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pitmanr2003

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May 21, 2010
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Ok i just got a AG pool that is 18x48in round. I just filled it up with water and im confused on where to go from here. Do I have to shock it first? I am going to use the BBB method and I bought borax, bleach, and Bs today. I tested the water and here are the results.

TA-40
Ph-6.8
Fc-0
Tc-0

I used the pool calculator to figure out what I needed to add to get the TA Ph and FC Tc levels up, but im wandering if I just add all that or do I need to shock it and wait 24hrs. thats where Im confused. The manufacturer says that the pool hold 5400 gallons and has a 1500gal hr pump. that is at 80percent full. I would say it is about 90 percent full, but I was going by 5000 gallons so I could take baby steps. Let me know what you all think I need to do next.
 
Welcome to TFP.
You are starting off on the right track.

You'll be miles ahead of the game if you read pool school and all the articles contained there. You can get there by clicking the button on the upper right part of your screen. Also, to help everyone out here please put all your info in your signature line via the control panel under the TFP logo.

The pool calculator is a great place to become very familiar as well.

The one thing that I can tell you to do right now is look at the test kit comparison in pool school and order one. It is the best thing you can do for your pool and your sanity. You will know what is going on and we can guide you along in your progress better. Pool store testing is geared toward selling you products you don't need in most cases and is highly inconsistent and strips are not much better. Post test results in the meantime from the strips or store to give you a rough idea.

Second, you need to add stabilizer/cya/conditioner. I'm assuming there is a CYA level of 0 since it is all new water unless you or the pool people added some. You can get this at Walmart. Read about CYA in pool school. It protects your FC from being eaten up by the sun.

Third, and most easily done is add enough 6% chlorine to get to 3 PPM. I calculate that to be about 4 cups. For now your targets of FC are given a CYA of 0. Once you add CYA/Stabilizer/Conditioner according to pool school's directions you can then use the level you shoot for as your CYA then increase/adjust your FC from there. You may or may not need to shock is what I'm saying. Just get some bleach in there asap. Add each evening to get to 3 so as it falls during the day to sunlight or organics you never never never get below zero.

Edited: Also, recheck your gallons...on pool calculator I get around 7000 gallons in capacity. 18 ft round and 48" high..even at 3.5 ft depth I get 6700 and 3.75 depth I get 7100...it can affect your dosing...the 3 cups I mentioned above was for 5000 gallons, and for 7000 it would be about a quart and a cup.
And yes, go ahead and increase your PH and TA as per the pool calculator when you add chlorine.
 
Thans alot that helps out alot. I just have a cheap test strip tester from walmart. I plan on getting a better one as soon as i have some more cash. Also its a easy set pool so maybe thats why the book said less gallons. the walls in the blow up ring kind are concaved which takes away some of the water I would think.

I saw the stabalizer stuff, but im confused on how much to put in. Also when i get the about and let it mix up for 3 or 4 hours i need to figure how much bleech to put in to get my fc up to 3. Being I cant test the cya how much would I put in there?
 
pitmanr2003 said:
Thans alot that helps out alot. I just have a cheap test strip tester from walmart. I plan on getting a better one as soon as i have some more cash. Also its a easy set pool so maybe thats why the book said less gallons. Yes, that may well be the case. Carry on with the mfr recommendations unless someone else has an idea. the walls in the blow up ring kind are concaved which takes away some of the water I would think.

I saw the stabalizer stuff, but im confused on how much to put in. According to the 5000 gallons in the pool calculator you'd add about 1 lb 11 oz of stabilizer to get to 40. Also when i get the about and let it mix up for 3 or 4 hours i need to figure how much bleech to put in to get my fc up to 3. Being I cant test the cya how much would I put in there?
Click to expand...

Right now, with 0 cya you'd add bleach to get to 3 ppm. I got the previous amount I mentioned by entering 0 in the now, and 3 in the target and hitting calculate on the pool calculator.

To add the stabilizer you can just put it in an old sock and put it in front of the return of the pool. It's the now/target labeled CYA in the calculator. Once it is dissolved a couple days later then you can use 40 as your CYA and your target minimum will change. Add chlorine quantities according to the calculator each night to get to the high end of your range. That way during the next day with sun, bather load, etc you won't ever fall below the minimum.

Since you can't test CYA yourself right now, you can have a pool store test it. But stand firm and DONT buy anything they recommend. The test kit is very very important and you won't regret spending the money. This system is very easy. Keep records and get to know your pool and you will enjoy it for many many seasons.

If I'm missing something one of the more experienced TFP folks please chime in!
 
sorry for all the questions, but i saw some more things about the TA i need to get it up as well when should i add it. should I wait till i add the stabalizer and then get the FC up then add it.. or can i add it any time
 
It doesn't matter if you add stabilizer or bleach first, which ever is most convenient.

Liquid stabilizer costs a lot more. I would stick with the regular kind, it is just as good.

The simplest thing to do for PH and TA would be to raise both at the same time with soda ash/washing soda/PH Up. But it doesn't really matter. You can wait on TA till later if you want to.
 
If you use liquid stabalizer there is no need for the sock. Be aware that liquid is far more expensive than granular.Liquid will deliver near instant results. Add your bleach to get to 3 ppm. you can do this at the same time as stabalizer. Adjust TA as per pool calculator and it could be done after a couple hours of circulation.
 
on the pool calculator it says to let cya adjustment mix for a week in powder form. does it have to wait that long and do you have to wait to get in it till its mixed a week

Also when i add borax and baking soda do I just sprinkle it in pool?
 

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The simplest way to add borax or baking soda is to pour them slowly into a skimmer with the skimmer basket in place but no skimmer sock. Pour slowly enough that it doesn't accumulate in the basket.

After adding granular CYA, you should wait a week before testing again because it might not all dissolve and show up on the test right away. But you can start treating the pool as if the CYA dissolved the next day. The level won't be all the way there yet, but it will be close enough.

Swimming doesn't need to wait on CYA. You can swim when the water is clear, FC level is appropriate for your CYA level, and the PH is between 7.2 and 7.8.
 
coloeb said:
If you use liquid stabalizer there is no need for the sock. Be aware that liquid is far more expensive than granular.Liquid will deliver near instant results.
Click to expand...

Agreed. After reading up on it here at TFP, I opted to use instant to start, as I needed to get the CA level up, but knew I wouldn't have the time to properly feed dry or regularly check socks due to other obligations. It worked extremely well and, as a bonus, slightly raised my pH rather than dramatically dropping it as the dry CA can. I guess that's the advantage of it being formulated as a salt. All that said, it is quite expensive, especially when buying from a local pool store (as opposed to online). For my pool, it took 3 gallons to get to about 45ppm, which cost me right around $100. Yikes! That's quite a price for convenience and gentler pH. I'll be going with dry CA going forward, but it did precisely what it was supposed to do.
 
Ok here is a update. I never could get any fc but had a total chlorine of one. i read that if this was the case you need to shock. so i did with bleach and shot for a reading of 10 fc. I got it and now everything is where it needs to be except fc level needs to come down, but i atleast have one now. my cya is still 0 but i just added stabalizer to sock and its floating and I will recheck in a week. Water looks great but only 74f and need to wait a couple days for fc to come down. thanks for all the help and if you can think of anything else let me know.

tc- i think was a 3
fc- 10 or higher. at shock level
ph-7.8
ta-120
cya- still 0 but just added stabalizer
 
Cant keep Fc Overnight

Merged threads. Please keep all info in this thread until your pool is cleared & balanced. Folks responding need the history. :) Butterfly


I shocked pool and had a fc reading of 10 till in the morning when I got up. back down to 0. Tc was a 1 again. I just added stabalizer in a sock and still have no cya but i suspected that for atleast a couple days. I reshocked with bleach again. Its a easy set 5593 gallon pool and this is first startup. everything else is in line just cant get FC level to last over night. Should I keep shocking till it holds fc overnight? I think I need to go back to walmart and get some more bleach. Would it have been ok to get in for a little bit when chlorine level was 0. Kid is very anxious to get in!!!
 
pitmanr2003 said:
no can i get it at walmart
Click to expand...
Please ignore my dichlor comment. You are already adding CYA in a sock.

Keep shocking your pool. :goodjob: Many of us squeeze that sock to help the CYA dissolve :)

(You may want to use dichlor to open your pool next year. It might be easier for you since the pool is smaller and you will (more than likely) need to add CYA and chlorine.)
 

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