Eager for a sparkling oasis, but...

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johnfgoodman

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Jul 2, 2012
26
Ok, so I have been trying to get to my sparkling oasis, but have not gotten there yet. I bought a foreclosure and had to replace the pump. Since I got the pump up and running, about a week ago, I have been trying to shock the pool. Here are my numbers:

FC – 18 (been trying to maintain this level)
CYA – between 30-40
pH - ~7.2

The pool definitely looks better than when I first started (it has gone from dark green to a lighter green), but seems to have stayed the same for the past few days, without seeing much (if any progress).

The other thing going on is that every since I got the pool, I have been skimming bunches and bunches of leaves out of the deep end – there seems to be a never ending supply. I skim a few hours a day, every day, and still they are coming.

Am I basically going to have to get every single leaf out of there before I can look for progress, or does it seem there might be something else going on?

Thank you for any advice!
 
How are you testing? Do you have a good kit? I don't see CC or TA in your list. You need to get as much solids out as possible or you are still fighting organics that get pushed around but the jets. Can you vacuum to waste to get it out?
 
Thank you both for the replies. Here are more numbers (and yes, I got the TF100 Kit based on recommendations on this site!):

TA - 80
CC - 2.5

Question - how do I vacuum to waste? I am new at the whole pool business, so I am unfamiliar with all these methods :( Do I just need a vacuum hose, or what other equipment do I need?

Thanks for helping a noob!
 
johnfgoodman:

I would strive to remove as much leaves & other debris as possible from the pool. Doing so will lighten the sanitizing load placed on the FC. Another possibility as to why the water is slow to clear is that there may be some hidden algae growing in obscure, hard to reach areas that do not get much water circulation. Common areas to check are ladders and around light fixtures as well as other nooks & crannies. If you find any of the stealthy algae, you may need to get a toothbrush or similar tool to scrub around these areas.
 
johnfgoodman said:
Question - how do I vacuum to waste? I am new at the whole pool business, so I am unfamiliar with all these methods :( Do I just need a vacuum hose, or what other equipment do I need?

Thanks for helping a noob!
Click to expand...
Vacuuming to waste uses a hose and vacuum head attached to the suction side of your return depending on your setup. It's the same as regular vacuuming but you would set up the filter so the water goes out into the yard instead of through the filter media and back into the pool. You lose water but usually the amount of crud you get out of the pool makes it worth while. This section of pool school may help you out. pool-school/visual_encyclopedia
 
Thanks for the replies, all! I just ran out and got some equipment to try to start vacuuming! Hopefully, things will go a lot quicker now. I had know idea when I started how much junk there was accumulated at the bottom of the pool!
 
I have a leaf rake that has a hard edge on one side. I use it like a dust pan, pushing the net away from me to the side and up to catch the leaves.

As long as there are leaves in the pool things will be very slow. Imagine how much bleach it takes to turn leaves into liquid.....
 
Just a heads up - if you are vacuuming lots of gunk out make sure you have a leaf cannister in-line with your hose. You dont want to vacuum up leafs/sticks/etc and have them go through your underground pipes. It's possible to create nasty clogs this way and they are a real pain to fix.
 

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Ok, so I am back with an update and more questions. In brief, these are the issues, I will go into detail below:

a) Something big potentially at bottom of pool (branch, rocks???)
b) Water still not clear
c) Filter not filtering well?

Here are my current numbers:

FC - 15 (I have kept above shock level the whole time, and even tried to stay 2-3 ppm above recommended level)
CC - 1.5
TA - 90
CYA - 20-30
pH - 7.4

I have worked hard to clear all the debris out of the bottom, and I have gotten the vast majority out, but I am thinking there may be a large branch or something in there that I have not figured out how to remove. My pole seems to hit something down there, but not being able to see, I cannot tell what it might be. I even pulled a couple of big rocks out the other day, so there is no telling. Can any one give me any ideas about how I might pull something out without becoming Jacques Cousteau? If there are rocks, do these affect anything that I need to be aware of?

I still have not noticed a significant difference in water clarity since raking everything out. For a couple of days my filter seemed not be going up at all, so last night I added some DE. It went up around 3 psi overnight (baseline is ~16 psi). I backwashed and brushed the pool this morning, and it has gone up almost 4 psi now. Does this seem pretty standard for where I am? Should I have seen more progress in water quality by now? I am attaching a picture to give an idea.

Thanks guys, for your expertise in helping an eager learner!
 
You're gonna have a great pool once cleared!

When I first tried to make sense of all the tasks caring for my pool I realized our PB did lousy job explaining pool upkeep to us, so we had to seek out the information. I found lots of useful videos on YouTube. Not all fit my pool set up, but a great many were very helpful. I guess I watched enough of them to pick and choose the bits of information that matched my pool needs and ignored the bits that didn't and of course TFP has been a wonderful resource.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwbI6DRSujo
 
When the pressure rises like last night that means the filter is catching debris and is doing its job.
Just remember when you add DE to your sand filter you are only looking for a pressure increase of 1 psi, also whenever you backwash you lose the DE in the filter so you have to re add DE. Whenever your pump pressure rises 20-25% from clean pressure you need to backwash until the water flows clear and then rinse for about 45 seconds.......Mike
 
johnfgoodman said:
I have worked hard to clear all the debris out of the bottom, and I have gotten the vast majority out, but I am thinking there may be a large branch or something in there that I have not figured out how to remove. My pole seems to hit something down there, but not being able to see, I cannot tell what it might be. I even pulled a couple of big rocks out the other day, so there is no telling. Can any one give me any ideas about how I might pull something out without becoming Jacques Cousteau?
Click to expand...
Being as it was a foreclosure they could have thrown anything down there. You might try rigging up a hook on the end of a 2X4 or something and see if you can snag whatever it is. Other than that your probably going to have to put some shoes and gloves on and go wading. :wink:
 
What type of pool is it? Does it have a liner? If so I'd be careful with pushing stuff around.

An option - not normally the best one but maybe a good option in this case - would be to use clarifier to settle out some of the junk in the water and allow you to see more of the bottom. Normally this isn't needed but if you can't see the stuff below - you could use a clarifier to get a better view of what's down there - pull it out and vacuum to waste the settled junk. Then go back to normal when you have the heavy junk out of the pool.
 
Thanks all for the useful information, I am learning lots here!

UnderWaterVanya, it does have a liner, so I like your idea of using the clarifier. Besides, my wife would kill me if she saw me getting into the pool like it is :mrgreen:

Any pointers on the clarifier?

Also, I noticed some salt-like particles on my liner (above the water line), I am guessing it might just be salt? Anything to worry about?

Finally, there are stains on the steps (at least he one I can see), and doesn't seem to come clear when brushing. Is this likely algae, or something else I don't need to bother with?

Thanks!!!
 
Sometimes you just gotta channel you inner Cousteau and get in and feel around. i found 3 bricks in my pool one year. Still not sure how they got there. You simply cannot vaccum enough when you are starting up your pool.
 
Afraid I have no experience with clarifiers... I read that you need to shut the pump off after using them for a while until thing settle then you vacuum to waste.

Work on stains later...but just for grins what color are they?


Post latest tests and last results for everything except pH since you are shocking.
 
I gotta tell ya it would be a pretty creepy experience for me feeling around down there with out being able to see. :eek: My imagination would be running wild wondering what is down there. Maybe it's a big'ol sack of money! :party:
Maybe you could rig up some type of lasso or a really long pole and push it up into the shalow end. Its kind of a scary thought knowing you have a liner.
I hate to see that you are still dumping money into the water with little results. I'm going to subscribe to this one just for the mystery of deep! Good luck and keep us posted is going to pretty sweet once you get it all sorted out.
 

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