below minimum FC level. Everything else is right on target.

Do I shock or not to bring up chlorine levels. I haven't been able to get any FC since opening the pool 3 weeks ago. Water is crystal clear. We had rain for 2 weeks solid, heavy rain, but water is still clear to the bottom. pH is 7.5, and others are right on ideal range. Just no FC. None. I noticed last night the sides of the pool are starting to get "slick".

Intex AGB 15' x 48". Intex pump and brand new filter. Two 3" chlorine tabs in a floater device (have been in for 8 days).

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Intex AGP, 15' x 48". 4400 gallons.

Second year. Drained half way last season for winter. Opened 3 weeks ago. Crystal clear water. No debris at all. Heavy rains the past 2 weeks. Two 3" chlorine tabs in a "floater". Zero free chlorine registering on HTH strips. Everything else is right on the money.

We don't trust test strips. The kit we recommend is the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C which you can find in the test kit link in my signature below. It is not available locally and you will have to order it. In the meantime, go to Walmart and pick up a cheap OTO/Phenol Red kit (yellow and red drops), several jugs of plain bleach (generic is fine).

Test your chlorine and pH and post your results.

Since you said you are noticing some slipperiness, go ahead and add a jug of bleach slowly in front of a return jet. That will get some chlorine in there now. Also run the pump 24/7.

Check those tabs you are using. Any mention of copper in the ingredients? Did you use tabs all last year? What other products do you (or have you) used. Give ingredients and not product names.

(I merged your two threads into one. No need to start a separate thread. When new members post, their post goes to a moderation queue to be read and approved before it appears on the forum. So, when you post, it won't appear immediately but we do empty out the queue several times a day.)

Thanks for the reply. But, since I posted, I went ahead and added about 2 cups of regular bleach. For right now, it's brought the FC up and turned the first pad on the strip a light purple, so I know something happened. I didn't want to add too much chlorine as last year, I did that, and my pool was out of whack until the last 2 weeks of swimming season when I finally got it back under control. After adding that bleach, within the next hour, I got considerable "dirt" in the bottom of the pool that wasn't in there before, so I'm assuming it's already working. I run my pump 24/7 anyway as my pool sits under trees and if I keep my filter clean/new, it keeps my pool clear.

I have a Taylor K-2006 kit that I bought last year. It did nothing but confuse me and due to that confusion, I added too much bleach. After that, because of that kit, I was adding acid, shock, algae killer and I can't remember what else. I finally stopped using it and went back to the strips. I replaced half of my water in the pool and took advice from a neighbor to get it back into balance. I've asked that same neighbor for advice for not having ANY FC and he is stumped too.

No copper in the chlorine tablets. Yes, I used them last year too. I've used no other products (other than the chlorine tabs in the floater) and until today, the regular chlorine bleach.

Will post back if just adding chlorine a little at a time doesn't resolve things. Again, thank you.

To be able to help you, we are going to need some good current water testing results taken with your K-2006 kit. If you can't hold a FC reading, I am wondering if you have had a high CYA reading in the past that has biodegraded and left you with a pool full of ammonia. A symptom of that is the inability to hold a FC reading.

Also, if the sides are slippery then you have an impending algae bloom. Adding little bits of bleach is not going to solve it. It is going to have to be taken up to shock level. But, we can't know what your shock level needs to be without knowing your CYA reading.

Okay, will do in the morning. It's 10:30 P.M. here in Ohio. Will post back with results.