Ready to learn

[onemsmom]

I'm tired of trips to the pool store & spening lots of $ unnecessarily. I want to learn how to take care of my own pool and learn how to diagnose/treat problems on my own. I'm glad to have found this forum and am ready to learn. I read the sticky for newbies (twice) and know to first get a good test kit. Where is the best place to get one? Then, once I know what all the levels ARE, how can I learn HOW MUCH of stuff to add?

I have a 24' round vinyl. I'm trying to recover from a green pond period after a 5 week vaca. (I did have a pool guy come while I was gone, but it was chemical only & we came back a few days after we told him we would & didn't deal w/pool right away - our fault). The green is gone, but it's cloudy. Husband bought clarifier & put in over weekend & pool store had me add "stabilizer" but it is still cloudy.

I want to take things over myself from here on out, fix the cloudy problem & do things properly from here on out.

Where do I start?

Jenn

[Watermom]

Hi Jenn, and welcome to the forum. You have come to the right place to learn! We like the Taylor K-2006 test kit. If you order it from a certain link through Amazon, the Pool Forum gets 3-5% of the money. Ben is working on the link right now. Hang on a bit and let me see if I can get the link for you.

Glad to have you here. Read, read, read and then ask questions and we'll help you. I'll be back as soon as I hear from Ben about the correct link.

[aylad]

I believe this is the link Watermom is looking for--it's a copy and paste of the hyperlink in the post she's looking for. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002IXIIG?ie=UTF8&tag=poolbooks&linkCode=as2&camp %20=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0002IXIIG"><b >Ta%20ylor%20Complete%20FAS-DPD%20Pool%20Water%20Test%20Kit%20K-2006</b

Welcome to the forum, Jenn, and congratulations for taking the steps toward controlling your own pool!! There's a lot of information to digest, but you'll find that it's not really as difficulty as it seems at first. Read, read, read, and ask questions--we're happy to help!!

Janet

[onemsmom]

Thanks, I'll wait 'till my test kit comes & give you the numbers & we'll deal with the chemicals. Here are a few other questions....

Can you tell me how often my filter should run? I read an answer for someone elses pool, but I didn't know if it was different depending on size.

Should you vacuum on a schedule, or only when you see stuff down there that needs to come up?

Should you sweep the sides on a schedule, " "?

How often should you spray the filter clean?

Should I ever clean the filter in a cascade bath & if so, how often?

Thanks so much,

Jennifer

[Watermom]

Most people run their pump 8-10 hours per day. Only vaccuum when it is dirty. Regarding brushing the sides --- to be honest, I rarely do mine. As long as you maintain proper chlorine levels and don't let an algae bloom start, the sides shouldn't get slimy. But, since you have recently had an algae bloom, I'd probably brush the sides every few days until you get the water cleared up. I'll let someone else talk to you about cleaning your cartridge filter. (I assume that is what you have.)

[onemsmom]

yes, a cartridge filter.