New home, new pool - overwhelmed!

[Khanair]

Hi all! Long time lurker, first time poster. Ever since we decided to pull the trigger on a new (to us) home back in February, I've been visiting this site frequently trying to get my hands around being a pool owner.

Since having a company open our pool a week ago, I've been doing my best to familiarize myself with testing the water, running the systems, etc. I figure it wouldn't hurt to take a sample over to Leslies for my first run and they gave me the following test results:

FC: 7.5
TA: 110
PH: 7.8
CYA: 0
CH: 210
Salt: 2500
Phosphates: 1000

They recommended 16lbs of conditioner and a bottle of phosphorus reducer. I remember reading on here that phosphorus shouldn't be something for me to be worried about so I bought the 16lbs of conditioner and started with only using half (8lbs). Half of it went directly into my strainer after trying to dissolve it and the other half I mixed with pool water and dispersed directly into the pool (whoops).

Today, 5 days after my Leslie's test, I tested the pool myself and got the following numbers:

FC: 6.5
TA: 140
PH: 7.7
CYA: 55
CH: 290
Salt: I don't have a salt test kit yet (ordered the Taylor k-1766) but my SWG says salt is 2900. Note that I have not added any salt to the pool yet.

Currently I am running my system (SWG,pump) for about 12 hours a day with the SWG set at 20. I plan on adding another 4 lbs of conditioner to bring the CYA up a little more. Am I on the right track? Sorry, I know it's a lot of info, but I figured I'd provide as much info as possible.

On a side note - I also ordered a Dolphin Nautilus robotic cleaner and I am more excited than I should be

Thanks!

 

[JamieP]

Welcome to TFP! I'm glad to see you are already on the right track by having your own test kit! That's half the battle!

I'll let others more knowledgeable than I comment on the results they gave you, but the good news I can say for sure is that you are in the right place and if you listen to these folks, you'll love owning the most sparkly pool you've ever seen! Have fun!

 

[Khanair]

Thank you so much - definitely happy to be here! Also, I noticed that my signature must not have saved.... I hope it works here....

 

[Richard320]

It looks like you're making a real good start.

You ought to experiment a little. Cut the filter down to 6 hours and set the SWG to 40. It will save a bunch of money and the pool will probably look just the same. And if that works, shave another hour or two off and bump the SWG to compensate. Pool stores think that lots and lots of filtration is the key to a clear pool, but it's chemistry that really makes it sparkle.