New to us home and pool!

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DieselD

0
Jun 10, 2016
57
Peoria AZ
We should be moving into our new to us home that also has a pool within the next couple of weeks. It will be our first pool so its a bit freighting in making sure it does not become a headache to maintain. In an effort to learn as much as possible about pool care before hand I stumbled on this forum and glad I did! Tons of info here that it almost makes my head hurt! :cool: I have already been reading through the front page articles and several other threads here and already making sense of things. Im getting excited to get this pool in tip top shape since I know of a few small issues it has, small water leak at the pump, tile has heavy calcium build up, auto fill wont shut off, and has some light staining on the plaster. The water is clear however so previous owners are not completely neglecting it!

but I do have a couple of questions...

Is there a general list of things I should get my hands on before getting started? I know the obvious of testing kit, brush, skimming net, vacuum etc. Is there anything else that might be a good idea to have? any suggested chemicals that are routinely needed besides the normal chlorine, muratic acid etc?

As far as the pool specs I am not 100% sure just yet. Its a smaller pool which is not overly deep and I estimate it to be around 10k-12kgals or so and its in ground. It is plaster and has a sand filter. We are in AZ so we have some pretty harsh summers and our pools stay active all year long typically.

Looking forward to getting started with the advise I have already read here!
 
Welcome to TFP, DieselD. The very best thing you can do is get that test kit. For a pool in your area I'd suggest the TF-100 from TFTestkits.net

Until move in (exciting times!) I'd go ahead and test the city fill water you'll be using to get an idea of its baseline characteristics. In your area the CH is usually pretty high, so you'll want to know about that.

Once you move in test the water and bring us back your results and we can help you interpret them, ok? :)
 
My guess, being a fellow Arizonan, will be a very high CYA and CH level. Nothing that can't be overcome with a little hard work (and a partial drain). I'm still chipping and grinding scale off of my tile - it's doable.

Congratulations! Get a test kit and as soon as you get us some numbers, we'll be here to help teach you to get everything under control.
 
Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm sure there are many other threads like this one so I do appreciate taking the time to check in on mine! I know I'm a little premature for asking for advice but I have a tendency to research until my head hurts!

I should have grabbed a sample of the pool water while I was there yesterday for the home inspection! Didn't even think about it until it was too late. This particular house is on a private water company rather then city water so I won't be able to compare that until we get the keys July 1st. I do know the water comes from a couple different relatively large wells so that could be good or bad thing. I will certainly get a test kit and be back with some data to help get started. I'm sure my moving help will end up jumping in the pool to cool down during our move so I'm sure the water will need some help right away! Not sure picking this time of year to move was a good idea!
 
Welcome! :wave:

Yes, make sure the pool is swimmable before moving day. Also stock the refrigerator beforehand so you have cold drinks waiting. Completely unrelated to the pool... before I moved into my last two places I hired a carpet cleaner to come in while it was bare to the walls.
 
Hey guys I have a quick question..... we are about 4-5days out on getting our keys to our property and it appears the previous owner has been out for 2-3days already. I'm a little worried about the pool being left unattended for a week and wondering if I should try and gain access to get a quick sample or at the very least add some chlorine to hold it off until we can get in officially. I know there is a floater with some chlorine tabs floating around and the pump is on a timer. I made sure to already have the power turned on ahead of time so the pump could keep running. We are having or seasonal monsoon weather currently which means lots of dirt and debris flying around in the afternoons.

My tf100 is ordered today but I'm sure is a week out with the holiday. Should have ordered sooner but it's been a little nuts lately. Thinking of grabbing a cheap Kit to check the basics until then?
 
Yep, you can get an HTH 6in1 from Walmart - I think they're $27

But what I'd do (and I'll be slammed for being a heretic) is take it to the pool store. You're going to want a reading on metals anyway, because of the well sources. Pool $tores are generally OK on pH and FC, but all other numbers can be reliably ignored. Plus... it's very entertaining hearing about what they tell you, haha. Don't buy any chems until after you develop your own plan.
 
Hmmmmm I dunno Diesel. Real Estate folks get a little antsy about buyers-to-be playing around with things in the house before they've taken possession. I see what you're wanting to do, and I'd want to do it too but... <shrug> they worry about liability in case something is damaged. They don't want to risk the sale.
 

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YippeeSkippy said:
Hmmmmm I dunno Diesel. Real Estate folks get a little antsy about buyers-to-be playing around with things in the house before they've taken possession. I see what you're wanting to do, and I'd want to do it too but... <shrug> they worry about liability in case something is damaged. They don't want to risk the sale.
Click to expand...

This is what has me reserved on the situation. We should have closed the deal today but got held up on a missing form from the title agency so it's pushed us back a day. No big deal except for the holiday and weekend added 3 extra days instead of one. We attempted to do a preoccupancy but it was declined which is pretty common now days from what I hear. It's probably better to wait so not too risk the deal if they happen to find out(very slim chance anyway) I just know it's going to be nuts trying to move durning the week let alone do much with the pool in that time. In reality it's probably going to be fine and might just need a little catch up once we are in.
 
Do the right thing. Stay off the property until you have legally taken possession. Why risk a big deal due to a relatively small issue. I know what you are feeling...but its just not worth the risk in my opinion. We'll get you all taken care of once you are in the house (not to mention a little pool break might be just the thing you need while moving in and unpacking). :cheers:
 
Finally we are in business! finally took ownership of the property yesterday afternoon which was perfect timing for my test kit to show up as well. I will not have much time to monitor the pool with the move in process over the next couple days. However with that said I did take a quick sample so I could run so I could get a feel for the testing process and see some rough numbers. My goal right now is just maintain until I can dedicate some time to dialing the water balance in.

Im not sure I trust my numbers 100% It was late in the evening and my first go at it but I believe them to be pretty close. Using what I have read here in pool school these results indicate the FC is low with the CYA being 90. The CC is indicating some possible grow starting since its over .5. PH is on the high side but still in the acceptable range. The aerator was on so I am going to turn that off to stop the PH rise happening from that.


FC-5.5
CC-1.5
PH-7.8
TA-230
CH-400
CYA-90

Water is clear and pump runs about 12hrs overnight, there are a few leaves floating but nothing on the bottom of the pool. It looks like the vacuum is getting most of it. I know I need to clean the skimmer and pump basket and Im sure it needs to be swept. I do not know the history or how the previous owners maintained, I do know they did some some repairs prior to the sale(main drain cover, external pump leak, backflush etc, autofill float. I found the sand filter was replaced in 2013 but unknown as to why.

There was a floater in with chlorine tabs just about gone so we are probably getting to it just in time before the chlorine drops too low! I did toss in about 32oz of 10% liquid chlorine to rise the FC to about 8. I know this is not all it needs but just trying to buy myself a couple days before I can dedicate more time.

What do you guys think? On the right path? I will update my sig line shortly when I have all the solid info on my pool
 
Congratulations on the new casa! How great that feels, huh?

You're on the right track. Thankfully you say the water is clear, but without a minimum amount of attention it could turn on you with that CYA. Keep using liquid chlorine and keep testing at least pH, FC and CCs once daily to get acquainted with the pool. When you're ready to make changes in other parameters we'll be here.

oh yeah.. and we're gonna need a pic of this new watering hole ;)

Yip :flower:
 
Congratulations! And I hope you get time to breathe :) Crazy times.

If it was mine, I'd drop the pH to 7.5 right away.

+1 to advice above and good move on your part dumping some chlorine in. Go higher if you feel like it, at CYA 90, no one will notice the extra chlorine. If it were me and I was distracted by the move, I'd raise it to 12-15

If you have time at mid-day, re-test your CYA. You may have read all the tips for this test, but I'll put them here anyway:
Hold test tube at waist height with your back to the sun. (test tube shaded by your body, but still plenty of light)
Don't wrap your hand around the test tube - the light needs to get in to light up the particles
Glance at the dot, don't stare. Look away, then glance. If you see it right away, keep adding. If you don't see it right away, you're done and that's your number.
Pour the solution back into the mixing vial, give it a shake and then test again. Do 3 or more readings to gain confidence in your number.

This can wait, but good to know, totally understand other high priorities!!
 
One indirect thought. Sounds like you had good previous owners since they left a puck floater in the pool for you.

Congratulations on your new home and I agree with everyone. Continue working on it as time allows. This is a process you'll hopefully enjoy as much as moving in (once you are done). :)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
needsajet said:
Congratulations! And I hope you get time to breathe :smile: Crazy times.

If it was mine, I'd drop the pH to 7.5 right away.

+1 to advice above and good move on your part dumping some chlorine in. Go higher if you feel like it, at CYA 90, no one will notice the extra chlorine. If it were me and I was distracted by the move, I'd raise it to 12-15

If you have time at mid-day, re-test your CYA. You may have read all the tips for this test, but I'll put them here anyway:
Hold test tube at waist height with your back to the sun. (test tube shaded by your body, but still plenty of light)
Don't wrap your hand around the test tube - the light needs to get in to light up the particles
Glance at the dot, don't stare. Look away, then glance. If you see it right away, keep adding. If you don't see it right away, you're done and that's your number.
Pour the solution back into the mixing vial, give it a shake and then test again. Do 3 or more readings to gain confidence in your number.

This can wait, but good to know, totally understand other high priorities!!
Click to expand...


Thanks for the tips! The past month and a half has been ridiculously busy and fast paced thats for sure. Im so over moving its not even funny, we are basically moving twice since we had to sell our previous home, find another to purchase, then move everything to storage for a week or so while we where staying with family. We are now in the process of moving everything in so we see the light at the end of the tunnel! I have yet to actually jump in our pool if you can believe it!

It was a late night again last night but I did run out to get a quick test done around 1am. FC was only around 6 and I think the CC actually dropped from my previous test. PH has actually risen some from the looks of my tired eyes so I will pick up some MA today on the way home so I can get the PH down , It was about 24-26hrs since the last time I was able to check it.


ITR said:
One indirect thought. Sounds like you had good previous owners since they left a puck floater in the pool for you.

Congratulations on your new home and I agree with everyone. Continue working on it as time allows. This is a process you'll hopefully enjoy as much as moving in (once you are done). :smile:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Yes I was thinking the same thing, they did seem to take decent care of the home and pool both. The same could not be said for most of the other homes we looked at previously. Of course there are lots of small things I would like to do in the future, most are simply because I am too meticulous for my own good!

With this pool in decent shape hopefully I can balance pretty quick to keep it under control and finish off the season(if there is one in AZ!) using it!
 
There is a season, but it's a nice, long one. I'd suggest a solar cover for the early/late season. We were swimming comfortably in our pool in late April this year, and likely could have been doing so in March had I owned the house. :)
 

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