New to the site, but wanted to get some suggestions to compare with what I'm getting from the local pool store.
My pool is an in ground pebble-tec pool with about 8,000-10,000 gallons in it. We've owned the house for almost 7 years. Pool filter is standard DE and we run a hayward pool vac. 1st couple years of pool ownership was a learning curve. Took all the advice from the pool store and most of it didn't work. Used chlorine tabs, and was regularly brushing/vacuuming the pool during the summer to get rid of algae on the walls. After that switched to liquid chlorine (10%) and added it as needed along with small amounts of muriatic acid to keep the PH in check. Normally in the summer months when the pool temps are in the low-mid 80's I would add about 2 gal of chlorine per week to keep chlorine at about 2-4ppm. In the winter when water temps were low it would be more like 2 gal a month. This past season I have had to add quite a bit more chlorine (3-4 gal/week) to keep the same levels. I also noticed that the pool water tasty slightly salty, and all our friends were convinced we had a saltwater pool. I would normally take the water into the pool store a couple times a year to be checked, but haven't done so in a while. I finally got around to it and these were their results: FAC=0, TAC=0, CH=1000, CYA=99, TA=70, PH=7.8, Acid=2, Copper=0, Iron=0, TDS=8800, Phosphates=2500.
The water in my pool is crystal clear, and was that way all summer. In the summer I run the filter about 4 hours a day and in the winter about 1 hour a day. Pool company said that the high levels of dissolved solids including salt means that I need to add more chlorine to keep levels in check which is what has been happening. They recommend that I drain the pool and refill. This test was 2 months ago, and since I was thinking of maybe draining the pool since it's been almost 8 years since it was last drained (right before we bought the house), I have been pretty lax on adding chlorine. I know there have been periods of days, even a week or more where there was no chlorine in the pool and still have not had any algae. I clean the filter every 3-4 months, and there is algae on the screens, but none on the pool walls or steps. I know this is a lot of info, but just trying to be thorough.
Basically I'd like to know if you think I should drain the pool water an refill? It seems amazing to me that I am not doing much and the pool is still crystal clear. I hate to drain the pool and deal with the expense of new water when my pool is maintaining nice clear water with very little maintenance. Am I missing something?
Thanks in advance for your advice.
My pool is an in ground pebble-tec pool with about 8,000-10,000 gallons in it. We've owned the house for almost 7 years. Pool filter is standard DE and we run a hayward pool vac. 1st couple years of pool ownership was a learning curve. Took all the advice from the pool store and most of it didn't work. Used chlorine tabs, and was regularly brushing/vacuuming the pool during the summer to get rid of algae on the walls. After that switched to liquid chlorine (10%) and added it as needed along with small amounts of muriatic acid to keep the PH in check. Normally in the summer months when the pool temps are in the low-mid 80's I would add about 2 gal of chlorine per week to keep chlorine at about 2-4ppm. In the winter when water temps were low it would be more like 2 gal a month. This past season I have had to add quite a bit more chlorine (3-4 gal/week) to keep the same levels. I also noticed that the pool water tasty slightly salty, and all our friends were convinced we had a saltwater pool. I would normally take the water into the pool store a couple times a year to be checked, but haven't done so in a while. I finally got around to it and these were their results: FAC=0, TAC=0, CH=1000, CYA=99, TA=70, PH=7.8, Acid=2, Copper=0, Iron=0, TDS=8800, Phosphates=2500.
The water in my pool is crystal clear, and was that way all summer. In the summer I run the filter about 4 hours a day and in the winter about 1 hour a day. Pool company said that the high levels of dissolved solids including salt means that I need to add more chlorine to keep levels in check which is what has been happening. They recommend that I drain the pool and refill. This test was 2 months ago, and since I was thinking of maybe draining the pool since it's been almost 8 years since it was last drained (right before we bought the house), I have been pretty lax on adding chlorine. I know there have been periods of days, even a week or more where there was no chlorine in the pool and still have not had any algae. I clean the filter every 3-4 months, and there is algae on the screens, but none on the pool walls or steps. I know this is a lot of info, but just trying to be thorough.
Basically I'd like to know if you think I should drain the pool water an refill? It seems amazing to me that I am not doing much and the pool is still crystal clear. I hate to drain the pool and deal with the expense of new water when my pool is maintaining nice clear water with very little maintenance. Am I missing something?
Thanks in advance for your advice.