Need Help with Opening Pool

[dbabz31]

We have opened our pool and found a green pond. I have learned a lot from last year as far as shocking and getting our water to turn to a sparkiling oasis. However, last year our cya was on the high side, and this year when I tested, it showed that we have none.(the lowest the test kit will allow me to test is 30 and it was less than that). So my question is, what do I do about not having cya? I am scared to add it because of the problems we had last year with having too much. Is it possible to go back to using our chlorine sticks in order to add cya? or, when shocking the pool, do we need to turn off the sticks. If we leave the sticks on does it cause a false reading for the overnight testing?
PH 7.3
FC 9
CC 0.6
CYA 0
Thanks for help!

 

[Richard320]

Sure, you can use them. It might actually speed things up, because you'll be continuously adding chlorine in the intervals between pouring bleach in. They won't substitute for the bleach, since they don't dissolve fast enough.

And you'll need to remove them if they haven't dissolved all the way in order to do the overnight loss test.

 

[dbabz31]

Thanks i will try it then. We put some sticks in the two nights ago and our cya is still reading below 30, so maybe I will turn the dial up on them.

 

[Richard320]

Thanks i will try it then. We put some sticks in the two nights ago and our cya is still reading below 30, so maybe I will turn the dial up on them.

Save your test reagent. CYA won't show for a week or so. Calculate how much you need to add using http://www.poolcalculator.com/ , put it in, and let it go.

 

[dbabz31]

I am confused. I have not added any cya, only trying to add cya with using sticks and granulated shock. I am scared to add cya on its own because of the problems we had last year with it being too high. for the size of the pool we have (31000) it says we need to have our cya at 40. can we get the cya up to that with turning the dial on our sticks and adding granulated pool shock? Right now, here are my readings
cya <30
fc 11
cc 0.4
after I got these results, I added another gallon of chlorine and brushed the pool. The water is a milky white, I can see the bottom of the shallow end, and can see what looks like a lot of dirt or a lot of sand. Not sure which one. Any ideas what to do next? I was thinking I would keep chlorine at shockable levels for a couple days and then remove sticks and try an overnight test. But now with you saying that the cya will not show up for a week, I am wondering if you meant that even when using sticks. Thanks for your help.

 

[linen]

I am scared to add cya on its own because of the problems we had last year with it being too high.

As you know you are right to be scared...how are you getting your CYA values. Are you testing it, or are those pool store results?

for the size of the pool we have (31000) it says we need to have our cya at 40.

CYA concentration recommendations are independent of pool size. See: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/recommended_levels

can we get the cya up to that with turning the dial on our sticks and adding granulated pool shock?

You can use this method, but you should to calculate how much you need (are you sure your pool volume is accurate?) and put away the rest so you do not make a mistake. It might be best to use only sticks or only dichlor (granulated pool shock). Again how did you get your test numbers?

 

[linen]

I just noticed your first thread: http://www.troublefreepool.com/please-help-me-t26765-20.html and see that you have the Taylor test kit...so I am assuming you are using that for you tests...good. (your decimal places included suggested pool store results...sorry about that).

The water is a milky white, I can see the bottom of the shallow end, and can see what looks like a lot of dirt or a lot of sand. Not sure which one. Any ideas what to do next? I was thinking I would keep chlorine at shockable levels for a couple days and then remove sticks and try an overnight test.

Yes, keep shocking until you pass the 3 tests (see my sig). I would probably use bleach/liquid chlorine to shock and assume your CYA level is at 20 ppm for now to calculate what your shocking FC level should be.

But now with you saying that the cya will not show up for a week, I am wondering if you meant that even when using sticks. Thanks for your help.

I do not have direct knowledge of the "sticks" and how fast CYA shows up from them, but if you know how many you are using then you will know how much CYA you have added or will add.

 

[dbabz31]

Thanks for all the help. I will have to try to figure out how much each stick adds as far as cya goes. was so used to having it high last year that now it is hard trying to get it to a normal level. It probably is not zero,right? it is probably just less than 30 like you said. It can't be zero if we are using the sticks.

 

[Leebo]

That's one reason why I like to only use stabilizer to add cya. You never know just how much of what you're adding...just guessing. It may save cash, but for a newb like me I'd rather control each on its own.

 

[dbabz31]

does anyone know if it takes a while for the cya from using sticks to show on tests? another post said that it takes a week to show if adding cya to a pool. if i get cya at store and add it, should i just assume not to test it until a week goes by?

 

[HoleInOne]

Yes.

 

[dbabz31]

On Friday, I took out the sticks and added CYA to pool. Just one gallon because I was too scared to add more all at one time. I have been monitoring the FC,CC,and CYA..along with PH since then. My pool has been on the clear side, but I still see what looks like sand or dirt in spots on the bottom. I have been brushing and have vaccumed, however I was not able to waste when I vaccumed because we needed to add more water. I have done overnight testing which shows anywhere from 1 to 2 loss overnight, cc is 0.5. Earlier in the evening I added the CYA and the chlorine (whick this time was only 10% instead of the 12.5 I have been using because that is all I have right now.). Now here are my readings
FC 14
CC 0.5
CYA 35
so my question is that if I pass an overnight test tonight, can I then start using the sticks again to maintain the chlorine? I know that I will have to do any shocking with liquid chlorine. Does anyone know on average the rate of cya increasing by using stick set at a lower level? Is it generally ok to assume that the sticks will not increase the CYA too much as long as there is rain,splash out , wasting, backwashing etc? so scared to use them again after the very high CYA we had last year. I plan on vaccuming to waste tomorrow. I still see grey cloudiness when brushing the pool and that "dirt" tends to accumulate in the same spots by the creases of the liner. Thanks for the advice.

 

[linen]

so my question is that if I pass an overnight test tonight, can I then start using the sticks again to maintain the chlorine?

I wouldn't, you are at 35 ppm CYA and you want to be in 30-50 range, so if you continue to use the "sticks" eventually you will have high CYA.

Does anyone know on average the rate of cya increasing by using stick set at a lower level?

Use the poolcalculator "effects of adding chemicals" section near the bottom. If they are 8 oz "sticks" of trichlor, then each one adds 1.1 ppm cya.

Is it generally ok to assume that the sticks will not increase the CYA too much as long as there is rain,splash out , wasting, backwashing etc? so scared to use them again after the very high CYA we had last year.

No, it is not okay unless you limit yourself to just a few. You will have to eventually use another source of chlorine (bleach, liquid chlorine, swg) or your CYA will skyrocket.

I plan on vaccuming to waste tomorrow. I still see grey cloudiness when brushing the pool and that "dirt" tends to accumulate in the same spots by the creases of the liner.

Sounds like you have not passed the three tests to know you are done with the shocking process! Keep shocking!

Once you pass the tests, I would suggest not using the "sticks" anymore.

 

[dbabz31]

Does it make a difference if my pool is in direct sunlight all day? I thought from last year that to have my cya btwn 50-80 was ok. I will check out the pool calculator again. Thanks.

 

[RobbieH]

My pool is pretty much in the sun all the time and we had record high heat last year, I think we had 71 days over 100, several over 105. I had water temps in excess of 90 degrees unless I ran my goofy homemade fountain/cooler things. I kept a clean pool all year with 40ppm CYA. The thing about going higher is if you have to shock, you'll be using a LOT more chlorine to do so.

(note - this year my CYA is at 80 since I recently installed a SWCG)

 

[dbabz31]

I guess I will not use the sticks unless I just use one at a time. They take a long time to deteriorate if on a low setting, so probably won't help to maintain FC throughout the day. How does the cya level matter depending on the temp of the water? my pool is cold, we are not turning on our heater yet either. Once the water is heated, will that cause my cya level to be higher than it is reading now? If so, I may be in trouble if I added CYA already.

 

[dbabz31]

ok..i have a new problem. I pasted the overnight test last night and my pool seemed clear this morning except for the film on the bottom of the pool and the accumulated dirt?/sand? at the bottom in certain areas and places where i apparently did not brush last night. I vaccumed to waste today thinking that the dirt would be removed. about 4 hours after, I noticed the dirt/sand/(whatever it is) back in the same spots and the film back in some places. I have been brushing the pool 2-3 times a day since we opened it. Any idea what this could be? If I vaccumed it out today, how did it come back and why is it not being filtered out? I have backwashed my filter also. I don't know why I can pass the overnight test and brush and vaccum and still get the film (very light beige color that looks like grey when brushed.) a couple hours later. do you think I should shock the heck out of my pool...like mustard algae? I got in the pool to feel it with my feet. It did not feel gritty, and as soon as there was any water movement underneath the surface, it moves and mixes in the pool (looks to disappear)....only to settle back hours later. Any ideas? What is my next step?

 

[Smykowski]

Dirty sand? See this thread, specifically Waterbear's post, 2nd from the end.

my-sand-is-channeled-how-to-fix-it-t7626.html#p60821

I have a similar problem, but I didn't find this forum until 2 weeks after I closed last fall. That said, I tried deep cleaning one of my sand filters anyways, and was amazed at the amount of junk that floated over the top.

 

[dbabz31]

Thanks will have to see if that will help.

 

[dbabz31]

Here is a question...is it normal to have a FC of 24 this am and have a loss of 18 throughout the day? My level now is 6. I have passed the overnight test and water is clear except for the dirt that I need to figure out. My pool is in direct sun all day long and it was about 90 today. Just wondering if it would be a good idea to keep my cya higher than normal. last cya level was about 35.