New from Myrtle Beach, SC

[MBSC2020]

Hi everyone! I’m new to a 10k gal fiberglass salt water pool. Until I got settled in a new house a local pool company was taking care of the pool. A complete disaster working with them and an expensive I want to take into my own hands. A friend told me about pool calculator and TFP. I’ve learned a lot already and looking forward to continuing to learn more. The pool is about 4 years old.

I did my first tests yesterday with the recommended pool test kits. I added baking soda and borax (mule) from what was recommended. Attached were the test results. If anyone has any advice I’m open to suggestions as I’m totally new to this.

in addition I was told that most people around here don’t close their pools for winter. Is there anything special I need to do? How long should I run the filter ( currently set early morning for 4 hours and late afternoon for 4 hours).

Looking forward to enjoying the pool for years to come. Thank you for having me in this group.
Jim

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello and welcome to TFP! Great job taking charge of your pool. Some takeaways from your testing:
TA - Make sure it gets up to at least 50; 60-70 might be more ideal.
pH - Anywhere in the 7.5-7.8 range is usually fine this time of year. Once you increase the TA, the pH should climb on its own.
FC - Somewhere between 4-5 ppm to avoid algae.
CH - A little elevated, but it's okay for now. You don't want it any higher, so don't use any cal-hypo products. I suspect people before you did for it to get that high. It can go down over time if you lower water before a good rain storm to help exchange water. Exchanging water that way will be good before next summer.

For winter, just watch for any unusually freeze warnings and keep the water moving during those periods. Test your FC and pH every 2-3 days or so to ensure they are in good ranges. Winter time and chilly water makes pool care much easier on us.

Make sure to update your signature with all f your pool and equipment info as well. Include your test kit too. The link below is a great place for all your TFP needs.

Pool Care Basics Archives

Your one-stop shop for all things TFP to include: ABCs of Water Chemistry, Recommended Chemicals/Levels, Test Kits, Troubleshooting, and much more!

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[MBSC2020]

Thank you so much for the support and feedback. I truly appreciate it!

Jim (MBSC2020)
Test Kits: Taylor K-1766 Sodium Chloride Test and TF-100 Test Kit
- Pentair Sand Dollar High Rate Sand Filter
- Pentair iChlor Salt Chlorine Generator 15 (0.6)
- Freeze Protection Thermostat

 

[revitup]

We're nearby in Pawleys, we were in the pool on Thanksgiving day but it appears pool weather is done here for this year. We're closing the pool tomorrow. Last year we ran the pump/filter for 4 hours a day during the time we are most likely to get freezing temps, 12:00 - 4:00 AM. We just cover it with a thermal blanket and a leaf net and continue to test chems weekly. Pool was happy with the SWG producing at about .2 - .4 output per day.

 

[MBSC2020]

Thank you neighbor for the information! Definitely looks like pool weather is over this year which I missed I’m looking forward to next year though!

 

[MBSC2020]

I forgot to ask... do you have a specific thermal cover you use?

 

[revitup]

I forgot to ask... do you have a specific thermal cover you use?

No, just an inexpensive solar cover, from In The Swim, I believe. My original thought was that we'd cover the pool daily when not in use to conserve heat but quickly realized that was way too much bother. We only use it now to give the leaf net something to float on in the off season. It looks like it'll last a good while. Not much wear and tear, just on and off once in the fall and spring. The key to making any solar cover last is storing it out of the sun.

 

[MBSC2020]

No, just an inexpensive solar cover, from In The Swim, I believe. My original thought was that we'd cover the pool daily when not in use to conserve heat but quickly realized that was way too much bother. We only use it now to give the leaf net something to float on in the off season. It looks like it'll last a good while. Not much wear and tear, just on and off once in the fall and spring. The key to making any solar cover last is storing it out of the sun.

Ok. Thank you for the info!

 

[tim5055]

Welcome!! You live in a nice area. We just spent our normal fall two weeks in Murrells Inlet.

Good luck with the pool. There are a lot of smart folks here willing to help.

The one trick I will let you know about -

It's always better to ask before you do something rather than ask why something happened after you did something. This usually deals will adding chemicals. I have a friend who feels if a capfull of something is good, a quart must be better......

 

[MBSC2020]

Hi Tim! Thank you. Murrells Inlet is just down the road. Beautiful place to enjoy some time.
Thank you for the feedback and great advice. I’m sure I’ll be asking a lot of questions. When adding chemicals recommended by the pool math app, is it best to still run it by everyone first or is the app pretty accurate? I want to make sure I don’t screw anything up and create a mess.
Thanks again!
Jim

 

[tim5055]

Hi Tim! Thank you. Murrells Inlet is just down the road. Beautiful place to enjoy some time.
Thank you for the feedback and great advice. I’m sure I’ll be asking a lot of questions. When adding chemicals recommended by the pool math app, is it best to still run it by everyone first or is the app pretty accurate? I want to make sure I don’t screw anything up and create a mess.
Thanks again!
Jim

The app is accurate, but some things we have our own ways of adding things. Pool stores and services say dump stuff in the skimmer and we just don't like that. Acid and chlorine is best slowly poured in front of a return and CYA has it's own method using an old sock......

 

[MBSC2020]

Sounds good. Thanks again for the advice and feedback.