NEW! (AG pool & to forums) some advice needed

[PoolDoc]

membership updated. -ben

[Timmy425Oldstyle]

Very Sorry for the long wait before a response. Been busy cleaning up the yard/landscaping after leveling, trench for electric and the pool install. I got my Taylor test kit yesterday (ordered through link on Poolforum!) and promptly tested the water. Don't worry, I have been using the strips that the store included to at least monitor the water and make sure things weren't out of control. Here are the results from my Taylor k-2006:

FC= 2.4 ppm
CC= .4ppm
ph= 7.1
TA=100
CH=120

To address some questions from above:
Aylad estimated my volume to around 9100 gallons, which I agree with. the pool is a 54'' and the water level is about 48''.
The package for the granulated shock that was used after filling was unfortunately thrown away.
Our water source was our city tap water. It is pumped from lake Michigan initially (and of course treated).

My "better half" also added the stabilizer that the store included. That bottle indicates that the ingredients are . . . nothing! Not a big surprise based on what I have been reading that there is no indication what exactly was in that bottle, but she added the entire 1.75 lb container into the pool and we ran the pump for the next 12 hours, per instructions on the bottle. Other than that, the "frog leap anti-bac mineral pack" (sorry!) and the "torpedo pack" that dispenses our trichlor are the only other things that have been added to the water.

So I have a few new questions.
1. My slightly low PH and subsequent reading tells me i should add about 2 lbs of Sodium Carbonate to the pool. Am I correct?
(6 drops of reagent brought my sample's PH to 7.6 - for a 10,000 G pool, my little manual tells me to add 1.9 lbs of Sodium Carbonate)
2.My combined chlorine levels are high. I may have misinterpreted the test slightly, but the CC level is either .2 or .4 ppm. What may have caused it to climb so quickly? (the pool hasn't had a TON of use, so I am guessing this may be some of the havoc that the minerals will wreak on my pool chemistry)
3. The calcium hardness level is also low, should I add calcium chloride?
4. Based on the recommendation given to me by Aylad, i did not perform a test for CYA. Should I do that now, since we've added stabilizer and the trichlor has been doing it as well?

Questions not related to pool chemistry:
1.Where exactly should my attachment point be for the pump's copper ground wire? The installers did not take care of this. I purchased the proper solid ground wire and I do have it attached to the metal frame of the pool, but I had to remove the plastic cover that goes over the bottom of one my uprights so I had a good attachment point. I'm sure it varies from pool to pool, but i'm wondering if this is a common problem.
2. Should there be some kind of check or gate valve between my return and the pool? I removed and cleaned the pump basket the other day, so I closed the gate valve on the suction side of the pump, but there is no such valve on the other side of the pump, filter, or mineral infuser. I had to put a plastic cup over the return jet in the pool to keep the water from flowing out of the pump while I cleaned the basket.

Last question: Are my posts too long? I have not previously been a part of a forum community and I do not want to have bad etiquette. I'm finding that my reading has given me insight into how to care for my pool, but getting some reassurance sure has been helpful.

Thanks in advance!

[PoolDoc]

1. My slightly low PH and subsequent reading tells me i should add about 2 lbs of Sodium Carbonate to the pool. Am I correct?

Add 1/2 box of borax instead.

2.My combined chlorine levels are high. I may have misinterpreted the test slightly, but the CC level is either .2 or .4 ppm. What may have caused it to climb so quickly? (the pool hasn't had a TON of use, so I am guessing this may be some of the havoc that the minerals will wreak on my pool chemistry)

Don't worry about this, till your pool has been running a few weeks (unless the CC starts getting higher!)

3. The calcium hardness level is also low, should I add calcium chloride?

Low calcium is not an issue for you.

4. Based on the recommendation given to me by Aylad, i did not perform a test for CYA. Should I do that now, since we've added stabilizer and the trichlor has been doing it as well?

Yes.

1.Where exactly should my attachment point be for the pump's copper ground wire? The installers did not take care of this. I purchased the proper solid ground wire and I do have it attached to the metal frame of the pool, but I had to remove the plastic cover that goes over the bottom of one my uprights so I had a good attachment point. I'm sure it varies from pool to pool, but i'm wondering if this is a common problem.

I have ZERO knowledge of AG pool wiring requirements; ask the electrician who hooked things up for you, what the code is. Failing that, call the pool mfg.

2. Should there be some kind of check or gate valve between my return and the pool? I removed and cleaned the pump basket the other day, so I closed the gate valve on the suction side of the pump, but there is no such valve on the other side of the pump, filter, or mineral infuser. I had to put a plastic cup over the return jet in the pool to keep the water from flowing out of the pump while I cleaned the basket.

It's helpful to have a valve like that.

Last question: Are my posts too long? I have not previously been a part of a forum community and I do not want to have bad etiquette. I'm finding that my reading has given me insight into how to care for my pool, but getting some reassurance sure has been helpful.

They are fine. We get a bit antsy, when people write 2 page newsletters about their pool, family, and Oh!, yeah, the chlorine -- but you're fine.

[BigDave]

I have a comment about your "pump's copper groud wire". I'm pretty sure you're referring to the pool bond and the bonding lug on the housing of your pump's motor (there should also be a ground in the electrical supply wiring). According to code in my town (when I built the pool last year) an AG pool requires #8 solid copper wire that encircles the pool completely and is electrically connected to every piece of metal (larger than 4") in or on the pool and the pump and any other electrical pool equipment and to the water itself. Your town may be different.

The pool bond is an important electrical safety system for your pool designed to make sure that everything your swimmers touch is at the same electrical potential helping to keep them from becoming conductors.

Your electrician should be responsible for installation of the pool bond. Did your electrician pull an electrical permit for the construction of your pool? Your electrical inspector should have examined the bond and verified it's connections.

Definitely call your electrician back and discuss the pool bonding requirements. Call the electrical inspector if you're unsatisifed with the electrician's answers.