Need HELP! with new Intex pool
Reply With Quote
Sorry I didn't get to this sooner. But the truth is, on Intex or other soft-side pools, you can not clean up algae in 2 days: the filters simply are not adequate to the task.
Do this:
1. Get a cheap OTO/phenol red testkit, 10 gallons of PLAIN store brand 8% bleach, and 4 boxes of 20 Mule Team borax.
2. Put your filter on "circulate" -- you don't want to filter the algae as you kill it, but you do want to circulate the water. Turn off all 'generator' elements on your system.
3. Check your pH. If the pH is below 7.0, add a box of borax. Retest 1 hour after it is all dissolved. Add more till you are above 7.0. If your pH is above 8.0, don't worry about it right now. (If you don't need the borax now, safe it -- it keeps indefinitely.)
4. Once your pH is above 7.0, add 3 gallons of plain bleach in the evening. (If it's cloudy, and not going to get sunny, you can do it now!) If the pool is DARK green, add 6 gallons. Circulate the pool for 2 hours, and then turn the pump off.
5. Check the pool in the AM, and test chlorine levels. If you don't get a strong yellow with the OTO, pour another gallon of bleach around the pool. Otherwise, add 3 more gallons that evening, and circulate for 2 hours after.
6. Tell us what the water looks like after the first dose.
OK. Additional info.
+ Salt systems ARE chlorine systems; unfortunately the pool biz has a history of describing them in ways that have deceived many pool owners. We call them SWCG's (salt water chlorine generators) to avoid that confusion.
+ I have investigated the issue of sensitive skin and chlorine *extensively* and have not found a SINGLE documented case of chlorine sensitivity.
Monochloramine, used by some water companies? Yes. Dimethyl hydantoin, used in solid forms of bromine? Yes. Various chloramines, especially on indoor pools, from mismanaging chlorination? Yes.
But simple chlorine, on outdoor pools? Not even one. Even very high levels (much too high for most swimsuits!) don't damage skin. In fact, "bleach baths" (50 - 100 ppm free chlorine) are a COMMON treatment prescribed by dermatologists for treatment of various skin conditions on both adults and children!
Odds are, we can teach you how to run the pool so it won't irritate your wife at all. A starting place would be to get a K2006 kit, so you can test your water accurately (you still need the cheap OTO kit), will help. Take a look at the Super-simple recipe for intex pools for some helpful info (http://pool9.net/ssr/) Because of the algae, it won't apply directly, but reading that page will still help.
You need to keep in mind that if your wife has DRY skin, fresh water is intrinsically drying, and the presence of chlorine, or any other sanitizer, will increase that. If that's the case, some tricks my wife used to use, when she spent up to 4 hours per day in a pool as a water aerobics instructor, may help.
Bookmarks