Bought a house, got a gross pool - attempting BBB

[frustratedpoolmom]

See my comments in bold.

I did not add any CYA. I bought 15 lbs though.
Maybe you can return it then. Or keep it for future use, it has a long shelf life if stored properly. 50 may not even be accurate.

What are CCs?
Read the ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry in Pool School.

If no one is able to dump in chlorine, do I not chlorinate it at all? And I take the floater out altogether?
Pouring in bleach would be preferred, if you have no one to do that, then leave the pool uncovered and use a floater. I think you will lose progress though, despite the tablets.

For consistency's sake, i tested with a test strip to see what it said for CYA. The color chart indicates somewhere between 50 and 100 now. I don't know how this happened.
Test strips and Pool Store tests are notoriously inaccurate, which is why we advocate owning your own test kit, either the TF100 or the Taylor K-2006.

By shocking, you mean just adding bleach, right?
Yes. Read "How to Shock your Pool" in Pool School.

Sorry, I've read all the info several times, but I am sure what you mean when you say "shock up to 20" -
20 FC is your shock level - you add enough bleach to reach 20. If you look at the CYA chart you have 3 numbers corresponding to your CYA level (50). Your minimum, which is 4, your target, which is 6 (these numbers are for everyday chlorination) and 20 which is your shock level. To kill algae, you raise your FC with bleach up to shock level and hold it there with frequent bleach additions, until the 20 holds overnight.

I am looking at the pool calculator and can't figure out how much bleach would bring me to 20 (and I have no clue what the number 20 means).
If you put in your gallons in the size box, then "2" in the "now" column, and "20" in the "Target" column, I get 3.9 jugs (182oz) size to raise your FC to 20.

Ahhh! This is why I didn't want a pool
You'll come to love it.

Hope this helps. Don't forget some POP (Pool Owner Patience)...

 

[tracyd21]

Okay - I am not going to have anyone to pour bleach each night while I am away.

Should I still shock the pool now, or should I leave it as is and deal with it when I return (leaving it uncovered and with a puck)?

Thanks so much!

 

[tracyd21]

Also, how long should the filter run - and what time of day is best?

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I would go ahead and try to tackle it as much as you can before you go, then hopefully the situation won't be too bad when you return, after all you quickly made it from green to blue!

If you are going to run the filter, probably day time, if you can't run it 24/7. Do you have someone who can check on it to make sure the water level is up and the pump doesn't run dry...probably mid week?

Good luck!

 

[tracyd21]

Brand new day. Same cloudy pool. I vacuumed some of the gunk to waste - did the best I could. There is still lots of undissolved solids along the bottom. This makes sense considering I just did a brief test:
TA: 220!!!!!
TC: 5
pH: 7.2
Temp: 70 degrees

I am guessing the only way to dissolve these solids (which are basic in nature) would be to add acidity to the water. On the pool calculator (and after reading Lowering TA in Pool School), I still can't seem to find the calculator function that would tell me how much I need.

Can anyone help me? I am leaving for vacation tonight and want to straighten this out as best as possible before I go.
Thanks!

 

[tracyd21]

I forgot to mention - my filter is running, but the returns aren't always actively bubbling. The pressure gauge on the filter says 15. What could be the potential issue - or is this normal?

I apologize - I literally have no clue what is going on with the pool.

 

[reebok]

in pool school there is an article on how to use the pool calculator.
whatever it is needs to be filtered or vacuumed out. don't add acid, your ph is already on the low side of normal. and did you try wiping the tip of the TA reagent bottle between drops? I can't remember if that came up in this thread or not.
if your returns are bubbling, you have an air leak or a spa jet, and I don't think it's a spa jet. see leak detection in pool school.

 

[tracyd21]

Maybe I wasn't clear about the return jets - by bubbling I meant sometimes it seems like they aren't bringing water back into the pool, but other times they seem fine. The inconsistency is what I am confused about, not sure if this is a normal thing.

As for the gunk, is it devistating to the liner to leave it there for the week while I am away? I won't have any more time to vacuum before I leave for vacation, and we don't have anyone to help us while we are away. I plan to leave the cover off and keep the floater in the pool.

 

[PaulR]

TA: 220!!!!!

You reported 150 yesterday; if nobody has secretly been dumping in loads of stuff behind your back, then you have a testing problem. The TA test has been prone to static buildup which causes the drops to be very small, so you need lots more, so the test ends up reading much higher than it should.

Try again, this time wipe the dropper with a damp cloth every couple drops to alleviate the static.

Of course TA is not really the immediate problem, given that you're going away. At this point if you can't do any more vaccuuming, then just load up the floater with pucks and have a nice time. Don't fret about the pool till you get back (plenty of time for fretting later ).
--paulr

 

[Butterfly]

Of course TA is not really the immediate problem, given that you're going away. At this point if you can't do any more vaccuuming, then just load up the floater with pucks and have a nice time. Don't fret about the pool till you get back (plenty of time for fretting later ).
--paulr

I second that!

Have a nice trip :-D

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

TA: 220!!!!!

You reported 150 yesterday; if nobody has secretly been dumping in loads of stuff behind your back, then you have a testing problem. The TA test has been prone to static buildup which causes the drops to be very small, so you need lots more, so the test ends up reading much higher than it should.

Try again, this time wipe the dropper with a damp cloth every couple drops to alleviate the static.

Of course TA is not really the immediate problem, given that you're going away. At this point if you can't do any more vaccuuming, then just load up the floater with pucks and have a nice time. Don't fret about the pool till you get back (plenty of time for fretting later ).
--paulr

She added PH and TA increasers at the same time too quickly and they clumped at the bottom. I suspect that it's slowly dissolving and increasing the TA too much.

I don't think it's going to harm the liner while you are gone but I'm honestly not sure (you probably have left by now, enjoy your trip!)

When you return you can deal with the TA issue, if the gunk is still there you will need a pole brush or have to get in the water and deal with it yourself.

 

[PaulR]

She added PH and TA increasers at the same time too quickly and they clumped at the bottom. I suspect that it's slowly dissolving and increasing the TA too much.

Oh, come on, that was like, yesterday, you expect me to remember?
Yeah, that was the gunk wasn't it, so that's where the TA came from... oh well. Start from scratch after vacation, there's no help for it now.
--paulr

 

[tracyd21]

Thanks for all the help - I am on vacation now and it is pouring at home (and here :x ). I'm sure all this rain will put me at square one when I return. Oh well!

There was only a little bit of gunk left at the bottom. I vacuumed to waste yesterday before I left (and flooded the yard) and I think I got rid of most of it (and all the leaves - yay!).

Thanks again! I am sure I will be posting in a week...