My "Giant Pond" is Almost a Real Pool! And Some Questions...

OK... test results... I'm probably going to go into more detail than necessary because I want to be sure I did it right.

First of all, my prelim test results last night before starting the pump and having the water from the returns pumped in were exactly the same. The only difference is the debris on the bottom (vacuum obtained, being hooked by hubby up as I type), which is minimal, really, and the water is slightly cloudy now. But just slightly cloudy. (I wonder if it could just be air? There was a lot of air pumped in from those returns.)

Test results (using Leslie's version of the Taylor test kit):

FC - water never changed color, remained clear - I assume this is because no chlorine has been added yet?

pH - 8.0 - Acid Demand Test: 1 drop = 7.4

TA - turned pink ? at 6 drops (it said it would turn from green to red, but red seemed a long way off, so are we just looking for the change in color?) - If this is correct, then 600 ppm TA

CH - water turned pink (it was a bluish pink) after adding the calcium indicator, then to blue at 3 drops of the hardness reagent (again, is the color change what we're looking for?) - If this is correct, then 300 ppm CH

CYA - no result - little black dot never disappeared from view from the top (whole tube was eventually filled with no change)

So... now what? I'm not sure I understand how to use the pool calculator yet. I guess I need to know what to add, how much, and in what order?

Also, should I post a link to this post, or re-post these results over in "Testing and Balancing Your Water," too? Would that get me more input?
 
No need to double post, it's usually frowned upon.

With the TA and CH tests, continue drops and counting drops until the color stops changing, once the last drop does not change the color, do not count that one.

Add Acid to lower your PH, target for 7.2-7.4.
Add Stabilizer (CYA)
Add chlorine
TA may be good, I'd assume 80 if you kept dropping until the color stopped changing.
CH is low, but I'd address that last.

Use Jason's calculator to figure out how much of each to add.

Great job BTW, the pool looks great. As I was catching up on this thread today, I was thinking junk would be coming out of the returns, but was a day too late to suggest that you take precautions.
 
The last post sounds pretty reasonable... While I'm certified as a NON expert, I refilled my pool once after Hurricane Katrina, and with tap water, was about the same as yours except the PH. I used a gallon of 6% bleach, filled the automatic chlorinater with 3" pucks, put a 3" puck in each skimmer and added 6lbs of CYA to start. It was sparkling and clear in about 24 hours and only needed minor adjustments after that.

Mine is only slightly larger than yours.


-Rich
 
OK, so I'll re-do the tests I wasn't sure about - TA and CH, and report back. Thanks!

I figured double-posting wouldn't be good - really don't know of any forums that appreciate it. Just wanted to be sure my numbers got seen, though. ;)

The junk from the returns isn't too bad, really. It was so pristine, though, and me being the one who's kept it clean all this time, it was a bit dismaying to me to see it dirtied. But it's OK, it's not that much and we can vacuum it out.

Thanks for the compliments! :) It's been a LOT of work. I'll have some nice pictures to show of the entire process, but I won't have time to post them until after the party.
 

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BigGuy said:
The last post sounds pretty reasonable... While I'm certified as a NON expert, I refilled my pool once after Hurricane Katrina, and with tap water, was about the same as yours except the PH. I used a gallon of 6% bleach, filled the automatic chlorinater with 3" pucks, put a 3" puck in each skimmer and added 6lbs of CYA to start. It was sparkling and clear in about 24 hours and only needed minor adjustments after that.

Mine is only slightly larger than yours.


-Rich
Wow, so you were affected by Katrina. I followed all of that very closely, and fretted and worried for all of you. :(

Thanks for the encouragement. It helps. :)
 
Re-did TA & CH, results below:

TA - 7 drops turned it a shade darker, but 8, and even 9, drops showed no change after that, so I suppose we should raise that number to 700 ppm TA

CH - no change after 3 drops (added 4, then 5, drops and saw no change at all), so, I suppose that result stands at 300 ppm CH
 
WaterWoman said:
Wow, so you were affected by Katrina. I followed all of that very closely, and fretted and worried for all of you. :(
Yeah, we stayed through the entire thing, followed by Rita. My wife was on-call at the hospital, so we couldn't evacuate - we did send the kids away. After the hurricane, we were without power for 6 weeks in 90-100 degree temps, so the black lagoon (as we called it) stewed in the mix of fence boards, shingles, lawn furniture, dead animals, mosquitoes, etc, just about anything you can name wound up in the pool. It was truly a mess of epic proportions!

It took 4 full days to clean up, including shoveling out all the muck and dirt into buckets, pressure washing and a final acid wash. Fortunately, we didn't get hit as hard with the last couple that came through... knock on wood!


-Rich
 
WaterWoman said:
Re-did TA & CH, results below:

TA - 7 drops turned it a shade darker, but 8, and even 9, drops showed no change after that, so I suppose we should raise that number to 700 ppm TA

CH - no change after 3 drops (added 4, then 5, drops and saw no change at all), so, I suppose that result stands at 300 ppm CH

You're TA is 70.

I don't like the description of Red, mine turns sort of magenta Pink....

Add CYA via "sock method". Wait 5-7 days before you test again, you'll just be wasting reagent. Always undershoot the "target" as it's easier to raise it than lower it. 24 hours after it's dissolved, your CYA level is the ppm you added, so if you added enough CYA to reach 40ppm, your level is then 40ppm, even if you aren't testing for it. So then refer to the CYA chart for the recommended FC levels.

Start Adding Bleach/Liquid Chlorine, according to the CYA level you added...

In a day or so, perform an overnight FC Loss Test to make sure your FC is holding.

You're on your way! :whoot: :party:
 
frustratedpoolmom said:
WaterWoman said:
Re-did TA & CH, results below:

TA - 7 drops turned it a shade darker, but 8, and even 9, drops showed no change after that, so I suppose we should raise that number to 700 ppm TA

CH - no change after 3 drops (added 4, then 5, drops and saw no change at all), so, I suppose that result stands at 300 ppm CH

You're TA is 70.

I don't like the description of Red, mine turns sort of magenta Pink....

Add CYA via "sock method". Wait 5-7 days before you test again, you'll just be wasting reagent. Always undershoot the "target" as it's easier to raise it than lower it. 24 hours after it's dissolved, your CYA level is the ppm you added, so if you added enough CYA to reach 40ppm, your level is then 40ppm, even if you aren't testing for it. So then refer to the CYA chart for the recommended FC levels.

Start Adding Bleach/Liquid Chlorine, according to the CYA level you added...

In a day or so, perform an overnight FC Loss Test to make sure your FC is holding.

You're on your way! :whoot: :party:
Wow, thanks! WHY did I add an extra zero on there? (Because it's tiny print and I can't see it very well?) LOL THANK YOU! So, my TA is 70 and this means my CH is 30, too. Right? Duh. (I'm so blind.)

Thanks for the comment about the red vs. magenta. Magenta is what I see, too. (I CAN see colors well! :D )

I'll go refigure the results in the pool calculator using these new numbers.

What's the "sock method"? Put it in a sock (like a piece of nylon hose?) and put that in the pool or the skimmer, or where?
 
What's the "sock method"?
As you reasoned, it is placing the CYA in a sock or bag to let it dissolve.

This stems from CYA being so slow to dissolve. If you broadcast it or dump it in a skimmer, it ends up in the filter for a long time as it dissolves, and often gets backwashed out before it can even get in. Someone figured out to dump it in a sock and dangle it in front of a return to keep it in the pool, and it's sort of a de-facto standard for us now.
 
Thanks, you guys for explaining what to do with the sock. :)

Now I have another question... if I figured the CH wrong, and it's actually supposed to be 30 instead of 300, then the pool calculator tells me I need 698 oz. by weight of calcium chloride -- almost 44 lbs.?!? Is that right? That's the ONE thing I couldn't find when I was out earlier looking for chemicals. Lowe's and Home Depot didn't have it. I see that Leslie's has it, but that means I have to drive to the other side of town in rush hour... argh... How crucial is this right now?
 

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