Need help making pool "swimmable" please

[sturev]

I'm not sure what's going on with the posts, but it looks like you can add some more bleach. You want to keep it at about 15 ppm, so if you were at 12 ppm earlier, I'd probably test and re-dose up to 15.

[Watermom]

Tricia,
New subscribers have to have their posts looked at by Ben or one of the moderators before they appear on the forum. So, if you post at a time when none of the mods are online, it may be a bit before it shows up. I can't remember right off hand right now how many posts have to be looked at before you are able to just post right to the forum without it having to be modded in. So, if you post and it doesn't appear right away, sit tight. It won't take too long since most of the time at least one of the 5 of us is here!

[blessedbeingmom]

Great! Thank you!

Today was mostly cloudy, overcast & rainy. I just tested again with the dilution method with the OTO drops and got a similar reading as before (somewhere around 12 ppm FC). However, we decided to check our filter and it was pretty gross. We cleaned it really well with the jet spray on our hose and hopefully that will help clear the pool out better. Also, I highly recommend against using old pool noodles in your pool. We found a bunch of purple fuzz in the filter. Eek!

Just for comparison, I tested using a strip and it told me my chlorine level was low (about 1 ppm). However, DH says it definitely has that chloriney pool smell. I'm thinking maybe we won't add any more tonight and will see how it looks in the morning after a night of running with a clean filter.

Thanks again!

[Watermom]

That "chloriney" smell is not chlorine but chloramines (CC). Sounds strange, but whenever you smell that it doesn't mean you have too much chlorine in there but need more. Sounds weird, I know. I'd go ahead and add enough bleach tonight to get back to shock level. (Especially since it rained. Rainy days can add debris and organic matter to the pool.) The more consistently you keep it at shock level, the faster it will get cleaned up.

I agree about the old pool noodles. I find the fuzz in my pool, too.

[blessedbeingmom]

Okay, thanks, I will have DH add more chlorine tonight when he gets home from church. I think we may need to add about 1/2 gallon to get to shock level.

[Watermom]

FYI -- In your pool, each quart of 6% bleach will raise your cl by about 3.3ppm.

[CarlD]

Yup, it sounds crazy until you realize that the smell comes from chlorine being eaten up by something! Those combined chloramines are to blame for the smell and (in part) for eye irritation that gets blamed on "Too much chlorine!" Nope, not enough.

[blessedbeingmom]

FYI -- In your pool, each quart of 6% bleach will raise your cl by about 3.3ppm.

Okay, we just tried to check it again via the dilution method. Those shades of yellow are really hard for us to distinguish. We are guessing maybe it is 3, which would put it about 15, but I have to be honest and say it is a guess. It's still very hard to tell. It is definitely more than 5 or 10 overall, as it is a much darker shade of yellow than the 5 when we put it in full strength or diluted by half.
DH is really wanting to swim soon after all the hard work he has put into this pool. We are unsure what is really a safe chlorine level for swimming for ourselves and for our children (ages 6, 8 & 10). Any ideas?
We still can't quite figure out how much chlorine we should add tonight. Maybe we'll just add a quart and check again in the morning? We are pretty sure it is over 10. Also, previously when I said the test strip was showing as low, I forgot it was because I used the test strip on the solution that had already been diluted 1:3. When I tested the sample this evening straight from the pool, it tested to be at least 10. It does appear that we probably still have about 50 ppm CYA, but again, a guesstimate based on the strip.
Also, we did brush the pool bottom this evening to get up any algae remnants on the floor of the pool so they can be filtered out overnight.
Thanks again for all the help!
Tricia

[CarlD]

Ultimately, all decisions about your pool are your own--we can only suggest.

However, if your pool is still green and cloudy, it means your chlorine is being "eaten" killing it. If when you test you see chlorine levels have dropped a lot from the last test, your chlorine is being consumed.

If, however, your water is clear, and despite the difficulty with the dilution test (Hold a white card behind the cell--it may help), you don't see much change in the test, it means your chlorine is holding and it's probably safe to swim in it.

But, if the chlorine is high, wear last year's bathing suits. You'll be ok but the suits may fade.

But the ultimate decision and responsibility is yours. It's your pool and we aren't there to see it.

[Watermom]

Hint, hint ---- Buy a K-2006 --- hint, hint. (Was that subtle enough? )

Really, it will make this whole pool care thing SO much easier for you. Then, you won't have to be diluting and trying to decipher how high the cl is. The good kit will tell you precisely how high it is.

http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?t=10006