Hello all. This is my first post, but I've been reading and researching extensively on this site for the past week. We have a new Endless Pool which we purchased and had installed primarily for my husband, who has Parkinson's and other related movement disorders. It is indoors, in a sunroom built to house it. It was finally finished and filled about three weeks ago, and we have had nothing but trouble since then - primarily - I now believe - due to the pool store run-around. When the pool was filled, the water was crystal clear and beautiful, but with a pale yellow tinge. I took a sample to the pool store and they said the water had an iron count of 1.5 and a copper count of .2 and sent me home with Pool Magnet, Sparkle Up and powdered shock. Instructions were to shock the pool, wait 6 hours and then add Pool Magnet and put Sparkle Up in the filter. By the next morning our pool looked like it was filled with chocolate pudding, and since then it went through various colors, but we never saw the bottom again. Out of desperation, I finally drained it as far as allowed with an Endless Pool, and jury-rigged my own vacuum-to-waste system. (Somebody invent a real one please. Small submersible pump that connects to a hose and a long handled vac head. How hard is that? I will be your first customer!) Long story short, after basically taking everything in the pool apart, vacuuming every nook and cranny for days, and putting it all back together, we are in the process of refilling with a bobby filter on the hose, and so far we have crystal clear water with a pale, pale yellow tinge. I know we still have iron and copper and I want to make sure to handle it correctly this time. From what I have learned here, I will use only liquid chlorine, I will not be using the Nature2 cartridge in the filter, and I will not be adding anything to the water that is not absolutely necessary. I bought the full Taylor testing kit, plus a metals kit. So here are my questions:
Do I sequester the metals before balancing the water?
Will I need a filter aid (sparkle up. Fiber clear?) to get the metals out? I am worried about these because I suspect that Sparkle Up somehow found it's way into the pool and caused or at least contributed heavily to the cloudiness. In taking the pool apart, I noticed that there is a sort of bypass at the bottom of the filter cartridge housing whereby it seems that anything going into the filter is free to sneak back out into the pool if it wishes. Is this normal?
Bottom line is, I'm terrified of putting anything into this pool that does not absolutely have to be there, but I do want to have actual real, clear, blue water. Can anyone help?
Do I sequester the metals before balancing the water?
Will I need a filter aid (sparkle up. Fiber clear?) to get the metals out? I am worried about these because I suspect that Sparkle Up somehow found it's way into the pool and caused or at least contributed heavily to the cloudiness. In taking the pool apart, I noticed that there is a sort of bypass at the bottom of the filter cartridge housing whereby it seems that anything going into the filter is free to sneak back out into the pool if it wishes. Is this normal?
Bottom line is, I'm terrified of putting anything into this pool that does not absolutely have to be there, but I do want to have actual real, clear, blue water. Can anyone help?