Chlorine question for Intex 22'x 52" pool

[Jewlz]

Hello again,

I just got my Dichlor at Sam's today and was wondering once I put a 1lb. bag in, how soon is it until you can usually get in the pool again? And while I'm asking what is a safe chlorine level? I think it says on the bag that 3ppm or under?

Got some kids that want to possibly swim (although it looks like it could pour down rain any minute) and I don't want to throw it in there if I have to wait several hours for the chlorine level to go down or something in case they do decide to swim.

I just checked with my tester and there is NO chlorine level at all right now even though I threw in 3 cups of bleach earlier today, and we've had no sun at all.

Thanks,
Julie

[Watermom]

Give it a half hour to dissolve and mix in and then let them swim. Even though the bag says 3ppm and under is safe, that is not the whole story. Needed chlorine levels are based on CYA levels. The higher your CYA is, the higher your chlorine needs to be. So, if you had a high CYA level and kept your chlorine at 3ppm, it would not be safe nor sanitized because your chlorine level would be too low.

Take a look at the Best Guess Chlorine chart in either my signature below or at this link: http://pool9.net/cl-cya/
It explains the relationship between CYA and how high you must keep your chlorine. The fact that many people do not understand this connection causes lots of green pools!

You are losing chlorine fast now because you don't have any CYA in the water. Dichlor adds CYA as well as chlorine so after you use it for awhile, your CYA level will build up and you'll be able to maintain a chlorine reading throughout the day. When your CYA gets to around 50ppm, you'll want to quit using dichlor and switch to just bleach so your CYA level doesn't get too high.

[Jewlz]

Thank you Watermom. I haven't even tested the CYA level yet since I don't have one yet lol! I guess once I get this in the pool I'll test it after about a 1/2 hour?

Then according to the Ben's Best Guess chart, say if my CYA is at 20ppm, my chlorine shoudl be no less than 2 put no more than 5? Just want to make sure I'm reading it right.

Then what does the "Shock" and +Shock+ column numbers mean?

Thanks!
Julie

[Watermom]

You got it!

Shocking a pool simply means taking your chlorine up extra high. How high you need to go depends on --- you guessed it ---- your CYA level. In most cases, if you need to shock, the number in the 'shock' column is high enough. With some types of very stubborn algae, you occasionally have to go even higher to the 'shock +' column but not typically.

[Jewlz]

Ok another question . . . in reading the SS recipe it says that once the pool is full (and I have my dichlor now as stated above) I should "add one dose of dichlor each evening. Do NOT skip! And then add 1/2 dose before each group swims. Add borax in equal quantities as dichlor (ie, if you add 1 cup of diclor, then also add 1 cup of borax)"

I did put in one dose yesterday and I'm getting ready to go test the water today in a minute. I've got the HTH 6 way test kit for now and I'm not sure how to test the CYA level as I don't see any instruction on the sheet that came with the kit on how to do that. Just trying to determine how much dichlor I should put in (or if I need to) and when I can get to the once a week recommendation that is on the bag?

And is it an absolute need to get the Taylor test kit? I see it's about 3 times more expensive than the HTH kit I have and just wondering. If I really need it I will get it, but just curious as to why the HTH kit won't do for me.

Thanks!
Jewlz

[Watermom]

Don't bother running the CYA test until you have been using dichlor for about a week to 10 days. Before then, you won't have enough in there yet that can even register on the test so you'll just be wasting your testing reagent.

Just keep following the SS recipe. You want the daily doses of dichlor until your CYA is between 40-50. Then you'll want to stop using it and switch to just using bleach. You will never get to the "just one bag of dichlor per week." Long term use of dichlor will cause your CYA to get too high.

The Taylor kit can test chlorine levels past 5ppm, the 6-way kit can't. If you only have the 6-way, it is imperative that you do not let your CYA get too high nor get any algae. Both of those things call for high chlorine levels and you won't be able to test.

Another option you have since you have the 6-Way kit is to just buy the FAS-DPD add-on kit. That will give you the test you will be missing in your kit. Click on the test kit link in my signature and you'll find it. It is the Taylor K1515.

[Jewlz]

Hello, after putting in my 2nd dose of dichlor yesterday evening, I checked my water this morning and the chlorine is all the way up to 5 on the HTH tester. The Ph is at 7.6 or 7.8.

We have been getting rain for the last couple of days and no sun. Since my chlorine is so high, should I still but the dose of dichlor in tonight and then keep doing it for the 7-10 days?

My concern is you said that I have to keep an eye on my CYA levels and not let it get to high but I may not have a CYA level yet since I just started putting in the dichlor a couple days ago, then I don't even know HOW to test for the CYA level with my HTH 6 way kit. I see the vial in my kit but unsure how many of those drops I put in there??

I guess the pool is still safe to swim in currently once the weather allows seeing as the chlorine is high right now?

Thanks,
Julie