12x30 intex pool too much chlorine

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threelittlecupcakes

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Jul 21, 2011
8
Hi
I have a 12x30 intex pool, filled it with water - didn't have any chemicals on hand at the time, used it to swim, then on the 3rd day it was turning green and slimy. Finally got some chemicals(shock) and overdid it - put in one full bag of 16oz. I bought a small test kit that tests for ph and chlorine, the chlorine of course is way too high - no suprise. Do I need to empty all the water and start over or just empty part and add fresh water (have already done that once)? I have the pump running and go out every few hours and rinse the filter out. Just wondering when it will be safe to send the kids into the pool again, it is extremely hot & humid here. Suggestions.
 
You should start by reading through Pool School. Important things you need:

1. A good test kit. The TF100 is great. In the interim, test results from the pool store will be better than nothing. (FC, CC, pH, TA, CH, CYA)
2. CYA in the water to prevent the sun from burning off all your chlorine.
3. KEEP the chlorine level high enough at all times. 16oz of what sounds like it was probably cal-hypo is a VERY SMALL amount of chlorine.
 
Thanks and yes I have been reading the pool school. We do not have a pool store near us. The pool shock label said to add 1 1/4 oz to my size pool but when that didn't yield results I just kept adding it. I don't want to let the kids in if the chlorine is too high. I bought the test kit that I could find in the store, only spent $59 on the pool, do not want to spend as much on a test kit. The bag of pool shock I used reads: All in one shock xtra - ingredients sodium dichloro-striazinetrione dihydrate 64%, alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride 1%, other ingredients 35%, total ingredients 100% available chlorine 35%
 
Hopefully you've read the article on Seasonal/Temporary Pools.

You've added 30 ppm CYA and 33 ppm FC. I'd switch to using bleach for chlorination now.

What is the max your test kit reads in TC?
If you have a Walmart nearby, some of them have a HTH 6-way drop based kit that works ok for small pools.

To get you back swimming, take a sample of pool water and dilute it with an equal amount of chlorine free water and test the water, then double the result. I.E. your TC reads 5, multiply that by 2 and your real TC = 10. Once it gets down to 10 you can swim again. (you could actually dilute the pool water with 2 parts of chlorine free water to 1 part pool water and multiply the result by 3 but the accuracy is pretty suspect at that dilution.)
 
Yes I have read the seasonal pool link, thanks.
My test kit for chlorine reads
3.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.3
and mine is really deep yellow 3.0 or more.

The PH reading says 6.8, 7.2, 7.6, 7.8, 8.2 and mine is in the 7.2 range.

I can check at walmart and see if i can find the kit. Looks like this test kit is probably useless since the numbers I have on my test kit are no where near what numbers you are talking about.
 
You can do the 3:1 dilution and that'll get you to 12 ppm. I wouldn't go past 3:1 though and even then it's just a guestimate.
You also need to test your pH once the chlorine comes back down to about 10 or less.

A better test kit is definitely in order.
 
Also, I couldn't find the polyquat 60 - is this the same thing? 50% algaecide concentrate ingredients n-alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride 49.8%, n-dialkyl methyl benzyl ammonium chloride .2%, other ingredients 50%. Or is there a brand name I should be looking for?
 
Walmart's return policy is great. You can tell them the test doesn't work for you and put that money toward the 6-way drop test they sell. That test doesn't go above 5ppm FC though. You will still have to use the dilution method Bama described. Get a jug of distilled water while you're there.
 

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What is the ph?

You might want to pick up a box of baking soda and perhaps some 20/20 mule team but without test results, it's hard to know if you'll need the mule team.

Muriatic acid would be the other thing to consider having on hand.

w/o test results, it's hard to say what is needed for sure.
 
Ok let me make sure I did this right before adding anything else! I took two cups pool water and put with two cups distilled water, dipped in the tester, added the chlorine drops and now it read 1-2 so that should be multipled by 2 to give me 2-4 correct? So now I will need to add bleach? How much? Kids want to swim so can I add the bleach tonight before bed and let them swim now? The ph level still looks to be at 7.2. Then if I test directly out of the pool without diluting with distilled water it looks to be 3-6. So please give me more advice - ph level stayed the same.
 
Thanks again. So if I am using the pool calculator correctly, I have a pool of 12x30 size, approximately 1,500 gallons, I input the value of anywhere from 3 to 6 and wanting the target range to be 7 I should add approximately 7 oz of bleach tonight - does that sound right? Just want to make sure I am using the chart correctly.
 
If you put 30 ppm CYA in both columns then your target is 3 to 6 so 7 would be good. If you have 3 ppm now, put the in the now column and 7 in the target column. I get that you need to add 14 oz. to bring it to 7 ppm.
 
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