I got pressured into getting a pool...

[frankh]

As in the title, I got pressured into getting a pool. My wife mentioned wanting one to her mother, so her mom found one on marketplace cheap. It seemed like a good deal at $100, so I eventually agreed. It is an Intex Prism Frame oval 10x20x48". It was without a pump and filter, so we planned to purchase one. Luckily, a neighbor had an extra from her old pool, a really nice Krystal clear 1600GPH with a 12" sand filter. It had new sand last year. Bonus, she kept the valves and fittings so when I unrolled this thing and found they were missing I was saved. I filled this thing up with 4400+ gallons of water and setup the pump. there was a delay between filling and pump setup, about 5 days. The water had a little green tinge to it. added a powdered shock packet, because I hadn't yet found TFP. The filter has the water looking amazing. Unfortunately, I bought test strips instead of a real water test kit, and I can't afford to purchase one yet. According to the strip the FC is at 0. My TH is 200, TA is 240, pH is 8.4 and CYA is 79. I know from reading other posts that I shouldn't trust this, but I don't know what to do at this point. If I'm lucky, I can stretch my SSI and get a proper test kit August 1st. Yesterday evening, I went to Walmart and got two jugs of liquid chlorine from the pool section. I poured one whole gallon in and this morning got the test results I reported in this thread. I'm now out of money. My ears are open....

Side note: About 20 years ago, I worked for a pool company and worked in construction, service, and even did hot tub delivery and service while I was there. I didn't have to help with water treatment, or chemicals other than acid washing pools and filling chlorine jugs. Did some openings and closings as well. So I am not clueless, but I only remember so much.

 

[Bperry]

As in the title, I got pressured into getting a pool. My wife mentioned wanting one to her mother, so her mom found one on marketplace cheap. It seemed like a good deal at $100, so I eventually agreed. It is an Intex Prism Frame oval 10x20x48". It was without a pump and filter, so we made plans to purchase one. Luckily, a neighbor had an extra from her old pool, a really nice Krystal clear 1600GPH with a 12" sand filter. It had new sand last year. Bonus, she kept the valves and fittings so when i unrolled this thing and found the were missing I was saved. I filled this thing up with 4400+ gallons of water and setup the pump. there was a delay between filling and pump setup, about 5 days. The water had a little green tinge to it. added a powdered shock packet, because I hadn't yet found TFP. The filter has the water looking amazing. Unfortunately, I bought test strips instead of a real water test kit, and I can't afford to purchase one yet. According to the strip the FC is at 0. My TH is 200, TA is 240, pH is 8.4 and CYA is 79. I know from reading other posts that I shouldn't trust this, but I don't know what to do at this point. If I'm lucky, I can stretch my SSI and get a proper test kit August 1st. Yesterday evening, I went to Walmart and got two jugs of liquid chlorine from the pool section. I poured one whole gallon in and this morning got the test results I reported in this thread. I'm now out of money. My ears are open....

Side note: About 20 years ago, I worked for a pool company and worked in construction, service, and even did hot tub delivery and service while I was there. I didn't have to help with water treatment, or chemicals other than acid washing pools and filling chlorine jugs. Did some openings and closings as well. So I am not clueless, but I only remember so much.

Without stabilizer (CYA) in the water, it’s likely that all the chlorine you added was gone in a few hours. That’s why TFP recommends accurate testing so you don’t waste money dumping in stuff you don’t need. You’ll need to get the CYA up to about 30ppm and then keep adding 2-3ppm liquid chlorine per day to keep the algae away. You really do need a test kit to avoid bigger problems, unless you can just dump the water when it goes bad.

 

[Mdragger88]

You really cannot trust the strips
If it’s right about cya of 80 then that’s too high to try to do the
SLAM Process which I suspect you need to do.
You also simply cannot slam without a proper kit that contains fas/dpd & an accurate cya test.
Test Kits Compared
My suggestion is to first try to determine how much of what chlorine products you have added & attempt to calculate your current cya using
PoolMath effects of adding so you can attempt to properly chlorinate with liquid chlorine. No more “shock” or pucks until you know where you stand with cya.
FC/CYA Levels
You can pick up a simple oto & ph kit at Walmart for about $8. This will only test tc up to 5ppm & ph.
There’s also the hth 6way kit for about $20 at lowes but it still doesn’t have the all important fas/dpd test. It also only contains enough reagent to do 2 cya tests.
These choices are only bandaids until you can get a proper fas/dpd kit. But they are better than strips. I used the hth 6way kit for many years when I had little pools. You can add the separate fas/dpd test when your check comes in along with aquiring more cya reagent . In the end it costs more to get everything piecemeal but I understand that sometimes that’s just how it is.
Until you know where you stand you can add 5ppm worth of liquid chlorine to the pool daily to replenish what is lost each day & keep any algae problem from getting worse.
Here’s the guide for small pools

Guide for Seasonal/Temporary Pools

Smaller seasonal pools can see just as much enjoyment as their larger counterparts. In this guide we'll show you how to maintain your temporary pool.

www.google.com

 

[frankh]

Well, I went to the local pool store to have the water tested because the store manager was who I was dealing with, and he ran the tests while I watched. Interestingly enough, the test results were different than the HTH test strips, but not by much.

FC 0
CC 0
pH 7.4
TA 140
CH 245

I bought the stabilizer to add, and I have liquid chlorine on hand, but the air bleeder on the strainer lid broke, so I have to wait for a part before I add chems as the system obviously can't run.

 

[Mdragger88]

The cya value is missing-
Have you added any stabilized products to the pool like trichlor pucks or dichlor/trichlor “shock”?

 

[Mdragger88]

You can pour liquid chlorine in slowly, away from the liner & simultaneously mix it around with a brush even without the pump running. If you have a submersible pump you can also throw that in to help circulate the water.

 

[Bperry]

Well, I went to the local pool store to have the water tested because the store manager was who I was dealing with, and he ran the tests while I watched. Interestingly enough, the test results were different than the HTH test strips, but not by much.

FC 0
CC 0
pH 7.4
TA 140
CH 245

I bought the stabilizer to add, and I have liquid chlorine on hand, but the air bleeder on the strainer lid broke, so I have to wait for a part before I add chems as the system obviously can't run.

Brother, I feel for you but the pool store test isn’t any batter than the strips. They can lead you down some unnecessarily expensive roads. If this is freshly filled, you can add 30ppm of CYA, then chlorinate it with liquid chlorine each day. But you’re going to have to add chlorine every day or you’ll get a swamp on your hands without a test kit.

 

[frankh]

No, it hasn't had any stabilizer, I bought some today.

 

[Mdragger88]

No pucks or “shock” products?

 

[Mdragger88]

Before you add the cya you bought you may consider draining & starting over if there’s obvious algae or cloudy water & you cannot properly perform the slam process because you don’t have a kit yet. You can then Scrub the pool down with diluted bleach, rinse it & refill starting fresh following the temporary pool guide I posted above.
Liquid chlorine is $5+ a gallon
& you can go through many many gallons to do the slam process as they often take a week or sometimes longer.
4k gallons of water may be much cheaper.
You could accomplish this while you wait on your pump part.
food for thought.

 

[frankh]

I know what at least one answer will be, but here is where I am at. The pool is green. Not a little, but sickly green. I don't have the adapters for the drain fittings, so something else to order. My folks found my old test kits for pools from when I worked in the industry. I have attached pictures.

 

[reggiehammond]

Ancient and expired. Trash 'em and order either the Taylor K2006C or TF Pro.
Test Kits Compared

Then prepare to SLAM once we understand current results.
SLAM Process

 

[Mdragger88]

Those are oto test kits & the reagents are likely expired. (2 yrs with proper storage is their lifespan).
The advice above in post#10 still stands.
Use a water hose or 2 & even a pool vac hose and siphon drain if you can’t attach to the drain plug.
Or rent a pump.

 

[reggiehammond]

I bought the stabilizer to add, and I have liquid chlorine on hand, but the air bleeder on the strainer lid broke, so I have to wait for a part before I add chems as the system obviously can't run.

Also - don't ever let the pump or filter stop you from maintaining chlorine levels.

You can dump in liquid chlorine and it'll mix easily. A few pushes with a brush can help make it mix

 

[Mdragger88]

 

[Bperry]

I know what at least one answer will be, but here is where I am at. The pool is green. Not a little, but sickly green. I don't have the adapters for the drain fittings, so something else to order. My folks found my old test kits for pools from when I worked in the industry. I have attached pictures.

Drain it and start over, or leave it empty until you’re in a better financial spot. That’s going to take a lot of chlorine to clear up.

 

[frankh]

I got her cleared up with about 5 gallons of chlorine so far, pretty happy with how it has turned around. I'm not done yet, but it isn't green and I didn't have to drain it.

 

[RLP]

It may look "clear", but its probably not sanitized.

 

[frankh]

As I said, I'm not done yet.

 

[Mdragger88]

Don’t stop until you can prove it’s dead & gone with the 3 end of SLAM Process criteria or it will be back in short order.
You are done when:
CC is 0.5 or lower;
You pass an Overnight Chlorine Loss Test
AND
The water is clear.
(Crystal Clear w/no algae dead or alive)

As mentioned you need at minimum -
an fas/dpd test & cya test for this to be successful. It’s generally more advantageous to buy the whole tf100 or taylor k2006c than to buy these separately especially if your other testing stuff is old/expired.
Each gallon of 10% liquid chlorine raises your fc by 22ppm.
PoolMath

This may or may not be slam/shock level depending upon your cya level. FC/CYA Levels

Going over slam level for your cya wastes chlorine and risks damage to your liner, equipment & swimmers.
Going under just doesn’t really work as well & can drag things out.
The key is reaching the correct slam level & MAINTAINING it there until proving algae is eradicated.
S- hock
L- evel
A- nd
M- aintain