New easy set pool owner

Jun 15, 2016
2
King
Hi all, Sherri here. Just decided to get an above ground easy set pool from Intex and now that it has arrived I want to be sure I maintain and keep the water in great shape. I am by no means new to the pool world but I am new to being the person responsible for the chemicals and testing. Look forward to any seasoned advice that can help me do it right and the most economically.

I got the 12 ft round by 36" deep intex easy set pool. I am hoping to get it set up maybe tomorrow. I already do have a 5 way test kit that checks bromine, chlorine, ph, alkalinity and acid demand as well as a pool starter kit from In the Swim that came with Clarifier, algaecide, stain away, starter sorb sponge, pool shock, and two complete care pods to use weekly?? I think the pool holds approxmately 1700 gallons. It will be filled partly from my well but also from the river water as I know better than to pump that much thru my well all at once.

Any advice on what other chemicals I need to pick up tomorrow would be greatly appreciated and the most cost effective products too. Thanks a bunch

Sherri A
 
I am by no means an expert on here but after years of store chemicals, I am very much a believer in the BBB method they teach here in TFP. You should head over to the school section and read everything. There is a lot if great information there. :)

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I just wanted to welcome you and also suggest the seasonal pool guide mentioned above. The biggest problem with classic pool store advice for a seasonal pool is the excessive use of stabilized chlorine products that send your CYA sky high making your chlorine less and less effective which then requires more and more expensive pool store potions to keep things in check, water gets worse and worse as the season goes along, and eventually you have to dump it, hopefully you make it to the end of the season first. By contrast our seasonal pool guide works on the concept of starting off with a known amount of CYA stabilizer in the water and from then on not adding any other stabilized chlorine product throughout the rest of the season, which lets you concentrate on just maintaining your Free Chlorine level and your pH. (if you get a lot of splash out or overflow you may need to make an educated guess and add a bit more CYA stabilizer mid season).

As to those products, if it is a cheap algaecide it likely contains copper which can cause staining, and tends to make blond hair turn green, so I would suggest avoiding using it. Clarifier is often another trouble spot, more often causing more problems than it cures, The stain away may be helpful if your well water contains iron (tends to make water turn yellow/brown at elevated chlorine levels, although I would probably hold off adding it unless you see a clear green tint to the water after you add chlorine yellow water, plus blue pool liner makes it look emerald green), the sorb sponge may also be helpful to use given the stock Intex filter is woefully undersized. I would probably skip the shock and the pool care pods as they likely contain stabilized chlorine and other stuff you don't need / want.

I hope this helps
Ike

p.s. looks like the pods contain phosphate remover, which is mostly another pool store snake oil product you don't need.

- - - Updated - - -

I just wanted to welcome you and also suggest the seasonal pool guide mentioned above. The biggest problem with classic pool store advice for a seasonal pool is the excessive use of stabilized chlorine products that send your CYA sky high making your chlorine less and less effective which then requires more and more expensive pool store potions to keep things in check, water gets worse and worse as the season goes along, and eventually you have to dump it, hopefully you make it to the end of the season first. By contrast our seasonal pool guide works on the concept of starting off with a known amount of CYA stabilizer in the water and from then on not adding any other stabilized chlorine product throughout the rest of the season, which lets you concentrate on just maintaining your Free Chlorine level and your pH. (if you get a lot of splash out or overflow you may need to make an educated guess and add a bit more CYA stabilizer mid season).

As to those products, if it is a cheap algaecide it likely contains copper which can cause staining, and tends to make blond hair turn green, so I would suggest avoiding using it. Clarifier is often another trouble spot, more often causing more problems than it cures, The stain away may be helpful if your well water contains iron (tends to make water turn yellow/brown at elevated chlorine levels, although I would probably hold off adding it unless you see a clear green tint to the water after you add chlorine yellow water, plus blue pool liner makes it look emerald green), the sorb sponge may also be helpful to use given the stock Intex filter is woefully undersized. I would probably skip the shock and the pool care pods as they likely contain stabilized chlorine and other stuff you don't need / want.

I hope this helps
Ike

p.s. looks like the pods contain phosphate remover, which is mostly another pool store snake oil product you don't need.
 
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