Hello from Baytown, TX

[MelThib]

Hi! My name is Melisa, and I still feel like a newbie after 3 years with our pool. We bought a house with a pool is March of 2020. It’s been pretty simple, but this summer has been tough! It’s so hot right now! Our pool is gunite and about 30K gallons. Looking to get a little more insight on fighting algae and overall pool chemistry!

 

[woodyp]

Welcome! Ask away. Pool School is waiting for you.

 

[HermanTX]

Welcome to TFP.
The most important first step for pool chemistry is acquire a proper test kit.
Test Kits Compared
Please read
Pool Care Basics

 

[BowserB]

Hi! My name is Melisa, and I still feel like a newbie after 3 years with our pool. We bought a house with a pool is March of 2020. It’s been pretty simple, but this summer has been tough! It’s so hot right now! Our pool is gunite and about 30K gallons. Looking to get a little more insight on fighting algae and overall pool chemistry!

Hi Melissa. As already suggested, you need a proper test kit, like this from Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Taylor-Service-Complete-Water-K-2006C/dp/B0002IXIJ0/ref=sr_1_5?crid=37WH89P9DKHIJ&keywords=taylor+test+kit&qid=1689538816&sprefix=taylor+test+%2Caps%2C626&sr=8-5

Or the TFT test kit. In the meantime, you could take a water sample to Leslie's--better than nothing. If you post test results here, the resident experts will jump on it and tell you what you need to do. Next, what specific problem(s) do you have--aside from heat. For example, up here in Katy, the heat is evaporating water more than prior years. Also the full sun and heat can mess with pool chemistry. For whatever reason, I'm using more muriatic acid than before trying to keep the pH under 7.8.

 

[HermanTX]

In the meantime, you could take a water sample to Leslie's--better than nothing.

Well we do not really trust pool store testing to provide an accurate recommendations. There is just too much variance due to contamination to prior test, inexperienced summer help and trying to sell products that is not needed and put you in a loop to fix things they cause.

With a 30k gal pool, every gallon of 10% Liquid chlorine adds 3.3ppm of FC. So now in this heat wave in Houston area, you may be losing 3ppm per day so you should be adding a gallon of LC through the day.

Suggest you obtain a test kit and post those results. The TF test kit is better value - you get more volume of reagents thus can test more. Plus you can purchase extra reagents at the same time, to test FC because with algae you will be testing more to maintain your FC levels up.