How to CYA? Keep Chlorine in?

I started a thread under Spring start up! Thanks for all the help...


Now that I have added my 39 oz of bleach (5,900 gal AG) to my fresh tap water last night and then another 16 oz today....it's not staying I had about 1ppm this morning now even after adding 12oz today around noon I have even less....Guessing it's because there is no CYA...how exactly do I add CYA? I know there was tri-chlor tabs or something I needed to get....I AM NOT POOL SMART so please break it in to dummy terms when you lay it out! I know I got to put them in a sock too...mean while do I keep pouring the bleach to it? I can't seem to get it up to 3ppm which is where I need to maintain right? Once i get the chlorine tabs and everything gets evened out while I just let them float 24/7 or will i need to add bleach constantly still?

Here's the part of the post I wrote yesterday that addresses your questions...

"You can either add your chlorine via bleach, and buy the CYA (stabilizer) seperately at WalMart, Lowe's, Home depot, etc. or you can use the trichlor tablets which are chlorine with stabilizer. The downside to trichlor is that it will significantly lower your pH, which is why I want to know the pH of your fill water before recommending them. Also, once your stabilizer gets to the level it needs to stay, you'll need to switch to a non-stabilized form of chlorine. The pH issue can be addressed by adding Borax to raise it, if need be--but again, we need to know a starting point.

If you use the stabilized tablets, they are normally put in a floater--but you don't want them to float next to your liner, or you'll probably end up with fading. Many people recommend to anchor it from both sides with string or rope to keep it in the middle. If you use the floater, I would recommend that you take it out while the pool is in use. With the high chlorine content and low pH, it could be damaging to little eyes if they get into a pocket of the trichlor, and the floater may appear to be a toy. If you remove the floater, and stir the water up well, you can swim immediately.

If using tabs and bleach, you'll keep the tabs in the floater, test your water daily, and add whatever bleach is needed to maintain that 3-6 ppm level, at least until you have some stabilizer in the water. The higher the CYA level gets, the higher you'll need to keep your chlorine. See the "Best Guess" chart link in my sig for a guideline to use. I live in Louisiana and tend to run my CYA higher than most, but I find that I use less chlorine in the long run than those who keep theirs at 40 or so. Just depends on the pool, but you can always decide that later. If you decide to buy CYA seperately, you'll want to target about 30 ppm or so, and add it via sock tied in front of your return. It will take a few days to dissolve and register, though, so you'll need to be diligent about adding chlorine daily until then. You never want it to get to zero."

Does that help clear it up, or is it not making sense? I know it seems a bit overwhelming, but I promise you, it's not as hard as it seems!! :)

Janet