starting over and need help

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Slandry

0
Jul 2, 2016
10
Lake Charles, LA
Intex 15x48 metal frame pool approx 5,300 gallons.
I just drained it cleaned it, replaced hoses and it is filling up now.
Hoses had cracked, pool turned terribly dirty.
What do I do to start? I read somewhere about Bleach Borax Baking Soda and purchased all 3 today.
The filter is a Hydrotools #71225 sand filter.
The pool is almost full, test kit ordered.
What can I do today? How much in what order to add?
Can we get in it tomorrow? Currently I only have test strips and am on well water.
Please give me some help, I don't want to start over again.
 
What about this BBB method? Can someone tell me how much of each to put and the steps for 5,300 gallon pool until test kit comes in?
My pool is almost done filling up and I have to do something today, it is very hot and humid here. 91 heat index 102!!
 
Get some bleach, most use the regular unscented 8.25% from walmart. OR... WalMart should also have pool chlorinating liquid in the pool section, that is what I use. Its a bit stronger than bleach at 10% so it takes a little less, and it's actually cheaper at my local store. Add about 24-32 ounces to your pool by pouring a small stream right in front of the return jet. You need this amount because, it takes about 6.5 oz of the 10% pool chlorinating liquid to raise 5000 gallons of water 1 ppm. I would start out in the 4 range and see how quickly it falls off. You want to keep FC above 2 at all times. Shooting for 4-5 will give some cushion as the sun and or swimmers consume the chlorine.

Pick up an inexpensive 2 way test kit so you can verify PH and Free Chlorine. You want your PH to be in the mid 7 range and Free chlorine to be in the 4-5 range.

If your PH is out of range you will need to adjust it. Low PH means the water is acidic and can damage your equipment, and high PH is not much better. You can buy what you need in the pool section or read pool school for alternatives.

Don't use chlorine tablets or bags of shock, or really any dry chlorine product. These add things you may or may not need and will cause calcium or cya to build rapidly. Some cya is desirable but too much neutralizes your chlorine making you need to maintain a much higher level. Wait for your test kit, it will tell you what the pool requires. It will allow much more accurate testing of FC and performs several other tests that are crucial to proper balance.

That's it, with fresh water your pool should be fine to swim in immediately. The sun and swimmers will consume your chlorine, so keep watch and add as needed. If you shoot for 4-5 ppm and check it each night, add chlorine as needed to maintain that level and you will be fine when your kit arrives. Your pool is safe to swim right after adding chlorine, just pour it in as described, leave the pump running for a while to allow it to mix in.

Read pool school, this is actually fairly simple but there is much to learn.
 
What does anyone use for the CYA? I have read pros and cons about using it. Does anyone ONLY use bleach, borax and baking soda?
Is there any routing weekly maintenance of adding to the pool or is it strictly testing every day or two?
Do most of you use the chlorine tablets also? I am looking for the best KISS (keep it simple sister) method out there and appreciate any and all feedback.
 
You can buy stabilizer or conditioner to add CYA. The borax, soda ash or aeration is used to raise PH and muratic acid to lower PH. Baking soda to raise Total Alkalinity. It does not really take a lot of chemical beyond bleach, I have found. My tap water is pretty near perfect, I have only needed to boost PH once, add my chlorine doses daily and add CYA once.

Chlorine tablets or most other dry chlorine products add CYA with every dose causing it to quickly build up to undesirable levels. You can feed the pool tablets or even a bag of dry shock now and then if you want to raise your level, but you have to monitor carefully.

While some CYA is desirable, you don't want too much. The higher the CYA level, the higher you must maintain Free chlorine. If you need to reach shock level of free chlorine along with high CYA you might buy bleach by the truck load. If you get too much CYA the only solution available for most of us is drain and refill. You must add it carefully and monitor the results so you don't overshoot.

It's all in pool school! in order to really keep track of whats going on you must have an accurate test kit. The cheap kits at wal mart won't give the whole picture. You need quality information to decide what the pool needs. It may seem expensive, but it will save money over time. Get the kit mentioned above or the Taylor k-2600, I have the speed stir also, makes adding drops while swirling a piece of cake. Check out these videos. The dpd-fas test for FC is very different from the simple kits, much more accurate and you can test much higher levels quick and easy.
 
I am trying and reading and re-reading the pool school information. Is there a particular stabilizer or conditioner you prefer?
How do I determine my daily dose amount of bleach, is there a rule of thumb to add XX ounces daily for a 5300 gallon pool or strictly by testing?
 

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The CYA test will cloud whether poured from the mixing tube, or squirted. You'll want to snip the end of the "squirter" tip with scissors if you want to use it.

Not having any cloudiness means that you have less than 20ppm CYA, which is normal with new fill water. You'll need to get some and use PoolMath to calculate the amount to add to your pool. Start by targeting 20ppm, and then work up to 30ppm (or whatever your target) from there.
 
triptyx said:
The CYA test will cloud whether poured from the mixing tube, or squirted. You'll want to snip the end of the "squirter" tip with scissors if you want to use it.

Not having any cloudiness means that you have less than 20ppm CYA, which is normal with new fill water. You'll need to get some and use PoolMath to calculate the amount to add to your pool. Start by targeting 20ppm, and then work up to 30ppm (or whatever your target) from there.
Click to expand...

Please see my response above.
 
Thanks, I tested 0 for chlorine this afternoon and 0 for CYA. Added more 8% bleach according to the pool math and found granular cyanuric acid. Added 29 oz of that in a sock hung by incoming water inlet. If it takes too long to dissolve should I let it mix in the pool water or dissolve it and pour it in?
 
Massage the sock while it sits in front of the return with your hand - it'll dissolve faster than you think. I tend to massage my sock until the thick, white cloud stops coming out, then I let it soak for a few more hours and massage it again. You can dissolve it fast that way. Don't just pour it in. :)
 
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