Baquacil to Bleach conversion (help needed)

[revhendrix]

Hi - 2nd update....

Still in the process.... I'm checking the levels at least 4-6 times a day from 7:30 am to 11:30 pm. The FC levels have ranged from 6ppm to 12ppm after checking it and I've used the bleach Calc to figure out what I needed to put in for bleach to keep the levels at 15ppm.

The water has gone from merky pea green to clearish green (we can see the bottom in the shallow end).

I clear and rinse the nylon sock (on the skimmer basket), which has had orange muck on it everytime, and backwash everytime I've added bleach.

I would imagine I have a couple days left, but here are a few more questions. Thanks in advance:

1. My Ph was at 8 when I started this...when do I care about it again. Should I test the levels or wait until this is over?

2. When I backwash it's not that dirty...is this because the bacquacil is all being caught in the sock?? I really thought it would be much more dirty and cloudy. I never had the globs of orange or rust baquagunk floating..is this because I started with a low level of bacquacil (10)??

3. CYA - I know I need to do this when my conversion is over. Is the cotton sock method a good way to go and how much do I use to stablize the high levels of chlorine (20,000gal pool)?? How do I keep from adding too much stabilizer??

thanks again...REV

[eyesfinallyopened]

Rev,
I'm experiencing the same clean-looking water when I backwash, too. Very surprising. I really expected to see a lot of solids and at least the same color water as is in the pool, but maybe the water color is so bad because we're seeing the whole depth of the pool compared to the amount in the little spyglass.

I'm taking pictures as I continue the conversion and will post them when I'm done. This is soooooo time consuming, isn't it?!

--Deborah

[revhendrix]

Hi Debroah...thanks for the reply. I've been reading your thread as well. Yea, what a process!! I've been consumed with this conversion - coming home from work at lunch, leaving early...all to get a jump on my FC levels. I'm hoping this is over soon...I'm guessing at least a couple more days.

Sounds like you're well on your way to pool bliss as well!! I didn't have any of the rust water or orange floaters....Hmmmmmmm, I hope this is working.

It must be a bit tougher in AZ with combating the heat and all...good luck and keep us updated on the progress. -REV

[eyesfinallyopened]

Rev,
I can't tell you how many of those little test sticks I've gone through today (I know, I should have a better testing system . . .) but I've never let the FC level drop below 10. It's taking less and less of the ultra bleach to keep up and the color of my pool is now bright Gatorade-like green and it's clearer. I can actually see the bottom drain and the whole ladder and there's no baquajunk floating.

How's this for an added stressor: I just got a contract on my house to sell and have an inspection tomorrow!!!! I am praying hard that there's a huge improvement overnight because this just may spook the buyers off. We did discuss the fact that I was getting ready to switch over to chlorine and the guy was glad to hear it. I doubt he knew how much of a pain it is and how shocking the conversion can look! I'm going to stash the bleach bottles somewhere out of sight. Luckily, tomorrow is trash day so the empties will be gone. My realtor came by twice today. The first time I told him not to even look and to save himself the worry because it's not pretty. Well, the second time I was out back vacuuming the hidden floor of the pool so my son let him in and led him out to where I was working. He's probably having some martinis tonight to calm down!

I hope we both have great things to report in the morning.

--Deborah

[revhendrix]

Hi all....

This is my third day in the process and my FC levels seem to be staying where needed. I checked the levels at 11:30pm and again at 7:00 this morning. In the morning, the FC levels were at 15ppm. My pool, however, is still a clear green. I can see the bottom at the shallow end, but not the deep end (still a cloudy dark green).

Do I need to add a different kind of chemical to get rid of the green?? With my FC levels staying relatively high I'm a bit worried why the pool is still green. Someone mentioned use an algaecide?

FYI - we backwash frequently and it's fairly clean. The skimmer stock is still collecting orange gunk.

Any thoughts and thanks

[duraleigh]

What level was your Cl last night?

Even without knowing, I am sure you simply need to keep adding chlorine. Run your pump 24/7, keep Cl at shock value 'til your water clears, brush and vac frequently.

Stay the course....you're making progress.

You do not need additional chemicals. It is quite tempting to use them, but, generally, they do little that Cl won't do and they confuse the issue.

[revhendrix]

Hi Dave and thanks for the reply. My FC levels were close to 15ppm last night. I threw in an extra 1 1/2 gallons of Clorax for good measure (to last through the night). When I tested this a.m., they were at 15ppm - so I was baffled that the FC levels were still up (lasting through the night). I didn't expect to maintain those levels until the pool was clear. It's a sunny day in New England so I'm sure the sun should eat up the FC levels.

Should I be testing for Cl or is that the same as FC??