New member

[7sanders]

New member here... used this forum and the pool calculators all the time with our 10' easy set pool for the last 4 years (and for years before that our 15' easy set). Now that the youngest is almost 5, we're ready to get back into a larger pool so we bought a 16' x 48" Intex Ultra Frame that we plan to setup and use for 3-5 years in the hopes of putting in an in-ground around that time.

Considering adding the Intex Saltwater Filtration System as well.

Right now we are still working on leveling the yard before hopefully setting up the pool later today or tomorrow. The biggest question we have is whether to use our city water ($$$) or our well water (very clear, but unsure of mineral content... we used it frequently in the 10' pool though)?

Supplies on hand: HTH 5 way test kit, 6% plain bleach, HTH Stabilizer & Conditioner (almost full 4lb jug), and a box of borax.

[PoolDoc]

You might want to try the metals bucket test, before you fill your pool. City water might be cheaper than cleaning up an iron mess.

[7sanders]

thanks for the tip... I decided to just fill it with the city water supply, however part way through my dear husband was trying to be helpful and kicked on the well water and had both going in... so I'd say we're 2/3 city and 1/3 well water.

Last night our numbers were: Chlorine 1.5 , Ph 7.2, and TA 160 (same numbers before any swimmers this morning)

I added 1 lb 11 oz of stabilizer to the pool this morning (in a sock, attached to a floating object so it doesn't rest on the liner) Also added 3 cups of 6% bleach this afternoon (we were at .5), and after a full day of sun, and a lot of swimmers, our numbers tonight were Chlorine 1.0 and PH 7.5 (didn't test the rest). Planning to toss in another 3 cups of bleach and set the filter to run another 4 hours during the night.

After a 100 degree day, our water temp went from a frigid 63 last night, to a bearable 77 this afternoon. The kids should sleep very well tonight!

[7sanders]

On day 4 now, went out to see if anyone local had the cya reagent so I could test my CYA levels, and of course no one does, infact they were quite surprised that I even had a test kit with the ability to test CYA (geez, really? my $15 HTH 5 way test kit from Wallyworld is "rare"? That should be enough to scare me away from that particular pool store forever.)
Of course that pools store will test your water for you, so here are my numbers today (according to the pool store):

FAC 2
TAC 2
PH 7.6
TA 160-170
CYA 30-40 (surely he could have narrowed that down a little more?)
Calcium Hardness 400
TDS 500
Phosphates 300 (of course I "must" buy this stuff to get rid of those! Ya, no thanks)

My water sample was pulled this afternoon, after about 6 hours of sunlight, so I think we may have enough CYA to stop the chlorine from disappearing now.

**** My question is this: I still have about 3/4 of a cup of undissolved stabilizer granules in a sock floating in the pool. Should I continue to let them dissolve and increase the CYA level?

Also, I'm shying away from the SWCG idea for now... the novelty of "set it and forget it" was appealing (mostly to my hubby who is all about lessening the load on mom), but on the other hand, bleach is just so much more economical than a $200 SWCG! (That and a post talking about copper in the unit turning blonde hair green - no thanks I dealt with that every summer growing up... my folks must have spent a fortune on lemon juice to get rid of my green hair!)

Thanks for the wealth of info in this forum!!!! I truly appreciate all the work you put into it (I run a couple of similar forums for NICU babies and BMW car clubs, lol)

[PoolDoc]

Actually, the "30 - 40" ppm range on your CYA test makes me suspect that the guy may actually know what he's doing, and that your test results are reasonably accurate. The reason is, none of the CYA test methods available for home or store use are more accurate than that. When some one gets, or gives, a reading of CYA = 33.1 ppm . . . I KNOW they are bogus. Perhaps, unknowingly bogus, but still bogus! It's unusual to encounter pool store staff who actually UNDERSTAND the test methods they use. You may have found an exception.

Of course, if he DOES understand, and he told you that 300 ppb phosphates means you MUST do something, means he may be smart, but dishonest! 3000 ppb would mean you might have a problem you'd want to fix; 300ppb means almost nothing!

You can continue to increase your CYA level if you like. Just read the Best Guess page so you understand what's going on. Chlorine USAGE is pretty much the same, regardless of which bracket on the Best Guess chart you're in. But at higher levels of CYA you have to add more chlorine at a time -- but you can do so less often.

[Watermom]

If it were my pool, I'd go ahead and let the rest of the CYA granules dissolve. I think you'll be happier with CYA closer to 50 than 30.

[7sanders]

Thanks! Will leave the stabilizer to finish dissolving.

The sheet he gave me with the results on it says that phosphates level should remain <100ppb ! Must be a big money maker for them.

Enjoying every minute of the pool, thanks so much for your input!

[aylad]

I just want to congratulate you on doing your homework and taking control of your own pool. It makes life SO much easier when you don't have to just buy stuff from the store because they tell you you need it, without understanding why!!

Good job!

Janet

[7sanders]

Thanks for all of the advice... Had my PH creep up above 7.8... not quite to the 8.4 on my test kit, but somewhere in between the 7.8 and 8.4. Added about 3 oz of dissolved PH Minus that we had on hand yesterday, and today the chlorine has held steady at 3 and the PH was back to about a 7.6. I'm guessing it's due to high aeration, as our kids plus the neighborhood kids have spent at least 4-6 hours a day splashing around in the pool. And the pump return into the pool really ripples the water since we don't have the pool filled to capacity. (And rain two nights in a row)

Anyway... I pulled out all the chemicals we've purchased/been given over the years and was curious if any of the following are worth keeping around?

* HTH PH Minus (I understand Muratic Acid is the chem of choice, but we already had this on hand)

* HTH Dual Action 1" chlorinating tablets (active ingred. trichloro-s-triazinetrione 93.5% and copper sulfate pentahydrate 1.5%... avail chlorine 84%)
* SpaGuard PH Decreaser (sodium bisulfate 93.2%)

And the jug of "HTH Algaeguard" is definitely getting tossed.

How do you dispose of unwanted pool chemicals? Are they safe to dump, or best taken to the hazardous waste facility?

Thanks!

Intex 16'x48" UltraFrame, approx 5000 gal

[Watermom]

The PH Minus and the PH decreaser are both just dry acid and should be fine to use unless they list some other unwanted ingredient on the label. If it is just sodium bisulfate, that's ok. Do NOT use the chlorinating tabs since they have copper in them. You do NOT want copper in your pool. And you're right. Do NOT use the HTH Algaeguard.

I'm not sure of the best way to dispose of the unwanted stuff. Ben will have a better idea. I'll ask him.