Another green swamp for you guys

Jun 5, 2012
69
Edmond, OK
Hey guys! Love the site. I've learned tons. Stumbled across it looking for solutions for this....

cff51689.jpg


The wife and I moved into this home in January. The above is what I uncovered last weekend. I have asked the former owner several questions, but I'm beginning to think the guy is an idiot. :blah:

I have read the sticky on green swamp eradication, and I am going to hit it early Saturday morning when I can spend most of the weekend on it.

I am gonna stop by tonight and get one of the Leslie test kits so I can get some numbers for you guys.

Quick question. I have some granular stabilizer I bought at Walmart. I understand it takes up to a week to dissolve. Would I be better off getting some liquid CYA from Leslie's to get that number up a little quicker before I start shocking the pool?

Thanks! I'm quite sure I will be spending lots of time here.
 
Welcome to TFP!

Forget the kit from Leslie's. It won't do what you need. Order the TF-100 from TFTestKits.net and you'll probably have it for the weekend.
 
Welcome to TFP.

JT's right. Very few Leslies stock the correct kit. Ordering it from Dave is the best thing to do, but If you must check Leslies make absolutely sure it has the FAS-DPD chlorine test and not just the DPD test. They may tell you it's the same but it isn't.

I wouldn't add anything until you get a good test kit and know what the numbers are. You don't know if the CYA (stabilizer) is in there or not. It could be high.
 
nitronick said:
The Leslis's kit is the one linked in the green swamp sticky.

It said FAS-DPD Chlorine on the label

It won't be in stock. Odds are very good the clerk won't even know it exists and will try to sell you the DPD kit claiming it is the same thing or that the FAS-DPD kit is for professional use.
 
I do not intend to add anything until I have tested to see what my numbers are. I am just trying to get a head start in what I will need on hand once I start this. I know I am going to pretty much empty the chlorine shelf. I am just concerned that if I do need to add CYA, would it be better to dangle a sock full of the granular in front of a return or use the liquid form to bring the number up.
 
Leslie's seems to have a very bad habit of not carrying the K-2006 and telling people who don't know otherwise that it IS the k-2006.

One really simple way to know if you've got a kit with a FAS-DPD chlorine test is if the kit contains any POWDER. If it's all drops, it's the wrong one. Leslie's also has a nasty habit of selling the wrong kit and then refusing to take it back in return. Be strong should you have been done wrong by incompetent Leslie's employees.

I think the information in the green swamp thread and the kit comparison chart needs to be changed to reflect this issue. It comes up frequently. Seems like nearly 100% of forum members who attempt to buy a K-2006 from Leslie's comes home with the K-2005 instead. It's like they continually try to pull the wool over customer's eyes as if they think those of us who would ask specifically for the K-2006 are asking for something we only "think" we need. I'm always grateful there's no Leslie's around here. The pool stores I've visited here all have the K-2006 on the shelf and one even has DPD powder refills (albeit at twice the price of TFTestkits.net).

The TF100 is a far better deal anyway, it'll last longer because there's more reagent in every bottle and it comes in a nice container box as well. TFTestkits.net refills are also significantly lower in price and more volume than any I've found in a store.

As for the CYA... Walmart sells HTH brand stabilizer which is actually quite quick to dissolve, and I've tested accurately as little as a day after adding it. I can't say your pool would test accurately that quickly, but I'm not the only one who has experienced this and it hardly matters since you'll be adding a known quantity for an intended target ppm and once that's done, you can safely assume the target ppm is in the pool and dose/shock with chlorine for that level.

The sock trick works well. Just stop by and visit the sock every hour or so to give it a good squeeze. You'll see the CYA disperse in the water while squishing. A few hours to a day should see it completely gone from the sock depending on the amount you add. Pool store brands of CYA tend to dissolve slower, which is why you may as well get the HTH from Walmart (it's probably cheaper too).
 
So, while you are waiting for your test kit, get out the leaf rake and skimmer and remove all the debris, you need to get that all out of there. Make sure you scoop the bottom good for any junk down there.
Then you'll be ready to start adding chlorine.
 

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Well, finally made it to Leslie's yesterday. Either I was hallucinating, or someone else bought the FAS-DPD Kit that was on the rack.

Anyway, I ordered the TF100XL yesterday mailed overnight. It is here in Oklahoma City at the sort facility. Hopefully, they have it in my hands this afternoon. In the mean time, I'm raking the junk out of the bottom. I bought twelve gallons of bleach, two boxes of Borax and a twelve pound bag of baking soda. I already had a can of the HTH Stabilizer.

Should I wait on the test kit, or can I start dumping chlorine in?
 
I would focus on removing as much organic matter (leaves etc..) as possible before adding any chlorine. The organic matter will eat up chlorine very quickly.

Are you running your pump 24/7? With how the pool looks, I'd imagine you'll need to clean your filter every couple of hours today. Once you've removed as much organic matter as you can via scooping, vacuuming, filtering, then I would test the water, post your results, and go from there.
 
I would try vacuuming the bottom of the pool and see if you can get anything more off the bottom.

Also, watch your filter pressure and monitor the strength of the flow coming out of the returns. Normally, you want to clean you filter when the pressure rises about 30% above the pressure you had with a clean filter (so if clean filter pressure is 10 psi, clean when filter pressure gets to 13 psi).

You could add enough bleach to raise you your FC to 10 ppm, which would be about 311 oz. for a 15,000 gallon pool. After that, just wait for your test kit to arrive.
 
Harrrrumph! Still no test kit. I guess our mailman runs late on Saturday.

I've put in 2 gallons of bleach every 30-45 minutes and scrubbing the walls. I have the wife picking up a new vacuum head, as the old one here fell apart when I picked it up :lol:

Maybe it's my imagination, but it does look a little lighter color of green than it was.
 
nitronick said:
Harrrrumph! Still no test kit. I guess our mailman runs late on Saturday.

I've put in 2 gallons of bleach every 30-45 minutes and scrubbing the walls. I have the wife picking up a new vacuum head, as the old one here fell apart when I picked it up :lol:

Maybe it's my imagination, but it does look a little lighter color of green than it was.

Then the bleach is doing its job. Once you get the test kit and can get some accurate numbers you will have it cleared up in no time.

Here is my own pesonal experience when using BBB

my-journey-from-green-to-crystal-clear-t20117.html?hilit=green
 

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