new to pools. pool guy has me confused

[justin1795]

we purchased a new house and the pool was trashed almost a year later we have a new bottom. liner pump and sand filter. the pool guy only added a product for metal. I figured he would get us started on chemicals but just handed us a packet he told us to get test strips (reading here not the way to go) my wife went to Walmart and bought chlorine granuals as the packet said to start there then switch to tablets. she also purchased algaecide. we have had the pool a few weeks now. I have been checking it daily
total hardness 400
fc 0
ph 8.4
total alkalinity 240
cya 0

she added the granuals over a week until gone. free chlorine continued to 0. she has switched to the tablets and it has been 0 still. we added dry acid every couple of days to try to get the ph down. the pool has been pretty clear. we swam Saturday and it was clear. this afternoon it was pretty cloudy so we added the last of the dry acid. when we returned home it was completely cloudy where you couldn't see the steps. it seems most of what the pool guy had told me is incorrect. we have a community well we run off and that's how it was filled.. im just so confused now. based on what I have read the first step would be to get better tests. but most don't worry about the cya. it would make sence based on what I read we have no cya and that's why I cant get chlorine to register.

[CarlD]

First thing: Go right back to WalMart and get the HTH 6-Way Drop Test Kit (about $25) immediately. We call them "Guess Strips" because you are guessing what the values are. You didn't say how big your pool is, but I would start with several gallons of WalMart ultra Bleach--8.25%, regular. You don't want scented, foaming, gel or anything but regular ordinary bleach. I'd also pick up a gallon of steam distilled water.

I'd also recommend you order the Taylor K-2006 or K-2006C test kit by clicking on PoolDoc's signature line. You can go "cheaper" by get the Taylor add-on K-1515 test (FAS-DPD) from the same source.

Using the HTH kit, if the chlorine test (ignore the bromine markings) is clear, you have no chlorine. If it's very yellow, more yellow than the tester, like the intense yellow on the Aleve bottle, your chlorine level is probably close to 20. (quick eyeball test).

Or you can use the CarlD Shot Glass method of measuring chlorine higher than 5 on the HTH scale. Mix one shot glass of pool water with one shot glass of the distilled water and pour that mix into the test cell. Now, double the readings you get. If it's STILL yellower than the top of the scale, repeat the process only using 1 shot of pool water to 2 shots of distilled and triple the readings.

Meanwhile
1) use the HTH kit to measure your pH, TA, CH (total hardness or calcium hardness), and CYA as well as chlorine and post the numbers here.
2) Do NOT add the algaecide--it's probably ammonia or copper based, both of which are problematic. But tell us what's in it.
3) Tell us the contents of the granules and the tablets...if the granules are Cal-Hypo and you have high calcium (assuming you actually do) then they are bad. If they are di-chlor they may be OK. Tablets may be simple Tri-chlor, again, probably OK for now, but may have copper--if they say "double acting".
4) Tell us the volume of the pool. If you don't know, tell us the dimensions and shape.

I cannot tell you how much bleach to add without the volume of your pool and the actual chlorine level, but one gallon of 8.25% will add 8.25ppm of FC to 10,000 gallons.

[the pool store]

As a pool store owner, we deal with these problems all the time. The first thing I see is you have no Cyanuric Acid AKA Stabilizer AKA Conditioner. Without this product in your pool, the sun takes out your chlorine in 3-4 hours. That is why I think you have no chlorine showing up on your test strips. Since there is no Free Chlorine in your pool, there is no protection for your swimmers against bacteria and your pool is free reign for algae to grow. So you need some chlorine ASAP and Cyanuric Acid. We have our customers administer the Cyanuric Acid to the wall skimmer at 3# per 10,000 gallons of water if there is none in the water. Our store sells Liquid Chlorine, powder shock, and tablet chlorine. (Shock is another word for "lots of chlorine".) Your Total Alkalinity should be 80-100 per Taylor test kit parameters, which is the only testing kits we use. We recommend Muriatic Acid poured in one place away from the return water of your pool every 8 hours until you check your water 24 hours after the last dose of Muriatic Acid. It takes 24 hours to get a true reading after using Muriatic Acid.
CarlD gives some great advise and seems to know alot about water chemistry. Our store does not sell Chlorine Tablets with Copper, but we do sell Copper Algaecide which is needed for mustard algae or black algae. Just remember any copper administered to a pool causes blonds and gray haired people to get that green hair look. We know that copper in the 1ppm range or less is not likely to cause green hair, so we use the Taylor copper test kit to confirm copper levels. We also have used the CarlD shot glass method when chlorine is too high to get a proper reading for high chlorine.
And no one can tell you how much of the above chemicals to use until the amount of water is known that is in your pool. To figure out how much water is in your pool, use this formula:

length x width x average depth x 7.5 for a rectangle (5.9 for a circle) Take off a 1,000 gallons or so because no pool is filled to the rim. Hope this helps.

[Watermom]

we do sell Copper Algaecide which is needed for mustard algae or black algae.

@The Pool Store ----- Though eradicating mustard or black algae is difficult, we do not recommend copper products here on the forum. Again, as I mentioned in a previous thread that you had posted in, we are glad to have you join us on the forum. But, please for now, refrain from giving chemistry advice. Our methods taught here are not the same as most places and we find it best that our new 'in the pool biz guys' are better off just getting to know what we are all about instead of coming here and immediately starting to give advice. Thanks for understanding.

@justin1795 ---- the test kit that Carl recommended can be found through this link:> http://pool9.net/tk/ (And, if you prefer to just buy the HTH 6-Way drops-based kit at Walmart, the K1515 kit which will give you just the important chlorine test that you will be missing can also be purchased through that link.)

(Until your registration is completed, you will not be able to see the rest of the forum nor follow links while you are logged in. So, copy that link and paste it into a browser window after you first log out.)

[justin1795]

ok I have some info I can provide. the pool is 15,000 gallons. we used htc algae guard 3x concentrate. listed is alkyl 15% alkyl 15% inert ingrediants 70%

the chlorinating granules are 47.6% calcium hypo and 52% other. per you stated these are bad and we will not use these anymore

the tablets are 99.7% trichloro s triazinetrione

[CarlD]

The Pool Store:

I second Watermom's request. We do NOT recommend copper products, we do NOT recommend the "column" method of adding Muriatic Acid, and we recommend a far wider and more flexible range of T/A adjusting to individual conditions.

This is based on many years of experience by our entire support team and many of our long time members. None of us are new to the game. We also have the chemistry science as well as empirical evidence to support these recommendations.

Meanwhile, you are correct about the volume of the pool being critical. It CAN be difficult to estimate the volume, but we don't take away the 1000 gallons because we recommend the height measured being the height of the water--but that's pretty much the same thing. It takes a good bit of solid geometry to get an accurate measurement if the pool isn't a simple box. On larger pools, it doesn't really matter if you estimate 19,000 or 20,000 gallons, because it won't affect the amounts of chems you add. But you do need to be in the ballpark.

You WILL need to add your commercial affiliation to your signature as per our AUP.

For example, one of our support team, PoolSean, has the following sig ALWAYS appear:
"Sean Assam
Commercial Product Sales Manager - AquaCal AutoPilot Inc. Mobile: 954-325-3859
e-mail: sean@teamhorner.com --- www.autopilot.com - www.aquacal.com "

[CarlD]

ok I have some info I can provide. the pool is 15,000 gallons. we used htc algae guard 3x concentrate. listed is alkyl 15% alkyl 15% inert ingrediants 70%

the chlorinating granules are 47.6% calcium hypo and 52% other. per you stated these are bad and we will not use these anymore

the tablets are 99.7% trichloro s triazinetrione

Ok, you'll need to re-run the test numbers with the HTH 6-way drop kit, if you have it.

ASSUMING your numbers are correct (and that's an assumption), you should NOT use the Cal-Hypo powder anymore because it keeps raising your calcium level, and 400 is the upper limit.
Do not use the "Algae Guard"--it will only make a bigger mess.

One jug (121 ounces) of Clorox 8.25% bleach will add 5.2ppm of chlorine to your pool. A pound of Di-Chlor powder will about 4.8ppm of chlorine to your pool, and about 4.3ppm of CYA/stabilizer.