High chlorine; am I done shocking?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
D

Dana K

0
Jul 7, 2011
6
N Isanti Co, MN
It's been a week since we filled our new pool using well water. I've been monitoring with test strips (very frustrating) and today bought a cheap kit at Walmart until my "real" one arrives from online. Here are my readings:

TC: 10? (it's orange, but the kit only reads up to 5)
pH: 7.2
CYA: 0
TA: 300
TH: 300

I've shocked the pool three times, added a gallon of bleach (my test strips said I had no chlorine), added pH Minus to bring pH down from 8.8, and added 2.5 quarts of metal sequestrant, not all at once. (The water turned coffee-colored immediately after shocking; we have lots of iron in our water. The pool sides & floor are "squeaky", not slimy at all, and the water is clear, just brown.) I've been changing the filter twice a day. Today I can finally start to see the floor! Someone said I should vacuum the floor, but there's nothing down there.

Question 1: Do I need to shock again to add CYA? I can't find stabilizer/conditioner in my small town. Maybe it's something I can get online. How important is it to get this number up?

Question 2: Am I adding too much sequestrant? I know the brown water is clean, but I can't stand it! Should I continue to add sequestrant and, if so, how much?

Question 3: The chlorine seems high. Will it take care of itself, or should I drain some water? I'll test it again tomorrow morning.

Thanks for your patience with a complete newbie. I promise to pass it on once I know what I'm doing.
 
cant answer much on the metals deal...

But Walmart and Lowes carry pool stabilizer {CYA}. Use the Pool Calculator to get your dose, I use 30ppm as the target. Pour the dose into an old sock and tie it in front of the pump discharge, squeeze it often to help things along.

Sounds like you are right on top of things, I'm sure you;re in for GOOD times!
 
Without CYA in your water you are losing your chlorine very very fast. I know Lowe's carries it and I am pretty sure Walmart will as well. You need to get your CYA number somewhere in the 30ppm range and then start shocking your pool until it passes the overnight test. If you CYA is zero, you need to add about 23oz of stabilizer to your pool to bring it up to 30ppm. I cant help with the metals....that way out of my wheelhouse.
 
Welcome to the forum :wave:

The OTO test is normally used to measure TC levels between 0 and 5. You can, however, use this test to get a vague idea of extremely high TC levels. If the sample turns a particularly vivid yellow the TC level is between 5 and 15, light orange is between 10 and 20, dark orange is between 15 and 30, and brown is 30 or higher.
Click to expand...
With no CYA in the water, your shock level is only 10. So, just let that chlorine level drop down some. With the OTO test, you can use 1 part pool water and 1 part distilled (or non-chlorine) water and then double the test results which will allow you to test to 10.

Was the water clear when you added it to the pool?

Stop shocking for now.......

Let the FC come down below 10 and then retest the pH. Then lower the pH to 7.2ish. This may help the metals sequester.

Which sequesterant and how much did you use? Name & ingredients & directions on label, please.

You do need to add about 30ppm CYA to the pool. This is what will protect your chlorine from the sunlight. As mentioned, you can find it at WallyWorld and the big box stores, and, of course pool stores. CYA is a/k/a conditioner or stabilizer.

You need a little POP, pool owner patience, with clearing the water :)
 
Thanks for your quick response, everyone. I didn't realize there was so much to learn!

Neither Lowe's, Walmart, Menard's or Target had stabilizer/conditioner. There's a pool store about 35 miles away that I can visit tonight.

This morning's readings are the same as last night's:
TC: 10/orange
pH: 7.2

I guess that's good? No chlorine loss overnight. I keep a solar cover on all the time; don't know if that makes a difference or not. The water temp stays about 82-84 degrees.

The sequestrant I used is called "Iron Myte" by Utikem, active ingredient Organophosphonic Acid derivative. It says to add 8 oz/4000 gal water, which did absolutely nothing over 3 days. I read on this forum to add much more - up to a quart a day for 4 days - so I then added an additional 2 quarts over 3 days. My pump is running 24/7 with a twice daily filter change. And the water is still brown, but at last it's starting to look like weak coffee instead of strong coffee. Hopefully the trend will continue.

Sorry, my pool didn't come with POP (Pool Owner Patience). Maybe I can get that at the pool store, too. :)

By the way, the water was gorgeous, sparkling clear when we filled the pool. It's the same water we use inside the house - delicious and clean (we soften it for laundry to remove the iron & minerals). We then shocked it, put the solar cover on, and came home from work to revolting brown water. :(
 
Your starting FC level may have been above 10, so just because its above 10 now doesn't mean that you didn't lose anything overnight (e.g., you may have gone from 15 to 13).

I'd leave the solar cover off today to let the sun eat some FC, should happen pretty quickly with no CYA in the water. Once it's below 10, then being down the ph as suggested.
 
I suggest you wait about a week (after last addition of sequesterant) before adding any more sequesterant. Just keep pH low -7.2ish - and continue to filter.

Remove the cover and allow the sun to help lower the FC.

When you said you shocked your pool, what did you add and how much?
 
Butterfly, I added granular shock (possibly AquaChem, I could be wrong) and followed directions of 1.3 oz/1,000 gallons, or about 7.5 oz each time.

I did find a local pool store that has conditioner, and I'll get that tonight after work. Sounds like I need to put it in a sock and drape it in front of the flow valve, correct? Should I just follow the product directions, or do you recommend a certain amount?

I'll leave the pool cover off. Thanks!
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
WestSide, I LOVE your pool pic in your thread! Wow, just beautiful. My pool wants to be just like yours when it grows up. :)

Thanks for the heads-up about CYA and pH. Hopefully because my TA is 300, it won't fall too drastically. If it does, I have borax and baking soda at home.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply