Opening my pool and want to do it real nice this time

Mix it well at your earliest convenience. A one inch storm would be a whopper and only 1/48th of your pool volume. You couldn't even tell that your #s changed 2%

If an inch of untreated water sat on top for 12 hours before the pump came on, that could cause problems.
 
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In general Rain isn't an issue if you have adequate fc . The whole "rain turned my pool green" thing is usually because someone is either already too low on FC or teetering on the edge so any slight variable pushes them over.
With your high cya & potential copper issues free unadulterated water is a good thing 👍
Obviously you'll need to clean debris out of the pool if things blow in but the water itself- not a problem.😊
 
In general Rain isn't an issue if you have adequate fc . The whole "rain turned my pool green" thing is usually because someone is either already too low on FC or teetering on the edge so any slight variable pushes them over.
With your high cya & potential copper issues free unadulterated water is a good thing 👍
Obviously you'll need to clean debris out of the pool if things blow in but the water itself- not a problem.😊
Thank you-- yes I will check the chlorine levels for sure and drain if needed when I get home from work after 5 PM. The work never stops. What is annoying me now really is that I am spending about $40-$50 per week on buying more liquid chlorine to keep on hand- because if i keep adding that 120 oz of it- I run out of a gallon pretty fast. Even if I do this every other day to keep the fc at around 16. That is why I cannot wait to get the pool chemistry leveled so that I will not have to add so much liquid chlorine to the pool to keep it this way.
 
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How many FC are you losing a day at the higher CYA level ?

Are you averaging a half gallon a day ?

Where are you buying the chlorine ? Walmart has 10% for $5.67 in the pool section.
 
is there any way I can save the shipping charge on buying the chlorine powder(R-0870)? Since I am only doing that test due to my situation(and I am completely new at this)- I want to make sure I have enough in stock. The cost of the jar is $11.00 and I want to purchase 2 of them BUT the shipping is 1/2 the cost of another jar. Any advice?
 
The powder lasts a long time. You aren't using nearly as much of it as you think.
 
The powder lasts a long time. You aren't using nearly as much of it as you think.
I appreciate your reply- BUT you know me by now by all of my questions. I need to be ahead of the game. I actually want to purchase 2 more jars to keep with my test kit. The price is reasonable BUT being that I am a Newbie and really want to get with it so to speak- I was hoping that somehow I can save that $6 shipping fee- especially since that is more than 1/2 the cost of the jar. Any advice? Thank you
 
I was hoping that somehow I can save that $6 shipping fee- especially since that is more than 1/2 the cost of the jar. Any advice? Thank you
Amazon has free shipping. But the owner won't answer your call on a holiday weekend and chat for as long as you need. 🤷‍♂️

Nate is WAY better than Beezos. Just sayin. I'd be happy with the nominal shipping fee to a Mom and Pop business with great customer service.
 
The powder tends to dry out and get hard and clumpy with age. It would be a better idea to simply order a tube a few days before you run out.

10 oz. Should be good for around 100 tests According to Talyors website.
 

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How many FC are you losing a day at the higher CYA level ?

Are you averaging a half gallon a day ?

Where are you buying the chlorine ? Walmart has 10% for $5.67 in the pool section.
not sure-- but about 3 ppm I think that is normal?? And I am buying the liquid chlorine at ACE-- for 9.99 per gallon---WOW for Walmart- I will go there instead- that's almost half the price I will check that at MY Walmart.
 
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If you don't pay for the upgraded pool math app.
It will only let you save one set of results.
Delete the old one out of the saved logs before making a new one.
Not sure how to do this- I click on the + sign at the bottom of the page and then I click on Log test results or add chemicals and since I ONLY have 1 result in there it keeps saying subscribe. I have to delete ALL results even the one from yesterday showing my addition of 42 oz of bleach. What am I doing wrong I just deleted yesterday's addition of 42 oz of bleach from June 25 and then when I went to add just todays 26 oz of bleach it said subscribe. I am definitely doing something wrong.
 
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If it says update to premium to add something. If you delete the old one it will let you make a new entry.

I see 1 log and 3 additions. Don't need to delete the old additions.
I am not sure of the difference between log and additions. I just deleted 2 additions and ONLY have yesterday's addition of 42 oz of bleach yet when I click on the + sign and try to add chemicals or log test results- it does not allow me to.
 
No one gives pats on back when you do this.
(I have always had a bottle of the clarifier and I add 1 capful and let it sit for a night then vacuum and backwash)

Why not exchange more water and get your CYA down?
How much FC is the pool burning per day ?
What the lowest FC reading you have tested in the last couple days?
What's your water cost per 1k?
I will and have been exchanging more water every time I do a vacuum to waste followed by a backwash. I am not sure how much fc is being burned per day- but I think it is about 3 ppm-- and I believe the lowest fc I have had in the past few days is between 10 and 13. And lastly, how do I figure out the cost of water from my water bill- that is the mystery question for me.:(

What is the normal amount of fc that is burned off per day-?
 
Average chlorine loss is about 3-5 ppm per day. Could be more or less though. Very cloudy days you lose less. Hot sunny days you lose more. Have algae or a pool party for a bunch of kids and you can lose a lot more.

Water cost is easy to figure. Take an average bill from before opening and subtract from the most current bill. That will get you close enough. The bill should say what your cost per unit is.
 
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hello all- and thank you for all the replies.
I tested my water this AM at 6:30 AM. All looking good after the rain. The pH seems stable at around 8 or so- the colors are hard to distinguish. But it is not darker than the top color for sure (that is why I might buy one of those digital testers to get a more accurate result for my pH ONLY-and then I wil be able to better know how much dry acid to use to lower the pH. So that is good. Also since I added 26 oz more of liquid bleach last night my fc this AM was 17. I am happy with that- this means that I have some leeway from the minimum of my pool. I hope I am forming some sort of pattern. Also I did a CYA test- and the sun was not quite full strength in my yard so it did not skew the tube with the black dot. I think believe it or not that my CYA MAY be down to between 80 and 85. So I am thrilled that it is going down as the water gets slowly drained and backwashed and the rain has helped as well. I am also thrilled because I am going to Walmart to buy more liquid bleach at half the price, I was spending at ACE hardware thanks to the advice from NewDude :). I need some advice about going away though-- I will be away for about 4 days or so sometime in July. Nobody will be around to take care of my pool. So, I have a few questions....
1)-what should I bring my fc up to the night before we leave?
2) What happens to my skimmer basket if it gets full of leaves or other matter (since I clean it out daily)- I don't want the filter to work harder than it has to? what do I do about that?
3) If I want to keep leaves etc. out of the pool- should I put my solar cover on for those few days? The reason I ask is because if I load my pool up with EXTRA chlorine so that it lasts and stays at a proper level until I get home- won't that be BAD for my solar cover(since solar covers should NOT be used when adding sanitizer?
These are a few of my concerns-- please let me know.
 
1)-what should I bring my fc up to the night before we leave?
You are SAFE up to 40% of your CYA level, which is SLAM. I wouldn't go all the way to SLAM for only 4 days for you. I would add your average daily loss that you expect to lose while you're away, plus 5 more FC, and throw the cover on.

lc_chart.jpg


If I want to keep leaves etc. out of the pool- should I put my solar cover on for those few days? The reason I ask is because if I load my pool up with EXTRA chlorine so that it lasts and stays at a proper level until I get home- won't that be BAD for my solar cover(since solar covers should NOT be used when adding sanitizer?
Your solar cover should cut the regular daily FC loss in half (give or take). It will help greatly. It will also stop most of the crud from getting in the skimmer. Sweep the cover to one side and scoop the crud off when you get home before opening it.

SLAM FC is less harsh than tap water, with 0 CYA and up to 4 ppm FC. Your solar cover will fare better in a pool at SLAM Level, than if you used it on your bathtub (indoors / no UV loss) with tap water.
 
It is fine to use the cover after you have added the chlorine.
If you’re loosing 3ppm/day you can just add up how many days you will be gone x3 & add the amount of fc + a few ppm as a buffer. Example- if its 3 days that would be 9ppm + a few more so say 12ppm or so.
Your slam level is 35ppm for your current cya of 90 (for sanitation purposes 85 counts as 90 as there are no inbetweens on the test)
FC/CYA Levels
it is safe for people, surfaces, & equipment to go all the way up to slam level for your cya.
 
It is fine to use the cover after you have added the chlorine.
If you’re loosing 3ppm/day you can just add up how many days you will be gone x3 & add the amount of fc + a few ppm as a buffer. Example- if its 3 days that would be 9ppm + a few more so say 12ppm or so.
Your slam level is 35ppm for your current cya of 90 (for sanitation purposes 85 counts as 90 as there are no inbetweens on the test)
FC/CYA Levels
it is safe for people, surfaces, & equipment to go all the way up to slam level for your cya.
hey thanks- but I need a bit more hand holding for this Newbie here:)---- so lets us say that the night before we go away my fc is 16 . I want to cover let us say 5 total days of a decent buffer to come home to a clear pool maybe- what should I bring my fc up to that night before i leave and how much 10% bleach would that be to meet that coverage--- and let me know how you figured that out. and thank you so much again. for All the help. By the end of this year I will be a pro . Ha Ha (NOT)- you guys are really helpful.

I will test my fc tonight again after coming home from work and see just how much fc I did lose so I will get a better grasp on what I am losing on a daily basis.
 
I just bought some CALCIUM HYPO TABLETS to put into my floater.

they also add calcium which isn’t really needed in your vinyl pool & too much can cause scaling so save them for vacations/when you won’t be around to dose the pool.
Also- be certain that the floater you use for cal hypo tabs is new & has never had any other chlorine type in it. You can also never use that floater for trichlor in the future. If the two ever mix it can cause an explosion 💥
This is also an option while you’re gone. Your calcium isn’t very high so it will be OK. Make sure the FC is at or above target so the tabs just have to keep it there.

This is not a long term solution but a short vacation is one of the times when tabs can be OK to use.
 

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