FC won't stay up, but water clear ?

[MoodyMaMa]

I have shocked as directed by pool store over and over and gone through a $100 bucket of calcium chloride(? ) and still the FC level is 0.2-0.4. I have given up on the stores help and want to figure this out! Bought the test kit recommended here. I added one gallon of bleach and the next evening the FC level was the same.

FC - 0.4
CC - 0.4
PH - 7.4
Alk - 100
CA - 230
CYA - 67

My plan was to slam it, but the cc is under 0.5 so does it really need it? Water is clear I have seen a bit of green on the ladder steps no where else. I am having a graduation party at my house next Sunday and want to have the pool safe to swim in!

Also if I need to add lots of bleach do I add it all to the skimmer?

 

[ourback]

I'll wait for the experts to answer most of that, but no you do not pour chlorine/bleach into the skimmer. In my plaster pool I pour the chlorine/bleach in front of a return with the pump running at a high speed.

I also wouldn't worry about your CC, I would figure out the appropriate FC level for a CYA of 70 and start SLAMing. Since you have a liner you don't want to just dump bleach/chlorine in, but use poolmath to figure out approximately how much you need to add to get to a FC level a bit above that SLAM level but below the mustard algae level, then measure the FC level about a half hour after adding it to figure out how you did.

 

[Divin Dave]

Hi MoodyMaMa,
welcome to TFP

First off, forget EVERYTHING the pool store told you.
Why? Because with a vinyl pool, you dont even need calcium in it. There is zero chemical reaction between Vinyl and Calcium.
Unfortunately, like so many others, you have been 'pool stored'.

Ok, with that off my chest. (grrr on that pool store).

If your water is clear. Thats good.
If your CC is .5 or less (one drop to go clear) Thats good.
Next, do the overnight chlorine loss test.
When the sun goes down, test.
Before the sun comes up in the morning, test.
If your OCLT is 1 or less, then no need to slam.
If you loose more than 1 FC - slam.

But First, get some chlorine in your pool. Its way to low. The FC to keep your pool clean is based on your CYA level. With CYA of 67 (lets call it 70) your target FC is 8. Thats what you need to keep your FC at. Here is a link to the FC/CYA chart.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/128-chlorine-cya-chart-slam-shock
ONLY use liquid chlorine (bleach from Walmart or wherever) or Salt Water Generator as your primary chlorine source.

Do you know how to use Pool Math? You need this to determine how much stuff to add.
At top, enter your volume of the pool *at bottom of pool math, you can calculate volume* 20x20x(3+9/2) = 10600 gallons
[I added your shallow end and deep end and then divide by 2 for average depth]

Ok, so enter volume
In the boxes on the left side, enter test result
In the boxes to the right of it, enter your recommended level, and click the caluclate button. Pool math will tell you how much of something to put in. Its pretty much that simple.

Pool Math
http://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html

Recommended Levels
http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/134-recommended-levels

I hope this helps.

I have shocked as directed by pool store over and over and gone through a $100 bucket of calcium chloride(? ) and still the FC level is 0.2-0.4. I have given up on the stores help and want to figure this out! Bought the test kit recommended here. I added one gallon of bleach and the next evening the FC level was the same.

FC - 0.4
CC - 0.4
PH - 7.4
Alk - 100
CA - 230
CYA - 67

My plan was to slam it, but the cc is under 0.5 so does it really need it? Water is clear I have seen a bit of green on the ladder steps no where else. I am having a graduation party at my house next Sunday and want to have the pool safe to swim in!

Also if I need to add lots of bleach do I add it all to the skimmer?

 

[Richard320]

If you have algae on the ladder, you have algae and need to SLAM. With otherwise clear water, it shouldn't take but a day or two. Pull the ladder out and scrub it. Inside the uprights and beneath the steps are common hiding spots. Then put it back in and follow the SLAM instructions.

Bleach could be tough on the seals inside the filter and pump. Just pour it in front of the return jet - it'll spread just as far as if it came out the return with no risk. If you get on it now, there's no question the pool will be all squared away before next weekend. Probably before Tuesday!

 

[Divin Dave]

I missed the algae on the ladder part.
Yes, slam.

(sorry about that!)

 

[MoodyMaMa]

Ok, beginning to SLAM. My ladder does not pull out, scrubbed as good as I can.
Added 4 bottles, calculator said 4.5 bottles to get the right amount waited a little over an hour tested the water again
FC 6.6 cc 2.8 added four more bottles though calculator says 3 should be enough will test once more before I go to bed this time I will test with the 10 ml line instead of the 24 ml line. That was a lot of drops!

 

[pooldv]

Welcome to TFP!

One more link to read is the Recommended Pool Chemicals to maintain your pool and how to add them.

 

[MoodyMaMa]

So when I test the water, I put the scoop in, swirl till dissolved. Then start adding drops, and swirling, do I stop counting as soon as it turns coulorless? Because it was clear then if I let it sit a few more seconds it looks pinkish. It was clear at 12 drops but then it turned pink just barely, so I kept adding drops and it kept looking clear then turning pink till I was at 50 drops at which point it looked more pink than at 12 drops and I dumped it and started over.

The cc is at 4.5

 

[MoodyMaMa]

Ok last night I got the FC up to 6 (I think see post above about testing question)
First thing this morning it's down to (FC)1 and cc is 0.5

So I can't put more in until evening right? Cause once the sun is up it'll just burn it all off, and seeing as the water is clear is there anything else that could be binding with my chlorine?

(I know I'm supposed to be getting it up to 24, and I put in the recommended amount of bleach twice last night and only got to 6 an hour after adding bleach!)

 

[tim5055]

No, don't wait. Every time you test you should bring the chlorine back up to shock level, which for you is 28. I don't see that you have brought it that high yet. You had FC6 an hour after adding the bleach because during that hour the rest of the FC was used killing algae or other things in the water.

The whole idea is to maintain shock level until everything in the water has been eliminated. The more often you test and adjust, say every hour or two the faster this will go.

With CYA as high as you have it takes massive amounts of chlorine to SLAM a pool.

 

[Defgufman]

Keep it at slam level all the time if possible. It's a war and in war you can't rest till the battle is won

 

[kimkats]

You are already learning a lot! Good job on getting your own test kit and leaving that money hungry pool store behind!

Get your FC up and keep it up to get rid of what is in your water. Do you have a light? You need to take it out and clean behind it.

Look in your skimmer and all around it. Some people have found algae on the back of the door.

Good luck and happy SLAMing!

Kim

 

[MoodyMaMa]

What about my testing question, when I tested it last night it turned colorless at 12 drops but then a few seconds later it looked pinkish again, so I kept putting more drops in till I was over 50 drops. Then it looked more pink than it had earlier at 10 drops... So when do I stop?

 

[tim5055]

What about my testing question, when I tested it last night it turned colorless at 12 drops but then a few seconds later it looked pinkish again, so I kept putting more drops in till I was over 50 drops. Then it looked more pink than it had earlier at 10 drops... So when do I stop?

when it goes clear the first time. If you let it sit it will turn pink again, ignore this.

 

[pooldv]

It is important to keep the FC level up at shock level as much as possible, especially in the beginning. Test and add bleach every 2-3 hours or as often as you can.

 

[MoodyMaMa]

Ok, we got the FC level above 30 yesterday morning and by bedtime it was 24 with CC at 0.5. This morning my test results were 23.5 and 0.5 and yes the water has stayed clear the whole time so I'm done SLAMing, at what level is it safe to swim in?
And once it gets down to the right level, how do I keep it there, the tabs have stabilizer in them so I don't want to use them for a long while I assume. Do I just add a little bleach everyday? Is there no automated way to do that?

 

[kimkats]

Bleach/chlorine is your friend. You will need to "feed" your pool every day (or evening like I do). You will learn your pool and what it wants every day. Sunny days=more FC, cloudy day=less.

Automated-yes. Do a search for it on TFP. I will also look around and see if I can find you a link when I have a free min.

Kim

 

[tim5055]

The three automated ways to add chlorine to you pool without getting the CYA are

Salt Water Chlorine Generator - you add a measured amount of salt to the water and install the generator in your plumbing return line to the pool this powered device causes a chemical reaction that produces small amounts of chlorine I the water stream

Liquidator - a tank system that mixes pool water and liquid chlorine in a tank and injects it into the return plumbing line.

Stenner Pump - a tank system that directly injects liquid chlorine into the return plumbing line.

I went with the Stenner Pump, but you would need to decide which will work best for your situation. As Kim said, a little searching on the forum will bring up multiple threads.