Hello All - First let me say I am new to the Forum. I have been lurking, reading and studying the site for a couple months now. Let me say I am impressed! I have owned pools and spas in the past and have used every possible chemical known to man 
MY wife and I also have backgrounds in Aquariums / Biology so we know water chemistry a little more than the average person.
Recently we just purchased a new home in LA with a pool. This is the biggest and nicest pool we have ever owned and we want to do it right. It is gunite free form, approx 19,000 gallons, Flagstone waterfall. Overall the pool was in good shape when we moved in. It did show some signs of algae in the crevices but water was clear. The previous owner used the glorious hockey pucks. On initial test our CYA level was ~170 ppm. Needless to say, this research on the site showed me I needed to take action. We have performed 2 - 50% water changes and now have the CYA down to ~ 65 ppm (I know still high, but at least managable?)
The question and delima I am having is this... What is the best way to Chlorinate. I know bleach will work, but seems this is a daily process. And at 8.25% (what I can find locally) is taking a lot of gallons (used 12 during the slamming). Of course I am on the go quite often so I am affraid of missing a few days. TriChlor / DiChlor will add CYA, CalChlor will add Calcium, I cannot go Salt due to my natural rock waterfall..... I just cant decide the best approach....
Of course the local BioGuard dealer says their products are easy to use. One thing that bothered me is when I took an intial water sample, their test showed 80 PPM CYA and my test (Lamotte Color Q) showed 170 ppm. They also told me I did not need to worry about CYA - Huh, figure that.
Thanks for the suggestions! Really enjoying the site and I am sure you all will be hearing from me more often now
MY wife and I also have backgrounds in Aquariums / Biology so we know water chemistry a little more than the average person. Recently we just purchased a new home in LA with a pool. This is the biggest and nicest pool we have ever owned and we want to do it right. It is gunite free form, approx 19,000 gallons, Flagstone waterfall. Overall the pool was in good shape when we moved in. It did show some signs of algae in the crevices but water was clear. The previous owner used the glorious hockey pucks. On initial test our CYA level was ~170 ppm. Needless to say, this research on the site showed me I needed to take action. We have performed 2 - 50% water changes and now have the CYA down to ~ 65 ppm (I know still high, but at least managable?)
The question and delima I am having is this... What is the best way to Chlorinate. I know bleach will work, but seems this is a daily process. And at 8.25% (what I can find locally) is taking a lot of gallons (used 12 during the slamming). Of course I am on the go quite often so I am affraid of missing a few days. TriChlor / DiChlor will add CYA, CalChlor will add Calcium, I cannot go Salt due to my natural rock waterfall..... I just cant decide the best approach....
Of course the local BioGuard dealer says their products are easy to use. One thing that bothered me is when I took an intial water sample, their test showed 80 PPM CYA and my test (Lamotte Color Q) showed 170 ppm. They also told me I did not need to worry about CYA - Huh, figure that.
Thanks for the suggestions! Really enjoying the site and I am sure you all will be hearing from me more often now
