New 16 x 48 round above ground pool

[Zakr1776]

Hi I'm Zakr1776,

Just got a new pool that is about half way full 16x48 Summer Waves pool. Bought it from Way-Mart. It has a pump that is located at the top of the pool not sitting on the ground.
Anything I should know that will help me out keeping it from getting green. I had a smaller above ground pool by Intex 14x42 and it was green and I never could get it clear again about 3 months after I bought it. I do not want that to happen again.

 

[Richard320]

Welcome!

Get yourself a test kit -- a proper test kit -- right now. You have a grownup pool, you need a grownup test kit. That's too much water to dump and start over with if things get weird.

If you take care to keep the water balanced and vacuum out the debris once or twice a week, there's no problem at all keeping the water clear all year long. And I mean clear. I can toss a quarter in the deep end of my pool and call heads or tails from the deck.

There's weeks' worth of reading in pool school, but you should concentrate on
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals
Pool School - PoolMath

My pool is considerably larger than yours, but it only costs me about a dollar a day for chemicals and maybe an hour a week to maintain it. The key is consistency. Trouble-free doesn't mean maintenance-free. But after a couple weeks learning, it will become about as routine and mindless as brushing your teeth before bed.

 

[jeffchap]

Those pumps are notoriously undersized for those pools. Should you decide to replace it at some point, there are adapters available that will allow you to hook up a larger Intex or other third-party pump. You can search for it here.