First pool, might be our LAST...name says it all!

[swamp mistress]

You are doing great! Tell your hubby "Real men don't hire pool services, they do it themselves!" (J/K)

I think I'll wait until he finishes the landscaping around the pool before I lay THAT one on him!

He's been digging, leveling & hauling rock all afternoon for a surprise "lounging area" for us girls. With the exception of an hour floating in the pool with a beer, all I've heard today is, "this $160 pool has cost me $800 and four days of my time." But Boy! that beer felt good........

[docsobeck]

congratulations: you've reached a crucial point in pool ownership - drinking beer in your pool. next thing you know, you'll have a floating cooler like us, and the good times will follow.

i've learned that if you use the pool store method of pool care, you need lots of money. if you use the pool forum method, you need patience. one day you'll look back at this and wonder why you were so panicky at the beginning.

[swamp mistress]

congratulations: you've reached a crucial point in pool ownership - drinking beer in your pool. next thing you know, you'll have a floating cooler like us, and the good times will follow.

That's another thing I don't think I'll mention...it IS after all supposed to be a KID'S pool. All I need is a bunch of old men with coolers floating around the yard all day! Hey! wait a minute..that could be fun! but then, when will all the WORK get done? Oh well, being a GUY...I'm sure he'll figure it out on his own.

7 AM results (6-way hth)
CL: 3
Ph: 7.2

actions: flushed filter, cleaned skimmer, added 3 cups bleach & checked CYA sock (seems to be dispensing nicely.)

notes:
water appears "less green" than yesterday, maybe even "clearer" too. I didn't remove cover all the way, just enough to test. I'll know more later if we get in, supposed to be 95but with 30 mph winds, oh boy!

questions:
#1) with the testing strips (they came with the kit & no, I'm not using them!) it says, "read after 30 sec...after 40 sec, etc" is there an amount of time I should be waiting to read results after using the DROPS? I noticed when I initially read this mornings result, the CL was at 3ppm, then I got busy with other things and when I looked at it again (10 min) it had lightened to .5 Just want to be accurate.

#2) while it's getting progressively better, any ideas why our water has such a sticky (brownish/black) residue collecting in the skimmer? Once you get it on your hands (or anything else) it takes a degreaser to get if off. Bro-in-law says he's never encountered anything like it and wonders if we're like the Beverly Hillbillies with oil in our water?

[aylad]

Once you add the drops and mix it well, go ahead and read your result. That is going to be your true number. Don't worry about what it looks like after being allowed to sit. Regarding the residue, I'm not sure what that could be except maybe some of the iron or other "stuff" in your water collecting there. You mentioned that your DH had been doing some landscaping, it's possible that some of that debris has blown into the pool and collected in the skimmer. I occasionally get a dark-grey to blackish line inside mine, but that's from dirt, suntan lotion, sunscreen, sweat, and all the other gunk that gets introduced from the kids. Usually a baking soda/water paste and a sponge will get it off, though.

How did the filter look this morning?

Janet

[swamp mistress]

Janet, the filter is stained of course but very little color (tan/brown) comes out now. Also, the water in the bottom of the pump housing was clear today, not the usual brown sludge. So I'm definitely seeing improvement every day...it's SO exciting! I feel like I'm watching my BABY grow up!! haha

I can only image how repetitive, time consuming and frustrating it can be sometimes dealing with all us freaked-out Intex rookies, but I for one would like to say THANK YOU to all who keep checking in on me, you are truly appreciated.

Swampster

[CarlD]

Janet,

You know the metal-removing routine far better than I do. At what point can Swamp Mistress hammer her pool with chlorine to clear it up? Or must she continue to do it the slow and gradual way?

[aylad]

Now that you're getting very little brownish stuff on your filter, I believe you can go ahead and shock your pool.

You need to understand that high chlorine levels along with high pH levels will cause the metals to turn your water brown again if there's not enough sequestrant. So...you need to keep your pH on the low side--7.2 is ideal. I would go ahead and add your bleach, starting with what you have been adding to target about 5 ppm. If the water stays clear for another hour or so after that, add some more, maybe enough to go up by another 3 ppm. If it still stays clear, then go on up to 12 ppm. That is shock level, assuming you have less than 20 ppm of CYA in the water. If you can get it to 12 ppm, then you want to hold it there until you're losing less than 1 ppm of chlorine when testing after the sun is off the pool and again before the sun hits the pool in the morning. This, combined with 24/7 filtering with frequent washing of cartridges, should clear your pool up the rest of the way. I would add your chlorine at or just in front of the skimmer, so that if it's going to cause the iron to fall out, hopefully it will do so on your filter so it can be washed out and removed. If at any time during the raising of the chlorine the water starts to turn brown again, add another dose of metal sequestrant.

I want to reiterate that I'm NOT the resident metals expert, but from all the reading I've done of Mbar and Pooldoc's post, this is the route I would take with my own pool if I were in your shoes. I'll see if Ben can stop by and offer more useful information, but in the meantime, that's the plan of attack I would use.

Janet

[PoolDoc]

Sounds like Janet's got you covered, though I'd try to avoid more sequestrant if you can. Use it if you have to, but give it a chance to filter out first.

Regarding the goo, I don't know. One possibility: plasticizer (makes PVC flexible enough to be a liner) leaching out from your liner. High temps could accelerate that.

Ben

[swamp mistress]

oakie dokie, I've got your instructions printed out...will do.

[CarlD]

The sides of the Intex donuts are surprisingly tough as they are re-inforced. The bottom and the donut are weaker, more like a liner. I never saw any signs of the plastic breaking down on mine over 3 years.