Momma needs help with slam please please please

[VirginiaMom]

Hi, I’ve read and read- but some of it isn’t clicking.
I have Coleman swim vista steel frame agp 18 x 48. Sand &swg

had it last year- was a bad girl and didn’t cover it! It was green. Dumped liquid chlorine in, skimmed, ran filter for several days. Slime is now gone- green is now greenish gray. I also don’t see bugs in it anymore. Water is lowered about 6 inches from all the backwashing.
My reads are now:
FC 0
CC .6
Ph 7.2
1 drop for acid demand
5 drops for alkalinity (50 ppm)

what do I add next to get ready for a hard slam?
Please don’t whip me for my brain fog on this stuff, father in law passed from cancer a few weeks ago and I’m trying to give my hubby the mental paradise he needs.

 

[CrystalRiver]

pH 7.2 is perfect to start a SLAM. You need to know your CYA level. What test kit do you have? The other thing to know is what your clean filter pressure is (pressure when filter is running normally, just after backwashing).

Post back with your test kit info and your CYA level and we can hold your hand through this.

 

[VirginiaMom]

Thank you for your kindness!
filter is running at .6 “in the green range” after backwashing. During backwashing it slides just into the yellow, and then I run the rinse a few minutes to settle the sand, and when I power it back up it’s on the green at the .6)
I have the pool master 5 way test kit, and I have those strips everyone hates too.
strips say zero cyanuric acid- and to be completely honest I am not sure how to test cya with this test kit. After I did the ph test it took one drop for the acid demon reading but I’m not positive if that is for muriatic acid or cyanuric acid. We haven’t added any cyanuric acid this season, so the only thing in there is what’s left from last year.

 

[V___25]

Take this with a grain of salt as I'm still new to this but the strips I used before seeing the "TFP light" always registered 0 CYA. But then when I got my actual test kit, I realized my CYA was over 100 and off the chart of the strips. Prior owners used to chlorinate with tabs which raised CYA way too high. The best recommendation is to invest in a solid test kit such as the Taylor K-2006C test kit or the TF Pro Test Kit

 

[JodieM]

Make sure your water level is at mid skimmer, you don’t want your system to start sucking air.
To do a hard SLAM you will need a better test kit.*
Keep adding liquid chlorine and maintain it at 5ppm until your new kit arrives.
*Your Poolmaster kit does not test for CYA and it can only test chlorine up to 5ppm. The amount of chlorine your pool needs to properly sanitize your water will depend on your CYA level. It is possible that your pool will need to maintain a free chlorine level above 5ppm and with your current kit you can’t measure for that. It is recommended that you upgrade your kit to the TFP 100 kit or the Taylor k2006c kit so you have all of the tools you will need to test your water. Then we will be able to help you based on reliable test results. It is wonderful that you are taking on your pool chemistry to help your husband. I’m so sorry for your loss.

 

[VirginiaMom]

Ahhhh thank you for your words of confort and, thank you for the advice too! I just ordered the Taylor k2006c, it should be delivered on Friday. I’ll check back then with the exact numbers then.
One more question for now as I’ve never slammed before... do you think it’s possible to start slam Friday and get the pool running and clean before Memorial Day weekend? I work from home so I can run outside mid day and check things make adjustments daily - I’m just not sure if it’s a realistic goal.

 

[JodieM]

It’s really hard to say. Everyone’s pool is different. Just because the water is clear in a few days doesn’t mean it’s safe to swim in yet. Your pool must be able to hold chlorine overnight, if not it is still fighting bacteria and organic yuck. I personally wouldn’t feel safe allowing people to enter the water.
Congrats on ordering a test kit! While you are waiting here are two very important links to review.

SLAM - Shock Level and Maintain

We’ve all had to deal with a green pool. Clear algae from your pool with a SLAM! Read here to use shock level and maintain to clear your pool.

www.troublefreepool.com

Perform the Overnight FC Loss Test (OCLT)

The Overnight Chlorine Loss Test tells if the SLAM is finished or if you need to start a SLAM. This article says how to do the OCLT.

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[mknauss]

do you think it’s possible to start slam Friday and get the pool running and clean before Memorial Day weekend?

If you manage it several times a day, very likely. Once you get the FC/CYA ratio above 5%, and you can see the bottom of the deep end, the pool water is safe to swim in. So even at SLAM level FC, at 40% of CYA, as long as you can see the bottom of the pool, the pool is safe to swim in.

 

[VirginiaMom]

If you manage it several times a day, very likely. Once you get the FC/CYA ratio above 5%, and you can see the bottom of the deep end, the pool water is safe to swim in. So even at SLAM level FC, at 40% of CYA, as long as you can see the bottom of the pool, the pool is safe to swim in.

Ok, got the Taylor k2006c

My reads are:
Cyanuric acid 0
Fc/cc 0
Ph 7.4
Alk 60ppm
Calcium hardness none

pool is green-
What do I do next to start slam

 

[JodieM]

Download the Pool Math app. Input your pool size/type/material. Then add you test results and you will get the suggestions as to how much chemicals to add.
1. Get some CYA in your water to protect the chlorine you are going to be using.
2. Adjust PH to 7.2. After you get more than 10ppm of chlorine in the water don’t test anything but the chlorine. PH is not a reliable test with higher than 10ppm chlorine.
3. Add the amount of chlorine you need to reach SLAM level according to your cya. CYA is also called stabilizer.
4. Check chlorine often, keep adding chlorine and maintain your SLAM chlorine level. Keep brushing, vacuuming. Get every bit of the leaves and debris out of the pool. Take pictures throughout the process so you can see your progress.

 

[Teald024]

Ok, got the Taylor k2006c

My reads are:
Cyanuric acid 0
Calcium hardness none

What was your CYA last year?
Do you fill the pool with softened water?

 

[VirginiaMom]

Download the Pool Math app. Input your pool size/type/material. Then add you test results and you will get the suggestions as to how much chemicals to add.
1. Get some CYA in your water to protect the chlorine you are going to be using.
2. Adjust PH to 7.2. After you get more than 10ppm of chlorine in the water don’t test anything but the chlorine. PH is not a reliable test with higher than 10ppm chlorine.
3. Add the amount of chlorine you need to reach SLAM level according to your cya. CYA is also called stabilizer.
4. Check chlorine often, keep adding chlorine and maintain your SLAM chlorine level. Keep brushing, vacuuming. Get every bit of the leaves and debris out of the pool. Take pictures throughout the process so you can see your progress.

Will do thank you!

 

[VirginiaMom]

What was your CYA last year?
Do you fill the pool with softened water?

I didn’t have a proper test kit, so I measured the cya with the strips and guesstimated how much was needed when we put the pool up. It worked for a new fill but- not this year while fighting the green swamp.
I don’t know if I have hard or soft water, filled it last year

 

[VirginiaMom]

So frustrated literally wanting to take a razor blade to the pool and be done with it. Ordered the expensive k2006c kit, added the liquid cya yesterday- ran pump - cya is measuring zero still (pool is bright green) I don’t want to begin slam until it measures as having the cya but what the heck? It’s still measuring zero. Do i have a bad test kit?

 

[VirginiaMom]

I have algae- so much algae , and am trying to get the ph down Before slam- is it unusual when you put ph down in and 12 hours later it made no difference in the ph reading at all?

 

[mknauss]

Are you using Poolmath to determine how much dry acid to use?

 

[VirginiaMom]

Yes, and after 8 hours of it snowing no change- I added more.
Is it unusual for it to show no ph change 12 hours later?

 

[mknauss]

Once mixed in with the pump running the pH change should be able to be tested in 15-30 minutes.

What volume pool? What starting pH? What product used? How much of the product used?

 

[VirginiaMom]

Hi, thank you for replying.
pool volume is 7,600 gallons- though it has lost some volume due to the backwashing- roughly filled about 85-90%. Starting ph was 8.4 or higher- that’s as high as the test kit would read. Used Clorox ph down (powder looking stuff) initially added 16 oz at 8am, then another 16 oz at 8 pm.

 

[mknauss]

Continue to add 16oz at a time until you can read pH.

I see in your first post you stated this pool will have a SWCG . Using dry acid will destroy the SWCG. Switch to muriatic acid at your earliest chance.