List of possibly dumb questions re: dichlor, bleach, ppm, etc.

ok, so i've been devouring the info here and on the sister site http://www.poolsolutions.com/. especially appreciate this: http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthr...p-routine-care.

i realized at the rate i was reading, i kept forgetting/mixing up this term or that, so i began taking notes. now, my notes are a mess and i'm more confused than ever, lol. so now i have some possible dumb questions:

*on my 3-way test kit (waiting for taylor k-2006 to arrive), the numbers there...is that what parts per million/ppm is?

*i had my 18x48 round intex pool going b/f i saw the above thread, so i did not follow the "7 day" plan of using bleach while waiting for di-chlor. i have thrown a chlorine puck in a floating thing and used the "super shock" bags that came with the pool. i planned to just use bleach when it runs out (soon). 2x day (morn & eve) testing show surprisingly consistent Cl/Br pH results (maybe b/c my pool is mostly shaded throughout day? not much direct sunlight?) so...must i still buy di-chlor?

*should i be recording test results somewhere?

thanks so much! my plan is to become such an expert in pool care that hubs does not even realize there IS any maintenance involved so that in a couple years, he'll be happy to buy us a bigger/better doughboy-style above ground pool. :D

Merideth -- good for you doing your homework!

--ppm = parts per million

--you have a chlorine pool so you can just ignore the bromine side of the tester

--wait until your K-2006 comes and you can test CYA before deciding whether or not to buy the dichlor (buy only from Sam's)

--while it is all new and you are trying to learn your pool's behavior and patterns, it is a good idea to keep records of testing results

What are the ingredients in the 'super shock' you are using? Also, look at the ingredients of the pucks and make sure they do NOT have copper in them!

thanks! the pucks and super shock that came with the pool are the same ingredients, just slightly different %age of available chlorine listed. my plan had been to use the puck continuously and toss in some extra granules from the bag after the nephews swim (doubles our usual "occupancy" and triples the number of stinky boys in the pool, lol). the stuff that came with my pool are as follows:

*the pucks are called hth 3-in-1 chlorinating skimmer tablets. calcium hypochlorite 47.6%, no copper listed, minimun available chlorine 45%.
*hth super sock 'n swim. calcium hypohclorite 52.0%, no copper, minimum available chlorine 49%

I'm not sure about those tabs. Things that are called 3-in-1 scare me a little because pool chem companies are a little sneaky and don't always tell you what is in their products. What are the other two ingredients? Big mystery, they don't tell you. Personally, I wouldn't use them.

i agree! however...cheapness and laziness (as well as lack of knowledge) dictated i use them up since they came with the pool. lol! when the puck gets down to its last, the grainy stuff left floats out & sinks to the bottom, anyway - yuck! they're gone now, so i'm looking forward to sticking with BBB.