So, as the title suggests we have a brand new pool that I just filled last night. We haven't even finished the full start-up from the pool builder yet. The only thing that has taken place so far is the PB dumped 2 gallons of muriatic acid into the pool and started the pumps on high to start circulating the water around. I believe the start-up crew is coming on Saturday to finish setting up my IntelliCenter so I can use the rest of the features. I just received my TF-100 kit as well as the K-1766 today. The PB isn't going to be loading salt until at least Saturday. Should I be doing anything now, and if so, what? I did read through the ABCs of Chemistry which was extremely helpful and believe I have a good understanding of where my levels will eventually need to be for my location and the size of the pool. As an aside, we're in for a lot of rain over the weekend thanks to this tropical disturbance in the gulf!
New pool-just filled!
- Thread starter nuke_twidget
- Start date
- Jun 22, 2014
- 52,156
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Congrats on the new pool and even more for having the TF-100 in-hand already. 
As you may have seen, builders aren't known for being good with pool chemistry. They dump and run. You'll want to do a full panel of tests with your TF-100 and post back. A few highlights in advance though:
- Is this a plaster pool? New plaster needs months to fully cure. During this time pH will try to rise quickly, hence the muriatic acid. Try to keep it no higher than 7.8 if you can.
- New water has no stabilizer (CYA), so unless your builder added some when you weren't looking, it's zero. That means chlorine will disappear very fast. Now they may not add any stabilizer or chlorine for 72 hours from fill (if plaster), but just be aware of that. Vinyl or FG no worries.
- Normally we don't advise adding salt for the first 30 days (plaster), but your builder should know what works best for yoru application. Either way, I wouldn't expect the SWG to be turned-on for at least 30 days. That means your pool may be managed as a non-salt pool for a month. Keep that in mind when balancing the FC and CYA as noted on the FC/CYA Levels.
- Use the PoolMath APP! Pay attention to the "CSI" results (if plaster). While pH, TA, CH, and water temp all play a role in CSI, pH has the most influence. For the first 30 days, you want a level (neutral) r maybe even a slightly positive CSI during the curing process. After a month of initial curing, slightly negative.
I just realized that I said all of this assuming you had a plaster pool installed. If not, then some of this info will change. So please update your signature with all of your pool and equipment info. It's very important for accurate replies. When in doubt, post your results and we'll be happy to help.
As you may have seen, builders aren't known for being good with pool chemistry. They dump and run. You'll want to do a full panel of tests with your TF-100 and post back. A few highlights in advance though:- Is this a plaster pool? New plaster needs months to fully cure. During this time pH will try to rise quickly, hence the muriatic acid. Try to keep it no higher than 7.8 if you can.
- New water has no stabilizer (CYA), so unless your builder added some when you weren't looking, it's zero. That means chlorine will disappear very fast. Now they may not add any stabilizer or chlorine for 72 hours from fill (if plaster), but just be aware of that. Vinyl or FG no worries.
- Normally we don't advise adding salt for the first 30 days (plaster), but your builder should know what works best for yoru application. Either way, I wouldn't expect the SWG to be turned-on for at least 30 days. That means your pool may be managed as a non-salt pool for a month. Keep that in mind when balancing the FC and CYA as noted on the FC/CYA Levels.
- Use the PoolMath APP! Pay attention to the "CSI" results (if plaster). While pH, TA, CH, and water temp all play a role in CSI, pH has the most influence. For the first 30 days, you want a level (neutral) r maybe even a slightly positive CSI during the curing process. After a month of initial curing, slightly negative.
I just realized that I said all of this assuming you had a plaster pool installed. If not, then some of this info will change. So please update your signature with all of your pool and equipment info. It's very important for accurate replies. When in doubt, post your results and we'll be happy to help.
This was extremely helpful! I'll update my signature today and also post back with the results of the tests. It is a plaster pool and I'm trying to stay ahead of the curve as much as I can. Our city is known for its hard water so I'm going to find a sequestrant as well.
Alright, first round of tests are in the books! Also, the app is fantastic! Well worth the $8/year.Congrats on the new pool and even more for having the TF-100 in-hand already.
- Is this a plaster pool? New plaster needs months to fully cure. During this time pH will try to rise quickly, hence the muriatic acid. Try to keep it no higher than 7.8 if you can.
- New water has no stabilizer (CYA), so unless your builder added some when you weren't looking, it's zero. That means chlorine will disappear very fast. Now they may not add any stabilizer or chlorine for 72 hours from fill (if plaster), but just be aware of that. Vinyl or FG no worries.
- Normally we don't advise adding salt for the first 30 days (plaster), but your builder should know what works best for yoru application. Either way, I wouldn't expect the SWG to be turned-on for at least 30 days. That means your pool may be managed as a non-salt pool for a month. Keep that in mind when balancing the FC and CYA as noted on the FC/CYA Levels.
- Use the PoolMath APP! Pay attention to the "CSI" results (if plaster). While pH, TA, CH, and water temp all play a role in CSI, pH has the most influence. For the first 30 days, you want a level (neutral) r maybe even a slightly positive CSI during the curing process. After a month of initial curing, slightly negative.
I just realized that I said all of this assuming you had a plaster pool installed. If not, then some of this info will change. So please update your signature with all of your pool and equipment info. It's very important for accurate replies. When in doubt, post your results and we'll be happy to help.
FC: 0.5
pH: 8.2
TA: 150
CH: 72
CYA: 0
CSI: 0.34
- Jun 22, 2014
- 52,156
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Those numbers look perfectly normal and expected for a fresh fill. Very little FC that is in your normal water supply. It will disappear extremely fast with no CYA, but the builder knows that. The pH is elevated which is also expected. You can ask the builder if you have the green light to use murtiatic acid to lower the pH a little to about 7.7-7.8. The TA is a bit elevated, but not worth addressing until later. I think you had a math error on the CH test though. If you used the 10 ML water sample size, each drop from red to baby blue would be 25 ppm, so your results should be something like 275, 300, 325, etc.
I'll retest the CH. Should I worry about the other levels yet? Is there a standard order in which I should be adding the recommended doses per the app?
- Jun 22, 2014
- 52,156
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
I would mention the pH to your installer and ask if they have any problem keeping it under control at about 7.8. I don't suspect they will want any chlorine added yet since you probably won't have any stabilizer (CYA) added for 3 days, but you can always ask to be sure.
Just spoke with him and he suggested adding a gallon if we had it handy. The startup team is supposed to be coming out tomorrow, although I don't foresee that happening with the storms coming through Houston over the next few days.
- Jun 22, 2014
- 52,156
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Gotcha. FYI - One gallon of MA should lower your pH to 7.2. Generally not a problem, but it will lower your CSI for a short bit. With new plaster and an elevated TA it will rise quickly though. I just wanted you to know the numbers since many times the builders don't know the true impact on numbers that dumping a gallon all at once will do. Even with pending storms, make sure to ask when you can add stabilizer and chlorine. The last thing you want is algae if they get delayed.
Ok, startup is complete. I know they added stabilizer but he wasn't sure if he had liquid chlorine on the truck so he left some tabs. Going to go snag a floater for now and then start doing more frequent testing for awhile.