About to start opening pool. Advice would be well received.

[Jackie G]

I'm excited. I'm looking to open pool up again woohoo.
At what point do you test the water?
I'm looking to scoop out all the leaves initially, then connect pipes again, then brush sides and vacuum and put pump on. Do you test water at this point or before?

I also received my water test kit. I ordered refills. Was disappointing to see some of them expire August this year. Is this normal or have I been shipped old stock? Cost me a fortune to ship

 

[YippeeSkippy]

I would clean out the pool of debris and then get the pump running to mix the water up. Then I would test and treat as necessary.

Where did you buy the test kit? Which kit is it?

Maddie

 

[Jackie G]

Oooh thanks! It's a Taylor FAS DPD K2006C kit. Dead excited to get going and using it, but bit scared as it looks very complicated

 

[cfherrman]

Where did you buy the kit from, it's probably best to return it I think Taylor guarantees it for a year, not till August

 

[Jackie G]

That's the issue. I had to ship it. Cost a fortune in shipping and customs costs. I got through AZ pool supplies. I feel a bit ripped off, probably they will know it's not going to be easy for me to send back

 

[Jackie G]

At what point should we start the SWG up? At same time as pump and filter?

 

[Casey]

If you need to SLAM your pool you should not use your SWG to do it. Add liquid chlorine manually.

 

[Perpetual summer]

The salt generator start up depends on a few things, do you have the correct amount of salt in pool? What is water temp? How much cya? How much chlorine? You need to answer the some questions and post full test results First.

 

[Jackie G]

Ok. So I've scooped all leaves out, brushed down the sides and the water is a little greener than it was which I expected. I'm topping the water up currently and we're about to connect the pump and filter etc again. So once we've done that I'll attempt to test the water and give you the results. It's going to be the first time using this kit so I may have some questions about the testing itself when I get to it! Thanks for your support so far

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Just take one test at a time. Write down your results. Remember that you need to do the CYA test outside.

Maddie

 

[Jackie G]

Ok, my first attempt at tests. Not sure very successful though.
The chlorine test FAS DPD - I had to add so much DPD powder to the sample water before it went vaguely pinkish. The powder didn't dissolve well. It was therefore very difficult to determine at what point the water went clear

The CYA test - I poured the whole lot into the tube and could still see the black dot at the bottom. The solution did not go cloudy after adding the Cyanuric Acid Reagent. I did note that when i first opened it, there was a slight crust around the top of the bottle.

FC 0.8 ppm
CC 0.8 ppm
PH 7.4
TA 150
CH 190
CYA no results possible
Salt 1630 ppm
Saturation index 1630 ppm
Water temperature 52 °F. brrrr

I am currently filtering the water whilst waiting for delivery of liquid chlorine. I suspect I'll need to SLAM

Any advice on the test results, why my chlorine and CYA tests weren't successful, and what my next steps should be.

I vacuumed a whole load of algae this pm, but its still looking murky.

Thanks for your wisdom and help


Jackie

 

[cfherrman]

Use the 10 mil test for fc. I believe twoheaing scoops is typically enough.

Time to slam, if it's sunny and hot there it might be a good idea to add 20 ppm of cya for the sun, after slam have cya at 30 - 50 ppm

 

[YippeeSkippy]

It sounds like you don't have any chlorine or CYA in the water to really show up on the tests. Get some in there and it will appear.

10 mL of water and one heaping scoop of powder, or two level scoops is all you need. It won't dissolve entirely but if there is chlorine in the water the tube should go pink. Actually the stronger the pink the more chlorine.

Maddie

 

[Jackie G]

Ok, thanks both. I was putting in so much DPD powder to get it to turn pink. So, if it doesn't turn pink, is it safe to say that it's got no chlorine?

 

[Jezza]

That is correct Jackie.

 

[Jackie G]

Thanks! To start SLAM do I first need to raise my CYA? I could also add salt so that I don't have to wait once I have completed SLAM. I have a SWG which has a boost so basically doubles the amount of chlorine generated. Could I use this initially until my liquid chlorine arrives later this week?
I wasn't sure what CYA level I should be aiming for but assume I need to raise this before I start the SLAM.

This forum is brilliant. I can't express in words how useful it is.

 

[Jezza]

Yes you need to aim to add to achieve 30 CYA. It’s fine to keep the SWG ticking over until you can take receipt of the liquid chlorine. Just be aware that it’s best to turn the SWG off when you commence the SLAM.

 

[Jackie G]

Hi Jezza
Ok, thanks, will switch off the SWG once we start adding the liquid chlorine for the SLAM.

I calculated that I need to add about 3.2 litres of chlorine to get it to SLAM level of 28 (assuming an FC level of 0). I was just reading the SWG instruction booklet - the boost generates 8 x more chlorine, not double, so hopefully, by the time the chlorine comes, my FC levels will be a little higher, although with the algae, perhaps not!

The CYA level I was a bit confused on - the recommended level for a SWG is 70, but I assume I aim for 30 because I am going to SLAM without using the SWG? If that is the case, what FC SLAM levels should I be aiming for - would it be 12, as for a non SWG, or should I aim for 28? I'm getting a bit confused I think :/

Luckily the water is cold - I assume this will slow down the chlorine usage..
Should we put the solar cover on to prevent things falling into the pool (leaves, pollen, insects etc?)- wasn't sure if you are meant to have a cover on during SLAM

Thanks soooo much

 

[Jezza]

Yes your right -SLAM is 12 for a CYA level of 30 which is why it’s not suggested taking it any higher as you need much higher levels of chlorine to SLAM and will therefore need more to complete the process. The recommended level of 70 -80 for a SWG is when you have an algae free pool. So when you complete the SLAM you can take your CYA level higher. It’s good if the water is a little cooler and the weather in general as this will reduce the chlorine demand.

It’s best to leave the cover off during the SLAM as it helps the sun burn off any CC’s as a result of the breakdown of any organic material.

 

[Jackie G]

Ok, that makes sense - thanks so much

Should I be worried about my TA levels, which looked to be very high. pH level looks fine though, so I guess if I don't want to change the pH it doesn't matter if the TA is high?