New liner - fill with well water

[ksturge]

I just installed a new liner and I'm filling the pool with well water. I know there is a lot of rust, but it's all I can do at this point. When the water gets to the skimmers and we start filtering - what would be the first step to getting this water balanced. I have Ben's kit - should I post numbers? I know I'll need to start the muriatic acid, but I'm wondering the order of everything. Will I only add acid - take care of that problem and then move on or can some things be done together? Thanks in advance for any help.

[JohnT]

My first step would be to get a complete set of numbers on your fill water. I'd start letting the fill hose circulate some metal sequestrant as it fills to get the iron bound up.

[ksturge]

The numbers today (about 1/3 full):
PH: 7.7
Alk: 218
CYA: 0
Chl: 0
Iron: 2.2

I put 32 oz of sequestering agent in. Would you suggest working on getting in some CYA as soon as I can start filtering? Can I do anything else at the same time or should I get that number up first?

[JohnT]

I put 32 oz of sequestering agent in. Would you suggest working on getting in some CYA as soon as I can start filtering? Can I do anything else at the same time or should I get that number up first?
CYA is a low priority. You're not swimming, so chlorine staying power isn't a big concern. Getting it full and starting the filter should be your big push now.

If you really have iron at 2.2ppm, I've seen it advised to add 1 quart of metal sequestrant for each 0.5ppm of iron for each 10,000 gallons of water. I have no experience with that or what else it might do to water chemistry, but with a new liner you don't want iron stains.

[ksturge]

Thanks, I'm glad I put the sequestering agent in.

As soon as the filter is running, what should I put in first?

[LoveinGA]

Eeeek. I've been filling up my vinyl liner pool with well water for the past 2 years, and this is the first I've heard that I need to check the iron and isolate it. :confused:

I use a Walmart OTO test kit to do my balance testing - what kind of test do I need to buy to check the iron?

[mbar]

The first thing I would do is to put in the sequestering agent. Add at least a quart for every 10,000 gals of water. Your alkalinity is high, so once you get the filter running, you can add acid to bring the ph down to 7 while aerating the water. This will start to bring down the alk while raising the ph. You will have to keep a very close eye on the ph and not let it get over 7.4. Keeping a low ph while dealing with metals is a good idea. Once you have the filter going, always add your water through the skimmer. Put a skimmer sock on too, that will help filter out some of the iron particles. If you have a DE or sand filter, put a trichlor puck in the skimmer basket. This will help the iron to fall out onto the filter instead of the pool surface. After you get your water in and the ph is low - try to keep it between 7 and 7.2, you can start to add the chlorine - you should already have the chlorine puck in the basket. Bring up your chlorine levels slowly. I like to use bleach - so you can control the amount of ppms you are going up. If you use bleach, make sure you don't pour it in the skimmer while the pucks are in there! you can pour it into the return stream.

Some of the basic reasons you will get stains on the surface of the pool are when you shock a pool that has high ph and metals in it. This will cause any metals that are not sequestered to fall out of solution and stain the surface of the pool. So what you want to do is to make sure there is enough sequestering agent in the water before you do anything. Always have the ph around 7 - 7.3, until you are sure you have the metals under control. Run your filter 24/7 until your water is clear, and balanced. Backwash often, and use a skimmer sock.

I would get the ph down, aerate the water to bring down the alkalinity, and then start the chorine. You can also put a stocking filled with cya in the skimmer, or hang it by the return jet so that it can disolve, the trichlor puck will add cya in small amounts and keep the ph low at the same time, so keep one in the skimmer basket for a while, but you must keep the filter running all the time you have the puck in the skimmer. Feel free to ask any other questions you may have:)

[mbar]

LoveinGa, don't worry about getting a test to test iron - if you haven't had any problems with staining, then you don't have to worry about it:)

[ksturge]

Thanks for all of your advice. I'll get that Alk down and keep a close watch on the ph. If the PH starts to creap up what should I do?

What is a skimmer sock?

[mbar]

You can use muriatic acid, or ph down to keep your ph down. You can get skimmer socks at any pool supply store - here is alink to what they look like, it is the third one down on the left:
http://www.poolgear.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=64

You can find them cheaper if you shop around, but this has free shipping. You can also cut off a leg of pantyhose and put it on the skimmer. It just catches small particles that the filter sometimes doesn't get:)