New Here: How do I limp through the summer?

[smccray]

Ordered the test kit- here's the results recorded about 10 minutes ago.

FC 9
CC 1
TC 10
PH 7.8
CH 500?
TA 180
CYA 100+ guess- 120

Pool data- will update my signature shortly. ~35,000 gallon gunite pool w/ attached spa, 2HP pump, DE filter

My polaris has been removed from the pool because I found that the combination of the booster pump with the primary pump was drawing too much electricity and the electrical wires were getting hot. The pool equipment will be rewired and the polaris hooked back up soon.

I've read enough that I assume the recommendation would be to drain/replace water to lower CYA. Here's the rub- the pool is going to be completely drained and remodeled this fall. My preference would be to deal with the high CYA for the summer, although I'm not sure what I can/should do. Pool service (I know... I travel for work) wants to add phosphate remover, and I've read info here about phosphate remover.

I'm using chlorine tabs for now and I anticipate continuing through the summer. When we redo the pool equipment I'll add a stenner pump for liquid chlorine.

 

[Casey]

You need to start with a drain/refill since your CYA is out of control HIGH. If you plan on using the Tabs for the summer, you're going to have to bite the bullet on the drain/refill to accomplish what you intend to do. Your pool also needs SLAM'ed and with a CYA so high, your shock level is at least 39 ppm. That is unreasonable if you ask anyone on this forum.

 

[woodyp]

Scratch the phosphate thingy.

 

[duraleigh]

What size is your pool? At a national average of around 6/1000 (except for California), draining 10k out of a pool is $60 bucks and will give you the freedom to manage your pool easily until Fall.

 

[smccray]

Pool is 35k gallons, so draining and refilling is a big chore.

Test this morning:
FC: 7.5
CC: 0

Needs a SLAM... pool calculator to bring up FC to 39+ is funny for a 35k gallon pool. Going to need to do something about that.

Edited to add: pool water is completely clear. I can see the drain very clearly 8 ft down...with the exception of some dirt/junk on the bottom which is only there b/c the polaris is out of the pool.

 

[Casey]

Unless you want to buy a truck load of bleach, the only way you can do *something* about it is to do a partial drain/refill. There is no way around it.

39ppm is on the low side since your CYA may be higher than 100ppm and climbing.

 

[duraleigh]

Needs a SLAM... pool calculator to bring up FC to 39+ is funny for a 35k gallon pool. Going to need to do something about that.

I'm not clear on what you mean but with a CYA of 100+, a correct SLAM will require 39 ppm of chlorine. That's why we encourage to lower your CYA and fix the problem.

As you continue to add pucks, your issues will only get worse and more expensive.

 

[Smykowski]

Not to pile it on, but correctly maintaining your pool with a CYA north of 100 is pretty much gonna be impossible.

 

[smccray]

Preparing to do a water change. We'll see how it goes. I have a couple questions.

Attached is a picture of the pool plumbing. The only way I have to drain the pool is to backwash the filter. Is the right call to detach the filter, pull the plunger valve, and then use PVC to attach the two ends where the filter was attached? Are those connections just standard 2" ID unions?

I've been looking around for some information about sizing a stenner pump. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I want to buy a pump once that will work for the current 35k gallon pool, and for the new 15k pool. I know I want a high pressure pump so there's a check valve at the injector, but I don't have any indication on what flow rate would be reasonable. Planning a 15 gallon tank and mounting the pump to the exterior wall of the house.

- - - Updated - - -

Adding Photo of my plumbing.

 

[Debbier]

I'm very new here but I can tell you from experience last year...I had high CYA last year. We used the pucks. By the time I found this wonderful site and learned about how all the chemicals work together, it was the end of the swimming season. We probably spent upwards of $400 on chemicals...all because our CYA was way too high (it was 90-100 range). We fought cloudiness and algae ALL season long. We hardly invited anyone over b/c of it. It was very frustrating to say the least.

If you can drain your pool, you should; otherwise in, effect, this will be a wasted year for you.

 

[smccray]

Been researching here and the detail is kind of hard to find, but I'll share what I found.

I'm going to buy this stenner: http://www.poolsupplyunlimited.com/...2A2S/39137p1?gclid=CJTu7_veur4CFW4R7AodUgIAIQ

It's a variable speed pump. Part of me would like to save the $ and go with a single speed, but because I'm going to redo my pool this fall I want the flexibility to adjust the stenner feed rate.

More good info here: http://www.troublefreepool.com/thre...ristaltic-pump?p=247416&viewfull=1#post247416

quoted here for convenience:

The way the stenners work is that the motor runs all the time it's powered on and the dial stops the head for part of every revolution. The lower the dial setting the longer the head is stopped. At 10 it turns all the time the pump is powered.

Good understanding of how the Stenner variable speed works. I like that it means I can make a manual change on the dial without changing the time on the stenner pump. Today the stenner is going to be installed to run with the pool pump. In the future, it's going to be on a separate relay on a control system. Should make things nice and easy in the future.

Still need to spend some more time looking at the filter setup. I'm definitely going to do a water change, I'm just not sure on timing. I'll save you the detail, but I need an electrician to come out to the house. I found out that the prior owner was overloading the electrical circuit for the pool pump. When the electrician comes to run another circuit I'll have them install the electrical for the stenner pump. Hopefully in the next 14 days.