Hi! Question about slamming pool.

[Calalily63]

I live in SW Missouri and have a 5000 gallon summer waves 15' round pool. All of my pool levels have been spot on until this week. It's been in the 90's and I haven't felt well, so the pool was a little neglected. I was adding 6-8oz of liquid chlorine at night, but missed a night or 2 and now my pool won't hold the chlorine. I do keep the pool covered during the day since I work and no one will be using it. I added a cup and half of liquid chlorine last night because both the FC and TC were zero. My current readings as of 7 am this morning with a poolmaster 5 way test kit and aquacheck 7 strips are as follows.
PH 7.6
FC 2.0
TC 1.0
TA 190
CYA 0-30
HARDNESS 250

I noticed when I cleaned the filter that it was a gray/green, but pool is clear (does smell like chlorine when I first take the cover off) and I don't see any tell tale signs of algae. The chlorine issue just started this week. It was staying about 3ppm and I think the TC around 1 or 2ppm.

Should I slam it or add just enough liquid chlorine to get the FC up to 3-5 ppm? Oh and it's been 95 here all week. Pool is partially under trees (another reason I keep it covered when not in use) , but does get about 6 hrs full sun.

 

[mknauss]

Welcome to the forum!
You need to follow the SLAM Process. To do that, you need a proper test kit. I suggest the TF100. A proper test kit is needed to get the accurate water chemistry results needed to follow the TFP protocols.

I suggest you read ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry.

 

[Calalily63]

Unfortunately, I don't have a $80 for a better test kit. I bought what I could afford this year. I have read the ABC's of pool chemistry, but I will read it again.

Thanks

 

[mknauss]

OK -- your other option is to run the pool as a Seasonal Pool. Read Guide for Seasonal/Temporary Pools - Trouble Free Pool

At the point you are now, you would drain the pool, clean it, and start over using the process detailed in the article above. Do get a simple drop based test kit for that process.

 

[Wobblerlorri]

You can get the FAS-DPD kit and the CYA test kit from tftestkits.net for less than $50. That's really all you need to do a SLAM.

FAS/DPD Chlorine Test Kit

tftestkits.net

Cyanuric Acid (CYA) Test Kit

tftestkits.net

 

[Calalily63]

Thank you for for the links to the cheaper options. What can I do until I can start slamming the pool to keep it from turning into a swamp? At this point, I would prefer to not have to drain the pool because I probably won't refill it. We usually take it down right after labor day and that's only 6 or 7 weeks away.

 

[mknauss]

Add 5 ppm FC worth of liquid chlorine every day. See how it goes.