New Pool Owner Questions - 8 questions!! :)

[kmmlangston]

I KNEW from reading posts on this forum that you all would just be incredible! Thank you so much. Our test kit does not test for stabilizer, so I think we will take a water sample to pinch a penny, as they seem a decent enough outfit and haven't tried to push a bunch of stuff on us. That will probably not be until tomorrow. We are just about to get inundated with rain for the second day in a row, and I can only imagine how that can mess with the pool balance.

Our pool is concrete with a plaster finish? Marcite? The previous home owner did not maintain her chemicals correctly, and apparently the water leached calcium out of the pool walls and there is discoloration on the pool bottom and areas where the surface is degrading and chipping off (the process of which is accelerating, too). We are planning to have it resurfaced by a company in town called Padgett Plastering (anyone from Gainesville, FL, familiar with them?!). They have been in business here for 30 years and seem to have a good reputation. We just want to make sure that once we spend the money to have it looking amazing, we have the water chemistry solid so that it doesn't happen again.

Janet, thank you for your information. So, if we add the acid to lower total alkilinity, do we then run the pump for longer than normal to aerate to bring the Ph back up?

After reading through posts here on the forum, I did come to the conclusion that copper in your pool is NOT a good thing, so we will be sure to avoid that.

I'm not sure the pool store is open tomorrow, but if it is, we will try to go by and have them test our water and I will post their results. Again, MANY THANKS! We will have an amazing pool in no time thanks to you all!!

Best regards,
Kelly

[aylad]

You might want to check with WalMart--they used to have a 6-way test for around $15 that tests for Cl, pH, Alk, CH, TA, and CYA. The ones around here don't carry it anymore but I've seen posts on the forum from other parts of the country where they do still carry it. While you're at the pool store, look for a good drop-based kit that tests for those things. The Taylor K-2006 is the kit we recommend, and they can be found online or at some pool stores. They can be kinda pricey (up to $100), but believe me, they will save you that much money hundreds of times over when it comes to maintaining a clean, clear pool. When you have your water tested, make sure you get a reading for CYA and Calcium hardness--they're going to be important in your pool and I didn't notice readings for either of them in your above post.

About the aeration in your pool, you don't necessarily have to run the pump longer than normal to raise the pH again, but it won't hurt. It's a gradual process. You can point your return eyeballs to the water surface in order to create rippling in the water, and that will help. A large group of kids splashing around in it will help even better! Just make sure that when you add the acid, you're adding it in front of a running return, and don't add enough to drop the pH lower than 7.0. Be patient and act slowly, with this and all chemicals, because it's much better to "sneak up" on a target than to overshoot it and have to correct problems later. If you overshoot and drop the pH too low, you can always raise it fairly quickly with Borax, but don't want to risk doing any further damage to your pool than the previous owners already did.

Janet

[dmarsh70]

Hi Kelly,

Welcome! you are correct in saying that this board is awesome. I've only been a pool owner (1st time) for about 1 whole week.

I read this board for several weeks while my pool was being built and I can tell you that doing so will pay benefits.

I've spoken to about 3 local pool owners in my neigborhood, and with all due-respect, they are CLUELESS to pool maintenance

They run to the local store every week with their test bottles and come back with directions on what to add etc etc.

I've been testing every day as my pool has brand new marcite/plaster so for the first several days I pumped 24/7 and brushed twice a day, and took readings two times a day.

Moving along - I have a two speed pump. I just last night set it on the timer as I am seeing my water balancing out and I am no longer seeing blue plaster dust when I brush.

I set it to "HI SPEED" from 4:30 - 10:30 PM (about when we'll be in it alot throughout the week) and then on LOW SPEED from 7AM - 12 PM. Now that's 11 hours a day of running, but if I get in the pool I turn it on High Speed. So I am probably running the pump a bit more than needed - but I am experimenting.

I'll keep taking readings... In about a week I may try to run it at Low Speed during timed sessions..

I can tell you that in my limited experience what counts is "SLOW AND STEADY". Don't be too anxious to listen to the Professional Pool People at the pool store..

Also - I see you live in Florida -me too. From what I understand, we one of the few states that the pool stores sell "liquid chlorine" AKA - BLEACH. It's very reasonably priced, and my local store gets a fresh 15K gallon supply every week - so you may want to check that out too.

Good Luck!!
David

[CarlD]

Welcome!

We are delighted that our forum is once again open to new members and all the activity and life they bring us!

Carl

[kmmlangston]

David,
What brand is your pump? As I mentioned, we are looking into purchasing a variable speed pump -- apparently, the electrical savings can be worth the initial investment. (and our utility is offering rebates).

We got what the weather station is saying 3/4 inches of rain yesterday - Saturday - (seemed like more), but both my husband and i think we need to drain the pool a bit. I am hoping to take a water sample to Pinch a penny and get them to analyze it and I will post the results.

Thanks, all, for the wonderful information and generosity in sharing your expertise!

Best,
Kelly

[kmmlangston]

So, I took my water sample to Pinch-a-Penny here in town and this is what they came up with. (they did not try to sell me anything!)

FC= 1 ppm (this is what I figured with my home test as well - I knew it was low)
pH= 7.8 (This is also what I figured at home)
Acid Demand= 2 (they are saying this is high)
Total Alkilinity = 130 (when I tested before I took the water to the store, I came up with
160 as opposed to 170 like I got yesterday)
Calcium Hardness = 500 (knew this would be high as we have been told that is why our
pool surface is degrading: the water is leaching Calcium from the marcite/plaster.)
Stabilizer = 100
Total Disolved solids = 1,900

We got a lot of rain yesterday and the day before and are in a pattern to see some significant thunderstorms daily for the next several days. We are thinking we will need to drain an inch off after todays rain. How does added rain water affect pool chemistry?

As I mentioned, we are having what we think is a small algae problem. When we brush the walls/bottom, a yellowish color billows then settles to the bottom. Obviously we need to up our chlorine (bleach). However, we don't want to dump a bunch of bleach in the pool as most likely, the pool will be drained and resurfaced starting this week. Do we increase the cholorine a bit, and keep brushing the algea/vacuuming in the interim?

A few more questions: David said he is brushing his new pool twice daily. Do we need to do that once our pool is resurfaced? And, will a regular bristle brush work or do we need to get one of those wire ones?

Also, any advice on auto vacuums? (see original post)
Any advice on switching from Chlorine to salt? (original post as well)

I noticed on another thread a guy with the sign on of BigTallDumbGuy. Maybe I'll change mine to Frizzy-haired Numbskull Gal! Thanks for all the feedback!
Kelly

[aylad]

If you are planning to drain and resurface the pool this week, then I wouldn't worry about trying to adjust any of the numbers--just keep the chlorine in the 5-10 range to keep the algae bloom from getting any worse, and you can adjust everything else at startup.

In many cases, rain water actually has a lower pH than the pool water, so it may lower the pH for you. Ideal pH is 7.2-7.6, but my pool actually "settles" at about 7.8 no matter what I do, so I find it much easier to leave it alone. It actually seems to be easier on my kids' eyes, anyway. If you find that you have to drain water, if you can do it from the bottom of the pool, it will lower your CYA a bit, which will be a good thing if you don't drain it, because 100 is too high and will make it hard to keep clear. If you drain it, you'll have to start over anyway, so it's really not a big deal.

Ignore TDS and acid demand tests--they're pretty much useless to you right now.

I'm sure that the person who resurfaces your pool will give you detailed instructions as to what to do, but I'm pretty sure that daily brushing for awhile will be part of the program. Make sure you do whatever he tells you to, in order to honor whatever warranty comes with the job.

I have an auto vacuum--it's a Polaris 380. It is a suction side cleaner, meaning it plugs into an extra return on the side of my pool, and requires a booster pump. Most people that have Polaris either love or hate them...I happen to love mine. YOu can read about more possibilities in the Automatic Cleaners forum.

Regarding salt, it's supposed to be the most maintenance-free you can get in pool care--it requres regular additions to keep the pH down, but otherwise, as long as your salt level is good, it's supposed to pretty much do the rest. If you shock, you should do it with bleach or other chlorine source, but otherwise it's billed as pretty easy. I would love to have one, an dprobably will have one installed if/when I can find the extra cash lying around. I do know that if I were to build another pool today, I would definitely have one added to the package. I'm all for easy pool care!! Read through the SWG forum for opinions from those who have them...you could even start a new thread in that forum,if you wanted, asking for opinions.

Janet