Newbie from Illinois

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Kevmartin01

Kevmartin01

Member
May 28, 2020
18
Illinois
Hi everyone!

i just purchased a new home in Illinois (new to me anyway:)) with a 10k gallon in ground plaster(I think) pool and 500 gallon Jacuzzi hot tub. Never having either of these before, I contacted the former owner’s Pool maintenance company to schedule the opening for both. Since we were late to scheduling the opening, we were scheduled for early June. We didn’t want to wait so, I decided to open the spa myself. In doing my due diligence, I came across this website and I am sure glad I did!

Since I had no idea when the spa(just using that term generally) was last drained, I decided to drain and refill. I followed many of the threads here and, using pool math, I’ve had a great spa opening and have been maintaining my levels ever since. Unfortunately, we have very hard well water here, which I was not aware of so, I’m living with it for the moment and just maintaining my other variables. I’ve purchased a hose filter for my next drain and refill to make sure that doesn’t happen again!

So, that’s my intro and I just wanted to say thanks to everyone here for their experience and knowledge. I’m looking forward to my pool opening at the end of the week. I feel I’m now up to the challenge of getting the pool set correctly and enjoying my new pool!

I’m sure I’ll have some questions and I’m sure I’ll get all of the help I need here!
 
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Welcome to TFP! :wave: A few things you might find good to know:
- Make sure you have a TF-100 (link below) or Taylor K-2006C test kit for all your water testing. That's a must.
- IL is notorious for a high TA. If yours is as well, don't panic. We can help you with that later.
- As you probably know, well water usually has iron. Get fresh water trucked-in if needed, otherwise metals management can be tricky.
- Update your pool signature with all of your pool and hot tub details. We look at it each time we post.
- Be sure to read our ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry, and use those Vital Links below in my signature.
- Next time before you do a tub drain, do an Ahh-Some treatment. Makes a big difference. We have lots of posts here about that product as well.

Let us know if you have any questions. Have a good day.
 
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Texas Splash said:
Welcome to TFP! :wave: A few things you might find good to know:
- Make sure you have a TF-100 (link below) or Taylor K-2006C test kit for all your water testing. That's a must.
- IL is notorious for a high TA. If yours is as well, don't panic. We can help you with that later.
- As you probably know, well water usually has iron. Get fresh water trucked-in if needed, otherwise metals management can be tricky.
- Update your pool signature with all of your pool and hot tub details. We look at it each time we post.
- Be sure to read our ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry, and use those Vital Links below in my signature.
- Next time before you do a tub drain, do an Ahh-Some treatment. Makes a big difference. We have lots of posts here about that product as well.

Let us know if you have any questions. Have a good day.
Click to expand...

Thanks TS!

my Ph was 8.4 this morning so I’ve added a teaspoon of 31% muriatic acid to bring it down. My FC was about 1 and my TC was about .5. I added about a cup of bleach to bring it back up and also do a bit of sanitization. My CH is up around 1000 after the refill, so I’m going to address that on my next refill. I realize this is not optimal but it is what it is right now. My CYA is around 60-80, a little high. My TA is around 100. As you can probably guess, I’m using the test strips right now. I bought them before I started dealing with the spa and doing research. I have the Taylor k-2006c in my Amazon cart right now but, with the new house, and the fact that we just found out the pool filter has a crack and must be replaced, money is a bit tight right now.



im about to update my signature. Thanks for that! And thanks again for all of the great advice!
 
Kevmartin01 said:
CH is up around 1000 after the refill,
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Yikes! Really? :eek: Well, as you said you're stuck with "guess strips" right now, so hopefully it's not quite that high. Since CH doesn't usually fluctuate too fast, you might grab a cheap HTH drop test kit from Walmart. If the CH really is close to 1,000, make sure to keep that pH much lower. Use the PoolMath APP to monitor your CSI level. Reducing both the pH and TA can help buy you some time with that CH.
 
Texas Splash said:
Yikes! Really? :eek: Well, as you said you're stuck with "guess strips" right now, so hopefully it's not quite that high. Since CH doesn't usually fluctuate too fast, you might grab a cheap HTH drop test kit from Walmart. If the CH really is close to 1,000, make sure to keep that pH much lower. Use the PoolMath APP to monitor your CSI level. Reducing both the pH and TA can help buy you some time with that CH.
Click to expand...
Yeah, guesstimates for sure. My refill came straight out of the garden hose so, yeah it’s high. Need to get that drop kit as u suggested! I’m pushing for it with the pool opening. It’s going to be critical. I’m using the pool math app which has really helped. That’s what got my numbers where they are now. Been a god send.

thanks for the suggestion on correlating my signature. It got me to take a closer look at the pool system and I realized I have a sanitizer. I’ll have to do some searching on what effect that is going to have. Any help there is really appreciated. I don’t want to over chlorinate, with the assumption of its purpose.
 
Kevmartin01 said:
I realized I have a sanitizer. I’ll have to do some searching on what effect that is going to have. Any help there is really appreciated. I don’t want to over chlorinate, with the assumption of its purpose.
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If that is the same one I found HERE, it looks like your standard chlorine tab (puck) feeder. Tabs are okay only for a short time because they have stabilizer pressed into them which increases the CYA level quickly. When you look at our FC/CYA Levels, you can see how the FC needs to be balanced to the CYA to prevent algae. A good test kit is really important for CYA testing. Anyways, you might consider leaving that feeder empty and just using liquid pool chlorine or regular bleach - same thing. If you use laundry bleach, don't use Clorox and avoid anything listed as splashless or scented unless you want a large backyard bubble bath.
 
Haha, I literally just finished reading that very document before I saw you’re post. It looks like it, although not sure what model. All of this equipment aside from the heater look pretty old. The filter will be replaced on Friday so that only leaves the chlorination. As you mentioned, I don’t expect that I’ll be using that. Right now, for the spa, I’m just using plain old, generic, 6% liquid laundry bleach without any additives like no splash, etc.

looks like my gut instincts are right on as I’m on the same thoughts as you are advising. Good news!!

much appreciation for all of the help TS. I’m feeling more and more confident as I progress. I’m not so anxious as I was about the pool opening. The pool company asked that I fill the pool to half way up the skimmer, to prepare for the opening and, when I popped the skimmer cap, I was a little concerned. The water was a bit dark. I guess that’s par for the course with a mesh safety cover over the Illinois winter. We’ll see how the opening goes. I’ll update my posts after the opening in regard to the pool.
I’m monitoring the spa daily for changes and I’ll post as I go.
 
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Texas Splash said:
Yikes! Really? :eek: Well, as you said you're stuck with "guess strips" right now, so hopefully it's not quite that high. Since CH doesn't usually fluctuate too fast, you might grab a cheap HTH drop test kit from Walmart. If the CH really is close to 1,000, make sure to keep that pH much lower. Use the PoolMath APP to monitor your CSI level. Reducing both the pH and TA can help buy you some time with that CH.
Click to expand...
OK! I got my Taylor kit the other day. Below are my new, accurate numbers. Wow those test strips really are not accurate. I’ve done some remediation since my original posts and, thanks to all the great info here I’m in pretty good shape. Still got some work to do but not terrible. Pool opened last Friday and it’s already clear and dare I say, swimmable!

Pool CSI=.3
Ph:7.4 (added 14oz Borax)
FC: 4.5
CC:2.5
TA:190 (ouch)
CYA: 50
Hardness: 225 😒

Spa CSI=.55:
Ph: 7.6
FC: 2.5
CC: .5
TA: 190 (ouch again)
CYA: 30
Hardness: 260 😒
 
Welcome and good job!

If you got CC 2.5, you get to do the SLAM Process sir! :D You didn't need to add the Borax, as 7.4 was great PH for SLAM. PH can't be too high or it slows the chlorine process.

Spa looks pretty good!!

::edit for correction::
 
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splashpad said:
Do you have enough liquid chlorine on hand to start the SLAM Process? You'll use the Fc level from this FC/CYA Levels for CYA/50 on your pool.
The SLAM process will be a few days, until you get a 0.5 or 0 CC result :)
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I think so. I have 3 gallons of 12%. Tto SLAM to 20 should take 1.3 gal. That leaves me 1.5 gal to maintain and the Menards near me had an abundance of liquid chlorine. Walmart also has a decent amount of 6% bleach on hand. Very fortunate over here. I picked up 4# of Borax yesterday and there was still a few boxes on the shelf.
I appreciate the input.
 
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splashpad said:
Morning!
You raised the FC right? Is there anyway to recheck in about 30min and raise it again? (Not sure if anyone is home or able to add chlorine during the day)
Click to expand...
Yes, I did a slam last night to raise FC, which it did but CC is still present and too hi. I will continue to slam tonight after sunset to lower CC and increase FC to shock level (20 per chart)
 

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