So lost!

[CarlD]

Stabilizer . . . . . . Min. FC . . . . Max FC . . . 'Shock' FC
=> 0 ppm . . . . . . . 1 ppm . . . . . 3 ppm . . . . 10 ppm
=> 10 - 20 ppm . . . . 2 ppm . . . . . 5 ppm . . . . 12 ppm
=> 30 - 50 ppm . . . . 3 ppm . . . . . 6 ppm . . . . 15 ppm
=> 60 - 90 ppm . . . . 5 ppm . . . . . 10 ppm . . .. 20 ppm
=> 100 - 200 ppm . . . 8 ppm . . . . . 15 ppm . . .. 25 ppm

^^^That thing? I don't get it. I imagine what I want is shock FC, but what ppm would I want? That's confusing! So being that I have 5000 gallons rather than 10, I would be getting 12ppm from 1 gallon of ultra bleach? Would I want something that high?

Yup, you got it, all of it! You want the Shock FC level that matches your CYA/stabilizer level. And, yes, you would want a MINIMUM FC level of 12 ppm to clear your water--more if you have more CYA.

You can use the bleach calculator if the math is a struggle.

[ratgirl]

Hello, we've purchased a water testing kit that actually gives number results but the chlorine is too high to test the PH at the moment. Anyway, our water does seem a bit better, however the "waste" thing on the pump is leaking. Does anyone know why that might be happening? My step father just cleaned the pump free of TONS of leaves that we had no idea were there, and since then the waste things been leaking. I dunno what would cause that, and he's getting angry over the whole thing. *sigh* We should have just gotten someone to come in and open the pool for us, and show us the workings of the thing.

[ratgirl]

OMGosh, I can see the skimmer all the way down to the bottom of the pool! This must be good. Will continue bleaching for a few days.

[ChuckD]

Just want to throw in that you can often go to the manufacturer of the pump/filter's website and get the documentation you need to see that the thing's set up and running right. Get the name of the pump and plug it into Google (your next best friend after this forum!).

ChuckD

[ratgirl]

<3 Thank you!

[ratgirl]

Gah, I just wrote, and posted an edit, but it doesn't appear to have posted.
Anyway, I looked at the filter and it's a Hayward swim pro high rate sand filter. There was a model number on it(SW166T) but I couldn't find it on their website at all!
I have some pictures of it, so perhaps someone might recognize it, and be able to tell me if it's connected properly?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3106.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3105.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3104.jpg

Thank you.

[ChuckD]

Gah, I just wrote, and posted an edit, but it doesn't appear to have posted.
Anyway, I looked at the filter and it's a Hayward swim pro high rate sand filter. There was a model number on it(SW166T) but I couldn't find it on their website at all!
I have some pictures of it, so perhaps someone might recognize it, and be able to tell me if it's connected properly?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3106.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3105.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...a/100_3104.jpg

Thank you.

I'm thinking you may have misread that number and it's actually one of these:
http://www.haywardnet.com/products/d...ductID=41#five

The smaller certainly looks like it.

ChuckD

[ratgirl]

Okay, so I guess according to that manual our filter is hooked up properly. So that's a good thing. Anyway I used one of those test strip thingys and the free chlorine is way over 10 because it immediately turned darker purple than the one that represents 10. Our PH is over 8.4, total alkilinity is between 120, and 180 which the thing says is between ok and high, and the cyanuric acid was between 100 and 150 which is between ok and high. Our pump has been running all day for the last 2 days, we've been puting loads of chlorine in, and still the water is bad. We're getting ready to just give up and sell the thing. *sigh* Any more suggestions?

[Bleach=Chlorine?]

***This advice is based on test strip results which are border-line useless. Get results from a pool store or use a kit and dilute the water if necessary.***

Ratgirl,
There have been discussions on this post about the effectiveness (or lack there of!) of chlorine at high pH levels. I am not sure how much an effect a 8.4pH would have but it is NOT GOOD! You need to add some muratic acid as chlorine is most effective in the 7.2-7.4 zone of the safe range. Once you have the pH down some I think the chlorine will be more effective in cleaning up the pool.

I noticed that the CYA is between 100-150 (need more specific numbers) but this coupled with the high pH is rendering that 10ppm of chlorine rather useless. You need to get the chlorine level into shock territory for CYA of >100 and also get the pH down ASAP!

[Rangeball]

I was just reading some info today that stated chlorine was most effective at PH levels too acidic for a pool. At the recommended PH of 7.6, it is only 50% effective. Any higher and the effectiveness drops off the map.