My pool builder just made me ashamed...

[waste]

Thanks for the reassurance. I'll keep doing what I'm doing. By the way, he also told me that the sticks provide just the right amount of stabilizer for the chlorine in them to use up! How can someone who has been in the business of building pools for so many years not understand the chemical stuff? Is that because they believe what the pool chemical manufacturers tell them?

By the way, he said EVERYONE he knows had a terrible problem with mustard algae this year. Guess so, since he's teaching them to run their pools with high CYA/low Chlorine levels. He seemed really skeptical when I told him I had eliminated my little bit of mustard with high Chlorine levels for several days in a row.

Judy, I believe you're right, on both counts. My boss has a pool and he treats it the same way he tells all his cusomers to treat theirs (he's at least intellectually honest). I am a faithful follower of this forum's advice and know he's not caring for his pool as well as he could. However, he checks his water daily and adjusts the chems when needed. (as per Carl's advice)
The 'pool guys' aren't neccessarily selling BS when they give thier advice, it's what they've been taught and what has worked for many people for many years. They aren't chemists nor (usually) college educated (at least with a degree pertenant to pools), they go with what the 'old-timers' told them, or what they learn from the NSPI. What is great about this site is that Ben took a step back and saw that all that info wasn't working and applied himself to finding out what would work. His results are the basis for this forum, a better way to care for a pool, which is also less expensive. I believe that most 'pool dudes' aren't malicious when they give their recommendations, just 'clueless' and acting on 'autopilot' from their experience and what they were taught.
What you may want to do is turn your pool guy onto www.poolsolutions.com and see if he's willing to change his ways.

[joliecharlie]

Hi Judy,
I LOL at the comment the store clerk made...was it at Aldi's in Florence? We went to Aldi's when I was visiting Florence during the summer and my Dad said "they probably think you are making a bomb or Meth" buying 4 cases of bleach...
Wish we had Aldi's here, that .99 ultra bleach is hard to find!

[jnorris]

Hi Judy,
I LOL at the comment the store clerk made...was it at Aldi's in Florence? We went to Aldi's when I was visiting Florence during the summer and my Dad said "they probably think you are making a bomb or Meth" buying 4 cases of bleach...
Wish we had Aldi's here, that .99 ultra bleach is hard to find!

Nope, it was in Bi-Lo. Believe it or not, I've never been in Aldi's. I should check it out though, I usually pay around 1.69 for a jug of Bi-Lo's generic ultra bleach.

[Spensar]

LOL! I never say the word bleach in the presence of any pool store person. If they ask I say liquid chlorine, which is true. Where I get it is not there biz.

I did get a chuckle when checking the price at a pool store that sells you a carboy they refill that when I asked what percentage it was the person said 10% - much higher than 5.25% bleach.

[CarlD]

You can test the strength of the liquid chlorine yourself. Simply add 1 ml of the LC to 10 liters of CLEAR water (5 soda jugs).

Or, if you have Ben's older PS232 kit, there's a 1.8ml measure--add that much to 5 gallons of clear water--a standard bucket.

Use Ben's FAS-DPD to measure the chlorine concentration in the 10 liters or 5 gallons. If you get 12.5ppm, then your LC is 12.5%. If you get 10ppm, it's 10%.

Carboys may be marked 12.5% and be anything from 10% to 14.5%--but if you just got the carboy, and it's below 10% go back to the pool store and complain--they aren't storing it correctly and you aren't getting your money's worth.

I just discovered this season they make a spigot for the carboys. But boy, did I feel DUMB that I never noticed it before! It makes life SO much easier!

[jnorris]

LOL! I never say the word bleach in the presence of any pool store person. If they ask I say liquid chlorine, which is true. Where I get it is not there biz.

.

You know, I tried that. When he said, what do you use, I said "Liquid Chlorine" and he looked at me puzzled and said, from where, and by that time I was intimidated and said in a mumbled voice "bleach" and he said "LAUNDRY BLEACH??" I just wanted to run and hide! Now all I need is for him to make my husband doubt I know what I'm doing. My husband knows nothing about the pool chemistry stuff, but tells me each and every time he swims "the water looks great, no chlorine smell, doesn't hurt my eyes" etc.

[CarlD]

I guess I'm just getting old and ornery. NOBODY in a store intimidates like that.

Just remember: YOU are the customer. THEY want your money. You DON'T have to give it to them.

Rule 1: The Customer is ALWAYS right.
Rule 2: When the Customer is wrong, Rule 1 applies.
Rule 3: If the Customer is wrong, and Rule 1 does not apply, then the Customer will become an EX-Customer.
Rule 4: An EX-Customer is worth 10 current Customers, as in: One "Aw, nuts, these guys are terrible" undoes 10 "Yeah, these guys are great!". (check out eBay--1 neg is actually the equivalent of 100 positives!)

If the clerk doesn't know what Liquid Chlorine is, YOU can say "You mean YOU don't know what liquid chlorine is? I thought ALL better pool stores carried it!"

[eljefe281]

A phrase you need to add to your repertoire, for dealing with pool store employees and others of similar stripe:

"What are you, ignorant?"

[KurtV]

I guess I'm just getting old and ornery. NOBODY in a store intimidates like that.

...and as Johnny Castle said, "NOBODY puts Baby in the corner."