DIY woes!

[RavenNS]

Steve,
you really crack me up!

Thanks so much for these terrific updates & keep 'em comming

[sjkader]

update!
The saga for a pool continues.

Where to start? OH yeah, the heater. We fired up the heater. All 300k BTU's of it and it ran for ten mins and then shut off. It shut off everything. the display, the propane. Just dead!. Had the electrician come check it out. Still getting power so he dont know whats wrong. Called the plumber and he is not sure. Then it fired back up for five mins and shut down again. HMMMM.
Call Hayward tech support and they say sounds like a propane problem.

Ok Ill check into that. Start following the lines back and I find that the line is ice could at the tank. HMMM! this cant be right. Called the plumber and he says check your manual for a two stage high pressure propane system. Ah HA! there is the problem.

Seems the propane company ( who has installed pool heaters before) dropped a 3/8 inch line from the first regulator to the second. It should have been a 1/2 inch line. Call the propane company and of course the installer is on vacation. talk to the general manager and he does not even know how to install the lines. I'm telling you guys. This general manger is one heck of a winner. Im pretty sure his family tree dont branch. I got so fed up talking to him that i decided to unleash the bulldog on him. Oh thats right! He will regret this! I'm having the little lady call today! he is the walking dead right now and doesnt even know it!

Update later after the brawl

[KurtV]

...talk to the general manager and he does not even know how to install the lines. I'm telling you guys. This general manger is one heck of a winner. Im pretty sure his family tree dont branch. I got so fed up talking to him that i decided to unleash the bulldog on him. Oh thats right! He will regret this! I'm having the little lady call today! he is the walking dead right now and doesnt even know it!

Update later after the brawl

His name isn't Buck Strickland, is it?

[sjkader]

ok the propane company fought tooth (only has one I'm sure) and nail, but have decided to come out and change the line out. We will pay the diff. from the 3/8 to 1/2. they have already been out and replaced it and they will come out mon to dig up the old line and trench in the new one.

score one for the home team!!

[sjkader]

Here is the update for the weekend!

WE pretty much did not get anything accomplished. Friday we fired up the heater after the propane guys left. It now works the way it should. Spent from 10pm to 3:30 AM in the pool. Had it set to 95 degrees just to see how nice that is one time. The kids were all gone so it was Alone time

Saturday all kids were home. left the heat up to 95 so thay could at least feel it that high once. Wow what a blast.

now that the week is here again time to get that deck done. I also have one return line that leaks that i need to cut out and replace. Should get to that this week. Plan on keeping the pool heated at about 87 degrees for a couple weeks then close it down. its been in the 60's here but when you hit that 87 degree water its like swimming in the bath tub.

more to follow.

Im also trying to figuire out approx. how many gallons it is. it is an 18 X 36 rect. the shallow end is 3'4" and extends nine feet then the breakpoint starts and runs to a nine foot deep end. I have run the numbers different ways and come up with something different each time. Any help would be appreciated.

ps. cut my little toe open running to the pool. No stitches needed this time

[waste]

Thanks for keeping us up to date, I know I'm only one of many that have truely enjoyed this thread!! With reguards to the volume of your pool, I'd guess ~23,000 gal without 'crunching' any numbers. I've said before (but I'm too incompetent with the computer to save myself time by linking) that unless you hook up a watermeter while filling, you'll only have a good guess as to the actual gallonage. The real trouble with the computation is the 'average depth' and that # is a 'guestimate' (and the multiplier - I've always used 7.5, but it's actually closer to 7.49), so unless you can break the pool down into simple solids, who's volume can be easily figured, and add them all up, you end up with a 'fairly' approximat estimate. The real point here is that, it really doesn't matter. As long as you are 'in the ballpark', the recommended chem levels are forgiving enough so you can safely dose your pool. When dosing the pool always 'lowball' your estimated volume, you can always add a little more of whatever, but getting some of them back out can require other chems and some work. In practical, for you, terms, treat your pool as if it were 20,000 gal and shoot for the lowest increase or decrease you can - with a little experience with your pool, you'll learn what a gallon of bleach does or what 2 lbs of baking soda will do. Best of luck with the deck - and thanks for the giggles! - Waste

[sjkader]

Not sure how many are still following this thread but here is an update!

Not much is getting finished. every time we go out to work on it we end up swimming

Have been getting quotes on the decking. we are going a min amount on concrete then next year will do decrotive brick around the concrete. I just want the diving board in before we have a giant ice cube in the backyard.

The electrician came out and made all the temp lines permanent. while doing so he managed to break off the heater ignition module. Did he notice it? Heck no! or he did and did not say anything. either way i rigged it so it will work for the time being. I dont know if any of you have ever been to South Dakota but right now is not ideal swim season without a heater. Went through our first tank of propane. We will go through one more before I give up the battle and close it down.

Have had the pool up to 95 a couple of times. Its like swimming in your bath tub. have to love that.

The only real bad thing is getting out and covering the pool. man oh man is that dang cold. pretty sure i keep freezing something important

Thats the update as it stands now!