If I do my daily testing and keep my free chlorine at the right levels, can I avoid dealing with algae blooms and having to shock my pool? Or does that just need to be done once in a while?
Can you avoid algae blooms and having to shock your pool?
- Thread starter USBB
- Start date
u,
I have three pools all on the TFP care process... I have never "shocked" any of the pools since I started almost 5 years ago...
It is as simple as you stated... if you maintain your FC in relation to your CYA and never fall below the minimum FC level, you will not get algae and you will never have to shock your pool...
See this chart... [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA]
Thanks for posting,
Jim R.
I have three pools all on the TFP care process... I have never "shocked" any of the pools since I started almost 5 years ago...
It is as simple as you stated... if you maintain your FC in relation to your CYA and never fall below the minimum FC level, you will not get algae and you will never have to shock your pool...
See this chart... [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA]
Thanks for posting,
Jim R.
Thanks for the quick reply. By the way, just for fun, yesterday I tested my water with my TF100. Then I went to 4 different pools stores for tests. I also used 3 Clorox test strips, one with inside lighting, one outside under the porch, and one in full sun. I am going to make a separate post with all the results, plus the various pool store advice.
It was a very instructive experience. I can see why people who use pool stores are so frustrated and spend so much.
My favorite encounter was my 3rd one. They asked me if I had owned a pool before. I said no. That is true. This is my first one. They asked me what color the water was. I said clear. It is. They asked what I had been doing. I told them just dumping in a bunch of bleach until I could get things figured outback. That is true. All winter I just dumped in a half gallon or gallon of bleach each week until I got my kit in the spring. The lady replied in a horrified manner, “why would you ever dump bleach in a pool?” I said it is the same thing as liquid chlorine. She told me it was a bad idea because of the shelf life and it isn’t good for pools.
She is the store owner. She went on to say that some people in Florida do that, but not people in our part of the country (South Carolina). She went on to tell me to use tablets and to shock it once a week. Their print out they gave me said it was ok to have cya up to 250. Seriously, 250.
My friends that have a pool uses that store. Now I understand why they are having trouble balancing their water all the time.
I have read a good many of the pool school articles. Many thanks to those of you who helped create that resource. It has been very helpful.
It was a very instructive experience. I can see why people who use pool stores are so frustrated and spend so much.
My favorite encounter was my 3rd one. They asked me if I had owned a pool before. I said no. That is true. This is my first one. They asked me what color the water was. I said clear. It is. They asked what I had been doing. I told them just dumping in a bunch of bleach until I could get things figured outback. That is true. All winter I just dumped in a half gallon or gallon of bleach each week until I got my kit in the spring. The lady replied in a horrified manner, “why would you ever dump bleach in a pool?” I said it is the same thing as liquid chlorine. She told me it was a bad idea because of the shelf life and it isn’t good for pools.
She is the store owner. She went on to say that some people in Florida do that, but not people in our part of the country (South Carolina). She went on to tell me to use tablets and to shock it once a week. Their print out they gave me said it was ok to have cya up to 250. Seriously, 250.
My friends that have a pool uses that store. Now I understand why they are having trouble balancing their water all the time.
I have read a good many of the pool school articles. Many thanks to those of you who helped create that resource. It has been very helpful.
- Apr 10, 2018
- 5,209
- Pool Size
- 18375
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45
Oh wow [emoji15] I’m going to have so much fun when my pool finally has water in it [emoji48]
Do yourself a favor and forget about algae. MANY years ago, I was gas attendant. I recall a woman, who looked to be in her 90s, bringing her car in because the battery kept dying. The tech spent a fair amount of time checking the battery, alternator, then for electrical draw. I was looking at the elderly woman thinking, she must have left something on. So I sat in the car, looking for dome lights, etc. I then spotted the glove box and could see a glimmer of light coming from the box door. It has simply loosened a bit, causing the light to stay on. Sometimes, it's just not that complicated.
The above said, I have made the same mistake, complicating things, over the years and my pool was no exception. So after 7 years of killing myself over the pool, here's what works for me:
Keep your water balanced
Run your filter 24 hours/day
Enjoy your pool
# 2 is the key. I have seen all kinds of green, brown, yellow stuff and even what looked like filter sand, appear in my pool over the years. Once I left the filter on 24/7, nothing and I mean NOTHING. I'm convinced it was pollen and there simply isn't a better way for me to combat that, then to just leave the filter on. I barely notice it on my electric bill and it's worth 10 times that in convenience.
The above said, I have made the same mistake, complicating things, over the years and my pool was no exception. So after 7 years of killing myself over the pool, here's what works for me:
Keep your water balanced
Run your filter 24 hours/day
Enjoy your pool
# 2 is the key. I have seen all kinds of green, brown, yellow stuff and even what looked like filter sand, appear in my pool over the years. Once I left the filter on 24/7, nothing and I mean NOTHING. I'm convinced it was pollen and there simply isn't a better way for me to combat that, then to just leave the filter on. I barely notice it on my electric bill and it's worth 10 times that in convenience.
Whole bunch of people here with clear pools would strongly disagree with your assessment.
Hello USBB! I never SLAM But once a year and that is when I close my pool because we have hard freezes here in Pennsylvania. I don't even have to SLAM when I open because its so clear and I always have FC left over from the winter.
If you take the time to test your water and add chlorine when your FC drops by keeping in line with the [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA], you'll never have to SLAM.
That's great. Like most folks I guess, she's doing all she can to distance herself from Florida
CJadamec
TFP Expert
I always feel like I've missed out on some right of passage as a pool owner by never having to deal with either a pool store for water treatment of anything that would even come close to a algae bloom.
I was one of the lucky few that found this site before my pool was built and from day one have been doing things the TFP way. Going on my third year now and two winters being closed and it's always been crystal clear. I keep track of my CYA levels and pH and add chlorine as needed to keep my FC at the right level. It really can be that simple. In general I spend less than 30 min a week testing and treating my pool.
I was one of the lucky few that found this site before my pool was built and from day one have been doing things the TFP way. Going on my third year now and two winters being closed and it's always been crystal clear. I keep track of my CYA levels and pH and add chlorine as needed to keep my FC at the right level. It really can be that simple. In general I spend less than 30 min a week testing and treating my pool.
I probably go too far the in the other extreme. I can notice every watt minute-by-minute!
You may not notice the cost of running a single-speed pump 24/7, but you are paying for it. In a situation like that, payback of a VS pump and careful programming would likely be very quick.
Same!
Season 7 for our pool. Always clear, never drained, never shocked. Just TFPC all the way.
I am in the same boat. I found the old site just before my first pool was completed. While I did go to the pool store back then as I liked the owner (neighbor) they are pretty open about using bleach as after all -they sell it in bulk quantities. Now that I am on another part of town and getting a SWG not sure that i'll know the pool store owner to well
I'll get my 3.5 gallons of bleach the first few weeks until I can turn on my SWG. I will never bring in a sample. But it really irks me when pool store owners say "it's not good to dump bleach in your pool". Or "you must shock every week"... I get you are in business to make money - but if you have to make money by lying to consumers - well you need a better business.....When I first moved into this house a year ago and had the pool opened by a local company they told me to leave the pump on 24/7. After finding this forum, getting off the pool store chemical roller coaster, using the TFP method, and doing a lot of research I find that running the pump that much to be a huge waste of money. My electric bill was practically double compared to what it is if I run it 8hrs a day. And my pool water is perfect. Maybe it's more noticeable because our entire house is fairly efficient and our electricity usage not huge, but it was quite a substantial increase in money when running the pump 24/7.
Killer95Stang
Well-known member
5th year with our pool... was a TFP from day one, so I've never had Algae bloom, and the pool is always clear. Even when I got busy and didn't test for a week or two, I always came back to a clear pool.
No algae here after my 1st TFP year also a 1st time pool owner (took me 9 months to find and listen to the folks here). I run my pump as little as 3 hours a day in winter, and no more than 9 in the spring/fall (only to get max solar). I'm still shocked (there's a pun here) that every major pool care site from leslies, to lowes, to angies list, propagate this "shock once a week garbage" and a bunch of other lies meant to sell products we don't need. Thanks to TFP I don't have to shell out that $$$ anymore.
- Mar 24, 2014
- 2,455
- Pool Size
- 32000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool SJ-55
Might as well pile on. Found TFP during a replaster of a new-to-us pool/house. Never have SLAM/Shocked my pool either. The most algae I've ever seen is a tiny bit on the transparent skimmer cover when I didn't open soon enough. Never again, always open about 1 month before I think I'll need to. Close just before the first freeze scare. Easy-peasy.
borjis
LifeTime Supporter
I run my pump 2 hours daily. All day if guests are over.
My water is so clear it looks empty. Guests have commented how much cleaner it looks than other pools.
The key to clear water is: proper chemistry at all times and distribution of chemistry via pump run time.
In my case it does help that my filter is way oversized to the pool size...came to me that way when I bought the house.
My water is so clear it looks empty. Guests have commented how much cleaner it looks than other pools.
The key to clear water is: proper chemistry at all times and distribution of chemistry via pump run time.
In my case it does help that my filter is way oversized to the pool size...came to me that way when I bought the house.
Another one here who's never had algae. Year 5, and not even the slightest hint of it.
Its a piece of cake.
Its a piece of cake.
Mickey Moose
Well-known member
I'm about a year and half into TFP and have not had to shock my pool. Follow the program and you'll be good to go.
Similar threads
