I just had to peek, and test.

[thetekgeek]

I have done so good, that is until yesterday when I accompanied a friend who is looking at a house with a pool and wanted some feedback on the state of the pool. I peeled back their cover to find a green swamp, which got me wondering about the state of my water.

So, when I got home I just had to take a look at my water. I had resisted the temptation to look under my cover since winterizing my pool back in late October. This is my first year with a winterized pool, so I wasn't sure what to expect. My water is still perfectly clear, no ice is left and the water temp is roughly 45 degrees. There is a little debris on the bottom and also what looks to be a few small pellets of rabbit dung. The water level has risen about a foot since it was closed. I took a sample and tested for FC, PH, TA, CH and Salt. I did not test CYA, but I plan to test it tonight because I wanted the water to get to room temperature and the sun was down. I will test it when I get home from work today.

FC - 1 - Was 10 at closing
PH - 7.2 - Was 7.5 at closing
TA - 80 - Was 100 at closing
CH - 200 - Was 225 at closing
SALT - 2600 - Was 3400 at closing
CYA - ? - Was 70 at closing

I plan to open in about 3-4 weeks. I did use Polyquat 60 when it was closed. I know that with the lower water temperature I am not in danger of developing any algae anytime soon but I am concerned about the low level of Chlorine in the water and the presence of rabbit dung and small amounts of debris. Now for the question of the day. Should I open the cover enough to get my dolphin in and let it pick up the debris and poop? While it is running I could add enough chlorine to bring it up to 5 and let the dolphin mix it around for me. Or, am I just being paranoid and probably belong at the local Sam's Club buying huge amounts of toilet paper and tin foil?

 

[bmoreswim]

I would keep it covered and do nothing yet for your situation. Opening before 60 degrees, I like to shoot for 55 personally, will still leave the water clear. There is a caveat though that I've seen. If you have a mesh cover, and the water is touching the cover, you are much more likely to get green water even if the overall body of water is below 60 degrees. Reason being is that the water in contact with the cover is much warmer than the rest of the pool and is also exposed to UV light. Both of which will get your water green fast/early in the spring. So keep the cover tight, and the water from touching it, but otherwise nothing needed yet.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Its up to you. The pool looks to be in good shape and you could just cover it and it will be about the same in 3 weeks. Remember that beside the water being warmer to grow algae, you need sunlight. So the cover helps in that regard.

It won't hurt your robot to work in cold water, I don't think? I suppose the lube in the moving parts will be thicker in cold water .....?

 

[thetekgeek]

Thanks to both of you for the input. I will probably let it ride for a bit.

 

[JeaniB]

I couldn’t wait any longer. Haven’t done the salt testing,. But water was 53 degrees today, a few leaves but clear!

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Have done Salk the testing,

Jonas Salk?? He helped many pools avoid Iron (lungs).

Just kidding, I know you meant salt testing

 

[JeaniB]

Jonas Salk?? He helped many pools avoid Iron (lungs).

Just kidding, I know you meant salt testing

Typing is obviously not my forte,.. edited now

 

[thetekgeek]

I thought I would update this thread with the actions taken.

Since my initial post, we have had a few snowstorms, a few melt offs. A hail storm and some very windy days. Yesterday was beautiful with a high near 70 degrees. After work, I decided I'd take another peek. I rolled back half of the cover in the shallow end and found a ton of dirt on the bottom of the pool. At that point, I decided I wasn't waiting any longer and in went my Dolphin. After an hour, I pulled her out to clean the filters and then dropped her back in for another cycle. While the dolphin was in, I used 8.25% bleach to bring the FC up to a target of 5. I added it very slowly in several areas of the pool and used a boat oar and my brush to get a good mix. Two hours later, I ran a full set of tests.

FC - 5.5
CC - 1.0
PH - 7.4
TA - 80
CH - 200
SALT - 2600
CYA - 50

I then pulled the cover back into place. I probably won't be opening for another few weeks so I plan to go through the same exercise after work today. It was dark by the time I pulled the Dolphin out of the pool so I am unsure whether she was able to get all of the dirt out of the pool. This is probably unnecessary since I have eliminated my worries about the CYA being eaten by bacteria and becoming ammonia. However, I am going a little stir crazy with nothing much to do after work. There is simply NOTHING left in the house that could possibly need cleaned and the ground is still a little too wet for me to start installing the paver patio so I need something to keep my idle hands from doing evil.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Nice job- you're gonna have that pool up and running in now time flat. You won't lose a day of swim weather trying to fix a dirty pool. When does it get warm enough to swim in Nebraska?

Wanna come to GA and have a go at cleaning my house?? Pollen is over taking us. Ugh!

Maddie

 

[thetekgeek]

@YippeeSkippy

I'd love to come to GA to do some cleaning! When we can swim in NE is really hard to predict. Most of the outdoor public pools open around Memorial Day, but most years that I have been here (5 years) it has been plenty warm in early May to be swimming on most days. We typically used to set up our old ABG pool in the first week of May. April is usually reasonably warm, but it seems we always get a random late snow storm usually during the first week. I plan to be open sometime in the next 2 weeks and I plan to swim at least a little in April by running my heater and using my solar cover. Right now, there are no low temperatures below 36 in our 10 day forecast and most highs in the low 60's. Swim time is getting closer!

 

[thetekgeek]

Opened today! Originally, I was supposed to wait for my contractor due to our contract stating that he had to close/open the first year. But, due to Covid, he asked me to open. All went pretty well.

Once I got the water level up and systems running I ran a full set of tests. Then added enough bleach to get to shock level. Waited an hour and tested FC again to make sure I hit my levels and it came out perfect. Set my system to run 24/7 for the next few days. It’s nice to have this first winter over. So much anticipation and worrying about how my pool would handle the harsh Nebraska winter. I’m now standing on the other side and I want to report that I love TFP more than ever!