I've decided the following... not necessarily in the following order:

1. ditch the *#($^ pucks
2. drain the pool partially and refill
3. use bleach to manage my pool going forward (unless there is another way to manage without raising CYA)
4. Pray my family doesn't mutiny on me and hang me from the pool umbrella for messing up their summer cool off spot

My OTO kit this morning still showed TC over 15 (using the testing without a good kit method - double dilution) and pH at 7.8 however I don't think that will really matter since I'm partially draining the pool and all my chemistry will change from the dilution. That being said can I simply start with the partial drain now or should I wait for more shocking to be completed before I start the partial drain? I just want to make sure I don't make the algae issue any worse. I found a pump rental at a local hardware store and was going to move forward with using that to drain the pool.

Thanks!