Two Questions: Fiberglass pool repair and chlorine questions

[moosemudder]

Hello,

We have a 21,000 fiberglass pool installed by Fibertech in the early 200's and there are certain areas that look as if the fiberglass is wearing off. Seeing that this company has been sold multiple times and from what I have found on the internet they do not guarantee their 20 year warranty. We received one quote so far to replace the fiberglass but they wanted 5k just to remove the fiberglass. Is it possible to repair the fiberglass in the worn areas and not have to redo the entire pool? The fiberglass is not a shell it was done over concrete.

I am also having a hard time maintaining adequate levels of chlorine in my pool and the gentlement at Leslie's said I needed to add a conditioner to it. He said this would prevent the chlorine from evaporating so quickly. The link is the product he told me would work. Before I spend $50 on this product, will this truely help maintain the level of chlorine in my pool?

http://www.lesliespool.com/leslies-chlorine-stabilizer-water-conditioner-buckets/chlorine-stabilizer.htm

Thanks for the help.

Jimmy

[Watermom]

Hi, Jimmy, and welcome to the Pool Forum!

I'll have to let someone else answer your question about your fiberglass repair because that is something I don't have the answer to.

As for your question about stabilizer -------- it would help if you could provide some current water testing results taken with a drops-based kit and we also need the CYA reading. It is true that without enough CYA in an outdoor pool, that your chlorine is quickly lost to the sun. But, before I can recommend that you add more CYA, I really need to know your current level.

Do you have a good kit? The test kit that we think is by far the best is the Taylor K2006 or 2006C (better buy). Not available locally but you can get it through this link that takes you to Amazon: http://pool9.net/tk/ Having this kit makes it so much easier for you to maintain your pool without having to depend on a pool store for testing. (Most pool store testing is not very accurate. Think about it. They are in business to sell you stuff so they have no motivation to tell you that everything is ok even if it is.) It also makes it much easier for us to be able to help you.

In the meantime, if your pool store uses the "disappearing black dot" CYA test, ask them to test it for you for now and report the reading and then we'll better be able to advise you as to whether or not you need to add more.

[moosemudder]

Thanks Watermom,

I have the basic chlorine and ph test kit which the pool store told me is all i need. After reading on here for a week I ordered the Taylor 2006c from here and I am still waiting to get it. I will try to get the numbers and put them on this thread to make answering the question a little easier.

[Watermom]

Good decision to order the kit. You'll be glad you did!

[moosemudder]

From your experience how easy is it to use the kit as it appears to have a slight learning curve.

[Watermom]

When you first open it, it looks intimidating but after you do the tests a couple of times, you'll be a pro! Here are some testing demo videos that might help:> http://pool9.net/K2006-vid/

(Until your registration is completed, you won't be able to see the rest of the forum or follow links while you are logged in. So, copy that link and paste it into a browser window after you first log out.)

[moosemudder]

Hello,

Here are my numbers from 8/26 for a 21,000 gallon outdoor uncovered inground fiberglass pool:

1.6 FC
0.6 CC
7.0 PH
60 TA
220 CH
80 CA

I am having issues with using the watergram to see what I need to adjust to get my numbers back to 0 from a -0.9.

Thanks for the help

[moosemudder]

Where is my post?

[BigDave]

The FC is far too low for CA of 80ppm. Minimum of 5ppm - closer to 8ppm would be better. I'd pour in two jugs of 8.25% bleach just to start.
pH is kinda low, bring it up with 20 mule team borax from the laundry aisle. Start b adding one box, let it dissolve and mix, test again, add more as necessary. If you put it in the skimmer, go very slowly, borax can clump up and form a rock hard plug.
Ignore the wheel and the booklet - they are very confusing. You needn't worry about negative saturation index with a fiberglass pool.

Here's a hint: If you use a 10ml sample for the chlorine tests and multiply drop count by 0.5ppm you'll conserve your test reagent. Also: if one scoop of DPD powder turns the sample pink, you don't need another.

[Watermom]

Where is my post?
When new members post, their posts go into a moderation queue to wait until one of us reads and approves it before modding it in. We try and empty the queue multiple times per day so it usually isn't too long before posts appear on the forum.

Welcome to the Pool Forum!

[moosemudder]

sounds great bigdave. i have only added a 1 gallon jug of liquid choriline so far from doing the test. Leslies told me my stablizer was low so I added that at the beginning of the week. I am trying to add stuff slowly to learn how everything is effected.

Is borax better to use than the muratic acid? I have both but have only used the borax to dry out deer skin and clean laundry with.

I question why the kit came with only double of a couple items and after doing my first test at 25ml, I can see how you can go through some taylor products.

I will start with the two suggestions and repost my numbers later.

Thanks for all the help.

[Watermom]

Borax and muriatic acid are not for the same thing. Borax is used to raise pH and muriatic acid is used to lower it.

[moosemudder]

Thanks. We received a lot of rain last month and i was using the acid to lower it. It seems to be an ongoing battle.

[Watermom]

That is the opposite of what rain does to my pool. We typically have acid rain and my pH drops some when it rains.