TFP has saved our pool!

[Sing4joyok]

New TFP member here. Never wanted a pool as we had one growing up that was a lot of work, but 2020 shutdown our local pool so we "dove" in and by the 2nd season (2021) we had an algae mess.
So thankful to find TFP! 2022 After extensive reading on TFP, we drained 75% of the pool, vacuumed and cleaned the liner, and started anew with the TFP method. LOVING the lower cost AND ease of maintenance!

Two newbie questions:

1. I am confounded by what to do with the CYA levels. Right now there are less that 20 in our pool. I'm nervous to add as I believe the imbalance last season is what led to the constant algae battle. Is it ok to leave the CYA super low and simply add liquid chlorine every evening once the sun is down?

2. Borates - should I add or leave alone? Part of me desires the benefits of borates, but my oldest child had skin issues a decade ago when we used Borax in our laundry and I don't want to create skin trouble for her.

Thanks in advance for any input!

 

[mknauss]

It is wise to keep a level of CYA in the water to one protect the chlorine from the UV of the sun but also to moderate its harshness to skin, clothing, etc.
I suggest you add 20 ppm worth of CYA using the sock method. This assumes you have 20 ppm in the water, to target 40 ppm. It will not go up unless you add it. Test it monthly.

No real reason for borates. It helps moderate pH rise, but does not stop it.

And Welcome to the Forum! Glad it is helping you out.