Bought a house with a TFP already going!

[McDaddy]

Greetings all!

I recently bought a house in Southwestern Virginia. I received a little instruction from the previous owner, and his parting words to me were," Just go to troublefreepools.com. Everything you need to know is there".

Well, in the process of closing and moving in, the pool went untouched for 4-5 days and turned a nice shade of murky green. Fortunately he left me a TF-100 test kit, and I have been SLAMming away for 5 days. Initial readings were:

FC, 0
CC 1.0
pH 7.5
TA 100
CYA 0

Well, about 50 gal of bleach later, the green is gone, the water is still cloudy, and we have spent the last week trying to get some CYA to dissolve to give us at least some protection from the sun! Right now I am struggling to get the water clear. I added some DE to the filter to help.

Is there anything else I can do?

Thanks for all the help you have already been!
Jim

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

Please add your pool details to your signature as described HERE as it will help us help you in the future.

With the information you have provided, it is hard to know if you have been SLAMing properly. What are the current FC and CC readings?

 

[phonedave]

Welcome aboard!

We need some particulars

What are your test readings now
What kind of pool is this
What kind of filter set up are you running (I assume sand, since you said you added DE)
What is the PSI on the filter.

-dave

 

[McDaddy]

I filled out my signature, but it doesn't appear...hmm.

40k gal, in ground, vinyl liner. Hayward sand filter PSI 10 (I was told that this is 'normal' by the previous owner.)

FC was 9 this AM. Sent it back up to 12. CC is unknown today. My daughter is doing the testing and didn't report it to me. I will run the full battery of tests when I get home.

 

[timerguy]

I made the mistake of not saving the first time I tried to do it.

 

[Kristap178]

Was the pool just refilled? Seems odd that it would have no cya.

 

[HouTex]

It also seems odd that with a SWG you went 4-5 days and got algae. I leave all the time for a week and I come back to a sparkling pool with 4-6 ppm of CL.

 

[McDaddy]

No SWG. That is a project for next year.

I thought that no CYA was odd too! But even after adding the reagent, a sample does not get cloudy. It is crystal clear! Pool math wants me to add 14lbs (!) of CYA to get the level to 30.

The ladder is out and has been scrubbed...I even disassembled it and ran the steps through the dishwasher! I think I need to learn how to disassemble my light.

Guess I forgot to save the signature the first time. oops

 

[timerguy]

No swg that I can see in his posts.

 

[danacc]

Welcome!

Very cool that the previous owner sent you here. You're on the right track with the SLAM; isn't it great to see progress? Just keep following the process and update us on your progress.


On the CYA being gone, if the FC dropped to 0, it is possible that something (bacteria) converted the CYA to ammonia. The solution for the bacteria is to raise FC, which you've already done, and the solution for the ammonia is to SLAM, which you already have underway. So, if that was the problem, you've already properly addressed it. (For the gory details, see chem geek's thread here: http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/10519-It-Can-Happen-to-Anyone-Zero-Chlorine-CYA-gt-Ammonia.)

 

[Divin Dave]

Patience is key.

When you backwash, did you replenish the DE?

You are doing the right thing. Keep up the SLAM FC and keep filtering. It will come.

 

[McDaddy]

Woke up this morning, FC had only dropped by .5 over night. CC is still 0, and I can see the skimmer lid I dropped into the deep end while vacuuming on Saturday!

Yahtzee!!

Thanks for all your help and encouragement

Jim