I just wanted to say that digging through the forums, there seems to be a tremendous amount of knowledge here, and thanks for all you guys do!
As background - this is our first pool. We've been here for 4 years, and haven't had many challenges. I've done the bring water to pool store, buy boatloads of unnecessary chemicals that don't seem to do anything, repeat, etc. As the pool had been pretty clear and with the exception of the occasional green algae bloom, I had just assumed that this is the way of the pool.
About a month ago, before it warmed up, we started getting some black dots on the bottom of the pool near the main drain, steps, and middle of the shallow side of the pool. Other than these blemishes, the water is clean and clear. So I did what I always did, throw random amounts of chlorine in various forms at it, scrub, and laugh at how I was so smart and the pool would bend to my will.
After a few truckloads of cash to the local stores and more black dots continuing to appear in the deep areas, I dug around more and was fortunate enough to come across the site. I read up on Pool Math, ordered a TF-100 Kit so I could wean myself from the crappy tests at the pool store that were always all over the map.
The last pool test said we had CYA of 30, but 0 chlorine. Everything else seemed "normal" according to them. So I added to enough chlorine to get to 15, waited 30 minutes, and used my crappy test to see what my Chlorine was at. It came back as between 1 and 2. TF Kit just arrived, and I'm putting in the first tests.
From what I've gathered, it seems important to get the CYA and pH in order first and then start slamming (if needed)?
CYA - 0. That black dot never even turned grey. This may explain why I can't get any chlorine to stay in the pool.
pH - 7.8
Total Chlorine using the daily test - 0
It seems like I should get my CYA up to 30 (60 oz by weight), then once I have that in the skimmer, add enough Muriatic Acid to get down to 7.5? At what point should I add in some chlorine, and just enough to theoretically get it to about 4, or up to shock at what the CYA would get to?
Sorry for the long windedness, I appreciate the help!
As background - this is our first pool. We've been here for 4 years, and haven't had many challenges. I've done the bring water to pool store, buy boatloads of unnecessary chemicals that don't seem to do anything, repeat, etc. As the pool had been pretty clear and with the exception of the occasional green algae bloom, I had just assumed that this is the way of the pool.
About a month ago, before it warmed up, we started getting some black dots on the bottom of the pool near the main drain, steps, and middle of the shallow side of the pool. Other than these blemishes, the water is clean and clear. So I did what I always did, throw random amounts of chlorine in various forms at it, scrub, and laugh at how I was so smart and the pool would bend to my will.
After a few truckloads of cash to the local stores and more black dots continuing to appear in the deep areas, I dug around more and was fortunate enough to come across the site. I read up on Pool Math, ordered a TF-100 Kit so I could wean myself from the crappy tests at the pool store that were always all over the map.
The last pool test said we had CYA of 30, but 0 chlorine. Everything else seemed "normal" according to them. So I added to enough chlorine to get to 15, waited 30 minutes, and used my crappy test to see what my Chlorine was at. It came back as between 1 and 2. TF Kit just arrived, and I'm putting in the first tests.
From what I've gathered, it seems important to get the CYA and pH in order first and then start slamming (if needed)?
CYA - 0. That black dot never even turned grey. This may explain why I can't get any chlorine to stay in the pool.
pH - 7.8
Total Chlorine using the daily test - 0
It seems like I should get my CYA up to 30 (60 oz by weight), then once I have that in the skimmer, add enough Muriatic Acid to get down to 7.5? At what point should I add in some chlorine, and just enough to theoretically get it to about 4, or up to shock at what the CYA would get to?
Sorry for the long windedness, I appreciate the help!
