Which ones to tackle first.

[JoniTull]

Hello to all,
I’m stuck at the moment. I will try to explain the best I can so if you stay with me, bless you.
I have read several topics in the forums and keep coming up with a mix of steps to take. I’m pretty sure I need to slam my pool but needing to know if I need to bring certain numbers up prior to doing that.
My readings as of today.
FC-1
CC-1
CH- 90
TA- 45
PH- 6.7
CYA-0

I’ve recently bought and installed a new Hayward pump and filter.

I did go a period where my pump and filter both were both broken so I aggressively manually took care of my pool. Then within that time, my dolphin broke so I was $h@t up a creek without a paddle. I aggressively manually kept up with the pool by adding liquid chlorine and brushing. I did use the bag of (shock) but didn’t get as good of results as with the liquid chlorine 10%. My new Hayward pump and filter are now installed and seems to be working fine. I also have a new dolphin.
In the past, I’ve struggled with the Cya. First it was high. I took some water out and we had a good bit of rain so the numbers went down. We have had so much of rain in the last 45 days my cya is 0 now.
I have been adding liquid chlorine more often and keep minimum 3 disc in the floating cylinder at all times. Sometimes I fill two and have 6 disc floating.

In the past week my ph has dipped down And I did add borax.
Another big issue is when I was manually keeping it up for at least 2-3 weeks the pool never got green but towards the end it was getting there and Im afraid I’ve developed mustard algae during that time and it keeps sneaking back.
In the last few days while it has been clear, I found gold algae in spots on the floor, sections on the wall and in grooves in the liner where the vinyl liner is wrinkled. The first time I added a gallon of liquid chlorine in 3 days in a row and it went away. My cya remained just about 0.
Now it’s back for the last two days which I did add a gallon of the liquid chlorine for the last two nights.
My question is being that several things need to be addressed, do I bring up the PH before I slam my pool. Should I add dry stabilizer first? And/or add something for algae? (Confused on what to use for algae).
What steps should I take first?
As for the algae. I’ve read so much about it that I’m back confused. Some prevent, some kill, some have copper and some have the polyquart 60 (spelling is wrong). Don’t use this kind but do use it if..
Also, I read under the mustard algae blog here that mustard algae doesn’t stick to the walls but I’ve read other places it indeed does. Not sure if I do have mustard algae but i having something blooming.
If you help me out a bit I would really appreciate it.
One other thing. I’m not to certain how do I figure out how to get to the % of the slam process to kill what I have going on.
If you have stayed with me, thank you so much. Your help is much appreciated.

 

[Texas Splash]

So let's get you going again:
1 - Stop using tabs for a while. They are acidic and can pull the pH down. Your pH is much too low.
2 - Use some Borax to get the pH to 7.2.
3 - At the same time, get a sock soaking with granular stabilizer to increase the CYA to 30. After about 30 min of soaking. squeeze all the mush out of that sock.
4 - Increase the FC to "12" and follow the SLAM Process page.

That's it. Let us know if you have any questions.

 

[JoniTull]

Ok I understand 1-3. I’m going take my floaters out. I’m going to add borax, according to the pool math. Then I will add the dry stabilizer to a sock or pantyhose (just tie it to something)? Then squeeze after 30 minutes or so. I think I have that.

I’m not clear on #4. Increase the FC to 12. I do that by adding liquid chlorine and then testing on the red and yellow block tester? Sorry I get confused when I need to do that. Thank you for your help!

 

[ccbill]

What type of test kit do you have? Hopefully you have a tf-100 or Taylor test kit with the FAS-DPD Free Chlorine test. Your signature and Poolmath logs say your pool is 13,500 gallons - adding 1-1/2 gallons of 10% chlorine should raise your FC by 11. But you do need to test.

 

[ccbill]

The FAS-DPD chlorine test is the one where you add a couple scoops of a powder and the water turns pink then you add drops and count how many it takes to make the sample clear.

 

[JoniTull]

The FAS-DPD chlorine test is the one where you add a couple scoops of a powder and the water turns pink then you add drops and count how many it takes to make the sample clear.

What type of test kit do you have? Hopefully you have a tf-100 or Taylor test kit with the FAS-DPD Free Chlorine test. Your signature and Poolmath logs say your pool is 13,500 gallons - adding 1-1/2 gallons of 10% chlorine should raise your FC by 11. But you do need to test.

Yes I have TF- pro xl kit. I ordered from here.

I’ve taken out my floaters, added borax. Now I’m adding the dry stabilizer to a pantyhose. Just tie from my ladder?
After that I’ll add 1 1/2 gallons of liquid chlorine. I need to go back to the first post to see how long after do I add the liquid chlorine. I had everything here so that’s great. I am going to run to wm and grab more liquid chlorine and borax.

 

[JoniTull]

So let's get you going again:
1 - Stop using tabs for a while. They are acidic and can pull the pH down. Your pH is much too low.
2 - Use some Borax to get the pH to 7.2.
3 - At the same time, get a sock soaking with granular stabilizer to increase the CYA to 30. After about 30 min of soaking. squeeze all the mush out of that sock.
4 - Increase the FC to "12" and follow the SLAM Process page.

That's it. Let us know if you have any questions.

Should I wait until all the dry stabilizer is dissolved into the pool or just start with the liquid chlorine. I should definitely check the cya right?

 

[ccbill]

1. Get the pH up before SLAMMING because the pH may not be reliable above 10 ppm FC (SLAM levels).
2. CYA is harder as even after you add some, it won't be fully dissolved for 24-48 hours. You don't want to add too much but you need some so the chlorine will last in your pool.
When to Test for CYA after Adding Stabilizer?
3. If it was me I would add liquid chlorine before I knew the final CYA concentration - as soon as the CYA in the sock melts.

Keep testing and adding CYA till it gets to 30.
Once you start SLAMMING don't stop till you pass all the criteria.

 

[jesse-99]

Tip for when adding the CYA. Add the CYA to a nylon sock (each sock can usually hold like 2-3 pounds of CYA). Tie a knot at the top of the sock and hang the bottom end of the sock where the CYA is into the pool in front of your pool return jet where the water comes shooting back into the pool. (you might need to put a small rock on the top end of the sock to hold it in place, cause the sock will bounce around wildy in the water from the pool return shooting water all over it). Within 12-24 hours, if you go out and "knead" the sock (like milking a cow), it'll dissolve into a fine cloud powder in a matter of minutes. (some people just add the CYA into a skimmer but... I like the nylon sock method best). Keep your pump running even after the CYA is all dissapted to help circulate the CYA. Then test your CYA again maybe 8 hours after that and see where it's at. HTH.

 

[JoniTull]

Tip for when adding the CYA. Add the CYA to a nylon sock (each sock can usually hold like 2-3 pounds of CYA). Tie a knot at the top of the sock and hang the bottom end of the sock where the CYA is into the pool in front of your pool return jet where the water comes shooting back into the pool. (you might need to put a small rock on the top end of the sock to hold it in place, cause the sock will bounce around wildy in the water from the pool return shooting water all over it). Within 12-24 hours, if you go out and "knead" the sock (like milking a cow), it'll dissolve into a fine cloud powder in a matter of minutes. (some people just add the CYA into a skimmer but... I like the nylon sock method best). Keep your pump running even after the CYA is all dissapted to help circulate the CYA. Then test your CYA again maybe 8 hours after that and see where it's at. HTH.

Thank you. I did that. But it’s not exactly in front of the return pump. But near by. Thank you I was wondering when to check the numbers again.

 

[jesse-99]

Long as it's getting some water movement through it, you should be okay.

 

[Newdude]

OK they got you going GREAT above. Just wanted to say

 

[JoniTull]

1. Get the pH up before SLAMMING because the pH may not be reliable above 10 ppm FC (SLAM levels).
2. CYA is harder as even after you add some, it won't be fully dissolved for 24-48 hours. You don't want to add too much but you need some so the chlorine will last in your pool.
When to Test for CYA after Adding Stabilizer?
3. If it was me I would add liquid chlorine before I knew the final CYA concentration - as soon as the CYA in the sock melts.

Keep testing and adding CYA till it gets to 30.
Once you start SLAMMING don't stop till you pass all the criteria.

Thank you for your help!

 

[wireform]

Try To keep the sock out in front of the return jet so the water hits it and helps it get out. Keep it away from the wall as you have a vinyl pool. Once you have the amount per poolmath for the 30 CYA count it as done as long as you're sure of the pool capacity and you don't need to keep testing for it.

 

[Texas Splash]

FWIW, I place my stabilizer in an old white tube sock (because I don't have nylons that anyone knows about - ha ha), and let it soak for about 30 minutes. I may hang the sock near a return jet or just let it sit in the skimmer basket. After that 30 minutes, it starts to get mushy, so I kneel down and start squeezing the sock continuously until all the "mushy" stabilizer is out. Usually takes me about 5-10 minutes of squeezing. Good luck!

 

[JoniTull]

Try To keep the sock out in front of the return jet so the water hits it and helps it get out. Keep it away from the wall as you have a vinyl pool. Once you have the amount per poolmath for the 30 CYA count it as done as long as you're sure of the pool capacity and you don't need to keep testing for it.

I added the dry stabilizer in a nylon stocking, the amount 5lbs according to pool math. I kept mushing it and it took a while, last bit dissolved late last night when I got home after I mushed it. (a good day and half). Last night I added a gallon of liquid chlorine. I went to 2 WMs last night, all out of the liquid chlorine. I bought some gallons of bleach and a bag of Walmart shock. Today, the gold yellowish stuff was back on the ladder and in spots on the floor. I brushed some and cleaned my dolphin and let her vacuum. It came up but the water got a little murky not horrible but not clear.
Tonight I added a gallon and half. Should I finish off the 2nd gallon?
Before adding it, these were my numbers:
In my little yellow and red cylinder CL was at 5
FC 1.5
CC 1.5
PH 7.2 barely
TA 60
CYA 100
CH 100
Should I try to bring up my PH as well with borax?
I’m not to worried that my cya number is a little high be star it’s been raining every day, except today lol.
Thank you again for your help.

 

[Texas Splash]

"Houston we have a problem." I don't understand how your CYA went from zero to 100. Are you sure you performed the test correctly? 5 lbs of stabilizer should only increase the CYA by about 45, so tomorrow you'll want to confirm that for sure. A CYA of 100 is way too high, so hopefully it's just a simple testing error. See my note below in case it helps. In addition, your FC of less than 2 will always be a recipe for algae. We always reference the FC/CYA Levels to see what our FC should be compared to the CYA.

CYA Testing:
Proper lighting is critical for the CYA test, so you want to test for CYA outside on a bright sunny day. Taylor recommends standing outside with your back to the sun and the view tube in the shade of your body. Use the mixing bottle to combine/gently mix the required amounts of pool water and R-0013 reagent, let sit for 30 seconds, then gently mix again. Then, while holding the skinny tube with the black dot at waist level, begin squirting the mixed solution into the skinny tube. Watch the black dot until it completely disappears. If it helps, pour a little, look away, then look back and pour some more. Some people like to squirt enough solution to go line-by-line for a better feel. Once it disappears, record the CYA reading. After the first test, you can pour the mixed solution from the skinny view tube back to the mixing bottle, shake, and do the same test a second, third, or fourth time to instill consistency in your technique, become more comfortable with the testing, and validate the CYA reading. If you are still questioning your own results, have a friend or two do the same test 2-3 times. Share your results only after everyone is done to see if you came up with the same average results.

 

[Texas Splash]

For reference sake when using the PoolMath APP, one gallon of 10% strength liquid chlorine should increase your FC by about 7 ppm.

 

[JoniTull]

I added the dry stabilizer in a nylon stocking, the amount 5lbs according to pool math. I kept mushing it and it took a while, last bit dissolved late last night when I got home after I mushed it. (a good day and half). Last night I added a gallon of liquid chlorine. I went to 2 WMs last night, all out of the liquid chlorine. I bought some gallons of bleach and a bag of Walmart shock. Today, the gold yellowish stuff was back on the ladder and in spots on the floor. I brushed some and cleaned my dolphin and let her vacuum. It came up but the water got a little murky not horrible but not clear.
Tonight I added a gallon and half. Should I finish off the 2nd gallon?
Before adding it, these were my numbers:
In my little yellow and red cylinder CL was at 5
FC 1.5
CC 1.5
PH 7.2 barely
TA 60
CYA 100
CH 100
Should I try to bring up my PH as well with borax?
I’m not to worried that my cya number is a little high be star it’s been raining every day, except today lol.
Thank you again for your help.

I added the dry stabilizer according to pool math but I’m kind of thinking after re-reading these comments that I should have added some but not all, but to just get to 30. But it’s up, it’s 60.

 

[JoniTull]

"Houston we have a problem." I don't understand how your CYA went from zero to 100. Are you sure you performed the test correctly? 5 lbs of stabilizer should only increase the CYA by about 45, so tomorrow you'll want to confirm that for sure. A CYA of 100 is way too high, so hopefully it's just a simple testing error. See my note below in case it helps. In addition, your FC of less than 2 will always be a recipe for algae. We always reference the FC/CYA Levels to see what our FC should be compared to the CYA.

Hmm I’m not sure how it jumped.
In the past I couldn’t get correct readings for cya, so they advised me to add the little dropper to 7.5 with pool water, then fill to 15 with tap water. Shake/mix then squeeze out to keep 7.5. Then add the regiment till it’s at 15. Mix wait 30 seconds, shake and see if I can see the black dot. Then double that number.
Now it could have went up to 40, so I assume it could be 80?