for the pump getting hot when it runs? Warm to the touch is OK, almost too hot or more, would be the sign that it is miswired. Eventually the magic smoke would come out, and it would not work at all. But if it is just warmish, if even that, then all is OK there....

And thanks for the pics of the skimmer without the baskets. Still an odd question about why the tape, which your builder can answer if he ever responds - but make it a less important question. Nothing jumps out as a problem in the pictures, which is great.

You are being assisted by the best-of-the-best here. But do have one observation - in the initial top down pictures of the skimmers, there is a lot of black gorilla type tape on the side walls, inside. And neither of the baskets seem to be all the way down in the skimmer. Why the tape? And...

Two things: 1. Obviously, salt is low. Time to add some and get that SWCG fired up. 2. You're a degreed graduate of the informal and made-up-by-me TFP Pool Academy now! Time to link PoolMath to your user account here, so you don't have to keep typing your test results. Your username/account...

Go to Walmart or wherever and buy a cheap kiddie wading pool. Set it up, full of fresh water, on the deck near your real pool. Maybe add a few splashes of CL if so inclined. Watch it for a few days - does it get the dirt also? If so, something environmental - dirt, pollen, etc. If not, then...

If you are aiming for a CYA of 30, keep your CL up at the top of the range - about 6. Or even a point or two more. That will ensure you never get below minimum. And give a bit of a margin if the "dirt" is still really algae.....but it might be all dead now, and you will just have to deal with...

I snowbirded at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores for a couple of years. In the winter it is paradise. But come late March/April and into the summer, the whole region is a tourist traffic mess. A 10 min drive to Target or CVS will turn into an hour, easily. I love the area, but will stay north...

It's algae (dead). That particular spot has less agitation than other places, so anything suspended has a better chance to settle out sooner. Hard to tell but it appears the water still has a bit of cloudiness - so more settling in the future. If you have a manual vacuum, that will work...

I'll be lagging behind the rush. Ice went out on the lake near my house last week, which is when I traditionally remove the cover and get some CL in (even if there are ice cubes still in the water). But this year I am 1500 miles away, and won't get the cover off for almost 4 more weeks. SLAM...

The pool is safe and swimmable as long as the CL is at or below SLAM level. The SLAM levels seem extremely high, but one has to remember that we measure total Cl in the pool - and most of it is locked up in the CYA. The residual that is active is much less. So no physical concerns, or...

Dead algae looks like dirt. Live can be sticky to brush. Dead "poofs" up in clouds very easily. Usually first seen along seams in the liner, but that just means there is a very fine, almost invisible, coating other places. Brush, vacuum, backwash as needed. Repeat and repeat until no more...

Yes, a huge cost saver. Post over in the section that Texas Splash noted, and we'll get you going in the right direction. Welcome!

How are you testing? Having a TA of 85 sounds like it might be from pool store testing. They are notoriously inaccurate. BUT...if it does turn out that you are somewhere in that range, that is the reason for the weekly acid adds. As you add acid, it brings down pH and very slightly reduces...

My gallon of acid is now celebrating it's second birthday. It probably won't make it to three before running out.

Once you get the SWCG fully up and running, you will be swimming in excess cash, since you don't need to spend it on magic chemicals. Just some supplemental salt for the year, perhaps a few pounds of CYA for the year, and muriatic for pH control. So the payback period for the paid version of...

Also download and use PoolMath on your phone. Turn on CSI tracking. It's a complex relationship with many factors, but TA, CH, pH and Temp are the most influential. With your high TA, you hope your CH is therefore lowish, so that you do not get heavy calcium build up on your generator's...

These guys always run an upgrade special: CircuPool RJ-45 PLUS Saltwater Chlorinator | Discount Salt Pool Same control box, just a bigger cell itself for the extra $10. FYI - as a case in point, I was a tablet guy for years. Even though over the winter I replaced about 20% of the water every...

And, make sure your water sample isn't really cold. Let it come up to room temp (pretty fast, if just using the amount before adding the indicator), and then take it back outside to view. See the wiki (esp. steps 5, 6 and 7) about how to view and interpret: CYA - Cyanuric Acid Test

Do you chlorinate with anything else - tablets, powders, or similar? Any "shock"? I find it really odd that your old pool guy only needed 2 gal of chlorine a week for your size pool in your part of the country. Did you have a lot of issues with the pool turning cloudy or green? The generator...

A few other threads seem to lean in the direction of the current stock at some Home Depots as being leftovers from last year. So perhaps yours was just salt water like theirs. See if another source resolves the problem.

Looks to be the seal for your multi-port. With the pump off, try to hand tighten the ~6 bolts and nuts around the perimeter, especially where the leaks appear. Do NOT try to use your Superman powers on them, no power tools, nor any kind of tool that gives you leverage. Cracking the plastic...