Want to get the chemicals right ...

[Debits26]

I added my pool info to the pool chart. Our well water is FULL of iron. We try to filter out as much as possible when we add water using a Metal Trap on the hose and a separate little submersible pump to send the water through an under sink filter contraption.

[PoolDoc]

I looked at your chart; that's a big pool; small errors in chemistry are going to cost you a LOT of money.

[PoolDoc]

I had to dig some more, to get the info I needed. Do these things:

1. Go to the Walmart in Woodstock, and get the HTH 6-way drops kit -- it shows to be currently in stock.

2. Go to the Sams Club in Crystal Lake and get their PoolBrand Chlorinating Granules - 50 lbs. for ~$115
If you aren't a member, call and see if you can get a guest pass.

3. Go to Amazon, and order a K2006 test kit (yes, you will need that, too)

Taylor K2006A (3/4 oz bottles) @ Amazon
Taylor K2006C (2 oz bottles) @ Amazon

4. Go to the Lake in the Hills Lowes, and get their "Crown" muriatic acid -- 6 gallons to start. While you're there, get some nitrile gloves (blue) and inexpensive safety glasses, if you don't have any. Do NOT get any of the 'safer' muriatic acid; DO read the muriatic acid sticky in my signature BEFORE using the muriatic.

5. As soon as you can conveniently do so, order 50 or 100 lbs of calcium hypochlorite from Amazon. Chlorinating with this will help remove iron, but you'll have to use the dichlor first, to get your stabilizer up.

6. See if you can get a small amount of DE powder from your pool store, or Lowes or Walmart. Add 2 - 4 cups directly to the skimmer, and then watch to see if the powder shoots back into the pool. If it does, your filter needs repair. If you can, open your filter ANYHOW, and make sure it's full with sand. If not, get enough filter sand from your pool store, or possibly Lowes, to fill it.

7. Make a dated list, as accurately as possible, of ALL the chemicals you've used in the last months, with EXACT product name, quantities and dates. Also include an inventory of what chemicals you have on hand.

8. Post that list AND test results from the HTH kit ASAP.

9. Begin dosing with the dichlor (Sams) ASAP. Start with 1 cup doses added directly to the pool - watch to see if there is any color change in the water. If there is not, gradually add larger and larger doses over an hour's interval, till you've added about 12 cups (~4 ppm of chlorine). If all goes well, you'll should begin adding 6 cups each AM and 8 cups each PM, till your pool begins holding 2 - 4 ppm of chlorine throughout the day.

10. Once you have established a constant chlorine level, BRUSH the pool completely. Then, add a 6 - 12 cup dose of dichlor after brushing.

11. Wait at least 12 hours, and then VACUUM the pool completely. Add at least a 6 cup dose of dichlor when you do.

12. Do NOT let your chlorine level go below 1 ppm at ANY time; it should be over 4 ppm EVERY night, AND first thing in the AM.

13. Meanwhile, begin adding 1 gallon muriatic acid doses till your pH reaches 7.4 or a little lower. Hold it at that level.

14. Tell me the EXACT model and make of your sand filter.

15. Verify your pool chart info: you have no pool heater and no other pool equipment except your feeder.

[Debits26]

Couple of questions:
1. We have 8 lbs of stabilizer on hand. Should we use that and liquid chlorine instead of the Dichlor?
2. We have 11 bags of Sam's pool shock on hand. Is that the same as the granules?
3. Should we be keeping our inline chlorinator with 3 in trichlor tabs while we are getting in balance?

I appreciate your help very much!!

[PoolDoc]

We have 8 lbs of stabilizer on hand. Should we use that and liquid chlorine instead of the Dichlor?

That would be fine, but with a cartridge filter, it's rather hard to dissolve. Put it in some old athletic socks, and hang them in front of your returns.

We have 11 bags of Sam's pool shock on hand. Is that the same as the granules?

If it's "PoolBrand" bagged shock, yes it is, and it's fine to use.

Should we be keeping our inline chlorinator with 3 in trichlor tabs while we are getting in balance?

Don't use the chlorinator. If you still have tabs, put them in the skimmer. In your chlorinator, they tend to result in pools stains. But, in the skimmer, they tend to result in staining your cartridge . . . which is a GOOD thing. Just make sure that no OTHER chemicals (including bleach, but excepting borax) come into direct contact with the tabs.

[Debits26]

PoolDoc:
Here's the list as best as I can supply. I ordered the Taylor kit from In the Swim yesterday and should get it tomorrow. I did not get the HTH kit as my pool is looking pretty good and I don't want to throw another $20 down the drain. Unless you tell me there's a reason I need both kits.

Chemicals we have on hand:
1. 5 Bags of Pool Brand dichlor pool shock
2. 3 gallons Transchem 20° Baume muriatic acid
3. Approx. 25 lbs of Pool Brand 3-in. tabs.

As for other equipment:
1. I can't tell you anymore about the filter. It is sand, made by Jacuzzi, approximately 36 in. diameter. We had it installed before 2005. We had a house fire in 2005 and lost paperwork like the pool filter manual, etc. (I guess I could get the records from the pool store ...)
2. We have a heater. The water runs through it, but it has not been able to heat the water since before the 2005 house fire. (we think the contractor forgot to attach the gas line, and we haven't needed it)
That's really it for equipment.

History of 2012 pool opening (sorry this is so long):

During the week of June 20th we drained the pool completely, sprayed down the debris and got it all out and started fresh with our iron-filled well water. We set up our hose to fill a small baby pool. Put our 1.25 hp submersible pump in the pool and pumped the water through a culligan undersink filter contraption. On June 23rd we realized too much iron was still getting through and we quit while we waited for the Metal Trap to be delivered. During the wait, we put 1 gallon of liquid chlorine in the deep end where the water was, then started using the 1.25 submersible pump to send the water in the pool through the culligan-type undersink filter. (we do catch a lot of the iron in that filter)

June 28, began filling again using the Metal Trap on our hose. No other chemical was added until we got it full, which was about July 3rd.
July 4th: Used test strips to measure levels. PH was 8+ Added 1 gallon Transchem muriatic acid (20• Baume 31.45%) and swam in it all day. Water was almost clear, sort of greenish
July 5th: Pool store provided the following measurements:
• Total chlorine: 0.5
• Free chlorine: 0
• CYA: 0
• PH: 8.2
• Alkalinity: 288
• Hardness: 325
• Copper: 0
• Iron: 0
• TDS: 300
Their suggestions scared me. Added 1 gallon muriatic acid no change in color or clarity, started trolling the pool forum to figure out if I should add chlorine slowly or all at once.

July 6th: Took a sample to a different pool store to test the info provided by the first store. I had only added that 1 gallon of muriatic and got these new numbers:
• TC: 1.1
• Free Chlorine: 0.0
• Combined Chlorine: 1.1
• CYA: 5
• PH: 7.9
• Alkalinity: 309
• Hardness: 230
• Copper:0
• Iron:0
• TDS: 500
• Nitrate: 1
Took their advice (BAD IDEA)
• Added 4 quarts GLB Algemycin 2000 ,
• 4 gallons Transchem muriatic acid,
• 4 lbs. Royal Stabilizer,
• 8 gallons of So White Swim Kleer bleach (12.5% sodium hypochlorite)

July 7th: Woke up to BROWN water, perfectly clear, but brown. Added 4 lbs. Stabilizer, 1 quart Lynde Co. Unique clarifier, 1 quart Bioguard Pool Magnet plus. Water changed to greenish. Went back to the second pool store to tell them what happened and showed them a picture. They had no idea, just told us to keep doing what they told us the day before. We left and have not been back.
Water measures from this day:
• TC: 7.6
• Free: 4.0
• Combined: 3.6
• CYA: 15
• PH: 7.2
• Alkalinity: 246
• Hardness: 230
• Copper .16 (from the algaeside, ya think?!!)
• Iron: 0
• TDS: 570
• Nitrate: 19

Added three more gallons of muriatic acid and two more quarts HTH metal control from Walmart in the afternoon. Water color and clarity hasn’t changed.

July 8th: Using AquaChem test strips
• FC: 10+
• TC: 10+
• CYA: Less than 30
• PH: ~7.6
• Alkalinity: ~200

Swam all day with 3 dogs and 10 people in and out of the pool.
Ph looked higher on the strip in the evening, and chlorine was still high. Added 3 gallons muriatic.

July 9th: Backwashed in the morning, put one Pool Brand triclor 3-in. tab in the skimmer and started adding fill water on top of the tab, still using the Metal Trap. Test strips showed:
• FC: 8
• TC: 8
• CYA: Less than 30
• PH: 7.2
• Alkalinity in range
Have completely realized the color is due to stain on the fiberglass sides and concrete bottom. Got ascorbic acid to test. Amazing!!!!! Color comes right off the fiberglass. Have not tried the concrete.
Followed Ben’s advice all day yesterday with chlorine, though most likely our chlorine is fine. It’s been very high and holding since Saturday. Ordered the Taylor test kit. Since our chlorine is high, I’m going to wait the two days to get the Taylor kit and not spend the extra $20 on the HTH kit.

Total of 12 cups of Pool Brand dichlor added today.
• Free and Total Chlorine is higher than test strips will measure
• CYA: probably still under 30
• PH: 7.6
• Alkalinity in range.

July 10th: I will get the test kit tomorrow or Thursday, and provide accurate measurements. Until then, I think we will sit on it. Water is clearer this morning, and chlorine is still higher than can be discerned using test strips. I think our real problem with water color and clarity is the metal stain on all surfaces. Would like to use Ascorbic acid to clean it all off. I printed off the Sticky forum post instructions for doing that.
1. What brand of sequestering agent do you recommend to keep the metal from restaining the surfaces?
2. Is there any product or process that will actually get the metal out? I saw an entry on the forum at one point, but can’t find it again. Can you point me there?

[PoolDoc]

1. I hope you got the K-2006 FAS-DPD (listed at $85 for the K-2006A) and not the K-2005 (listed at $70 for the K2005A). If not, you'll need to order the K-1515.

2. The HTH is a re-labeled Taylor, with an OTO / phenol red block. Unlike the DPD color match in the K2005, OTO provides a reliable and inexpensive way to QUICKLY test the water. So, it's helpful to have both.

3. The complete metal stain removal process is here: http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?7923
Please note that NONE of the steps are optional, so far as we know. Also, the process MUST proceed in the order described; do it out of order and you are likely to waste both your time and your money. Order links for the products needed are present on that page. If you choose NOT to use those order links, you must be VERY careful, particularly with the HEDP. Other liquid stain and scale product have different ingredients, and are NOT adequate substitutes.

4. I'm not going to put much effort into working out your test results, till you have some version of the Taylor. We see too many bogus 'guess-strip' results to be willing to trust them. The pH test is usually not too bad, and the chlorine test is about as accurate as OTO testing, but with a narrower range. CH and TA testing can be pretty bad, and CYA results are often random.

But it looks like things are generally moving in a positive direction, and that your high TA is responding to keeping the pH low.