Ok, So I am a total newbie to pools...
We bought the kids a 16 X 48 AG this summer and the family has loved it even more than I expected. I'd dig a hole in the backyard for a bigger/better pool right now if i weren't renting this house! I maintained the pool all summer with the little walmart test kit and lots (lots) of 1" tabs, and just a little pH up. The honeymoon has now ended. One of our dogs got sick, really sick and my daily testing of the pool stopped because he demanded so much, I was exhausted (sadly, he passed away-he was in the end stages of cancer). I forgot to put in chlorine tabs; it started getting green. I put in new tabs & shocked it then walked away. It had a very light green tint. A day or so later my filter needed replacing (I didn't know then I could clean these filters & use again--if it wasn't coated badly). So I turned the pool off--not wanting to burn up the pump--24 hrs later I had a true swamp. Green, green, green.
I was on emotional overload after my beagle passed so I didn't look at the pool for 2 days. By then it was dark dark green and SMELLY! Finally, I turned Google--because Google knows everything--Following some sketchy looking pool dude on you tube I raised my pH to 8 AND dumped in 2lbs of Yellow OUT & a gallon of liquid chlorine (10%) and 2lbs of super shock (52%) and the rest of the granulated chlorine I owned (about 4 oz @ 48%); 12 hrs later another lb super shock(52%); 12 hrs later another lb super shock(52%) and another gallon of liquid chlorine (10%). In my chlorine fueled frenzy I think I killed the heck outta the algae AND found this wonderful site--now my pool looks like someone dumped milk in it. Its very white cloudy.
So I got a better test kit today at Leslie's--one step down from the deluxe one because they were out of them (everything says Taylor on it). My algae murdering starting just a little more than 24 hrs ago. These are my first reading with my better test kit
FC 5
CC-I don't understand this (explained below)
pH 7.5
TA 70
CH-230
CYA-seemed to be 0 (could I have done something wrong-the black dot never disappeared & my mixture never got cloudy)
**on CC--my kit only shows to 5 the color I got for TC was much darker than 5. So I don't know how to call it anything but 5 making my CC 0 (RIGHT??)
The longest way to ask---HELP! how do I get my water clear without spending the rest of my hubs paycheck at leslie's?
Dude @ leslie's recommended some pool bright or some such (floc stuff I'm sure) when I bought my test kit.
One important note-- the algae all seemed to be suspended in the water-as is the white now-i swept it all the time but i never really seemed to stir up algae 'clumps' from the bottom or sides (anything past the first step was not visible & still isn't).
Thanks so much for a great & helpful site. I've been telling my hub I think I can do this this with borax, baking soda and bleach because I took enough chemistry in nursing school to understand the main ingredients in all these expensive chemicals were basically grocery store stuff! I just hope I haven't gotten to too off track with the yellow OUT--
We bought the kids a 16 X 48 AG this summer and the family has loved it even more than I expected. I'd dig a hole in the backyard for a bigger/better pool right now if i weren't renting this house! I maintained the pool all summer with the little walmart test kit and lots (lots) of 1" tabs, and just a little pH up. The honeymoon has now ended. One of our dogs got sick, really sick and my daily testing of the pool stopped because he demanded so much, I was exhausted (sadly, he passed away-he was in the end stages of cancer). I forgot to put in chlorine tabs; it started getting green. I put in new tabs & shocked it then walked away. It had a very light green tint. A day or so later my filter needed replacing (I didn't know then I could clean these filters & use again--if it wasn't coated badly). So I turned the pool off--not wanting to burn up the pump--24 hrs later I had a true swamp. Green, green, green.
I was on emotional overload after my beagle passed so I didn't look at the pool for 2 days. By then it was dark dark green and SMELLY! Finally, I turned Google--because Google knows everything--Following some sketchy looking pool dude on you tube I raised my pH to 8 AND dumped in 2lbs of Yellow OUT & a gallon of liquid chlorine (10%) and 2lbs of super shock (52%) and the rest of the granulated chlorine I owned (about 4 oz @ 48%); 12 hrs later another lb super shock(52%); 12 hrs later another lb super shock(52%) and another gallon of liquid chlorine (10%). In my chlorine fueled frenzy I think I killed the heck outta the algae AND found this wonderful site--now my pool looks like someone dumped milk in it. Its very white cloudy.
So I got a better test kit today at Leslie's--one step down from the deluxe one because they were out of them (everything says Taylor on it). My algae murdering starting just a little more than 24 hrs ago. These are my first reading with my better test kit
FC 5
CC-I don't understand this (explained below)
pH 7.5
TA 70
CH-230
CYA-seemed to be 0 (could I have done something wrong-the black dot never disappeared & my mixture never got cloudy)
**on CC--my kit only shows to 5 the color I got for TC was much darker than 5. So I don't know how to call it anything but 5 making my CC 0 (RIGHT??)
The longest way to ask---HELP! how do I get my water clear without spending the rest of my hubs paycheck at leslie's?
Dude @ leslie's recommended some pool bright or some such (floc stuff I'm sure) when I bought my test kit.
One important note-- the algae all seemed to be suspended in the water-as is the white now-i swept it all the time but i never really seemed to stir up algae 'clumps' from the bottom or sides (anything past the first step was not visible & still isn't).
Thanks so much for a great & helpful site. I've been telling my hub I think I can do this this with borax, baking soda and bleach because I took enough chemistry in nursing school to understand the main ingredients in all these expensive chemicals were basically grocery store stuff! I just hope I haven't gotten to too off track with the yellow OUT--