cloudy pool - test data posted. my first post.

[sanjay]

bought a home 3 weeks ago with a outdoor in ground 5000 gallon pool. vinyl liner. sand filter. 1hp pump running 24/7. i figured i would continue using the existing pool service while i learn the ropes.

floater thing in the water for the chlorine pucks.

we bought the home on a monday. did not do anything to the pool except swim in it for a week.

it still looked fine the following monday when the pool guy came and said there was no chlorine or anything in the water....after vacuuming the pool and flushing the sand filter, he proceeded to add 2 chlorine pucks and several scoops of PH UP stuff. water became cloudy and pool guy said it would clear up in a couple of hours. has never been clear since. i called and complained but pool company could not come out until the following monday. pool was not really used for that week

last monday the pool guy came when we were not home and added 3 pouches of shock to the water and also vacuumed and flushed the sand filter.

pool remains cloudy. pool remains unused.

when i called today they told me to bring in a water sample

results are posted below.

they told me to add 3 cups of the 'alkalinity up' powder they sell. which i did before getting into bed. they said my chlorine was very high and i should remove my pucks and the number should go down quickly in a day or so.



any advise/help/tips?



I realize owning a pool is not a totally hands off activity so I am going to buy a test kit on Monday and learn to do a lot of stuff myself.
it appears the acceptable CYA numbers on this forum and what the pool company is saying differ significantly.



thank you

 

[mknauss]

Welcome to the forum!
You need a proper test kit. I suggest the TF-100 A proper test kit is needed to get the accurate water chemistry results needed to follow the TFP protocols.
The cloudy water could be a result of too high of alkalinity or some other reaction. It could also be algae. Until you get your own test kit and can provide accurate data we can not provide much guidance.
While you are waiting on your test kit, add 3 ppm FC worth of liquid chlorine / plain bleach to your pool each evening with the pump running. Remove any pucks and request that no more solid chlorine be used.
I suggest you read ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry.

 

[sanjay]

is it ok to add the 3ppm of liquid chlorine even though my chlorine numbers are ... seemingly high?

thanks for your help

 

[Dirk]

The pool store and your pool guy are steering your pool into a bigger mess. You're looking at the evidence, in your pool. We can't trust pool store test results, and you can't trust pool store advice. As a hypothetical, for example, if the pool store's tests for Free Chlorine (FC) and Cyanuric Acid were correct, your FC is actually too low, not too high, which means there is not enough chlorine in your water. If the pool store's test for Alkalinity were correct, it is way too high and they just sold you Alkalinity Up, which you poured in and could have made it worse. These facts are based on science, they're advice is based on making sales.

"any advise/help/tips?" Yep. Do exactly what Marty instructs. To the letter. Read his post again. It's your to-do list. Starting with the kit. Get that ordered right away. You'll need it going forward, not only to clean up this mess, but to take over the pool yourself. The sooner you do, the sooner Marty can help you. Your CYA could be way too high (again, if the store's test we're accurate), so stop putting in any pucks, they are also making that worse. Even if their number is way off (it probably is), you can safely stop using the pucks. Get bleach (with no additives) or chlorine and put in what Marty has recommended, every night. If you need help figuring out how much to pour, just ask.

Stop going to the pool store (unless it is to buy chlorine). Don't do anything they suggest. You can let the pool guy go. He can't properly take care of a pool just once a week, not in the summer, and not one that is in trouble. And if he knew what he was doing he would have explained to you everything I just did.

Once you have the kit, you'll run a full suite of tests, post them here, and then Marty can get your pool straightened out right quick and you can go swimming!

By the way, welcome to TFP! Glad you found us. You will be too. A couple 100 thousand of us have crystal clear amazing pools, all following the advice we found here. Come on in, the water's fine (well, yours will be)!!