Help! I'm ready to pull my hair out!

[mortimay]

What is my next step? Do I continue to keep the chlorine at 12 or should I be getting it down to swimming level?

[CarlD]

I would keep it at shock level until the water is clear. But that's me.

Carl

[mortimay]

Will do. When the water is clear, do I just allow the chlorine level to drop? What about the pH and Alk?

[CarlD]

You always want to keep your pH below 8 and above 7. Although at shock levels of chlorine the pH reads higher than it actually is.

Don't worry about Alk until everything else is good. For now, until your water clears, it's FC, pH and CYA that matters (CYA=stabilizer)

Carl

[mortimay]

thank you!! I am so glad I found this forum. I'm sure I would still be fighting if I would have continued to follow pool store advice. Wish I would have found this site sooner and then listened only to your advice. I'm sure I would have cleaned up my pool a lot quicker (and cheaper).

Thanks again to all who helped!

[CarlD]

"Wish I would have found this site sooner "

Don't we all! And I've been here since 2001! (I think, if not longer)

I started with a 15' round Intex donut pool, used it for 3 years to learn how to manage a pool, then put in a built-in custom 40'x16' rectangular A/G that's more like an IG than AG. I'm opening my 9th season on the bigger pool.

Carl

[mortimay]

Success! My water is crystal clear! I honestly wondered if I would ever get to this point. Too bad it's too cold to swim. I haven't added anything since the 24th. My numbers this morning are:

Chl 5
pH 7.4 (best guess. the color was between 7.2 and 7.5 but closer to 7.5)
Alk 120

How do I go about maintaining? I have a floating chlorine dispenser? Should I put it in? Should I continue testing every day?

Also, does anyone have a solar cover? What are the safe numbers to put it on (I flattened the bubbles on mine last year)?

Any help is appreciated!

[madwil]

As for maintaining, you need to know your CYA amount. If CYA 0, you'll lose FC fast!
otherwise, use the best guess chart to determine what your correct FC is; test FC and pH daily, the rest maybe weekly.
Keep your FC in the range from best guess chart, keep your pH between 7.2 and 7.8...
With your alk, you may notice a rise in pH over time- keep acid on hand to lower it... mine goes up to 7.8, I add 2-3 cups acid and lowers back down about every 3 weeks (will probably be every 2 weeks when it gets warmer! more pump time=more aeration=more pH rise)

[Watermom]

Solar covers are really good at helping you to keep from losing heat overnight that you have gained through the day --- especially in the early spring and early fall. A solar cover can help you squeeze a few extra weeks into your swim season.

[CarlD]

Normally, we say aim for a CYA level of 30. I'm in NJ, so I like to have CYA around 30 for the first half of the season then bump it to 50 for the latter half, when it's really oppressively hot. I adjust my FC level accordingly.
aylad (Janet), down in Louisiana, keeps her CYA at 70-80 and her FC in the 5-10ppm range. Otherwise, at lower CYA levels, she's adding chlorine once or twice a day. Me, up here, I'm adding it every other day at most, usually less.

Carl