Cmasty - New Member

[Cmasty]

Hello All - My name is Chris M and I reside in Tulsa OK. I just bought a new house (also in Tulsa) and move in in mid June. THe new house has a Pool that is a gunite/plaster lagoon type pool (dark plaster) and has two waterfalls that cascade from a wall that stands higher by about 3' on one long end of the pool. This will be my first ever pool.

Every time I've seen the pool so far it has the floating tablet dispenser thingy, is cloudy, and/or has algae pretty bad. The pool is approximately 14000 gallons and seems to be of very nice quality, although cared for by a pool service company/pool store. I have been reading the site for the past few weeks including Pool School, ABC's, how to use my test kit ( the XL version from TFTESTKITS.NET is on its way).

So far, my fears are sky high CYA and prolific Algae. Possibly Ammonia. I can't wait to get moved in and start cleaning it up. I have three girls who range from college age to ~9 years old. I'm a techie guy and love science and experimenting so this will be right up my alley. My wife was joking last night that she thought I'd sneak in the new backyard at the new house to test the water, pre-occupancy!

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello Chris and welcome to TFP! You are in the right place, and you're off to a great start and haven't even moved in yet. That TF-100 was the best thing you could do. Once you get in there, we'll help your through the transition. No sweat. Great to have you with us.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Your wife's idea isn't that far fetched, if you ask me! Bring a plastic bottle over and grab some water and take it back home for some tests. You'll have a chance to practice using your new test kit as well as getting an idea of what's in that water.

 

[Cmasty]

That's what I'm thinking. The home is unoccupied and I have a key, so what's it gonna hurt?!

 

[kimkats]

Ohh and grab some of the water from the hose you will be filling from while you are there! LOL

HI and yeah we will get you in trouble but have fun while doing it! LOL

Kim:cat:

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Ohh and grab some of the water from the hose you will be filling from while you are there! LOL

HI and yeah we will get you in trouble but have fun while doing it! LOL

Kim:cat:

Kim :cat: means you should grab a second bottle of water from the hose, so you can see what your "fill water" is like. Not add the hose water to the pool sample. Just wanted to make sure that you understood that. Good idea too, Kim! :cat:

 

[Cmasty]

Got it. Managed to go by and get a couple pics tonight. This was after a pretty heavy rain storm and the pool was the clearest I've seen it. Weird.

 

[Texas Splash]

Very nice!

 

[Cmasty]

Went by this evening and got a cup full of water.

FC: 11
CC: 1
CH: 375
TA: 110
CYA: 100+
PH: 7.6-7.8

I measured the CYA twice. First time i was in the 80-100 range, second time I was in the 100+ range. Makes me believe its somewhere around that mysterious 100 mark.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

If you have a bit of water left, mix half pool water with half tap water (equal parts). Then use this mixed water sample as your pool water and do the CYA test again, doubling the results. It may be far over 100 since the test only shows up to 100.

 

[Cmasty]

OK - Did that. That came back at 40. 40x2 = 80 + a bit of error margin and we're at the 90 area I measured first time. That's not as bad as I thought the pool was going to be.

 

[Cmasty]

Also, FYI - I attempted to donate to TFP 2 nights in a row and both times got a paypal "Technical Error".

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Well then I'd venture to say your pool-to-be is a little high on CYA but otherwise looks good. You should consider that you'll want to drop the water, refill again and test... otherwise your FC level would have to be pretty darn high.

Do you think you'll be adding a SWG? Cause CYA for SWG pools is 70-80ppm recommendation.

Yip

 

[Cmasty]

Can I add a SWG to my pool? Will it hurt my heater?

I would like to eventually:

1. Add a SWG
2. Get a variable speed pump.

 

[Davejavu]

Before converting to salt, do your research. The advantage to SWG is that your pool makes it's own chlorine. However, it's not terribly cost effective as the SWG is expensive and has a short lifespan. Plus, salt is harsh on metal parts, it's bad for your plants and is terrible for the environment. Salt builds up in your soil as you backwash and prolonged use is projected to harm aquifers. I considered this option but walked away once I determined my affect on the environment.

As an alternative, if you want to make pool maintenance easier, you could install a Stenner Pump or the Liquidator. Search the forums for these items.

 

[Casey]

Welcome to TFP. That's a beautiful pool!