Confused Newbie needs CYA advice

[BigDave]

1. Stop using trichlor - that's why your CYA is so high.
2. Add 7 gallons of 6% PLAIN household bleach should get you to 25ppm FC (OTO orange).
3. See if you can get the HTH 6-way kit at your Walmart (check availability)
4. If not, get a cheap OTO/phenol red testkit.
5. Add enough PLAIN 6% household bleach each EVENING to bring your OTO to orange. Filter / pump on 24/7
6. Brush the pool completely at least every other day.

Let us know when you can test CYA for yourself.

[dognostrils]

Thanks, I'm off to Walmart -

[dognostrils]

I bought enough bleach to equal 6 gallons and the OTO/Phenol red test kit. I have been running the pump this morning to keep things moving and have not taken the trichlor out of the chlorinator yet. Thought I would try out the kit right now and the results were .5 Cl and 7.5 pH.
After I clean out the chlorinator, how long should I wait to add the bleach - don't want anything to explode - but I should add it this evening, right?Then after I add the bleach, how long should I wait to test? Thanks.

[PoolDoc]

If your pump is running, you can pour the bleach into the pool, right now! Just don't pour it over the trichlor in the skimmer!

BTW, AO Smith made the motor, not the pump.

[dognostrils]

Thanks - I dragged all the bleach out there and am about to start pouring. I checked the pump and there was a small label that said Hayward with an ID # and serial # but no other info so I'll see what I can dig up from the original paperwork and send that along with my new test results. Should I test immediately after I add the last bottle or wait a while?

[BigDave]

Wait a little while to let it mix.

[dognostrils]

I just checked and the Cl is 5+ (even more yellow than the top color) and pH is 7.5. Will run the pump all night and see if it is less green in the morning. Hayward got back to me and, for the record, I have a 1.5 HP Hayward Super II pump.

Thanks so much to everyone today for all their help! Can't wait to get the kit to find out what the CYA level really is.... and what I need to do from here.

[Watermom]

Until your kit arrives, you can use a dilution method to force your kit to read higher. Not super accurate and doesn't replace getting a good kit, but better than nothing. More about it here:

Testing Without a Good Kit

Hope this helps!