Hello all! New to poolforum...questions on chlorine vs. bleach (sodium hypochlorite)

[EricRoberts]

I need some help with getting my pool ready. I have decided to stop using the pool store products, if possible, and start using what I believe to be the less expensive products that I can buy at the local retail store. The first thing I did a few days ago was add eight (8) jugs (121 oz.) of 8.25% bleach (sodium hypochlorite) for a total of 968 oz. This is before I had taken any water to be sampled. At this time, my water was green and looked like a swamp.
This changed the water color from green to blue but very cloudy, so I had the water tested today. Here are the results of the water test. What do you recommend that I add to get the pool in the ranges that it needs to be in?

I have a 33' round above ground pool that holds 27,000 gal. of water with a vinal lining
I started the pump the same day I added the bleach - 1/2 horse pump with sand filter.

Free Chlorine - 0.01 ppm
Total Chlorine - 0.01 ppm
Combined Chlorine - 0 ppm
pH - 7.2
Hardness - 437 ppm
Alkalinity - 115 ppm
Cyanuric Acid - 2 ppm
Copper - 0.1 ppm
Iron - 0 ppm

They (the retail pool store) indicated that I need to add 5 lbs. of shock tonight and another 5 lbs. of shock tomorrow
night and also maintain tabs (chlorine) in the floater 24/7.

I did add 3 large chlorine tabs to the floater and 1 large tab to the skimmer, but nothing else. I would like to switch from expensive "pool store" products to less expensive "retail store" products such as bleach, baking soda, baking powder,etc, if possible - but I am not sure how to.

I still have some bleach on hand, but not sure how much to use. They are 121 oz. liquid jugs with 8.25% sodium hypochlorite (says it yields 7.86% available chlorine & contains no phosphorus)....

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thx

[Watermom]

First thing --- order a good kit so you don't have to rely on the pool store. We recommend the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C which you can get through the test kit link in my signature below.

I am assuming the shock is calhypo? I wouldn't use it. Your calcium is already high and may contribute to cloudy water issues. (Plus, vinyl pools don't even need calcium.) I would just stick with bleach. In your pool, each gallon of 8.25% bleach will add about 3ppm of chlorine. Use that as a reference to figure out doses. Until you get the good kit, go to Walmart and pick up an OTO/Phenol Red kit (yellow and red drops). Also, get some distilled water, a couple of boxes of 20 Mule Team Borax (laundry aisle) and a bunch of bleach.

Go ahead and add about a half a box of Borax slowly to the skimmer. That should take your pH up to mid 7s.

Unless you added a lot this evening, add about 4 gallons of bleach tomorrow morning if possible. Tomorrow evening, test it with an OTO kit. Until your good kit comes, you can use a dilution method to test readings higher than 5. (Not super accurate, but better than nothing.) Go to www.poolsolutions.com. On the left-hand side, click on 'guides' and find the one about 'testing without a good kit. Try and keep your chlorine in the 10-12ppm range for now. Once your pool clears, you can let it drift down and keep it in the range recommended by the Best Guess Chlorine Chart in my signature.

As far as CYA, get the pool cleared up and then worry about the CYA reading. Personally, if it were my pool, I'd just buys some and add it separately. You could add about 8-9 lbs which would give you a CYA reading of about 40-45ppm which would be good. You add it by either pouring it into the skimmer and then keep the pump running for 4 or 5 days while it is dissolving or put it in an old sock and hang it in front of a return jet. If you give the sock a squeeze once in awhile, it helps it dissolve faster.

Hope this helps. Come back with more questions if needed.

(BTW -- when new members post, their post goes into a moderation queue to wait to be approved by one of us before it appears on the forum. I deleted your other post. I'm sure you posted again because you didn't see the first one after you submitted it.)

[EricRoberts]

Thank you so much! I will get these items as soon as possible and get started. Before I read your response, I had already put two (2) jugs of bleach 8.25% (121 oz.) in the pool, not knowing for sure what would be needed. I then realized that I needed to get more b/c I was out. This was last night. This morning I found that my wife had another jug in the laundry room that was 1/2 full, so I added it (Clorox regular 8.25%, 121 oz.). When I went out to the pool to add it, I noticed that the water appeared to be turning green since last night.
Does this change anything? I will be going to the store and getting all the things you recommended today and adding this evening - and anything else you thing might help.
Thank you again for your help!

[topher]

the other thing is leave your pump running 24/7 until your pool is shiny clear!

[Watermom]

Your pool is turning green because your chlorine dropped too low. Go ahead and shock it per my instructions above. (4 gallons this evening)