Just Discovered TFP, Just Opened Goliath Pool, Just Reconsidered My Life Choices

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Last post for the night because I have to get some sleep for work. I backwashed the filter, the indicator glass thing was dark orange/brown. Gross.

Tested FC and CC, which were 1.0 and 0.5 respectively. 4 more jugs of bleach to bring it back up and now I fear I have to sleep (weak, I know). Tomorrow morning, I will test again and post results and most likely add MOAR BLEACH!

Thanks for the help today everyone, hoping to see some improvement in a few days!
 
pwhite222 said:
My test kit has a mysterious black dot at the end of a tube and it tells me that it should disappear at some point during the test, something that it in fact never does. Since the tube with the mysterious dot's lowest number is thirty, I postulate that my CYA is somewhere between 0 and 30.
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This sounds like CYA 0 - if the test did not appear in the least bit cloudy, then you have no CYA.
Having CYA 0 also contributes to loss of FC during the day.

Your CC does not seem to indicate more substantial issues at this point of time.

Are you using PoolMath to help calculate your additions?
Effects of adding chemicals indicates 484oz of 8.25% bleach raises FC by 8 in a 40K gal pool, 1+8=9, that puts you below SLAM FC.
 
pwhite222 said:
My test kit has a mysterious black dot at the end of a tube and it tells me that it should disappear at some point during the test, something that it in fact never does. Since the tube with the mysterious dot's lowest number is thirty, I postulate that my CYA is somewhere between 0 and 30.
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Get your CYA up to 30 (add 10 lbs if you think CYA is 0 currently... 5 if you think CYA is 15 currently). Then target 12 for your FC level during the SLAM (that's almost 6 gal to go from 0-12 in a 40K pool) You will be losing far less CL to sunlight that way. Test CYA again in a week (it takes that long to show up on the test).

This is going to take a LOT of bleach.
 
You ARE on the right track! It WILL take a LOT of bleach/chlorine! That is why I said you are going to be getting some funny looks when you buy it by the buggy full.

It does work. It is going to take time and bleach.

Kim
 
An observation from a fellow novice TFP who is still green behind the ears:

I believe it would be more benificial to you to hit your pool harder during the evening, and get the rest for the weak nonsense during the day. That way you know your bleach is going to good use, that is clearing your pool, instead of offering up meaningless bleach sacrifices to the sun gods. The sun will absolutely wreck your FC levels.

Watching patterns for a while, then SLAMing my own pool I learned something. I thought my pool used ~1.5 FC per day. However, after a SLAM, and watching my FC's 'drift' back down to normal levels, I learned my pool doesn't used 1.5FC per day, but ~25% of FC per day. That is, if I have 20 FC in the pool, the sun will take its 5 FC offering to appease its wrath (25% of total level). And that's at a CYA level of 45. At near 0, you may as well put those bottles of bleach on a rocketship to the sun. (In my humble novice opinion). Lest you hit it during the late evening hours.
 
Algae Exterminator's Log - Day 005, Entry 001: This morning, after the long dark night, I awoke to a much better looking pale, green pool. My FC was, however, 0.5 and my CC was 0.5. Five jugs of bleach subsequently went into The Swamp. Today, my landlord intends to replenish the bleach reserves, sweep, and add in another 5 jugs around noon. We unfortunately cannot maintain SLAM more precisely than this today or tomorrow, but I will be recommencing the hourly siege upon the coming of the weekend. I feel much less stressed, and much more hopeful, as I noted distinct progress today, moreso than the overlord Pool Store offered me with $170.00 of chemicals.

Today, I focus on calm and patience. I am sipping a bottle of POP and I am meditating on the peace of the day when the organic load is excommunicated from the swamp, and I will sit atop a mountain of empty bleach bottles and laugh maniacally. :swim:

The Swamp today: http://imgur.com/20Os5G1
 
Abigail K said:
Are you using PoolMath to help calculate your additions?
Effects of adding chemicals indicates 484oz of 8.25% bleach raises FC by 8 in a 40K gal pool, 1+8=9, that puts you below SLAM FC.
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I am, but I mistakenly used the 128 oz. jug option when my jugs are 121 oz. Oops. Since realizing this, I've begun to use 5 jugs anytime FC is 0.5 or above. In some cases, this will put me over SLAM, but I figure better safe than sorry in this particular scenario.

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karmabiker said:
Get your CYA up to 30 (add 10 lbs if you think CYA is 0 currently... 5 if you think CYA is 15 currently). Then target 12 for your FC level during the SLAM (that's almost 6 gal to go from 0-12 in a 40K pool) You will be losing far less CL to sunlight that way. Test CYA again in a week (it takes that long to show up on the test).

This is going to take a LOT of bleach.
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I do have some stabilizer, but assuming I will eventually vacuum to waste, wouldn't that be a waste? And yes, a proper metric **** ton of bleach I'm finding.

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kimkats said:
That is why I said you are going to be getting some funny looks when you buy it by the buggy full.
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Yes. Yesterday, the cashier knew what was up. She said, "So you've got a pool?" To which I felt the need to respond, "Or a crime scene to clean up. You'll never know..."
 
Re the stabilizer. Even though you will vacuum to wast the stabilizer should more than pay for itself in reduced overall bleach usage.

IIRC you can lose up to 50% of your FC every hour with no CYA in direct sunlight. It's a balancing act. We recommend 30 for a slam....
 

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pwhite222 said:
Sounds good! I will put it in a sock this afternoon! :)
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Backwash first, toss the bag in and squeeze the heck out of it. You need to get it in there as soon as possible. Like a washcloth the more you squeeze it and let it suck in fresh water the faster it dissolves. If you just toss it in a skimmer and walk away it can take days.

YES, a green monster is a bottomless pit that bleach disappears into without any apparent results at first. You said you noted progress, this is the first glimmer of light from the end of the tunnel. It will take days to get it blue but it takes less bleach each day to keep it at the FC level you need.
The trick is "Maintain" that level and when possible calculate how much over you can put in so your next reading is closer to your SLAM target.

Above all, this is the best advise you've received: You've got a chlorine hungry green monster. It takes time, patience and a lot of bleach. It will get better, I've seen it lots of times on here.
 
That's a normal sized pool, isn't it? :) Yours is smaller than mine, that isn't "The largest residential pool available". Pool store employees. :pth: We have folks on here with pools that make mine look like a koi pond, too.

Are you sure it's a vinyl pool?

It is going to take a LOT of bleach to clear that pool. Good thing you have a sand filter, can you post the model? If you had cartridges you'd be rinsing a lot, and with DE you'd be buying boxes of DE from backflushing. It will just take you a little longer to get the dead algae out toward the end.
 
Beens said:
I'll just add that once you've gotten it sparkly you won't have to do this again because along the way you're going to learn how to maintain it and it's gonna be easy! :)
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Agree... but for now... feed the beast and don't let up on the SLAM!
 
Algae Exterminator's Log - Day 006, Entry 001: Good news! After rigorously adding bleach last night, I woke up this morning to find a FC loss of only 4.5! Chlorine retention has risen, and the pool hasn't looked this good yet. Today is another day where I can only offer The Swamp a SLAM every 4 hours, but directly after work, I go to buy 50 jugs of bleach!

I walk out there now and I can smell imminent victory.

Meeting at work, sorry this couldn't be more concise!
 

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