new pool

[ramoniqque]

Thank you for all your help. I did the shock with bleach last night and brushed the pool. I just did the test and CL is at 3 ( maybe higher.. I did not have distilled water)and the PH looks like between 7.2 or 7.6.. I really can't tell based on the color. Watermom said to use Arm and Hammer washing soda.. I don't have any but I do gave the Alkalinity up which my husband already bought .. Can I use it ? if yes how much? Also what do I do with the stabilizer? Keep using the pucks? what are my next steps ?

[aylad]

Your pH is fine, as long as it's over 7.0, don't worry about it. If the pool is clear and the biofilm is gone, then you can let the chlorine stay between 3-6 ppm for now and use the pool. If it's not clear, and you still feel the biofilm, then you need to raise the chlorine back up and hold it there until the biofilm is gone, and THEN let your chlorine drift back down.

If the film is gone and you're letting the chlorine drift back down, then you can either maintain your chlorine level by using the pucks (as long as they don't contain copper--if they do, then take them back), which will add stabilizer and will tend to drive your pH down, or by just using the bleach, which most of us use since it has no other side effect on the pool water. It's your decision, but you don't want your chlorine to be less than 3 ppm, EVER.

If you want to use the Alk up that your husband already bought, you can--but personally I would take it back and get my money back, go to WalMart and buy baking soda, which is the same thing but 1/3 of the price. I'm thinking that you'll need closer to 14 lbs of baking soda to raise TA from 40 to around 90, but don't add it all at once--I'd add a couple of pounds, give it a day or so to circulate, then add a couple more a day until you get it where you want to be. When adding pool chems, it's best not to add a bunch of anything at one time, but rather to sneak up on your target number rather than overshoot it. If you add 14 pounds of ANY kind of powder to your pool at once you're going to get a cloudy pool, and you don't want that.

So..decide if you need to continue the shock again or not, decide which form of chlorine you're going to use, and then slowly raise your TA...and go swimming!!

Janet

[Watermom]

To clarify what i wrote above ---

You can use Borax to raise pH, and baking soda to raise alk. OR if you need to raise both of them, you can just use washing soda instead of Borax and baking soda. Your choice. Either way is fine.

[ramoniqque]

Thank you so much ,I am flowing all of your instructions. Already bought the washing soda. Got a question though.. What is the ideal number for the CYA ?.. because I understand that based on that # I need to up the chlorine..
I know it depends on a few other factors but overall, this is my situation - We don't really use the pool everyday, the pool is in the full sun from 10 to 5, no crazy weekend partys either ... yet
My thought is to use the tablets until I get the CYA at the desired level .. then use just bleach...which brings me to another question.. Once the pool is in balance how much of the bleach is used on average? a gallon every night ? a little more for my 26 k gallon pool? Thank you in advance for all your help..

[aylad]

The "ideal" number for CYA really depends on the pool. We generally recommend that people start at about 40 ppm, and then see how much chlorine they use. This works for most folks--but there are some, like me, who tend to run theirs higher. My pool is in full Louisiana sun from sunup to sundown, high humidity, high bather load, and I have to keep my CYa at 80-90 ppm in order to keep chlorine levels where they should be. If my CYA gets any lower, my chlorine consumption increases dramatically. Having a CYA of 90 lets me use a 1.4 gallon jug of bleach every 2 days or so to maintain 8 ppm of chlorine. However, my pool is a bit of an exception. Until you "learn" your pool's habits, I would start with about 40 ppm of CYA and see how it goes--if you're still having trouble keeping chlorine in the pool (due to sun, not to algae) then you could bump it up a little and see if that helps.

Janet

[PoolDoc]

Upgraded your membership, and moved your post. -Ben

[ramoniqque]

Thank you all again... I think I'm starting to understand how it all works.. I have successfully battled the biofilm/ algae.. no more slippiness yey .. Took a nice swim already.. Now I'm just waiting for my ALK and CYA to rise and then we'll see..
One more question...do you recommend algaecide? or those phosphate free solutions.. or as long as you keep the balance of CYA/CL .. is not necessary??

[Watermom]

It isn't really necessary to use algaecide. If you stay on top of your water chemistry, you really don't need it. I never use it. Some people use it only at closing in the fall. Some people do use maintenance doses of it. The only type we recommend is Polyquat 60%. More info here: http://www.poolsolutions.com/gd/polyquat.html

Phosphate solutions? Forget it. They are the latest thing pool stores use to remove money from your wallet. Don't need it.

[ramoniqque]

Thank you once again... I think I'm through with the questions ... for a few days at least ...so once I balance everything and "learn my pool habits" I will just use the BBB method and the bleach to chlorinate. Sounds simple.. now we'll see how it goes.. in practical application !