First House With A Pool - I'm Here For Advice :-)

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Sweaty Palms

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Mar 16, 2017
89
Saint Petersburg, FL
So this is my "Just Getting Started" thread. I've received a TON of help over in the introduction section, but I figured it was time to get a thread going here. I am loaded with questions, so I look forward to getting help from you all.

I added my first chemicals (chlorine) last night. I also added some muriatic acid today. I'm going to try and take a full panel of tests tomorrow to see where everything stands.

Thanks in advance for all the help.
 
Ok, for a CYA of 90, your FC of 6.2 is below the minimum you need to keep the pool sanitary and algae free. You need to add chlorine in the form of bleach (unscented, and not splashless or "EZPour") or liquid chlorine immediately.

At a CYA of 90, you should never let FC drop below 7, and you should target 10-12ppm as a "normal" operating level. You should also consider draining about 1/3rd of the pool to get it down to around 60 or 70 - which should be good for the strong sun down in St. Petersburg (great and beautiful town!).

Here is the chlorine/CYA chart to follow: Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart

Have you gotten familiar with PoolMath? It will help you to take those numbers and make adjustments as needed. :) You can find poolmath here: https://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html
 
triptyx said:
Ok, for a CYA of 90, your FC of 6.2 is below the minimum you need to keep the pool sanitary and algae free. You need to add chlorine in the form of bleach (unscented, and not splashless or "EZPour") or liquid chlorine immediately.

At a CYA of 90, you should never let FC drop below 7, and you should target 10-12ppm as a "normal" operating level. You should also consider draining about 1/3rd of the pool to get it down to around 60 or 70 - which should be good for the strong sun down in St. Petersburg (great and beautiful town!).

Here is the chlorine/CYA chart to follow: Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart

Have you gotten familiar with PoolMath? It will help you to take those numbers and make adjustments as needed. :) You can find poolmath here: https://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html
Click to expand...

That's
That's what I had calculated too. I'm gonna add some chlorine this evening. Thank you.
 
You really need to add it now and then again before you go to bed. We do not want to start an algae farm.

Do you have any more tablets in the tube or a floater?

When you did the CYA test did you GLANCE in or stare looking for the dot? You should GLANCE in then back out. You can pour the CYA test water back and forth to redo the test as often as you want to. I pour line to line. It helps keep me sane! :crazy: LOL

Kim:kim:
 
kimkats said:
You really need to add it now and then again before you go to bed. We do not want to start an algae farm.

Do you have any more tablets in the tube or a floater?

When you did the CYA test did you GLANCE in or stare looking for the dot? You should GLANCE in then back out. You can pour the CYA test water back and forth to redo the test as often as you want to. I pour line to line. It helps keep me sane! :crazy: LOL

Kim:kim:
Click to expand...


I got home and added 69oz of chlorine. I don't have a floater. The system has an auto feeder, but I seem to remember the previous owners saying it sucked or didn't work or something. Should I get a floater?

I took your advice on the CYA test and did the glance method. It's a tricky test for sure.
 
You do NOT want a floater. The tablets are what got the CYA so high :( powder shock also adds CYA. Do you have any idea how your fired pool service added FC?

Your pool is on a liquid chlorine diet from now on! LOL

Good job adding the FC when you got home.

Are you keeping a log/journal of your test results? If not you need to. This will help you learn your pool.

Find the time that works best for you to test the FC and PH every day. I like to do my test after dinner. That way the FC has all night to do it's thing without worrying about the sun getting any of it. Some people like to do it first thing in the morning. Do what works best for you.

When you have time please take a picture and write down any info on the equipment so we can see what you have and work on that.

Kim:kim:
 

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kimkats said:
You do NOT want a floater. The tablets are what got the CYA so high :( powder shock also adds CYA. Do you have any idea how your fired pool service added FC?

Your pool is on a liquid chlorine diet from now on! LOL

Good job adding the FC when you got home.

Are you keeping a log/journal of your test results? If not you need to. This will help you learn your pool.

Find the time that works best for you to test the FC and PH every day. I like to do my test after dinner. That way the FC has all night to do it's thing without worrying about the sun getting any of it. Some people like to do it first thing in the morning. Do what works best for you.

When you have time please take a picture and write down any info on the equipment so we can see what you have and work on that.

Kim:kim:
Click to expand...


So I take it that you don't want me to get a floater. LOL Noted.

No idea how the pool service was adding FC. In fact, that was one of my biggest complaints. When we signed up with him, he told me that he leaves a door tag every time. In the 3 months I used him, I got 2 door tags. Annoying.

I have not started a journal yet. However, I just stumbled across an app that sounds pretty cool. It's all Pool Pal. It has a "Pool Math" calculator in it, plus it logs your tests and allows you to add notes. I've just started messing with it. May be worth checking out.

When adding chemicals, I know it's best to dump it in front of a return, but should I then shut off the pump or let it run for a certain amount of time.....or does it matter?

I have a picture coming of the equipment.
 
Yeppers NO floater LOL Good reading reading between the lines LOL

Don't spend too much time with Pool Pal. It will do for right now if you don't want paper and pen. TFP has an app coming soon that will be purrfect. They are hoping to have it done before too much longer.

You need to leave your pump running about 30 mins after you add chemicals to help it all mix in good. You do NOT want to dump in any chemicals without the pump running as it could settle on the bottom and cause fading or other problems. In fact if you pump will not start we can to walk around the pool pouring the chemical slowly all around the pool THEN using a straw broom to help mix it in as well as brushing the pool to make sure it does not settle in one spot.

Kim:kim:
 
kimkats said:
Yeppers NO floater LOL Good reading reading between the lines LOL

Don't spend too much time with Pool Pal. It will do for right now if you don't want paper and pen. TFP has an app coming soon that will be purrfect. They are hoping to have it done before too much longer.

You need to leave your pump running about 30 mins after you add chemicals to help it all mix in good. You do NOT want to dump in any chemicals without the pump running as it could settle on the bottom and cause fading or other problems. In fact if you pump will not start we can to walk around the pool pouring the chemical slowly all around the pool THEN using a straw broom to help mix it in as well as brushing the pool to make sure it does not settle in one spot.

Kim:kim:
Click to expand...

I figured I needed to keep it running. Just wanted to make sure. I'll be testing the FC after work again tomorrow to see where we stand. Thanks again for the help. I'll hold off on my other questions until we get the chemicals on track.
 
I highly recommend switching to the 10ml sample to save on 871. Only 1 nicely rounded scoop of dpd powder and multiply numbers of drops by .5(or divide by 2)
 
GREAT! That should keep the algae away!

Are you going to be able to keep up with this amount of chlorine needed?

I have 4 2.5 gal jugs that I use for my chlorine. If I don't use the chlorine for anything else (cleaning decks and such) it will last me 12 days during the summer. When it comes time to refill I just make sure I tell my hubby I need the truck that day and have the jugs with me at work so I can pick the chlorine up on the way home. It works for me.

Kim:kim:
 
kimkats said:
GREAT! That should keep the algae away!

Are you going to be able to keep up with this amount of chlorine needed?

I have 4 2.5 gal jugs that I use for my chlorine. If I don't use the chlorine for anything else (cleaning decks and such) it will last me 12 days during the summer. When it comes time to refill I just make sure I tell my hubby I need the truck that day and have the jugs with me at work so I can pick the chlorine up on the way home. It works for me.

Kim:kim:
Click to expand...

Wow. I had no idea! That's almost as much as just paying for a pool service to do it. I was hoping to save money by handling the pool myself. Am I missing something?
 
That amount of chlorine only costs $21.73. That is $1.81 a day which comes to $54.30 for a 30 day month. My water looks like a jewel and I do not have to worry about algae. How much did your pool service cost a week?

I used the pool store with my last pool and spent a LOT more than that weekly and still ruined the pool :( Come to find out my CYA and PH were so out of wack it ruined my liner.

Kim:kim:
 
kimkats said:
That amount of chlorine only costs $21.73. That is $1.81 a day which comes to $54.30 for a 30 day month. My water looks like a jewel and I do not have to worry about algae. How much did your pool service cost a week?

I used the pool store with my last pool and spent a LOT more than that weekly and still ruined the pool :( Come to find out my CYA and PH were so out of wack it ruined my liner.

Kim:kim:
Click to expand...

My pool service was $75/month. That being said, he wasn't very reliable. Other quotes I got were $80/month.
 

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