EXTREMELY: New to the pool thing

[gemini111408]

:?: :?:

Okay here goes I've never had a pool before, it's up and full of water... I have chlorine tablets, algaecide, and shack treatment. I've put nothing in it so far, and the pump is not on or any thing right now. It's above ground 16ft by 4ft, honestly I don't know what to do next. Plz someone help??

Thanx, Licia

 

[woodyp]

Run pump soon as you can
Add chlorine-preferably bleach
Add CYA to bring level to 30
Get a test kit
Adjust PH
Adjust everything else after you read through pool school.

WELCOME!

 

[duraleigh]

Welcome to the forum. :lol: Can you post test results?

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

If you already have tablets and shock and you have a new pool - you can use these to get the chlorine and CYA up to acceptable levels and then switch to bleach if you want. I was brand new to this only a couple of weeks ago and since I had already bought dichlor based shock I used some when I first needed to bring up CYA and Chlorine rather than just waste it. I have it in the shed and plan to only use it sparingly. I also have a 5lb bucket of Trichlor tablets that have a similar fate ahead.

It's simpler to just stick to the basics and use only bleach because the CYA builds up over time and makes the chlorine not very effective. EDIT (Updated this for accuracy): CYA only goes away if you replace some of the water - backwashing, vacuum to waste etc will pull down the levels as you remove water and refill.

In any case, read Pool School (top right of the page) and learn what BBB is and what the basic approach is and then decide if it's for you. Testing using your own kit is part of the philosophy and it is what sets BBB apart from anything else - even if you want to use Trichlor or other stuff - the testing and understanding of what the water needs is the important part.

 

[jblizzle]

@UWV evaporation does not lower CYA. Only actively removing water does like splash out and backwashing.

Posted with Tapatalk ... sorry if I sound short ... hate typing on phone

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

@UWV evaporation does not lower CYA. Only actively removing water does like splash out and backwashing.

Doh! Of course - the concentration goes up and then dilutes back down but never goes below what it was - right?

 

[gemini111408]

Ok tested: FC: 0
PH:7.2
TA:80ppm
TH:less than 100 kinda purple but not quite real lite
CYA:0
Now I can chlorinate right?? What's the best way in my skimmer?? If not then how much??
My pool is 5,000 gallons the tabs are 2 for every 10 so that's easy. But I don't want to ruin my
pool so where do I put it to dissolve?? Also when do I put the algaeside in, and shock??

Thanx for ur help, Licia

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

EDIT: Adjusted to 6000 gallons based on pool size in her previous posts:

Get some chlorine in ASAP - what type of shock and what tabs? As far as I can tell if you need chlorine and cya you can push both up quickly by using powdered shock. The tabs are more for keeping up levels or slowly raising levels. Also my understanding (which could be wrong as I am new also) is that putting tabs in the skimmer is not recommended. If I recall correctly this is because of the potential to damage the equipment (pump) due to the high concentration that builds up when the pump is off(?).

When I took over the in-laws pool I added bleach and shock (dichlor) to get the chlorine level up and the cya up at the same time. The pucks are designed for slow release to keep the levels up - so it may take a while to raise levels using them. It you could offset FC losses to sun while buliding your cya levels.

Use http://www.poolcalculator.com and enter your numbers to see what you need to add. You'll need to tell it what type of liner, what main source of chlorine, etc. Then at the bottom you can also see what the impact of adding specific chemicals is. For example with a 5000 gallon pool a 1lb bag of dichlor shock adds 11ppm of Chlorine and 10ppm of CYA. 3oz Trichlor pucks add 3.4ppm of FC and 2.1ppm of CYA each but it takes a while for them to dissolve.

Powdered Shock can be predissolved in a bucket of water and then added by pouring slowly in front of a return jet. Tabs are best in an autofeeder or floater.

 

[Smykowski]

Now I can chlorinate right?? What's the best way in my skimmer?? If not then how much??
My pool is 5,000 gallons the tabs are 2 for every 10 so that's easy. But I don't want to ruin my
pool so where do I put it to dissolve?? Also when do I put the algaeside in, and shock??

Thanx for ur help, Licia

I think we're jumping ahead of ourselves a little. Have you read pool school yet? It's the link in the upper right corner of every page. A lot of the basics that you're looking for help with are covered there. I suggest you read all of the articles there and then start posting questions. Most of the responses you get on this thread will sound like a foreign language until you get a knowledge foundation from pool school.

 

[duraleigh]

Smykowski's post is right on the money....slow down. Too much advice that is too complicated. Get started in Pool School.

I do not like to see a newbie use dichlor. Learning pool water management is much easier when you work with liquid chlorine or bleach to start.

 

[Sulteric]

DEFINITELY read Pool School.

Remember, if the pool is not covered and it's not chlorinated it WILL get algae and lots of it. If that happens you will have to buy a lot of shock and run your filter for days to clear it. Trust me on that.

Before I found this place I was wasting money buying chemi-kills from pool places. Now I simply buy borax and baking soda. Read the School, you'll find out what I mean.

As far as the chlorine tabs and test kits. I'll get yelled at for this but I'll say it anyway.

I've NEVER had an issue from using the 3" tabs in my auto-chlorinator. Every winter I drain my pool down to the lowest hose level. Refill in Spring. No problem. I don't use bleach. I could but I have the auto-feed. Works for me.

As for the test kits. I have yet to spend over $100 on a test kit. I use very detailed strips. I will get yelled at for this. I get each indicator to the right color using what's recommended in the School pages. I have absolutely crystal clear water every year. It's so clear you could read the NY Times if it was lying at the bottom of the pool. Never owned a kit, never will. YMMV (your mileage may vary).

(takes cover from incoming bombardment)

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

Smykowski's post is right on the money....slow down. Too much advice that is too complicated. Get started in Pool School.

Fair enough - I'd agree - pool school is useful. After reading that - ask what you don't understand.

I do not like to see a newbie use dichlor. Learning pool water management is much easier when you work with liquid chlorine or bleach to start.

I don't disagree that it's "simpler" but "easier" is not how I would view it as a newbie. Honestly adding CYA in manually is a pain. A sock in the return stream, days or weeks to disolve... personally this is one aspect of BBB that doesn't resonate with me. I'm no expert - but I know what was easy for me and I know what was opaque and if I had been forced to go get CYA and add it by itself - I'd have bailed on BBB.