help with adjusting please

[mbar]

Since you have a cya of 50, you can take your chlorine up to 6, and even higher if you want to. You can take it up to shock levels (which for you would be 15-20) if you do it slowly - you have to watch to see if any stain starts to form, if it does that means that you need more sequestering agent. Your ph is low at 6.8, you need to get it up to at least 7 with aerating. You may want to invest in a pool fountain since your fill water is high in alkalinity. Here is a link to what I am talking about.
http://www.intheswim.com/shopping/dept.aspx?deptid=1257&GCID=C14163x040&e5=Y&e6=swim ming-pool-fountains&keyword=swimming-pool-fountains&s_kwcid=swimming%20pool%20fountains|7349 26481

You can find other places that sell them if you just google pool fountain.
Hope this helps, and feel free to ask any other questions you have

Just another thought, what is your calcium level? What do you mean you can't get a reading? High calcium with high alkalinity can cause a lot of cloudiness, plus sometimes it causes stains too. It's just good to know where the stains are coming from.

[poolhelp101]

i don't know what my calcium level is. when i try to test for it, the test water does not change colors at all. i plan on getting to the pool store soon to see what results they get(i live 40 miles away from a pool store that tests water).

[waterbear]

i don't know what my calcium level is. when i try to test for it, the test water does not change colors at all. i plan on getting to the pool store soon to see what results they get(i live 40 miles away from a pool store that tests water).

What test kit are you using and what color does it turn when you put in the indicator. If it turns pink you do have calcium present. If it turns blue you have non. If it turns any other color your chlorine levels are probably bleaching out the indicator.

[poolhelp101]

i use an aqua chem test kit. when i put the first solution in, it might turn just a hint of, a very little hint of yellow. then when you add the second solution it remains the same. my readings this morning are cl 5.0 ph 6.8 and ta still 150. it may take a while to get a water fountain, do i still just continue trying to aerate with the one jet or try to increase the ph another way? also, the pool has cleared quite alot, however it is still hazy. please advise and thank you

[mbar]

I would add a small amount of borax. Borax will raise your ph without raising the alk much. Just put a cup in and wait about 2 hours and test. You just want to take your ph to 7.0 - 7.2 no higher, so put a cup in at a time and wait at least 2 hours in between tests.

[poolhelp101]

i will get borax and do that right away.
new problem....this morning the pool was hazy...i began to vacuum the crap out of the bottom, slowly, but now the pool is completely clouded over again. cannot see the bottom. it didn't appear that anything was coming back thru the jets, but apparently it was??? should i shut the filter off and see if it will settle down and try vacuuming again or do i need to continue to run my filter 24/7? help!!!

[mbar]

One thing I don't like to recommend too often is to use a clarifier or a floc. If you use a flocculant, then you would add it to the pool, let it circulate for about 1 hour or two, or what is says on the bottle, and then turn the filter off for 24 hours. This will let everything fall to the bottom and then can be vacuumed to waste. The reason your pool probably clouded up is that the particles were so small that they just floated back into the water. Once the floc binds with the particles they get heavy and fall to the bottom of the pool. I like to vacuum to waste, cause then they are out of there, but you can vacuum to the filter and then backwash if water is expensive. Another thing that helps it to put a skimmer sock, or a cut pair of pantyhose on the skimmer basket to catch the fine particles before they go into the filter. THe first time I was dealing with metals, and using a pool store, my water was so messed up - too much calcium, too many chemicals they had me add, that it was just a mess. I drained 1/3 of the pool, refilled, added floc, let it sit for 48 hours, and vacuumed to waste. So after much money and many headaches I started to find out about pool chemicals and found this site. Since then I have stayed away from pool stores and my pool has never looked better. The philosophy is to put as little as you can in your water and keep it clean with Bleach. That is one of the reasons I would only use the floc when the water is not clearing and you have put some other chems in the pool. Now I add sequesterant (I have a well), bleach, borax, and baking soda if necessary. I add a little calcium to the pool (fiberglass pools seem to need some calcium to keep thier warranty). I try to keep to the philosophy of this forum - less is better when it comes to chemicals, and a good test kit is key so that you can take control of your own water.

[waterbear]

i use an aqua chem test kit. when i put the first solution in, it might turn just a hint of, a very little hint of yellow. then when you add the second solution it remains the same. my readings this morning are cl 5.0 ph 6.8 and ta still 150. it may take a while to get a water fountain, do i still just continue trying to aerate with the one jet or try to increase the ph another way? also, the pool has cleared quite alot, however it is still hazy. please advise and thank you

There is a documented problem with the hardness test in this kit. I believe the indicator is being bleached by high chlorine levels because if you add a drop or two of the thiosufate reagent from the total alkalinity test (the first reagent for that test) the hardness test develops the proper color. This test only seems to work properly if the chlorine is 3 ppm or less. Also this is NOT a calcium hardness test but a total (calcium and magnesium) hardness test so it really isn't that useful.