worst pool opening yet

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L

lawson23

0
May 11, 2018
42
Lexington, KY
I need some help. Last year I had a minor issue with some Algae (cleaned this up) and flushed (sprayed with water) my filters at end of year and before we opened this year.

So opening... Opening up the pool was the worst it has ever looked. Very dark cant' see the bottom in the shallow area. I have PooLife Turbo Shock and up to this year have been using the PooLife tablets. I have a inline chlorinator. I have dumped anywhere from 8 to 9 lbs of the shock in the pool and it has cleared up but it is still very cloudy. Still can't see bottom in shallow end.

I took my water in to have it tested because I cant' read test results from pooLife strips or the ph/chlorine chemical test kit (hydrotools swimline), I have. It is never what I think it is vs what the pool store will provide.

Test results (yesterday):
Free Chlorine .99 ppm
Total Chlorine 3.11 ppm
Combined Chlorine 2.12 ppm
PH 7.1 - I thought this was much lower like in the 6 range from my testing
TA 40 ppm - (they said to add 25lbs of Akalinity+ and I had this on hand so added it, yesterday)
Calcium hardness 137ppm - (they said to add 25lbs of Calcium+ and I have this on hand but they said add it after pool is clear)
CYA - 2 ppm ( they recommend adding 5.5lbs of stabilizer at time I add Calcium+)
Copper - 0 ppm
Iron - 0 ppm
Total Dissolved Solids - 0 ppm
Phosphates - 521 ppb
saturation index -0.7 (unbalanced)
Endure 0 ppm

They said I should add two bottles of flocculant but I have a cartridge filter system and everything I read says DO NOT DO THIS and told them no. I have a bottle of clarifier but have been reluctant to add it also.

I have ran the robotic vacuum about 8 times and know I need to manually scrub also just really rainy here now and getting COLD.

Really trying to just get an idea of what I should do next. I was going to use PoolMath to help me but can't get logged into that application.

I was also looking to possibly buy better testing kits but if I can't tell what the Dang value does it make sense for me to spend a ton of money on a high quality test kit? I don't know if I'm blind or what it is but I can never tell what is going on with the testing. This has been the most frustrating experience with owning a pool.

Sorry for all the ranting...
 
"23", welcome to TFP! :wave: Your situation is common and why you ended-up here. Pool store testing, advice, and chemicals are not the answer. You should do the following:
- Get your own proper test kit; TF-100 (link below) or Taylor K-2006C
- Use that kit to follow the SLAM Process using regular bleach/pool chlorine - same thing.

Follow our ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry and those Vital Links below in my signature and you'll much better off. Let us know if you have anymore questions.

Test Kits Compared
 
@lawson23 What are the issues you are having with testing yourself? Is it just that it doesn't match the store values? Or is there something more fundamental, e.g. colorblindness?

It looks to me like you need to get the CYA raised and then start adding chlorine.
 
So for me it is really a color differentiation. The shade differences are so slight that it is impossible for me to accurately tell. It is not color blindness but maybe old age not sure. My eye sight has gone to the crapper in the last year and now I need to wear readers.

I need it to be like blue, red, green, yellow not fifty shades of a color because I just can't tell the darn difference or what I think is it will be exactly what it isn't.

I have taken water in to the pool store. Had them test it then me do the test with strips and chemicals and I just can't tell. To me what it looks like is not what their test produces. This is like the most important thing to be able to do and super failure at it.
 
A proper test kit uses color changes. Only the pH test uses color gradation for a result. And you can get a pH electronic tester for that, if necessary.
See TF100TestKit
 
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If you get the test kit recommended to you, you won’t have any issues reading the results. Once you finish the slam and follow tfp you will save the kit price many times over. Btw, I don’t cover my pool, one of the benefits of sitting in the middle of a ten acre field, but I test on holidays in the winter and add bleach as needed. I have never opened to a green pool. In fact I have never slammed either knock on wood. Not only does tfp work but the water is...magnificent. You’ll know the difference next time you hit the hotel pool...
 
So I bought the k-2006 kit as it looks like it has a lot of added information that the tf-100 did not. Do you think this is needed or a waste over the tf-100? Looks like I'm going to need to buy more of the of the chlorine test. Watching videos I like how it is more math than color differences so hopefully I can't fail on this one. Do you guys think the speedstir is needed?

@TomGallopavo I agree it is one thing I need to do more (adding chlorine periodically over winter) and have not.
 
The K2006 and TF100 have the same tests. You need them all. But the TF100 is a far better value. The K2006 has small amounts of all reagents so you will need to immediately order additional FAS-DPD and CYA test reagents.
 
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Yeah, a drop test kit has a much more dramatic color change... pink to clear, green to red, etc. That should address the issue you are having. Test strips are much more subjective.

The one exception is pH. You'll want a electronic pH meter if you want to accuracy without judging shades of yellow and red.

I don't think the Speedstir is necessary, but others find their results more repeatable with them.

One last thing... don't try to compare your results with the pool store. You'll just find contradiction. Believe in yourself! :)
 

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I just bought one for the first time this season. I bought this one (pH Meter) from TFTestKits.net where I also buy the reagents.

Its fine for what you need but feels a bit cheap. Last night, I was actually thinking about what a nicer one might cost. Most of the ones on Amazon are about the same, though, until you get into laboratory ones.

Note that you also need to have de-ionized water to do the calibration of the meters. You're also supposed to rinse them in distilled water. That suggestion lasted a day. I've just been using tap (well) water since.
 
For me the TF-100 was the way to go, a lot of great testing supplies and you can reorder any reagents for a fair price and decent shipping time. I was intimidated at first but I found the TF-100 much easier to use than those test strips or any of the stuff you buy in the stores.
 
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I will say the test kit I like still don't trust the ph because my eyes just can't see it so I may have to invest in a meter. One thing and I'm sure all this will improve as I do more and more of my testing.

The test where you do FAS-DPD where you drop R0871 until Pink goes clear well I did this and counted but as I was then reading instructions the color went pink again. So I did not add to my value but to move onto the CC test I did add a drop a few times of the R0871 to clear it back up before starting the CC portion. Not sure if this was bad and causing a bad cc test value.

I'm going to test again today and start the SLAM process.
 
Sorry one other question regarding my testing. Regarding the CYA.
If I get a value that is between 30 and 40 do I guess roughly like say 35 if in the middle is the cya value? I'm sure this has been answered a 100 times and sorry for the duplication.
 
CYA test results are rounded up. So any result between the lines is the larger numbered test result.

The vial is in logarithmic scale. So it is not viable to interpolate between the lines. Just use the whole numbers, such as 50, 40, 30, ....
 
So everyone my test are going well. I have kept the chlorine high (slam level) and my last day of the slam my pool was clear as a whistle and then we got like 7 inches of rain so I had to dispose of a ton of water! My CYA has dropped back under 20 because of this. Before I was still getting CC but it was only at .2. Will I ever see CC go to zero?

So I'm going with the theory that I can stop the SLAM and go back to normal maintenance. My other question is and I'm guessing I was just getting ripped off is regarding my CH which is reported a little low but in the pool school it says no need to worry about CH in a vinyl liner pool. So does this mean do not add calcium and never test for this again? Unfortunately I have a 25lb bucket of this stuff sitting in my stash of chemicals.
 
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CC of less than 1 is of no consequence.

You have a liner pool. And no heater. Your CH level on the low side is of no consequence. You do not need to add calcium, unless your pool water foams. That is a sign of very low CH.
 

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