DrHog has joined from Phoenix

[DrHog]

Hi everyone!

I found this site as I was surfing around for ways to take care of our new pool (we just moved into this home 3 weeks ago). I am not a new pool owner--I've had pools consistently for 15 years now, and I've always done my own maintenance (sometimes successfully, other times, not so much!). My routine has always been very basic--weekly testing, keep chlor tabs and acid on hand, and occasionally experiment with more exotic chemicals.

My current issue is that the previous owners, who I must compliment for designing one of the most stunning pools I've ever seen, also chose to build it with the Pool Frog Pro XL system. As far as I can tell, this system is designed to keep the coffers of the Pool Frog company full by selling uber-expensive cartridges. I bought a Frog Pac with 7 lbs of chlorine for 40 or 50 bucks, and it is all but gone after 3 weeks! Yikes! I went to the internet to see if it was OK to put normal chlorine pucks into the Pool Frog, and to see how helpful the "mineral cartridge" is.

After reading some of the topics on the site, I am starting to see the wisdom in the habit of daily testing and adding less chemicals, but more often. If I can get in the daily habit, I'll fix my occasional problems of forgetfulness that always lead to an unbalanced pool.

If any of you have any thoughts on the Pool Frog system, feel free to share them. It wasn't my choice, so you're not going to hurt my feelings!

One last thought--we have horribly hard water here in the valley, and the resulting scale deposits are almost impossible to remove. We just installed a water softener, and I was wondering if there was any feasibility to occasionally addinig some soft water to the pool to keep the hardness from getting out of control.

Thanks for the generosity of your time!
DrHog

 

[duraleigh]

Dr Hog, (great username :-D )

Welcome to the forum. This is a great resource.

As you continue to read, you'll find very little positive about ole' Froggie......You are correct....he's there to catch quite a chunk from your wallet.

If you haven't found it yet, "Pool School" contains a wealth of info regarding pools and much of the philosophy by which we maintain them.

YOu have probably already discovered that almost everyone here suggests a really good test kit. While you're contemplating that idea, if you could take a sample to the pool store and post test results (particularly CYA), that would give us a good snapshot of what's going on in your pool.;

Water softeners have been discussed here also. Generally, it's a capacity issue....they're just not big enough.

I have seen advertised a product that is big enough.....you can see it at easywater.com. I called on price and it's $1000.00 +. !!! I'm not even sure how it works.

Again, welcome. Post some test results, read some in Pool School, and ask lot's of questions. You'll get prompt, courteous answers.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Welcome to TFP!

Mr. Froggy and I go way back...."if I knew then....."

PM me and I can give you more details than you care to know. Bottom line, it's a huge profit maker for pool stores, and in then end will cause many problems for your pool. The best thing I ever did was take the darn thing and toss it in the trash. OK second best thing, as finding TFP was the best thing. OK, third best thing, the second best thing was getting a good test kit for my pool (read: TF100).

I'll leave you with this. The ONE Thing I liked about the Frog was the convenience. And I was wary of daily testing and adding chlorine. But honestly I don't spend anymore time on my pool now than I did when I had a Frog. And I'm certainly putting that money to better use.

 

[Swimgirl]

I took the mineral cartridge out of ol' Froggy, and occasionally use use it as solely an automatic chlorinator - key word is occasionally. The trichlor does raise CYA.

You don't need, or want, any minerals in your water. While they do have some algecide and bacteriostatic properties to them, the bacteriostatic properties of the silver work too slowly to really be of any good in a swimming pool. In order to have a properly sanitized pool, you do have to have more chlorine than froggy recommends - I did a lot of reading on it. And while the mineral cartridge along with their Frog Bam (copper based algaecide) does do a good job of fighting algae, you get that ugly ol' black ring around the pool from the copper.

I live in the Tucson area, this is my first year of pool ownership, and I discovered this:
1. Our calcium isn't too high, but our total alkalinity is really quite high. We also have some other junk that jacks up the hardness a bit. This makes scaling a definite possibility if the alkalinity isn't kept in check. I think the minerals from froggy might exasperate the problem.
2. Our Ph is really quite high, about 8.0.
3. I read that copper based algaecide is most apt to cause staining under levels of high chlorine / high Ph. I had put the Frog Bam in my pool before I found this site, and after shocking the pool the first time I ended up with a nice black ring. If you must use an algaecide, use polyquat 60.

 

[EskimoPie]

I want to see some pictures of this beautiful pool of yours!

 

[DrHog]

Thanks for the warm welcome.

I was wary of the Froggy claims that 0.5 to 1.0 ppm chlorine would do the trick. I'm not even sure of the status of the mineral cartridge. The last owners had the pool serviced, and I could tell that the pool guy wasn't dropping the cash on Frog Pacs for chlorine. I think he just dropped tabs in the caniister where the pack is supposed to go and called it a day.

My test kit is OK, but I guess I'd call it an intermediate kit. It's a Taylor kit with tests for FC, TC, pH, acid demand, and total alkalinity. I'm seeing the need for a CYA test--maybe I can get the chemicals separately without buying a whole new kit?

As of right now, pH is 7.5 and total alkalinity is 100 ppm, so I'm very happy with those numbers. I'll take a water sample in today and get a CYA reading. I'll post later with the results.

Thanks again--

 

[DrHog]

I just took a picture to share of the pool. It looks OK in pictures, but it's hard to see the shimmery mosaic tiles that cover the whole surface. I'm not sure of the long term maintenance issues with an all-tile pool, but it sure is nice to look at!

 

[Casey]

I love your pool!

It looks fabulous! 8)

Welcome to TFP!

 

[Butterfly]

That is absolutely beautiful! :lol:

Sure would like to be able to see those shimmery mosaic tiles!

Welcome to the forum!

 

[DrHog]

The water analysis is in, and here is a partial list of what is in there:

pH: 7.5
CYA: 23
TC: 1.3
FC: 1
Orig Total Alk: 79
Adj Total Alk: 72

Recommendations were to add 7 lbs. of Alkali UP and 1 lb. of stabilizer. The tech said I could use chlor tabs for awhile to bring up the CYA.

 

[DrHog]

Well, I've settled into a fairly normal routine. I raised the CYA with stabilizer, and it now reads about 60. I just have a couple of minor questions:

Will the CYA level stay pretty constant if I am using liquid chlorine?

I am testing in early AM, and adding chemicals right after that, during the last hour of the cleaning cycle. It seems that no matter how much chlorine and acid I add the day before, I am always at 0.5 to 1.0 FC and 7.7 to 7.8 pH. My normal add is about 1 to 1.5 qt 10% Cl, and about a pint of muriatic acid. This brings pH to 7.4 and FC to 5 ppm. The TA is pretty stable at 110 ppm. Would it be better for me to add chemicals at night before the cleaning cycle starts? I feel that by adding in the AM, the Cl is burning off pretty quickly in the bright sunlight. This is also the first pool I have had that needs a daily diet of acid. Does this seem abnormal?

Thanks!
DR

 

[Casey]

You could probably do the MA anytime but I'd do the FC at night.

The sunlight is most definately eating it up unless of course you have algae.