Opening Questions

[AdamS]

Hey Everyone,

Its that time of the year and I having my pool opened tomorrow. I have a great guy who just opens and closes for me, last year was my first year owning the house/pool, he has worked on the pool since it was built.
Here is my question, I believe last year at opening (I was totally overwhelmed then) he added shock and algecide, should I have him not add anything and just start using my regular method, bleach etc...or is it ok to use the shock the first day? Do you test immediately after opening? Thanks for your help as always!

Adam

 

[JVTrain]

Skip the blind shock and algaecide. Let the pool circulate for at least an hour while you remove leaves and brush the pool. Then perform a full set of test results. Post them here if you want help on what to do next with pool chemistry.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I recommend telling him not to add anything.

I usually let the filter run for a day and then test the water, then adjust the chemicals. So just to clarify, shock is something you do, not something you buy. Despite how the pool store sells it and it's labeled. And there are alot of yucky algaecides that you don't necessarily even need. I rarely use algaecide, in 9 years at TFP and 7 summers taking care of other people's pools - I've only used it twice for specific reasons and even then only used PolyQaut 60. It's just usually unnecessary.