New to pools

I recently purchased a home with our first inground pool. I have been religiously adding chlorine tablets through our automatic chlorinator. I get some algae in the pool from time to time but have always been told to add PhosFree by the pool store boys. Based on the research and posts I have read here, I am guessing I am doing this all wrong. I need some help on the right way to go about keeping the pools chemistry right without being suckered at the store. Generally speaking the ph, cholrine levels and everthing esle (but the phospates) seem to check out when I check the water weekly. My pool is 28000 gallons with a beach entry. Thanks in advance for the help.

Hi, and Welcome!
The problems are:you''re guessing about what to do, and that's always a bad thing, and you're relying on pool store advice, which, sadly, is geared to selling you stuff, not resolving your problem.

However, wisely, you suspect as much and you're right.

We have very simple, easy and effective methods of pool care, proven over many years by many pool owners. But you will need the following:
1) A good test kit. Our first choice is the Taylor Technologies K-2006 or K-2006C, which you can get inexpensively by hunting up a post by the owner, PoolDoc, and clicking on the link on his signature. The K-2006 runs from $50-$75 depending on where you get it. Our second choice, mainly because it's usually immediately available and is less expensive, is the HTH 6-Way drop test kit, usually only available at WalMart--about $25. Personally, I think a pool owner should have both, and use the HTH for daily chlorine and pH quick-checks. But without the ability to test your water, it's almost impossible to fix problems. Pool stores will test water for you, but their tests are frequently bogus and designed to sell you stuff. After they've sold you clarifier, the wrong algaecide, and phosphate remover, none of which you need, you could have bought the test kits! (BTW, we don't get paid here--all volunteer).

2) Information on what is and is not important. The best source of information is our sister-site, PoolSolutions.com. Lots to read and easy, too. You'll find the tip on "Pool Chemicals At your Grocery Store" to be very enlightening--I first read it about 14?,15? years ago....still valid.

3) A healthy dose of skepticism, which you have. The more you know, the easier it gets, and the less you panic when things go wrong. I was away for a month and came home to a total mess--a hideous algae bloom. Now, 48 hours later, I'm in the last stages of clearing up cloudy, but clean water, and I hope we can swim tomorrow. Why? I didn't panic, and just dumped the equivalent of 8 gallons of ultra bleach into my pool...but I also tested! I sure if I went into my nearest L***ie's store they'd try to sell me a phosphate removal "plan" (and calcium--for a vinyl pool!)...I never have tested for phosphates. Why bother? My pool is nearly clear already!

Really, there are basically 3 things to control that are critical for simple pool care:
a) Chlorine, which we generally recommend to come from bleach or Liquid Chlorine (same stuff only stronger).

b) pH, which from you HS chemistry is the balance between acidity and alkalinity.

c) Stabilizer, which is like sunscreen for chlorine, which breaks down rapidly from UV rays. Stabilizer, also called CYA for Cyanuric Acid, or Isocyanuric Acid protects the chlorine from UV, but also slows down chlorine's action, so it's a two-edged sword. Therefore there's a balance you need to achieve between the chlorine level and the CYA level. Over at the PoolSolutions.com site, there's what we call "The Best Guess Table".
(as an aside, I'm GUESSING that your use of tablets has pushed your CYA level up very high and you now need to stop using the tablets and use bleach to maintain your chlorine level--and you'll need to maintain a much higher chlorine level to control your algae and keep the water sanitary. That's not a problem--it works well, but you need........good testing!)

We call our method "BBB", short for "Bleach, Borax, and Baking Soda", 3 of the five simple chemicals we need for pool care, the other two being Muriatic Acid and...CYA/Stabilizer.

Bleach for adding Chlorine
Borax (yes, Borax) for raising pH, Muriatic Acid to lower pH
Baking Soda to raise something called "Total Alkalinity"--a buffer that helps keep pH stable
CYA for adding...CYA.

You CAN use other things, depending on the levels in your pool.
Chlorine can also come from Tri-Chlor (the tablets you have that are very acidic and add CYA), Di-Chlor powder (which isn't as acidic but adds more CYA), Cal-Hypo powder or tablets (adds calcium, and may raise pH), or from an SWCG (Salt-Water Chlorine Generator). In the water, chlorine is chlorine but out of it, mixing types is VERY dangerous!

pH can also be raised by using Washing Soda (Sodium Carbonate) sold by pool stores at 3x-4x the price in the supermaket.

TA is raised by ordinary Baking Soda, sodium bicarbonate. No matter WHAT they call it in pool stores, it's baking soda.

Calcium is ONLY needed in concrete/tile/gunite, etc. type pools. Totally unnecessary in vinyl or fiberglass pools, though pool stores INSIST you need it (but cannot tell you why). In vinyl or FG pools, we only watch it to make sure it doesn't go too high.

The only other chem we generally recommend is the ONE algaecide that is safe: Polyquat 60%. If the algaecide, no matter WHAT the label says, contains "Poly.....<something unpronounceable and long>... 60%" and nothing else, that's the stuff.

Finally, we'll need to know more:
Is your pool vinyl-lined, fiberglass, or hard-sided?
What pump and type of filter do you use?
Do you have any water features?
What are you test readings for:
FC, CC and TC
pH
T/A
CH
and
CYA?

And what have you put into your pool besides the Tri-chlor tabs?

The test kit Carl mentioned can be found here:> http://pool9.net/tk/

Welcome to the Pool Forum!

(Until your registration is completed, you won't be able to see the rest of the forum nor follow links while you are logged in. So, copy that link and paste it into a browser window after you first log out.)

Thanks for the information Carl. I will get the specs on the pool and equipment in a later post. The only chemical, other than tabs, is occassional chloring shock and weekly treatments of phos-free. I generally put in three capfuls of the phosfree and add the tabs weekly to the chlorinator. Generally speaking, I think I have been lucky so far but I do like the idea of taking better control of the pool and using chemicals that I can source outside a pool store. I will work on getting the kit ASAP and update the other specs as soon as I can.

Forget the Phos-Free. It's a waste of money 99.99% of the time. Many of us run with phosphate levels that would have pool store clerks going pale and fainting, yet have clear, sanitary pools. Phosphates FEED algae, but if you have no algae there's nothing to eat them. And you have no algae by regular pool maintenance and not letting chlorine levels drop too low.

Thanks Carl. I am in the process of ordering my test kit. I will respond with the requested readings when it comes in. For now, the pool seems to be clear. I do have a few questions. I have an auto feed chlorinator. Can I use the BBB system with the chlorinator. Will I simply bypass it once I make the switch? Does the BBB system make my DE filter more efficient (require less frequent backwashing)? Thanks again for all the information.

It will have no effect on the filter except that if you maintain your chemistry correctly, you lessen the chance of having algae and that will impact your filter positively! Live algae clogs up DE filters fast!

Welcome to the Pool Forum, by the way!

The BBB system CAN incorporate your chlorinator. It's more of a philosophy of pool care, and is VERY flexible. I don't have an inline chlorinator, but I do, occasionally use 3" tri-chlor pucks in a floating chlorinator, when I need a steady stream of chlorine, my pH is higher than I like, and I need to add stabilizer/CYA. But I don't NEED to use them.
I can do EVERYTHING I need with Bleach, Borax, Baking Soda, Muriatic Acid and straight CYA granules.

Chlorine is chlorine and you can use whatever makes your life easier that day. But you can always do it all with the 3 B's of BBB + Muriatic Acid and CYA powder.

But what the BBB system teaches is you do NOT need most algaecides, Nature2 or other "no chlorine" systems, flocculent, anti-foamers, clarifiers. or Baker's Yeast (I just threw that in).

I have used and will use again at some time, pretty much every kind of chlorine, but that's mostly for MY convenience. I currently use an SWCG but still add bleach as needed--I have a "salt" pool.

Again, BBB is a way of thinking, of approaching pool care sensibly, logically, easily, without the mumbo-jumbo. And it works.