6% sodium hypochlorite vs. 68% calcium hypochlorite for start up?

After reading several posts, I am more confused and uncertain than before as to which of these chemicals is best to use for spring start up. We will uncover our pool this evening when my husband gets home from work and I really ned to make sure I have everything I need as we live approx. 23 miles from "town" & I dont want to have to make a rush trip to get anything else we need.

My pool chemical inventory (as of right now) consists of:

6- 1# bags of Super Shock Calcium Hypochlorite 68%
2- 1.42 Gallon bottles of Great Value Bleach Sodium Hypochlorite 6%
2- 4# boxes Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
1- 5 Gallon bucket Soda Ash
@ 2# pH Rise
24 oz. Phosphate Remover
@ 1# pH Lower
32 oz. Combat 60 Algaecide

All of these, except the algaecide 60, bleach and baking soda, are left from last season and have been stored in our heated/cooled shop.
I have several questions. First, should I use the Super shock that I have left over to shock my pool along with the Combat 60 (that I paid $24.95 + tax for) to kill the algae or should I buy more bleach and return the Combat 60? From what I have read so far, there is no need for the Combat 60 as the bleach will kill the algae also.

Second, is it possible to maintain my chlorine levels all year with the bleach our should I also purchase the 3" picks for my online chlorinator?

Third, exactly where should all of my readings be before I dump my first chemicals in to rid my pool of the swamp water I am expecting to find? My pool is 18 x 36, @ 26000 gal. I looked at the pool calculator and it didn't make much sense, probably because I have not yet tested the water! Which brings me to my final question...when using test steps, I have a partial bottle of aquachem 6-way test strips and a partial bottle of AquaChek 3-way test strips. What exactly should I be checking and how often?

It seems hard to believe that I have been a pool owner for 11 years and am this confused, but I have always done EVERYTHING the pool store has told me to, always bought my overpriced chemicals from them and never ventured out to try alternatives....now I am looking for the most economical way to maintain my pool.

If you can refer me to other posts that can help, I would be more than happy to read they them, I am just having a hard time deciding which way to go with start up.

Thanks for your help!

Go get an OTO/phenol red test kit to use for now; order a K2006 testkit to maintain your pool with.
(You can use the Amazon links in my sig, or order anywhere else you like . . . but be SURE to get a K2006, and not a K2005. If you are not on a tight budget, the K2006C has 2 oz reagent bottles, compared to 3/4 oz, and is a better deal.)

OK, I can walk you through it, assuming you know how to get your equipment running. By the way, if you have a time clock, do NOT use it until you have the K2006, have tested the water, and have told us the results. Instead, run the pump 24/7.

Also, once you get a chance, go to your user settings and add all the following data to the pool info section, at the bottom of this page:
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/profile.php?do=editoptions


1. Do NOT use ANY of the chemicals except the chlorine, till you've tested the water, and told us what you found.
2. When you open, test the pH. For fun, you can test the chlorine, but there is probably none.
3. Once you get the pump running, add all the bleach, unless by some chance your chlorine is high. Depending on how much the bleach has broken down over the winter, 3 gallons will add 15 ppm of chlorine or LESS to your pool
4. Test the chlorine in the AM. If it's low, add 1 bag of the shock slowly to the skimmer, with the pump on.
5. After making sure the chlorine is more than 3 ppm, brush the pool completely.
6. That evening, check the chlorine again, if it's less than 3 ppm, add another bag of shock slowly to the skimmer.

I'll extend this, once I have heard from you.

Sounds like Ben has you on the right track, but just wanted to stop by to say hello and welcome you to the Pool Forum!

Chlorine level is very high....BEAUTIFUL shade of dark yellow. pH, on the other hand is quite low. I used both the OTO and the 6 way strips and had it tested at my local pool store...they also told me alkalinity and pH were both very low and their prescription was 10# alkalinity increaser and 2# pH invader...which I have NOT done yet. I have 2 boxes of borax, some stabilizer, and the remainder of the pool chemicals from last year listed above. My water is no longer green, but is cloudy and there are dark spots on the floor of the pool. Next step?

I forgot to give you the levels...duh! pH is at about 7.2, alkalinity is somewhere between 0-40.

Did you order a Taylor K-2006 kit?

If your pool is cloudy, it sounds like you have dead algae that you need to filter out. Run your pump 24/7 while you are trying to clear the pool.

Your pH is a little low at 7.2, but fortunately not critically low. Go ahead and add a half of a box of Borax slowly to the skimmer while the pump is running, breaking up any clumps. Wait at least 3 hours or so to give it time to circulate and then retest. Aim for 7.4-7.6. Redose if you need to. Alkalinity increaser is just expensive baking soda. You add it in the same way as the Borax and it can be added at the same time. But, you don't want to add 10 lbs. of it at once. Overall, you'll probably need more than 10 lbs., but just do gradually to get to your goal over a few days.

You need to test your CYA with a disappearing dot test (not strips) before we can advise you whether or not to add stabilizer. Keep your chlorine high.

(Need that good kit! It will make your pool care much easier!)