Need Guidance/Opinions (Soon to be pool owner)

[trickyhits]

Geez, where do I begin...well, Pool School naturally...but I am battling some demons I need help this forums expertise on.

We are in the process of buying a home that has a large diving pool (Pool may be from 70s...House built in 75) and when we put an offer on it, the pool was literally a pond. Frogs, turtles, algae, you name. At some point, say 3 to 4 weeks ago the sellers handy man had a guy "clean" the pool. This to me consisted of them just draining the pool (not sure how it was done, as main drain at bottom is sealed...more on that later) and not sure what else. To my very uneducated eye it seemed that they just filled it back up (well water) and put some kind of chemicals (again I am new) in to clean while pump was running. Now, we still don't own the place but we make trips there to check on work, etc. and the pool was just simply neglected once they filled it back up. It has been filled with debris, creatures, nature, etc. and the pool guy said "he was just told to clean, not maintain" and of course we are back to looking green/cloudy/pondish. I am really just hoping I can share some photos of the pool, get your thoughts on where you would start or what makes sense.

I am wanting to just go ahead and drain and do a thorough cleaning as I am reading algae can be nestled in many places and I don't think they did any aggressive cleaning as they filled right back up and poured some stuff in. I do understand there are issues with draining in regards to water levels in the ground, etc. The pump and everything seems to work fine, had the man show me the different cycles, steps, etc. I still have a lot to learn, but I will trust my reading here and your expertise to fill in those gaps vs some guy that showed up drunk at 6PM to explain what was done. I will gladly provide more information and updates once I can actually get on the property and touch things. For now, my anxiety has me reading and wondering what to do first once we are handed the keys. I plan on buying the TF-100 kit and having that ready...but would want to hear the order of business from you all if possible. Album to show journey with some dates and layout...would LOVE feedback on what to do about some heavy landscaping around the pool.

the pool journey - Album on Imgur

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Ohboy! This one is gonna be fun! That looks like a great pool and I am so envious of that diving board and deep well.

First off- don't wait, do this tonight: Order the TF-100XL test kit and the speed stir device from Tftestkits.net For that size of a pool you want the kit that gives you the most bang for your buck and this one is IT.

When it arrives grab some of the pools water and sit down and test and come back to us with these results:
FC
CC
pH
TA
CH
CYA

Also take a pic and post it of the pool equipment.

Start reading Pool School and be start stocking up on liquid chlorine. Look for sales etc. Walmart sells 10% liquid chlorine in the pool section, but you can also buy the 8.25% in the laundry aisle. Do NOT buy from Lowes or Home Depot as they store it outside and it becomes weaker in the heat and sun. If you check with a few local pool stores see if they sell 12% liquid chlorine. You're going to need a lot of it at first. I'd say about 20 gallons (hey, your pool is HUGE!)

Once you are prepared to start your SLAM procedure (after moving in) commit the time to hourly testing/dosing at first and that will make this go as fast as possible. Also scoop out any debris you can get out. Here is the SLAM process: SLAM Process

Once that is over we can help you decide how to chlorinate your pool routinely.

Pressure washing the pool deck with a little bleach will help clean that up too. Easy peasy!

If the house uses the well for its water, you need a water analysis. It will also tell you if you have metals in the water.

Congrats on the new home...its gonna be a great summer!

Yippee

 

[Jimrahbe]

T,

Welcome to TFP... A Great resource for all Green Swamp questions..

I think Yippee has you covered..

Just wanted to add that many pools do not have a functioning Main Drain and they work just fine.

Once you own the property, we can point you in the right direction.

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[pooldv]

Welcome to TFP!

 

[trickyhits]

Thanks for the responses, I guess I just wanted to know this as well. I HIGHLY doubt that any thing in the pool was scrubbed clean. IE ladder, light, skimmers, etc. Is this easier done empty or could I tackle this when starting testing and determining chems. Also, I guessed at the number of gallons as the pool guy said it might be 55k. Thanks again for the info and I appreciate the help and will be back once more is known.

 

[Sfpat]

The SLAM process will work to kill all the algae and clean everything in the pool. A brush and pole are needed tools for the SLAM and afterwards