Panicked really need help

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AimeeH

AimeeH

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TFP Guide
Apr 2, 2012
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Columbia SC
Ok TFP folks. Thanks for all your chemical wisdom and teaching me how to keep my pool a sparkling oasis. Now I have a much different problem.

Woke up today to an empty pool.

I posted last night in the rain rain go away thread about having to drain water daily due to all of our rain. "Someone" went out to drain again last night and did so on waste setting. Turned pump off but left filter handle on waste. This morning pool is drained to maybe 1foot of water in shallow end.

1. did this happen because the knob was left on waste or am I looking for some other malfunction?

2. I don't know what to do once full as I'm sure there is air in all plumbing now.

Filling as I type but that will take a while I guess.
 
Once that flow gets started, it's pretty much gonna keep on flowing unless the handle is moved back correctly. Been there done that myself! Only difference is mine just got to the skimmer bottom because I have no floor drain. Were you using a floor drain? A water fill should push most air out of the lines. then just bleed off the filter and make sure the strainer basket is full. Then of course, bring all your levels back into line as described in pool school.
 
Panic is not in the BBB vocabulary

1. did this happen because the knob was left on waste.........
Click to expand...
That's why it happened. Pool water loves to be free and all it needs is a path to a lower spot. That open valve and Mr Gravity does the rest.

You'll have no serious problems when your pool is refilled.
 
It sounds like your waste line leads off somewhere lower than the pool and you just set up a siphon.

When the pool is full again, just fill the pump strainer with a hose, put the lid back on, and start the pump. It may make some noise for a minute and slosh but it should prime. Open the air bleed if you have one and let any trapped air out of the filter and within I'd say, two minutes, everything should be fine.

And then you get to rebalance everything. Remember, set it up as a bleach pool, then dissolve the salt, then turn the SWG back on. Check out the highlighted post here, if you have kids.
 
Ok thanks for the replies. The build was in 2011 so I've never experienced having to deal with any equipment issues. Was in complete panic. (Ok thanks so much folks. Calming down now)

There are two floor drains. Water didn't completely drain I'm guessing since pump and filter are downhill a bit from full water level. It drained until they were equal I'm guessing. There was still several inches in shallow end. HOPEFULLY that will spare us from liner damage.

I feel completely confident about getting chemicals balanced once full again but may have equipment questions as I try to get up and running again.

Cool thing about this is now I get to play BBB all by myself since builder did initial chemicals upon install and I was ignorant. Here I come pool calculator.

This site has been a Godsend. Thanks folks.
 
Thanks Richard. :goodjob: on that thread link. I've read that one (I spend too much time reading here). Fortunately I work for a foodservice distributor. I buy non iodized food grade salt AT COST. my salt costs me way less than half of retail pool salt but no diamond days since it is granulated. I can't purchase from work until Monday and may get stopped from buying 700 lbs that pool calc says I will need so it may go in in increments. Have cal-hypo on hand from having to go through shock process 2weeks ago and my fill water is about 0 CH. I think I will be good to go chemically except for buying stabilizer.

Y'all are great here. I'm not panicked anymore. Time to send in some more as a supporter of this site just as soon as I recover from this.
 
Lol. Thanks Richard. Silly me didn't want to leave it unattended for that very reason so sent hubby into town to buy the stabilizer and borax. Still not even up to the skimmers :(

Thanks to everyone who so kindly responds on this site I'm not panicked but now taking this light heartedly as lesson learned.
 

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29,000 gallons ? You might have wanted to see if there were other options (i.e. water service company that delivers by the semi tank load). That's what I did when we replaced the liner a couple years ago. Two loads (6000 gallons each) plus 7000 gallons from well got me refilled in about 24 hours.
 
There were still several inches still in the deep end so it wasn't all 28 or 29k gallons. I wan hoses from two spigots to keep our well pump from cycling on and off. It was full by about 8 last night. Took maybe 9 or 10 hours not precisely sure when I started. That was when I was panicked but all is well now. Going to check chemicals now.

Shallow end. Not deep end.
 
I was letting FC come down from shocking. I checked FC when about 1/2 full yesterday and still got 10. Today it is 5 with SWG off (can't get salt until tomowwow). I've added borax and will check PH again in a bit. Have CYA in a sock in the skimmer.
 

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