Ok here we go

[IMherDad]

This is the year we are switching. After doing a lot of reading late last year we are "drinking the kool-aid" and moving to bleach. My wife thinks I may be nuts but after seeing just how much chemicals have increased this year its time to make the move. We have a 33' above ground pool, 2 hp pump using Zeobrite.

So my questions are this:

1) We need a test kit. Which one will work best for our situation?

2) What do we need to get started?

3) We will open the pool in the next 30 days or so do we need to shock the water before we start adding bleach?

And I am sure there will be a ton more questions and thanks for the help!

[Islander2C]

I too am thinking about making the switch. I hope you get alot of replies!

[mwsmith2]

The test kit that is going to work the best is the one that ben sells. However, I'm not exactly sure when he is going to have the new kit out for sale. I'd wait for his kit, it's really the best darn thing on the market.

Michael

[CarlD]

This is the year we are switching. After doing a lot of reading late last year we are "drinking the kool-aid" and moving to bleach. My wife thinks I may be nuts but after seeing just how much chemicals have increased this year its time to make the move. We have a 33' above ground pool, 2 hp pump using Zeobrite.

So my questions are this:

1) We need a test kit. Which one will work best for our situation?

Well, the easy answer is Ben's Pool Solutions PS234 kit. Taylor makes a similar one. It will measure chlorine levels up to 100ppm (parts per million).

2) What do we need to get started?

Information. Read the tips and A/G info on PoolSolutions.com
Chemicals? the 3 Bees. Bleach (for chlorine), Borax to raise pH. Baking Soda (to raise Total Alkalinity). You'll need Muriatic Acid or Dry Acid to lower pH, CYA/Stabilizer/Conditioner to establish the correct CYA level, and, on occasion, Polyquat 60%--the ONLY algaecide you should use.

3) We will open the pool in the next 30 days or so do we need to shock the water before we start adding bleach?

Please don't be offended: the question doesn't mean anything. ALL shocking is, is raising the chlorine levels to the point that the chlorine kills anything growing and consumes other contaminants.

You also don't realize that bleach IS chlorine. If you go to the pool store and buy "Liquid Chlorine" or "Liquid Shock", all you are buying is bleach--sometimes in a stronger concentration, sometimes EXACTLY the same. Branch Brook Pools in my area sell gallon jugs of "Liquid Chlorine" that is 6% Sodium Hypochlorite. This is EXACTLY the same chemical as "Ultra Bleach" in a different package with a different label. Those 5 gallon blue carboys of "Liquid Chlorine" are simply the same as "Ultra Bleach", but at twice the concentration--12% rather than 6% Sodium Hypochlorite.

Bleach is a FAR better chlorinator than the powders or tablets you have been using. There is: Di-Chlor powder. This adds CYA as well as chlorine and lowers pH. The CYA levels build up until they are too high and THEN they make your chlorine INEFFECTIVE. Tablets are usually Tri-Chlor. They add even more CYA and are extremely acid, lowering your pH. Now, the HTH tri-chlor tabs also add copper--which turns blonde hair green and creates all sorts of other problems. Then there's Cal-Hypo--the powder adds lots of calcium to your water. Sooner or later, you have too much and your water gets milky. Cal-Hypo tablets don't dissolve properly and either clog your skimmer or leave white stuff on your pool bottom. And they add calcium.

Only Sodium Hypochlorite solution avoids all these side effects. It doesn't matter what it's called, just that it contains Sodium Hypo and what concentration. It can be call Bleach, Liquid Chlorine, or Liquid Shock--it doesn't matter.

And whatever you use for chlorination, once it's dissolved into the water, chlorine is chlorine--it's all the other chems added (or not) that makes a difference.

And I am sure there will be a ton more questions and thanks for the help!

Good Luck!

[donfranko]

Read...Read...read this board. There is plenty of info to get you started and keep you going. Water testing and keeping balance comes pretty quickly.
My pool was installed last year and my wife thought I was nuts when I told her I was going to use bleach. My rationale had more to do with putting less in the pool than cost. Anyway, crystal clear water the first year and I'll admit I've learned more since than. The wife is content that I know what I'm doing. The PS 234 kit is a must, I'd order as early as possible. Good luck.

[chemicalbalance]

My advice is to not be afraid of the switch. Your neighbors, your wife, and your most of all, your pool chemical salesman with think you are nuts. Stay out of the pool store. Ignore them all and you will succeed.

Step 1. Read everything on the Poolsolutions.com website. Everything. Print it and reread it.

Step 2. Buy a decent test kit like the PS233 on the website or whatever new version they are selling. When you use the test kit, write down your results so you can see the effect of your work.

I bought my 10 year old home with an inground pool three years ago. The first year, I did everything the pool store told me to do. It couldnt have been more of a hassle. Their solution to everything is to add more chemicals and come back tomorrow with a new water sample. It cost about 75 bucks a week.

Stay out of the pool store. If you insist on using "pool chemicals" to appease nay sayers, at least buy them at a large discount retailer, never at the pool store. Lowes, Home Depot, and Walmart sell all the pool chemicals you could ever need. Still, its best to just use Borax, Baking Soda, and Chlorine Bleach from any cheap big box store. Get Muriatic Acid from an old fashioned hardware store in the masonary section, or get it in the paint section at your local home improvement warehouse. If you do not believe this site, then go to the arm and hammer website, they will list a dosing schedule for using baking soda. Similarly clorox posts pool information on their website. The muriatic acid bottle will also list dosing rates. You can also simply google any of these chemicals. Last year, I bet I didnt spend $100 total on pool chemicals the whole season.


A couple things which I did NOT learn early on.

1. Cloudy water is often the result of a dirty filter. The pool store told me to change my Diatomaceous Earth filter twice a season, but my water always seemed cloudy so they wanted me to add more chemicals. DE costs nothing at Lowes. About $15 for enough to last all season. I now change my filter the first of every month. Some people say it may be too often but again it costs nothing and my pool sparkles.

2. Baking Soda raises alkalinity. Acid lowers pH and and only lowers alkalinity temporarily (sort of). The point being, make slow changes to your pool chemistry and dont get on a roller coaster of fighting pH and alkalinity with acid and baking soda. Read the posted information on aerating to lower alkalinity if it is a problem.

3. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If you have a pool party with 15 ten year old boys, shock the pool immediately before you close it for the night. By adding your chlorine in a timely manner, you will eliminate 90% of issues related to low cholorine.

4. Use and believe your test kit. If the test kit results are good and if the pool water looks good, forget about it and go swim. Do not over think the process.

Good luck

[kaybinster]

I would suggest not to switch to bleach, but use it in combination with TriChlor. I have done this for about 4 years with great luck. As others mentioned TriChlor tends to drop the pH while bleach will raise it. Thus, I supply half the chlorine needs with bleach and half with TriChlor thus I never have any problems with the pH and never have to deal with things like pH up or pH down.

[mwsmith2]

I would suggest not to switch to bleach, but use it in combination with TriChlor.

The problem with this is that you don't have any control over your CYA levels, which leads to:

1. Reduced Cl effectiveness
2. Accelerated plaster erosion (as discovered by a leading pool chemical supplier)

Personally, when I was doing bleach, I controlled pH with muriatic acid. Simple and easy. No worries about how much CYA I was slamming into my pool with the tablets. I like adding one thing at a time, in quantities that I know about. That's what makes it easy to keep a pool in balance.

Michael

[TfromNC]

The problem with this is that you don't have any control over your CYA levels, which leads to:

1. Reduced Cl effectiveness
2. Accelerated plaster erosion (as discovered by a leading pool chemical supplier)

Personally, when I was doing bleach, I controlled pH with muriatic acid. Simple and easy. No worries about how much CYA I was slamming into my pool with the tablets. I like adding one thing at a time, in quantities that I know about. That's what makes it easy to keep a pool in balance.

Michael

So you don't use chlorine pucks at all? You just use bleach for normal chlorination?

[Watermom]

Yes! Bleach is the only thing I ever use as a chlorine source. I have never had a puck in my pool since day one, not any chlorine granules either. My water is always great and I don't spend a fortune.

Watermom