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zibnata

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Feb 28, 2017
23
Danbury,CT
My pool was almost complete at the end of November. Water was added, the pool builder poured some liquid chlorine and the cover was put on. The filter has not ran yet.
I know there are a lot of websites out there describing what to test and how. Very confusing. I think that I would trust people on this forum more than the websites, suppliers and my builder.
Can someone tell me what tester to buy and does it have everything that I need to test everything that needs testing ? Before I had the pool I thought all that needed testing was chlorine and PH. thanks
 
zibnata said:
My pool was almost complete at the end of November. Water was added, the pool builder poured some liquid chlorine and the cover was put on. The filter has not ran yet.
I know there are a lot of websites out there describing what to test and how. Very confusing. I think that I would trust people on this forum more than the websites, suppliers and my builder.
Can someone tell me what tester to buy and does it have everything that I need to test everything that needs testing ? Before I had the pool I thought all that needed testing was chlorine and PH. thanks
Click to expand...
Hello and welcome.

We recommend the TF-100 from TF Testkits, or the Taylor K2006. Value wise, the TF-100 is your best bet. It contains all the tests you need, with plenty of reagents for the tests you will run most often.

http://tftestkits.net/TF-100-Test-Kit-p4.html

The Speed Stir magnetic stirrer really makes your testing easy and accurate.

How does the pool look? Is the water green? Is it cloudy at all?
 
Yes, I saw the forecast on WTNH... Springtime in New England is around the corner and we have 3-6" on its way. I'm in New Haven, right on the North Haven line.

I think you are wise to get your test kit now, you can even practice on your tap water so you will be ready to go when you open the pool.

Have you read through any of Pool School yet? Pool Math is a great tool to help you figure out 'how much'. Both can be accessed from buttons at the top of the page.

We're not shy on questions and answers around here so ask away!

Nice to have you here.
 
I might be incorrect but I thought I deleted an email recently about a spring sale at tftestkits.net

Edit.....I stand corrected. I received an email about a sale on the refill set. But, the TF-100 is hands down worth every penny if you want to take care of your pool well.

And welcome.
 
This is great info and you all are very helpful. So i will order the tester. I don't want to sound real dumb but a couple questions. So we can add chlorine and ph up or down. But for the other items that the tester detects, what other items get added to the water ? for instance if the Cyanuric Acid levels are off or Calcium Hardness is too high, what is done for things like that ? I have well water that is hard and will be using it to top off the pool.
 
I am SO happy you are here! We LOVE to help people learn about caring for there pools! I even put together a set of links for new people. Now it is a lot of info so take it slow!

Print these out:
Pool School - Basic Pool Care Schedule

Pool School - Recommended Levels

Bookmark these:
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals

http://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html

These along with the ABCs link Dom shared will really guide you along the way to keep your pool clear and looking like a jewel!

Make sure to ask any and all questions or concerns you might have no matter how small!

Kim:kim:
 
I am glad I found this site. It is so nice of all of you to help out people that you don't even know. I will read all the info that you all have suggested. I am so new at this and I really trust you all over the pool store.
I have never had my well water tested for iron or copper but I remember having low PH from when I had a saltwater aquarium. I needed to add a buffer to raise the PH.
 

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I have been reading pool school, the ABC's of pool water chemistry and looking at pool math.
A lot of good info that I couldn't imagine.
For all I knew you just check chlorine and ph. Throw some pucks into a floater and add ph up or down when needed.
Correct me if I am wrong but chlorine isn't added by throwing some pucks in a floater or one of those chemical feeders ? You would just add liquid bleach ? Liquid bleach is the source of chlorine in your pool ? No pucks ?
 
You can add chlorine using the pucks BUT they also add CYA (stabilizer). If you keep using the pucks over a period of time your CYA will get too high. Look at this chart: Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart

You can see the more CYA you have the more FC (free chlorine) you need. After a while it will not be feasible to try to keep up with the amount of FC needed. The only way to get rid of CYA is to drain some of the water and refill.

I DO use liquid chlorine for every day. I have some pucks I use for weekend get aways and such.

Kim:kim:
 
You can add solid forms of chlorine, like pucks or granules. However they will over time raise your cya or calcium to levels where you have to do a partial drain and refill to keep your CYA or calcium under control. They can be used with care and careful testing, so you know what the impact will be

Thats why we predominately use liquid chlorine (bleach) or a swg on this forum. Bleach just adds chlorine, water and a touch of salt. SWG's use the salt in your pool to create chlorine
 
Sounds good , so basically liquid is most likely added daily and I can always put pucks if I go away. I did not know bleach or liquid chlorine is the best to use. But then again this is my first pool. It took a couple of days to start understanding all of this and all of you have been tremendous help.
Can't wait to get started but a couple of inches of snow today and possibly a lot of snow in the forecast for next week.
 
Here is a good link to get you started:

Pool School - Basic Pool Care Schedule

We have a new app for pool test logs. I sent our IT a PM to ask him to come share that with you

It will be good for you to follow the schedule in the above link for a while. Once you learn your pool's needs then you might be able to back down on the daily testing. Make sure to note any big weather events so you can see what they do, if anything, to your water.

Kim:kim:
 
I know it will be different but any idea on a range of how much liquid chlorine I would use ? I check it daily and it should be between 3-5, correct. What it it's 1 or 2, how much then? What if it's 7, thats where the cya comes in to play?
 
Look up at the top of this page. You will see a blue oval with Pool Math in it. Play around with it. There is a slight learning curve with this tool so just mess around with it until you get the hang of it.

I have just about the same size pool. I buy 10 gals of chlorine (11%). It lasts me about 12 days in the summer.

Kim:kim:
 
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