So lost!

We moved into our house last fall, and because of that the pool was not in use, and they hadn't even closed it for winter for us when they left. We have noooo idea what we're doing, and our pool was green for a while, then it turned kinda brown, and now it's sort of a deep blue color. Can't see the bottom, can barely even see the skimming pole. We don't even know for sure if we've got the pump and all that hooked up properly. Anyway my step father was attempting to vacuum the bottom of the pool last night, and for some reason ended up taking some cover off and a lot of water came out, and he had difficulty getting it back on. Now though he says the pump is not working properly. "there are no little edies in the middle" or something. What we've done was put to 1lb bags of shock treatment in. 1lb of PH raising stuff, and now we have no idea what else to do. Don't even know if what has been done is right or not. Just going off random sites that we've found online. I can take pictures of how he's got the pump, and such set up, and the color of the pool water if anyone needs them.
Thank you in advance for any help. This is soo frustrating!

i MOVED IN MY HOUSE IN THE WINTER TWO YEARS AGO AND THE PEOPLE WHO LIVED HERE DIDN'T EVEN CLOSE THE POOL UP AND WHEN WE LOOKED AT IT THE POOL WAS A DARK GREEN AN VERY SCARY . WE WOULD TEASE ABOUT ALLIGATORS BEING IN THERE. ANYWAYS MY POOL IS ABOUT 24' ROUND ABOVE GROUND WITH A CARTRIDGE FILTER AND A 3/4 HP PUMP. fIRST THING FIRST WHAT SIZE POOL DO YOU HAVE ? IS IT ABOVE GROUND? VINYL LINER? i STARTED OFF WITH ABOUT 6 - 1 LB BAGS OF SHOCK . LET THAT SILTER FOR ABOUT 24 HOURS . GO GET A TEST KIT AT WALMART THAT USES DROPS NOT STRIPS AND FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS OF CHECKING THE CHEMICALS LIKE PH AND CHLORINE , ALKANITY. PH SHOULD BE BETWEEN 7.2 AND 7.4 TO GET THE CHLORINE TO WORK PROPERLY. IF THE PH IS BALANCED THAN FOR NOW MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THE POOL ATLEAST 15PPM OF CHLORINE UNTIL YOU SEE A COLOR CHANGE . FILTER , FILTER AND FILTER THAT WATER . LET ME KNOW WHAT MORE QUESTIONS YOU HAVE

Ratgirl,

Welcome to the forum.

Your main concern at this stage is to get bleach into the pool and circulate.

To do that buy 3 - 4 jugs of regular bleach from your local supermarket each day and add them in the evening all around the pool edge. Run the pump 24/7while you are doing this, until you start to see some difference occuring.

In the meantime post us some information on your pool setup, i.e. liner or concrete/plaster pool, size in gallons, inground or above ground, type of filter, i.e. whether, DE (diatomaceous earth), sand, or cartridge. Also get the test kit mentioned previously, but don't bother testing at this stage. Just keep using the bleach.

If the circulation starts to slow down, it means that the filter is doing its job, and the pressure gauge should be showing an increase in pressure from when you started. You may need help initially from a pool company so they can show you how to backwash your filter, unless your father knows how.

If and when you start to see the pool bottom, and there are any leaves or other debris, now is the time to use a rake with a mesh basket to get it out.

There may be a hose and vacuum device for vacuuming stuff from the bottom, but I would hold off using it until most of the leaves and debris have been removed.

Then start vacuuming to waste, hopefully explained by the pool company, to remove the stuff from the bottom.

Use the testkit to get an analysis of the pool water, and the water to be used for refilling, and post the numbers you get. Hopefully we can then give you better advice as to where to go from here.

This should be enough to get you started.

Pat

We have a 16ft round above ground. 5000gallons I believe? Vinyl liner, and I'm pretty sure the filter is sand. We took a sample of the water in tonight to a pool store and they told us to use 1lb of shock chlorine, and to use 9!lbs of alkilinity plus. We did that, and a whoooole lot of leaves came up from the bottom, which plugged up the skimmer basket, and kinda broke it? The sides are torn from the top in places. Anyway tomorrow I intend to turn the pump on, and let it filter, get all the leaves up from the bottom as they come up, and I'll skim them out until I don't see anymore. Then hopefully it'll be okay to run non-stop. Right now we have it turned off so it doesn't...blow up or something.

Oh, No!

I believe you got "Pool-Stored". 9 lbs of Alk Up in your little tiny pool????? How much did they ream you for it? Did they bother to tell that it's EXACTLY the same chemical as ordinary baking soda (Arm&Hammer) you buy at Shop-Rite?

Please post the numbers they gave you--the important ones are:
FC (free chlorine, the good stuff--probably 0)
CC (Combined Chloramines--used up chlorine, could be anything)
TC (Total Chlorine--should be FC + CC)
pH (how acidic or alkaline your water is)
Total Alkalinity or Alkalinity (this is a buffer for the pH).
CYA: (Stabilizer or Cyanuric Acid--slows chorine breakdown--You need some, but not too much)
CH: (Calcium Hardness, or Calcium or Hardness--do NOT let them talk you into buying calcium--you do not need it NO MATTER WHAT THEY SAY!)

They like other numbers, like Total Dissolved Solids--generally useless, Acid Demand, Base Demand (both useless as well).

You should get a "leaf rake" and get out those leaves with it to save your filter. It goes in a standard skimmer handle and look like a butterfly net with a squeegee at the end.

Then we can advise you. You'll be happy to know you can use bleach instead of "shock" and it will work just as well. Actually--better than "shock". Actually, there's no such thing as "shock"--"shock" is a verb, not a noun, but they use it to describe all sorts of chemicals. Double strength bleach is sold by pool stores as "Liquid Shock". One gallon of that is exactly the same as 2 gallons of Ultra Bleach.

The fellow didn't actually sell us anything, nor did he give us any numbers. He used one of those strips with the little squares on them, and them recomended what we buy. So 3-4 gallons of bleach a day? Even now that the size of the pool is known?
Deffinately will pick up one of those leaf rakes, and a pool testing kit so I can get "numbers" for you all.
Thanks so much, you've all been so much help.

Yes 3-4 gallons until you start to see the water clearing up. The leaves and debris are also using up bleach big time, and until they all come out, the bleach is being "sidetracked" so to speak. Don't forget to check the skimmer and the pool pump strainer basket frequently.

Once you get your testing kit, read the instructions carefully, as you may get a different effect for the chlorine value than what you expect. That is because you may have more chlorine than the indicator can handle. Someone with more experience will be able to help you here.

Post your numbers so we can help you further.

Pat

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ratgirl

The fellow didn't actually sell us anything, nor did he give us any numbers. He used one of those strips with the little squares on them, and them recomended what we buy. So 3-4 gallons of bleach a day? Even now that the size of the pool is known?
Deffinately will pick up one of those leaf rakes, and a pool testing kit so I can get "numbers" for you all.
Thanks so much, you've all been so much help.

---

1 gallon of regular bleach (5.25%) adds exactly 5.25ppm of chlorine to 10,000 gallons.

1 gallon of Ultra bleach (6%) adds exactly 6ppm of chlorine to 10,000 gallons.

The size of your pool, and the level of CYA (stabilizer) determines how much chlorine you should use in general, and how much you should use to shock it when you have algae growing. It's called the "Best Guess CYA chart" and it's in the Using Chlorine...forum.

There's also a beginner's chemistry guide in the Testing...forum that I wrote and Watermom stuck there. These should help you understand that basics.

If you have a pool store test your water, ALWAYS ask for the results, even if you have to write them down. It's classic for them to take a reading and inevitably recommend that you add lots of chemicals, usually all at once! :mad: The object should be to help get your pool healthy, not sell a lot of chemicals. I don't blame the clerks in the stores--they usually get their instructions from the owners, who are fed a line of buffalo chips by the chem companies...whose object is to sell lots of chemicals whether you need them or not.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by CarlD

1 gallon of regular bleach (5.25%) adds exactly 5.25ppm of chlorine to 10,000 gallons.

1 gallon of Ultra bleach (6%) adds exactly 6ppm of chlorine to 10,000 gallons.

The size of your pool, and the level of CYA (stabilizer) determines how much chlorine you should use in general, and how much you should use to shock it when you have algae growing. It's called the "Best Guess CYA chart" and it's in the Using Chlorine...forum.

There's also a beginner's chemistry guide in the Testing...forum that I wrote and Watermom stuck there. These should help you understand that basics.

If you have a pool store test your water, ALWAYS ask for the results, even if you have to write them down. It's classic for them to take a reading and inevitably recommend that you add lots of chemicals, usually all at once! :mad: The object should be to help get your pool healthy, not sell a lot of chemicals. I don't blame the clerks in the stores--they usually get their instructions from the owners, who are fed a line of buffalo chips by the chem companies...whose object is to sell lots of chemicals whether you need them or not.

---

Stabilizer . . . . . . Min. FC . . . . Max FC . . . 'Shock' FC
=> 0 ppm . . . . . . . 1 ppm . . . . . 3 ppm . . . . 10 ppm
=> 10 - 20 ppm . . . . 2 ppm . . . . . 5 ppm . . . . 12 ppm
=> 30 - 50 ppm . . . . 3 ppm . . . . . 6 ppm . . . . 15 ppm
=> 60 - 90 ppm . . . . 5 ppm . . . . . 10 ppm . . .. 20 ppm
=> 100 - 200 ppm . . . 8 ppm . . . . . 15 ppm . . .. 25 ppm

^^^That thing? I don't get it. I imagine what I want is shock FC, but what ppm would I want? That's confusing! So being that I have 5000 gallons rather than 10, I would be getting 12ppm from 1 gallon of ultra bleach? Would I want something that high?

The easiest way to take the "math" out of it is to download the BleachCalc and let it do the calculations for you.

http://www.hal-pc.org/~mwsmith2/BleachCalc262.exe

It was written by one of our forum members. It's a real time-saver. And yes, until your pool clears up, you will want to maintain "shock" level for your chlorine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ratgirl

Stabilizer . . . . . . Min. FC . . . . Max FC . . . 'Shock' FC
=> 0 ppm . . . . . . . 1 ppm . . . . . 3 ppm . . . . 10 ppm
=> 10 - 20 ppm . . . . 2 ppm . . . . . 5 ppm . . . . 12 ppm
=> 30 - 50 ppm . . . . 3 ppm . . . . . 6 ppm . . . . 15 ppm
=> 60 - 90 ppm . . . . 5 ppm . . . . . 10 ppm . . .. 20 ppm
=> 100 - 200 ppm . . . 8 ppm . . . . . 15 ppm . . .. 25 ppm

^^^That thing? I don't get it. I imagine what I want is shock FC, but what ppm would I want? That's confusing! So being that I have 5000 gallons rather than 10, I would be getting 12ppm from 1 gallon of ultra bleach? Would I want something that high?

---

Yup, you got it, all of it! You want the Shock FC level that matches your CYA/stabilizer level. And, yes, you would want a MINIMUM FC level of 12 ppm to clear your water--more if you have more CYA.

You can use the bleach calculator if the math is a struggle.

Hello, we've purchased a water testing kit that actually gives number results but the chlorine is too high to test the PH at the moment. Anyway, our water does seem a bit better, however the "waste" thing on the pump is leaking. Does anyone know why that might be happening? My step father just cleaned the pump free of TONS of leaves that we had no idea were there, and since then the waste things been leaking. I dunno what would cause that, and he's getting angry over the whole thing. *sigh* We should have just gotten someone to come in and open the pool for us, and show us the workings of the thing.

OMGosh, I can see the skimmer all the way down to the bottom of the pool! This must be good. Will continue bleaching for a few days.

Just want to throw in that you can often go to the manufacturer of the pump/filter's website and get the documentation you need to see that the thing's set up and running right. Get the name of the pump and plug it into Google (your next best friend after this forum!).

ChuckD

<3 Thank you!

Gah, I just wrote, and posted an edit, but it doesn't appear to have posted.
Anyway, I looked at the filter and it's a Hayward swim pro high rate sand filter. There was a model number on it(SW166T) but I couldn't find it on their website at all!
I have some pictures of it, so perhaps someone might recognize it, and be able to tell me if it's connected properly?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3106.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3105.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3104.jpg

Thank you.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ratgirl

Gah, I just wrote, and posted an edit, but it doesn't appear to have posted.
Anyway, I looked at the filter and it's a Hayward swim pro high rate sand filter. There was a model number on it(SW166T) but I couldn't find it on their website at all!
I have some pictures of it, so perhaps someone might recognize it, and be able to tell me if it's connected properly?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3106.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3105.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3104.jpg

Thank you.

---

I'm thinking you may have misread that number and it's actually one of these:
http://www.haywardnet.com/products/d...ductID=41#five

The smaller certainly looks like it.

ChuckD

Okay, so I guess according to that manual our filter is hooked up properly. So that's a good thing. Anyway I used one of those test strip thingys and the free chlorine is way over 10 because it immediately turned darker purple than the one that represents 10. Our PH is over 8.4, total alkilinity is between 120, and 180 which the thing says is between ok and high, and the cyanuric acid was between 100 and 150 which is between ok and high. Our pump has been running all day for the last 2 days, we've been puting loads of chlorine in, and still the water is bad. We're getting ready to just give up and sell the thing. *sigh* Any more suggestions?

***This advice is based on test strip results which are border-line useless. Get results from a pool store or use a kit and dilute the water if necessary.***

Ratgirl,
There have been discussions on this post about the effectiveness (or lack there of!) of chlorine at high pH levels. I am not sure how much an effect a 8.4pH would have but it is NOT GOOD! You need to add some muratic acid as chlorine is most effective in the 7.2-7.4 zone of the safe range. Once you have the pH down some I think the chlorine will be more effective in cleaning up the pool.

I noticed that the CYA is between 100-150 (need more specific numbers) but this coupled with the high pH is rendering that 10ppm of chlorine rather useless. You need to get the chlorine level into shock territory for CYA of >100 and also get the pH down ASAP!

I was just reading some info today that stated chlorine was most effective at PH levels too acidic for a pool. At the recommended PH of 7.6, it is only 50% effective. Any higher and the effectiveness drops off the map.