Keith

[Kosman02]

Greeting all,

I'm a novice/new pool owner (1 year in this thing) and trying to learn to avoid mistakes I made last year. I went the local pool shop with a water sample last year and in the process of adding chemicals to get everything in range, my clear pool turned green and I spent a ton of money, and time, getting back to normal.

I would like to go to SWG system this summer but I believe I need to get the pool in range before I start that endeavor.

So...this year's water sample looks like this....

Total Chlorine - 0.2
Free Chlorine - 0
pH - 6.2
Total Alkalinity - 10
Adj. Alkalinity - 0
Total Hardness - 147
CYA - 120

The local pool shop said to first add 72lbs of Balance pack 100 or 36lbs of baking soda to increase the Alkalinity
Then wait 30 minutes and add 1.75lbs of Balance pack 200 to increase the pH
Then wait 30 minutes and add 3 bags of Burn Out 35 to increase the free chlorine


I did this last year, in this order, and the pool turned green. So I think I need to get the chlorine up first but it appears that the CYA is too high and adding Burn Out 35 will only increase that so I'm guessing Bleach would be the better route.

Finally, to my real question - What would you recommend I do, in what order and with how much?

Thank you in advance for your time and expertise....I would certainly appreciate any help.

Regards,

 

[woodyp]

And not ONE word did he say about your CYA. Typical. Fire him and hire Pool School on this site. Consider a partial drain and fill to lower that CYA level before you do anything else.

 

[JasonLion]

As soon as your get the CYA level down, you do need to raise both PH and TA, though I would do it much more gradually then they recommended.

You should think about getting your own top quality test kit and also do some reading at Pool School. A little knowledge and your own test results (far more reliable than pool store results in almost every case) can make everything much easier.

 

[Kosman02]

Thanks for the recommendations. I did a lot of reading on your site yesterday and will partially drain the pool to get the CYA down, order a complete test kit and go from there.

appreciate the help and information from the site...Thanks!!

Keith

 

[Floater]

Welcome

Just in case, maybe take a second sample to another pool store and get their results. If it were me, I'd want to take make sure my CYA was that high before having to do a partial drain, etc with your size pool. Course, that is the second thing I'd do.. first would be ordering a kit. I have been very happy with my orders from a member and you can get that here: http://tftestkits.net/splash-page.html.

Pretty soon you'll just be hanging on this site to have fun instead of "needing" it!

Good Luck

 

[acroy]

Welcome

I'm 1.5yrs into owning my own pool, this site has been invaluable. Well, maybe I could put a price on it, but it would be a LOT

Just to reiterate: get a good test kit & study Pool School. Use pool store numbers as backup to your test kit but don't take them as gospel. They can be way off.

FWIW: I have a salt water system and honestly, not sure it's worth it. Big upfront expense, no hassling with chlorine, but have to fight pH rise by adding acid continuously instead.

A very sweet setup is
-Liquidator (adds chlorinse to the pool using bleach but lets the salts settle out, lessening the pH rise
- 2000ppm or thereabouts Salt (for the feel)
- 50ppm Borates (algicide, sparkle, limits pH shift)

much cheaper than the SWCG option. again, FWIW

Enjoy the board!

 

[JamesW]

The local pool shop said to first add 72lbs of Balance pack 100 or 36lbs of baking soda to increase the Alkalinity
Then wait 30 minutes and add 1.75lbs of Balance pack 200 to increase the pH
Then wait 30 minutes and add 3 bags of Burn Out 35 to increase the free chlorine

Balance pak 100 is baking soda, so it does not make any sense for them to give two different amounts for the same chemical.

I would not use the Balance pak 200 (sodium carbonate), or the Burn out 35 (lithium hypochlorite).

30 pounds of baking soda should take care of the TA and pH. Adding the correct amount of baking soda will always get your pH to at least 7.2, which is the minimum recommended level. Add the baking soda and then wait 12 hours to retest the pH and TA. If they are still too low, then you can add some more. Dissolve the baking soda in a plastic bucket and pour it into the pool.

You can use liquid chlorine for increasing the chlorine level.

Allow your pump to run continuously until your chemistry is correct and the water is clean and clear.

Always wait a few hours between adding different chemicals.

Note: Baking soda does not have much of an effect on pH when the pH is high, but it does have a large effect when the pH is so low.

 

[zea3]

Once you have completed the drain and refill, test the CYA again before adding any chemicals. You may need several drain/refill cycles to safely lower the CYA. Since you have a vinyl liner pool you do not want to drain it all the way down at once. Leave at least 2 feet of water in the shallow end of the pool.

 

[Kosman02]

Thanks for all recommendations and feedback.....really appreciate.

A second sample to another pool is a good idea too.

Hey ACROY, I'll have to look into the Liquidator option....don't know much about but I like the sound it. posting.php?mode=reply&f=28&t=29841# Thanks!

I'm ordering the testing kit today and hope to start the draining/refilling process this weekend.


Keith