Should I Drain the Pool (from new pool owner)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Z

Zenghaidong

Active member
Jul 27, 2020
34
Austin, TX
Move in the house two weeks ago, and the kids absolutely love the pool.
Bring water sample to Leslie's a few days ago, and got the below results:
1. Free Chlorine: 10!
2. Total Chlorine: 10
3. PH: 7.4
4. Total Alkalinity: 44! (adjusted due to the effect of CyA)
5. Calcium Hardness: 450!
6. Cyanuric Acid: 200!
7. Iron: 0
8: Copper: 0
9. Phosphates: 100
10. TDS: 1000
Leslie's told me that the Chlorine level is too high. He recommended me to stop the Chlorinating Tablets, and bring the water sample back again after 2 days.
I did, and the test today is still showing similar results, and Leslie's suggests to drain half of the water.

I am in Austin TX. The previous owner said he never drained the pool. I think with continuous using Chlorinating Tablets for several years, it can cause high CyA. So it makes sense to drain the water. Here is my questions:
1. I think I have a concrete plaster pool, can I drain 50%, or even 75% of the water? To bring the CyA back to 50 from 200, I need to drain 75%. Will it damage the pool? I know I can dilute it and drain a couple of times, but it is not economically sound.
2. Leslie's recommend to drain 40% water, then brush and power wash (not sure he said power wash or acid wash) the pool, then drain additional 10-20%. My pool is still pretty clean (a little bit cloudy, but still good), no obvious fungi built up. Will it help/nessesary to power wash or acid wash the pool.
3. After I bring the CyA back to normal, should I still use the Chlorinating Tablets feeder, or use household bleach?
4. Poolmaster 5 way Test Kit can't test CyA. I am planning to order a TF-100, will it be better than Taylor K-2006?

Thanks all!
 
Welcome! :wave:

First, I wouldn't make any big changes based on pool store tests. They're usually wrong. The CYA is possible, but it's also possible that it's even higher. Mine was. Imagine how follish you'd feel to replace 75% of the water and have it come back at 90 CYA? You really ought to get your own test kit to get your own numbers. You'll want it when you refill so you get things right.

Second, 450 CH is no big deal. I've only been lower than that for a brief period in ten years of living here.

Third, 10 FC in 200 CYA is not high.

I don't know if you've read this. It covers a lot Draining - Further Reading
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rossterman
Zenghaidong said:
4. Poolmaster 5 way Test Kit can't test CyA. I am planning to order a TF-100, will it be better than Taylor K-2006?
Click to expand...
I have the K-2006, but I would recommend the TF-100 as the best value for the type of testing required by TFP methods. The K-2006c is an alternative if you can’t get the TF-100 for some reason.
 
Thanks Richard to share the draining tips,

I am getting the TF-100 kit in a few days, will check it again.
My understanding is 10 FC in 200 CYA is low. So I am worry about it is not able to effectively kill bacteria. I want to correct it before big trouble come.
I think the CH will be lower after replacing some water as well.
Thanks.
 
A week ago, I posted my 1st post Should I Drain the Pool (from new pool owner) in Just getting started.
Thanks for everybody's help.

I got the TF-100 test kit this week, and test the CyA level of my pool.
It turn out to be 210 (need to dilute twice to get a result in accurate range). Clearly I need to drain 75% of the pool water and refill to get close to CyA 50.

My pool is a concrete plaster pool with depth of 3 to 6 feet. I plan to drain water to 3 feet, and refill. Using the water to feed the plant around the poo. Is this plan safe? Will the rising water level around the pool potentially cause damage to my plaster pool?

Will this pump from amazon do the job?

Superior Pump 91014 Thermoplastic Oil-free Utility Pump, 1/4 HP, Black - - Amazon.com

Superior Pump 91014 Thermoplastic Oil-free Utility Pump, 1/4 HP, Black - - Amazon.com
www.amazon.com

During the draining/refilling process, What other things I should do to clean the surface (blush, acid wash, etc)?
Thanks a lot!
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
I have the 1/2 hp. Not sure that oil filled makes a difference.

You kind of have to decide how you want to go about this. If you time it right, you might be better off renting a high powered sump pump from Home Depot and draining off the 75% or so you need to quickly, the refilling. If you can do it when it will be a cloudy day, that would be best.
Your water characteristics will not lend to a very efficient exchange. You can try it, but I would suspect you will have to exchange at least 100% of your pool volume to achieve your goal.
 
Update:
I begun to drain the pool last night. It looks like I over-estimated the drain flow.
Now i have only drained 30% of the pool (7:30am). Today will be a hot day in Texas, If I leave the plaster expose to air/sun, it's bad to the pool.
Should I refill it and use a more powerful pump (get to rent one from HD) tonight?
In the meantime, I will check the CYA again to guide the drain.

Thanks!
 

Attachments

  • IMG_4450.jpg
    IMG_4450.jpg
    122.1 KB · Views: 16
Sunny or cloudy?
You can spray the plaster to keep it cool. You are kind of committed, I doubt if you started to fill now it would take all day to fill it back up.
 
Very sunny and there is a heat warning today (temp will go up to 105F), luckly we get some shade on the pool.
I decided to pay my kids $20 each to let them play in the pool every 15 min, and make the plaster surface wet. Hope it work.
It should drain the pool tonight, and I will fill it up with three garden hoses.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mknauss
mknauss said:
Sunny or cloudy?
You can spray the plaster to keep it cool. You are kind of committed, I doubt if you started to fill now it would take all day to fill it back up.
Click to expand...

mknauss,
I have drained 75% of the pool water tonight. Somehow, the remaining water looks cloudy and have quite some sediment. I guess because I have not run the pump (and filtration system) in the past two days, and I also brush the pool during the draining.

According to the plan, I should refill the pool tomorrow.
My wife recommends draining and getting rid of the remaining water (need 4 more hours), and clean the bottom of the pool. I think the cloudy water and sediment should go away after refill with pump/filtration and Robot. I also don't want to let the plaster expose to the sun one additional day.

Can you give me some advice on this?

Also I see there is some plaster peel off between the pool light and pool wall. Should I apply caulking before filling the water?
Thanks a lot!
 
If you need to do any repairs, do them now.

The water in the pool still needs chlorine. I would suggest adding a quart or two of liquid chlorine into it. Then when refilling, add a gallon a day until you get things re balanced.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cowboycasey
Sounds like you're not going to attempt an acid wash. Good, then I don't have to try and talk you out of that. At most, use abrasives to clean the surface, start with the least abrasive first. Synthetic bristles, then metal only if the stain is really stubborn. Sand paper is good, and will leave your surface smooth, instead of scratched or etched. Gently. You don't mention how old the pool/plaster is, if it's old, you can do more harm than good, especially with acid. The less you do the better, if you can live with the cosmetics. Get the water back in it.

If you do decide to drain all the way, just before you start your fill, run out and take a snap shot of the numbers on your water meter. Limit use of water as much as possible while filling (turn off landscape irrigation, minimal showers (or none), minimal flushes, do the dishes and the laundry after the pool is full, etc). Then when the water is halfway up the skimmer opening, stop the fill and go take another snap shot. The difference between those two numbers will be the water volume of your pool. A handy number to have when calculating chemical additions, and you only have the opportunity to do this when the pool is empty at the start of the fill. If you do use water, no biggie, you'll still be close enough. Or subtract a gallon or two for a flush, 10-20 for a shower, if you want to be a little more accurate.

Good luck, get the water back in there as soon as you can. Then follow Marty's advice about the chlorine.

By the way, TFP pools are not the least bit cloudy. You'll see. You've come to the right place, and if you continue on with TFP, your pool is going to be amazing!
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Mdragger88 and cowboycasey
Thanks mknauss and Dirk. Drain about 10% more and begun refill.
Refill is much faster, should be done by this afternoon. Still let the kids water the pool wall.
Should get the test result tonight or tomorrow morning. I will make sure adding liquid chlorine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dirk
ok, got the water fill up, run the pump 30 min, and here is my test results using TF100.

CyA: 40 (still can barely see the dot at 45, can’t see it below 40, so call it 40)
FC: 1
CC: 1
PH: >8.2 (out of chart)
CH: 100
TA: 80

Add 1 gallon 10% fluid chlorine, expect to get 8ppm (target 5-7ppm at CyA of 40).
What surprises me is the PH. I tested twice and get the same out of chart result (see attachment). Should I go ahead to add MA according to pool math’s recommendation?

thanks!

Zenghaidong said:
Thanks mknauss and Dirk. Drain about 10% more and begun refill.
Refill is much faster, should be done by this afternoon. Still let the kids water the pool wall.
Should get the test result tonight or tomorrow morning. I will make sure adding liquid chlorine.
Click to expand...
 

Attachments

  • F1812093-2E6D-4E10-BBAD-E4F90C92CD6A.jpeg
    F1812093-2E6D-4E10-BBAD-E4F90C92CD6A.jpeg
    23.7 KB · Views: 17
Add acid to take pH from 8.2 to 7.6. Test it again in a couple days.

Good job.

You will need to add some calcium. Find a source for calcium chloride.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply