Brand New Pool Owner Needs Advice On When Swimming Can Commence!

[Jeannie]

We bought a new pool for our son for his bday. It is 21' Round ABG. It was installed yesterday. Based on how it's been filling I think it should be full by tomorrow late afternoon.

I have a truckload of chemicals that the pool store loaded me down with. I'd like to treat the pool tomorrow. How long after adding liquid magnet, algaecide and jump start can the kids go in the pool? Will it be useable by Friday?

Thanks!

[Watermom]

Hi Jeannie and welcome to the Pool Forum!

I hope you haven't opened the containers of all the stuff the pool store talked you into buying(so you can take it back) because odds are you don't need most of it. What exactly did you buy?

All you really need is a few jugs of plain household bleach, maybe some baking soda, a box of 20 Mule Team Borax (laundry aisle at Walmart). The only actual 'pool chemical' you need is about 3 lbs. of CYA -- cyanuric acid which is also called stabilizer or conditioner. We'll tell you how to add it after you repost.

You do NOT need liquid magnet, algaecide and probably most of the other stuff.

Tell us what you have and we'll help you get started. We also need to know what kind of filter you have and what size of pump.

Do you have a good test kit? That is one of the most important things you need. You cannot rely on a pool store unless you are a gazillionaire cuz you've already found they''ll sell you more than you need. Sometimes, all the stuff they sell you will cause problems and then you'll have to go back and buy more stuff to clean up from the first mess they caused! You'll need a good test kit if you don't already have one. The one we recommend is the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C (same kit, larger bottle of some reagents). If you buy it through the Amazon link in my signature, the Pool Forum makes a little money on the sale which helps us keep this form online. Only buy if the seller is Amato Industries, however. Some other sellers are substituting the K-2005 which you do NOT want. If Amato isn't listed, wait a day or two and try again. They seem to restock pretty quickly when they sell out. (While you are waiting on the good kit, from Walmart, pick up a cheap OTO/Phenol Red kit (yellow and red drops).

Your kids should be able to swim within a few hours of the pool being filled. Reply with requested info and go to Walmart and get the stuff I suggested and we'll help get you going!

[famousdavis]

We just built an in-ground pool this year, but before that, I used various above-ground pools. We started with 10' round and finished with, I think, 15' or 16' round. We never used anything other than chlorine/bleach and baking soda, and the water always looked good as long as there was chlorine in the pool. I did later switch to using a spa floating container with 1" stabilized chlorine tablets -- that was actually much easier and less messy than dealing with bottles of either chlorine or bleach. Never had an algae problem unless I didn't stay on top of the chlorine level. It was easy to remove the floating container when we swam, then drop it back it when we were finished.

[Jeannie]

Thank you!

I got:

Liquid Magnet
Chlor No More with 3 bucket of Chlorine bullet tabs
Jump Start
Algaecide
Conditioner & Stabilizer
Green Out

The pool store won't take back anything with Chlorine or Bromine in it - so I guess I'm absolutely stuck with the Chlorine and the Green out.. I don't know if any of the other things have Bromine in them..

I can tell you that the installers told me I have a terribly thin liner (the store threw it in with the pool) - and that I should be careful about the amount of chlorine I use.

I also have a 1.5 HP Sand filter and 100lbs of sand.

I really appreciate any help! :)

=======================

Oops.. forgot to mention I do have a test kit.. I really don't know if it's good or not? The girl at the pool place recommended it. It's AquaChek 7 in 1. This one: http://www.amazon.com/AquaChek-Select-Pool-Strips-Complete/dp/B0039UZD78/ref=sr_1_25?ie=UTF8&qid=1311199556&sr=8-25

[Watermom]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you have lots of stuff you don't need and shouldn't use. Using too much pool store goop usually just makes a mess of your pool.

What is the ingredient in the bucket of chlorine tabs? If they are trichlor tabs, you can use them for awhile as long as they are NOT dual acting tabs which have copper in them. You do NOT want any product with copper in it used in your pool. Contrary to popular belief, it is not chlorine that causes fingernails and light colored hair to turn green, it is the copper.

Do not use the algaecide unless it is Polyquat 60%. Other types may have copper in them and/or may cause your water to get foamy.

ABSOLUTELY DO NOT use the Green Out if it is bromine.

The only other thing you bought that you needed was the stabilizer. I'd try and take everything else back.

As far as your kit goes, test strips are not reliable nor very accurate. Around here, they are referred to as goofy strips. The kit we recommend is the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C (same kit, larger bottle of some reagents). If you buy it through the Amazon link in my signature, the Pool Forum makes a little money on the sale which helps us keep this form online. Only buy if the seller is Amato Industries, however. Some other sellers are substituting the K-2005 which you do NOT want. If Amato isn't listed, wait a day or two and try again. They seem to restock pretty quickly when they sell out.

Is your pump hooked up yet? I'm hoping the answer is no because it is WAY too big for your pool and your filter is WAY too small for that pump. The problem with a pump that is too big paired with a filter that is too small is that the powerful pump pushes stuff through the filter with too much force and doesn't allow the filter to catch debris. As a result, it is just returned to your pool. *If* you haven't hooked up your pump and filter yet, let us know and one of our equipment gurus will make a better recommendation for you as to what size you should trade it for.

I would suggest doing a lot of reading here on the forum and also on our sister website www.poolsolutions.com. You will learn a lot about starting up and maintaining a pool.

[Jeannie]

Thank you so much for your help.. I don't know what to do now. I wish I'd come here sooner (pool was an impulse buy) - they said we can't return the filter or the chemicals.. so I'm stuck with hundreds of dollars worth of stuff that I don't need/can't use. I can't afford a new pump after all the money we've already spent.. so I guess we won't be using a pool this summer after all. The kids are going to be very sad but lesson learned. I'll have to close it up and try again next summer!

Thanks again!

[Watermom]

I wouldn't close up. Go ahead and put the pool up but just be aware that you may have filtering issues. Maybe before setting it up next year you can sell this pump and buy a different pump/filter setup.

Also, just because you have those chemicals that you unfortunately can't return doesn't mean you have to pour them in your pool. Again, maybe you can sell them. (You do need the stabilizer, though.)

Just go to Walmart and pick up several jugs of plain unscented bleach (generic is fine and is what most of us use), a box of 20 Mule Team Borax, and a couple of boxes of baking soda. Also, while there, pick up a cheap OTO/Phenol Red test kit (yellow and red drops).

We'll help you get some fun out of this swim season. Don't go back to that pool store! They don't know what they are doing chemical-wise or equipment-wise! If you are able, get the good kit I mentioned in an earlier post. It will be invaluable in being able to maintain your pool.

Is the pump hooked and up and running yet? Go get the OTO kit and bleach, etc. ASAP. Also, tell us the ingredients of the tabs and the jump start, please.

[Jeannie]

Thanks again.

The Jump Start says it is a Catalytic Clarifier and contains cationic polyamine solution, citric acid and water.

I have 2 types of tabs. One bucket is just Chlorine "Bullet" tabs and the other is 'chlorine enhancement' tablets. This is what they say is the conditioner and stabilizer. I also have a "Chlor no More" Ionizing Orb? The main ingredient??? COPPER SULFATE! :(

I feel like a real dope.

I couldn't find a test kit at the store - but I did get the bleach, the baking soda and the Borax. I also ordered the test kit from Amazon.

[Watermom]

Don't use the Jump Start. Don't use the Chlor no More. Copper! YIKES!!! What is the actual ingredient in the bullet tabs and the enhancement tabs?

Did the store not have a cheap OTO/Phenol Red kit? Somebody should. Walmart, K-mart, Home Depot, Lowe's, pool store. But, if you have to go to the pool store to get it, just don't buy anything else!

Don't feel like a dope. You had no way to know. And, like anybody else who has a new pool for the first time, you assume the pool store will give you good advice. It's a shame when that doesn't happen and unfortunately, we see it all too often. The good news is that you found the Pool Forum and there are lots of people here who are willing to help!

[Jeannie]

Okay.. found a kit at another pool store. Just bought it without speaking to anyone else! I can return the Jump Start and will also return the Chlor No More and Algaecide. When I called the pool store about this they said not to use straight bleach or it would void my warranty because bleach destroys filters and liners. I guess they won't know though, right? I'm stuck with the Chlorine though. So.. how do I get this party started?

[Watermom]

Baloney!! Bleach is 6% sodium hypochlorite. How come that would void the warranty if their pool store liquid chlorine which is either 10 or 12.5% sodium hypochlorite won't? Just more evidence that the pool store doesn't know what they are talking about.

Test your pH and post the reading.

I'm guessing your volume to be around 9700 gallons. Go ahead and add a 3-qt. jug of plain bleach slowly to the skimmer while the pump is running. That will take your chlorine up to about 4.6ppm. Until you get some CYA in there, you'll need to test at least morning and evening and even in the afternoon if you are home, and each time add enough bleach to get back to around 5ppm. For reference, in your pool, each quart of 6% bleach will add about 1.5ppm of chlorine.

You still haven't given the ingredients of the items requested in the above posts. We need to know to be able to advise you. You need CYA (stabilizer). You still haven't told us what the ingredients are in the tabs and enhancement sticks, so I can't recommend that you use the sticks to add CYA because they could have something else in them as well.

[Jeannie]

Forgot to add.. the pool volume is listed at about 11,000 gallons.

Just tested using Phenol Red. It showed 6.8.

[Watermom]

Most AG pools have 48" walls but water levels don't go to the top of the walls. Typically, water levels are about 4 inches below that. That is how I came up with the volume.

i assume that 6.8 is the lowest reading that your pH test can show. What that means is that your pH could actually be much lower than that. You need to raise it above 7.0 ASAP as readings below 7.0 are acidic and can damage your pool. Add a half a box of 20 Mule Team Borax slowly to the skimmer while the pump is running. After a couple of hours, retest and redose until you get the pH between 7.2 - 7.8. Once it starts to move, you can add smaller doses of Borax.

BTW -- It is fine to add bleach and Borax one right after the other. Won't hurt a thing. I do so all the time.

[Jeannie]

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Should I add the chloro-guard tablets? They don't have any ingredients listed.. just directions to put it in the skimmer and that it is a clarifier and conditioner.

[Watermom]

NO. Combo products are risky especially when you don't know the ingredients. Just go and buy some stabilizer separately. You'll need about 3 lbs. You may be able to find it at Walmart, Lowe's or Home Depot. It may be called stabilizer or conditioner. Check the label ingredients. If it says cyanuric acid or isocyanuric acid, it is the right stuff. If you don't find it any of those places, you may have to ........... go back to the pool store!! :(:( If you do, do NOT let them sell you anything else!

To add the CYA, while the pump is running, slowly pour the CYA granules into the skimmer so it won't clog the pipes. Then, make sure you run your pump 24/7 for about 4 to 5 days to give it time to totally dissolve in the filter. Also, don't backwash the filter for that time period or else you'll just be throwing the CYA out. That amount should give you about 40ppm of CYA which would be a good level.

For the first week until the CYA dissolve, you'll need to test and add bleach a couple times per day as explained in post #11 above. A week after adding the CYA, you should be able to go to testing the cl and adding bleach in the evenings only. With a CYA level of 40, you'll want to keep your chlorine level between 3-6 ALL the time or else you risk an algae bloom. (See the Best Guess Chlorine Chart in my signature below for more about the connection between CYA and chlorine levels.)

Are you feeling overwhelmed with all this or do you feel confident that you understand? It is really pretty easy. The first week is the hardest because you have to test and add bleach so often. After that, all it takes is about 5 minutes per evening to test and add bleach. You'll want to test chlorine daily, pH once or twice per week. Those are the critical things.