Here's some background...
Our pool is a 15x26 above ground oval pool that is three years old. It is in direct sunlight all day, but about twenty feet from the pool is a hundred year old Laurel Oak Tree. We purposely got an above ground pool because we didn't want to take the tree down. But, the relationship between the pool and the tree has become the bane of my existence. I spend all of my free time cleaning the pool and trying to balance the chemicals. The tree is constantly dropping leaves, acorns, pollen and other debree into the pool. I have had a yellow pool several times this summer (actually, it's recurring, not just summer) and I am trying to determine if it is algae or pollen. The reason I am uncertain is because it usually occurs after a heavy rain and the tree dumps it's stuff in the pool. I have been treating it as algae and dumping tons of bleach in the pool to get rid of it. Unfortunately, I haven't had a decent test kit until this week and my CYA and FC were very high. So, I spent two days draining some water off and refilling it and below are my test results from last evening.
FC - 14
CC - 0
pH - 7.6
TA - 110
CH - 0
CYA - 40
Borates - not using borates, but would like to start.
My questions are:
1. Should I hold my FC, or any of my chemical levels, at a higher rate due to the tree?
2. When you are testing CYA...I am adding water until I can not see the black spot at all, I mean completely gone, not just faint and hard to see. Is this correct?
3. I read that Calcium Hardness is not that important with vinyl liners. Is this true or should I add calcium chloride to raise it?
4. I also read that vinyl liners can take a high TA. Is 110 acceptable? I think it is a little high because of the tree.
5. I want to add borates because I think it will help with the yellow algae. I am assuming it is at zero because I have never added any. I don't know how to measure borates, I don't think I have a test for it.
6. And, lastly, I am working on some kind of cover for the pool that will allow me to cover it during the times we are not swimming and easily uncover it when we want to swim. I do not want a solar cover, the pool is in direct Florida sunlight all day and we don't need a solar cover. I was reading about the homemade solar reels, though. And, I was thinking about using the solar reel with shade fabric. I would hook it to my deck on one side and the solar reel on the other. When we want to use the pool, I could unhook it and roll it up. I'm still working on the specifics, but would appreciate any input.
I apologize for the lengthy post, but I've been fighting this battle for a while and I need to win or else something has to come down.
(I'm going to try to attach some pictures of what things look like)
Our pool is a 15x26 above ground oval pool that is three years old. It is in direct sunlight all day, but about twenty feet from the pool is a hundred year old Laurel Oak Tree. We purposely got an above ground pool because we didn't want to take the tree down. But, the relationship between the pool and the tree has become the bane of my existence. I spend all of my free time cleaning the pool and trying to balance the chemicals. The tree is constantly dropping leaves, acorns, pollen and other debree into the pool. I have had a yellow pool several times this summer (actually, it's recurring, not just summer) and I am trying to determine if it is algae or pollen. The reason I am uncertain is because it usually occurs after a heavy rain and the tree dumps it's stuff in the pool. I have been treating it as algae and dumping tons of bleach in the pool to get rid of it. Unfortunately, I haven't had a decent test kit until this week and my CYA and FC were very high. So, I spent two days draining some water off and refilling it and below are my test results from last evening.
FC - 14
CC - 0
pH - 7.6
TA - 110
CH - 0
CYA - 40
Borates - not using borates, but would like to start.
My questions are:
1. Should I hold my FC, or any of my chemical levels, at a higher rate due to the tree?
2. When you are testing CYA...I am adding water until I can not see the black spot at all, I mean completely gone, not just faint and hard to see. Is this correct?
3. I read that Calcium Hardness is not that important with vinyl liners. Is this true or should I add calcium chloride to raise it?
4. I also read that vinyl liners can take a high TA. Is 110 acceptable? I think it is a little high because of the tree.
5. I want to add borates because I think it will help with the yellow algae. I am assuming it is at zero because I have never added any. I don't know how to measure borates, I don't think I have a test for it.
6. And, lastly, I am working on some kind of cover for the pool that will allow me to cover it during the times we are not swimming and easily uncover it when we want to swim. I do not want a solar cover, the pool is in direct Florida sunlight all day and we don't need a solar cover. I was reading about the homemade solar reels, though. And, I was thinking about using the solar reel with shade fabric. I would hook it to my deck on one side and the solar reel on the other. When we want to use the pool, I could unhook it and roll it up. I'm still working on the specifics, but would appreciate any input.
I apologize for the lengthy post, but I've been fighting this battle for a while and I need to win or else something has to come down.
(I'm going to try to attach some pictures of what things look like)