New Owner - Add CYA and SLAM simultaneously?

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critter783

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Jul 26, 2017
20
Melbourne, KY
Hi all, new pool owner here. I've been reading like crazy and getting familiar with the pool, but could use some advice. We just moved in, and the pool hadn't been opened this year. I uncovered it and did a CYA test, and it came back 0 CYA. I then spent some time the next few evenings getting the pump/filter installed, finding sand, getting a new lid for the pump strainer, and other unforeseen issues, and now my water is getting pretty green and cloudy. PoolMath tells me I need to add 73oz by weight of CYA to get to a target of 40ppm, and my reading tells me that I need the filter running 24/7 for this and that it should dissolve over a week from a sock in the skimmer basket. I also read that I shouldn't backwash while doing this.

My question is: can I start adding bleach to the pool now to start fighting the algae or would the sun just eat it up too quickly without any CYA to protect it? I'm afraid that if I let it sit for a week without adding any FC, I'll have a serious problem by the time the CYA level is where it needs to be. What's the best way for me to proceed? Should I wait the full time for the CYA to dissolve and then start the SLAM?

Thanks!
 
Welcome to the forum!

You can add the CYA and bleach simultaneously. Place the CYA powder in a sock and hang in front of return, squeeze it a few times (or assign a younger family member to the job) and it will dissolve in a few hours, or quicker if squeezed.

Add your chlorine assuming the CYA is in the water. Your shock level will be FC 16 and you will test / dose your chlorine to that every couple hours to start, then spread it out as the FC holds better.

Read SLAM, chlorine/CYA chart, and OCLT in Pool School.

Good luck!
 
If you are finding both the CYA and FC at zero in a green pool you should check for ammonia first before adding CYA.

Add enough chlorine to raise FC to 10ppm (use PoolMath)

Check the FC level in 10 minutes. If it is less than 5ppm, re dose the pool up to 10ppm and redo the 10 min drill until FC holds more than 50% (5ppm) at the 10 minute check.

Once FC holds as described above it is safe to add CYA.

Chances are that there is no ammonia, but if the ammonia converting bacteria are still in the pool, feeding them more CYA will just make even more ammonia. Ammonia takes a HUGE amount of FC to eliminate, better to check first.

Tip: It will take 21oz of 8.25% sodium hypochlorite (laundry bleach) to add 1ppm of FC to your 14000 gallon pool.
 
Wow, that was fast. Thanks guys. Once I get home tonight, I'll backwash the filter and get it up and going, test the pH (haven't done this yet, moving has been eating ALL my time), get the CYA dosed, then after the sun goes down, dump the bleach in.

If the pH test comes back out of range, should I settle that before adding any bleach or CYA? Or are those things all OK to do at the same time?
 
critter783 said:
Wow, that was fast. Thanks guys. Once I get home tonight, I'll backwash the filter and get it up and going, test the pH (haven't done this yet, moving has been eating ALL my time), get the CYA dosed, then after the sun goes down, dump the bleach in.

If the pH test comes back out of range, should I settle that before adding any bleach or CYA? Or are those things all OK to do at the same time?
Click to expand...
I highly recommend you check for ammonia first.

pH needs to be checked and adjusted to 7.2 before you SLAM, as it will read falsely high with FC above 10ppm.
 
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