Looking to "convert" to BBB? Have questions though.

[KurtV]

Hehe, thank you all for your help. I really appreciate it. My pool is approximately 25,000 from what I can calculate (35'L x1 6'W x 6'AVD x 7.5 rectangle = 25,200 gal) The bleachcalc program is no longer available at that link, but I certainly appreciate the help!
Search for posts by mwsmith2. There's a link to BleachCalc in every one of his signature lines. Some of the links work and some don't.

Okay... just a couple more questions...

I have expensive test strips...they have the little squares on them that test for all of the things you mentioned...(Hardness (which I think is CC right?) Total Chlor, Free Chlor, pH, Alk, and CYA) is that good enough or do I need to get the chemistry set? (I will if I need to, its just that I Have a whole bottle of these strips already that I just bought... and I'd hate to waste them, since it has all the tests you mentioned anyway.)
Get a good test kit. An FAS-DPD test is best. The Taylor K-2006 is an excellent one but the PS-234 that Ben sells on PoolSolutions.com is even better (Ben's kit is very similar to the Taylor kit but is a much better bang for the buck; he has right-sized the reagents so that you'll get more of those you use more frequently). A distant third place is the 5-way test from Wal-Mart. It's a good stop-gap until you get the Taylor kit or (preferably) Ben's.

So, I just did a reading from the strips.
Harness is low (100ppm) (BTW...is this CC? [Calcium?])
Total Chlorine is low (0.5ppm) (I just put new pucks in exactly 24 hours ago!)
Free Chlorine is low (0.5)
pH is low (6.8)
Alk is low (40)
CYA is IDEAL (30-50)

These readings are very suspect because they're based on guess-strips. Is there a good local pool store you can go to for testing until you get a good test kit? Most do it gratis.

So... heres my question... seeing how this pool test (assuming these test strips are accurate enough.) is reading low on everything, and Ideal on CYA is it safe and advisable to just go ahead with the BBB method without emptying the pool? Cuz I certainly can't do that right now. We have to pay for our water. (As Im sure alot of you do too...) and it would probably take a month to fill my pool! LOL
If your CYA test is accurate, you'll be fine with using bleach as your chlorine source (that's a big if).


Again, thank you for all your help!

Oh...and if I cant use the flowery bleach, can I use the mountain fresh scent?
No. Unscented only. Generic is cheaper and just as effective.

Best of luck.

[troykristoffer]

Best of luck.

Heehee...I was kidding about the scented bleach


Thank you all for your help. I will take some water to my local pool store this weekend and then if I'm lucky, just go buy a truckload of bleach from the store.

[Bergerman]

you need to get the cl up. ph needs to increase above 7.2 and the alk should come up. Try getting the cl to increase with plain bleach, this sometimes increases the ph in my pool. I would solve 1 problem at a time and keep posting your #s. Get a good test,it is a great investment(my kids love doing the testing).

good luck,
Ed