Help? Giant Pond That's Supposed to Be a Pool? (Pics Added)

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vincent said:
WaterWoman, take some pics and post of things that you doesn't know or without identification tag. Others on the forum may identify and advice.
Click to expand...

I'll try to remember to take my camera next time I go over there. However, I'm gonna have to ask you guys to please disregard what you see besides the pool itself! LOL I detest what the previous owners have done to the landscaping and decor in this yard--in other words, it has NONE. There's nothing but a pool and a really ugly (IMO) deck. The good part of this is that we're both avid gardeners and are handy with all sorts of landscaping (and remodeling) tasks as well. We transformed the yard where we now live from a patch of nothing but crabgrass and sand burrs into a lush oasis complete with a fish pond. So, we see this new yard as just another blank slate, and know we can do what needs to be done. Just keep that in mind when I post the pics, OK? Gads, it's awful right now! :-D
 
vincent said:
WaterWoman, be more generous with whatever outside the pool with your pics, both before and after your transformation. Most of us on the forum and not only interested in the pools but what's beside it too.
Click to expand...

OK. I'll keep that in mind, too, vincent. :wink:

I took some pics but will have to download them into my laptop since my camera won't work with this computer (it has Vista), and transfer them from there to this computer before I can post them. I also got a sample of water that we're going to take for testing in a little while. I'll post the results of that and the pics sometime later tonight or tomorrow.

Thanks so much for all the help, everyone.
 
subscribing, this is very similar to the problem i have with my pool. :eek:

My problem is my fault, tho: 17k gallon saltwater pool, it started last year when the generator went belly-up, and I had to replace the water to get the salt level down to controllable levels. Once I got there, and I got the filter cleaned, the problems with algae (a slimy yellow type it seemed that wouldn't die from YellowOut), that I suspect was caused by a small tear in my filter (cartridge type). I never got control over it last summer, then i started a new job that took so much of my time and energy that I found it impossible to keep up with the pool, so it ended up turning into a swamp, complete with frogs and crawdads!

Thanks for this thread, and thanks for the answers in advance!
 
Pics & Test Results

OK... pics as promised.

Here are a few of the pool itself. I don't know how much you'll be able to tell from these--there's a lot of shadow and reflection--but here goes:

#1-As you can see, we have some fence repair to do as well. This wasn't like this until a few days ago, but we had a couple of days of high winds last week, and that was all it took. We'd like to eventually replace this entire back fence with stuccoed concrete block, or something similar that's very permanent, and that we could have some fun with as far as mural painting, decor, etc.
Pool01.jpg


#2-Same angle, closer view
Pool02.jpg


#3-View from the far end. Inside that square hole (sorry, don't know terminology yet) on the far end is a chlorine tablet dispenser. The little square of blue in the bottom right corner is a solar cover that's folded up. The pool equipment is on the other side of the sidewalk in the upper right corner of the photo.
Pool03.jpg


#4-Closer view, same end of pool as #3.
Pool04.jpg


#5-View from other end of pool (closest to equipment). That's my daughter's feet in the picture. You can see that blue solar cover in the upper left again.
Pool05.jpg


#6-Closer view, same end of pool as #5.
Pool06.jpg


Hope those help some. As you can see, and as I've said, the deck around the pool is, to my thinking, an eyesore. It overwhelms both the pool and the yard. Most of it will go bye-bye. We will have to replace the coping around the edge of the pool, too, because whoever added this deck removed it. argh. Right now, I'm just concerned about getting the water clear and the equipment up and running, though. The rest will have to come later.

Next post will be pics of the equipment.
 
We had the water tested at a Leslie’s yesterday. He only did three tests. Results and his advice below:

Water pH: 7.8

Total Alkalinity (TA): 80

Calcium Hardness: 200

His advice:
First of all, he said to drain the pool, clean it and refill. When we asked him about the negatives about draining the pool (cracking/popping out of the ground), he assured us that wouldn’t happen (Yeah, right, I thought). When he found out that we are close to the river, and that our soil is mostly sand, he backtracked a little on that, but still advised draining and refilling it. He just said to do it “quickly.”

Beyond that, his recommendations, on the back of the form, were as follows:

#1 – Broadcast 8 pounds of POWER POWDER PLUS directly to the pool with the pump running. Wait 2 hours before proceeding to the next step.

#2 – Mix 20 fluid ounces of ALGAE CONTROL with water in a clean bucket and pour around the pool. Wait 24 hours before proceeding to the next step.

#3 – Broadcast 4 pounds of FRESH’N CLEAR over the surface of the pool with the pump running, concentrating the majority in the deep end of the pool.

He said after we did all of that, to bring another sample of water for re-testing.

We took what he said, as advised here, with a grain of salt.
 
Great Pictures..

Here is what you have..

1. The black square hole thingy may be a skimmer. Check if there is a cover on top of it with a mesh basket in it.
2. The Filter is a standard sand filter that can be backwashed.
3. The Vari Flow valve controls the amount of water flowing throught the filter.
4. The pump below the filter is your main pump. The water comes "in" from the side with the round plastic see through cover and goes out from the top of the pump through the vari flow valve into the filter. Comes back out of the filter and either goes back to the pool or to waste depending upon the position of the valve on the pipe below.
5. The Blue hose you have sitting near the filter is waste hose to drain the waste water out of the filter to the curb.

Test Numbers:

your numbers loook good so far but we are missing a crucial piece which is the CYA or stabiliser value. Please take another sample to the pool store and have it tested.

Things to do:

1. Get another water sample tested and ask for CYA test.
2. Check if you can locate the main pump switch.
3. Switch on the pump and see if it works.
4. Stock up on Bleach.
5. Measure the dimensions of the pool so the size in gallons can be calculated.


Draining the pool:

I don't think it is required yet. The water chemistry numbers look good so far.


Please post back with the results of things to do and well go from there...

Experts: Please chime in.. also if anyone can explain how this vari flow valve works that will be great..
 
The potential for you to have a sparkling oasis in your new backyard is definitely possible. Once you take over the house and your fish ordeal is taken care of let us know and it will be a painless process.

Keep posting!
 
saraiks said:
1. Get another water sample tested and ask for CYA test.
2. Check if you can locate the main pump switch.
3. Switch on the pump and see if it works.
4. Stock up on Bleach.
5. Measure the dimensions of the pool so the size in gallons can be calculated.
Click to expand...



We don't know if this is a self-priming pump. And I don't know a whole lot about inground pools - maybe their pumps are all self-priming. I'm just thinking we might fill the pot (the container by the pump with the see-through lid) with a bucket of water before we turn the pump on. Would that be a reasonable thing to do?

AnnaK
 

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I had a similar setup at my old house and I always needed to fill it with water first before turning it on to self prime. I don't think it would hurt. Helps to create a vacuum in the system and helps eliminate air.
Edit- Even though I can't tell if this is a self priming pump (kind of looks like it might not be) I still don't think it hurts to fill. We'll let the experts chime in though.
 
You can generally get away with a couple of moments of 'no-prime' pump time, and it would be tempting to just switch it on, but in this case, I would take a different approach.
I would suggest that you first check the skimmer to insure that there is a basket in place, and dump any debris out of it. Then I would open the clear lid on the pump to dump out any debris in the pump basket. Some o-ring lube would be nice on that lid, too. Then you can fill the pump from a garden hose, which will wet the seals and help prime it. Be generous with the water. Close the pump back up, set your multi-position valve to 'Filter', and THEN switch on the pump. If it isn't circulating water in a couple of minutes, turn the power off and let it cool for a bit. Change the valve to 'Recirculate' and try again.

Once you have the fish out, you can begin cleaning the leaves and gook via net, or vacuum, or rake, or whatever means works as well as the chemical treatment, which will predominantly consist of lowering the ph to about 7.2 with muriatic acid and adding copious amounts of chlorine. You can use Jason's Pool Calculator to determine dosages for your pool size.

Read The Stickies.

A good test kit is the best tool you can have. You can't fix what you can't measure. We recommend the TF kit offered by one of our members, but in the interrim, even a five-way kit from Wal-Mart is better than nothing. Test strips are not. Pool store tests can be reasonably accurate, but again, don't go buying stuff just because they tell you you need it.

Read The Stickies some more.

You'll be swimming in no time.
 
Hi again. We just closed the deal on the house yesterday. (WooHoo!) As soon as I get moved and am ready to begin this project, I'll be back. I didn't want yo guys to think I wasn't coming back because I haven't posted for the past week. I didn't see much sense in posting more until I'm ready to actually go to work on the pool. You've helped me tremendously already, and for that I thank you. I WILL be back very soon... :)
 
Congratulations on the new house, now make it your home. With the mural wall your planning and removing the wood decking, your going to convert that backyard into a really nice relaxing, private area. (keep that in mind through this long process)
Other than the obvious suggestions mentioned above, after getting the fish out safely, I'd rent a trash pump and suck out most of the water pushing the hose down to the bottom sucking out the collection down there. You also need to find out what the bottom surface is like, sloped: how deep? Having the dimension of width, length and depth will help you with the bleach calc.
I might suggest prior to turning the pump on, you might want to open up the sand filter, and at least clean the sand, or I would replace the sand (especially after it has improved).
If your not interested in draining the pool, get a good skimmer with an extension pole and have at it until your arms are ready to fall off, then get your daughter to keep skimming, not the top surface, but the bottom. Once your pump is running, I would vacuum for hours (get rid of all solids).
Get a good test kit so you know where you are and track your improvement, eventually the water will clear up and you will be swimming!
 
Congratulation on your new house. We understand your wait for this house and your eagerness to get the pool up and going.

I would encourage you to settle down first with all your house cleaning, unpacking etc. Leave the pool alone for the time being while you tidy up everything else except when you got time to spare, check the pool equipment just to make sure they are in good condition. If not then you must either hire someone to fix it or get back on this forum for advise and, you can start scooping any solids or leaves out of the pool bottom.

When you are done with your house, then concentrate with your pool. It's better to give your pool full attention for a couple of days to effectively clean your pool at a faster rate. I would start by vacuuming the bottom to waste without refilling until the sloopy ones are out. Then run a full set of test and post your numbers.
 
Hi again!

I'm bringing this thread back up because we are finally getting ready to deal with the pool. After moving in, we discovered so much work that needed to be done on the house itself (like putting in new insulation! something we hadn't planned on... and much more) that we ended up running out of both time and money, so unfortunately, we had to put the pool on the back burner. It's still in about the same shape as when I posted the pictures from last year. The fish are still there, and it's still murky green. I know... terrible... but we can only do what we can do. It's now time to get to work on it. Finally! :)

The first thing we've decided to do is have some "pool service" guys come tell us what they think it needs. We just want someone to look at it and give us a run-down of what they think needs to be done. I'm hoping they can test the equipment for us, too, or at least show us how it works. Maybe get estimates from 3 or 4 different services for reference purposes? I'll post whatever advice they give us, etc. We want to do the work ourselves and want to work with you guys on this, but since we don't know much about it, we figured some hands-on advice on the state of the pool and equipment would be good to have. If one of them seems to offer a reasonable deal on the clean-up, we will consider it, but I'd want to run it by this forum first. I hope that sounds fair. We just feel so lost about this. If there is someone on this forum who is nearby and would like to come take a look, we'd sure appreciate that, too! We'd be happy buy you dinner or beers or something in exchange! :-D

Once we have a general idea of what needs to be done and know that the equipment is functional (or not), then I think our next step would be to deal with the fish. Because of the potential for a mosquito problem, I don't want to have them removed and then there be some sort of delay in getting the pool working. That seems to be the proper order to me for doing that. I will have to contact the Mosquito & Vector folks and see if I can talk to the head fellow at the fishery again about getting them out. Last year, he told me they would come get them because they need them for other abandoned pools. I'm hoping that will still be the case.

Then... I figure we'll be raking out leaves and debris for several days. Don't know what we'll do with them, but it seems like possible good stuff for the compost pile. Maybe a bit stinky, but we can cover it with dirt and sand from the landscaping projects we're currently working on and that will help. Once that is somewhat under control, I will take more pics to post, test and post numbers, and we can go from there...

I really appreciate all the advice that has been given here so far, and apologize for being unable to follow through last year in a timely fashion. You really helped us to feel like it's a doable project when we were in the process of buying the house, and that helped so much. We are ready to get to work now, though, and I look forward to working with you great folks here to get this pool sparkling clean and ready for summer!
 

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