Getting the hang of BBB

[Fiveattripp]

I do not have a speedstir. Thank You...I am attaching a link to the water photos...maybe it is the chlorine working...killing whatever is in the water and not so much of the iron. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/74hu4ykt9...JS3wehpMa?dl=0 I know that we have had metal problems in the past and some of it might be metal. We fill with municipal and we have had quite a bit of rain lately. I will recheck tonight and again in the morning. I will also try to be very careful in how I test with the drops to make sure I am doing it correct. Thanks and will post again in the morning.

[SunnyOptimism]

I do not have a speedstir. Thank You...I am attaching a link to the water photos...maybe it is the chlorine working...killing whatever is in the water and not so much of the iron. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/74hu4ykt9...JS3wehpMa?dl=0 I know that we have had metal problems in the past and some of it might be metal. We fill with municipal and we have had quite a bit of rain lately. I will recheck tonight and again in the morning. I will also try to be very careful in how I test with the drops to make sure I am doing it correct. Thanks and will post again in the morning.

I can't see the photos. Best to use a photosharing service like Photobucket or Picasa.

Usually with municipal water you can look up water quality reports online to see if they detect any iron or other metals. Most municipal supplies are pretty good at keeping the metals out. Rain water is actually the best as it is nothing but pure water (no metals, no calcium, low TA, neutral-to-slightly acidic pH) so rain water is not your problem.

If you do consider the SpeedStir (I highly recommend it), you might also get a SamplerSizer as well. I have both and I can do the full suite of K-2006 tests in less than 15mins.

[Fiveattripp]

Our pool water is So BEAUTIFUL now!!! It has been quite a journey to get it there, but it looks better than it has in quite some time. I began adding bleach 6 gallons at a time...based on the pool calculator. Now about 42 gallons later the water is so pretty and clear. Even though there was no real sign of algae it must have been really bad. I have adjusted the PH back to 7.6 and the ALK stayed at 100. The CYA is at 40. I must say after all of this practice using the Taylor drop test kit, I think I have the hang of it now. I can imagine I saved quite a bit of money using this method. Thank you for all of the help and direction.

[SunnyOptimism]

Our pool water is So BEAUTIFUL now!!! It has been quite a journey to get it there, but it looks better than it has in quite some time. I began adding bleach 6 gallons at a time...based on the pool calculator. Now about 42 gallons later the water is so pretty and clear. Even though there was no real sign of algae it must have been really bad. I have adjusted the PH back to 7.6 and the ALK stayed at 100. The CYA is at 40. I must say after all of this practice using the Taylor drop test kit, I think I have the hang of it now. I can imagine I saved quite a bit of money using this method. Thank you for all of the help and direction.

I too am very thankful that I discovered this method of pool care. Otherwise, we'd be like all of our friends with pools - spending ~$1,200 per year on useless pool maintenance "professionals" and cursing the day we bought a home with a pool rather than enjoying its benefits.

The real secret to BBB is really no secret at all. In fact, the "trick" is just a common sense life lesson that applies to everyday life - the key to a sparkly & beautiful pool is nothing more than regular, accurate water testing and regularly scheduled preventative maintenance. Spotting signs of a problem BEFORE it becomes a full-on disaster makes preventing and fixing it much easier than trying to put the pieces back together after it has blown up in your face. This is as true about pools as it is about cars, relationships and personal health (or anything else you care about). The more little things you do each day to maintain and improve something, the less likely it is to totally fail on you.

So BBB for us pool owners means a couple of things -

1. Owning and learning to use a good test kit;
2. Following a regular test schedule;
3. Daily spot checks;
4. Learning how all the parameters of water chemistry interact with one another;
5. Adding nothing to your pool that it does not absolutely need and only adding those chemicals that are proven to effectively resolve a problem;
6. Asking for help from like-minded fellow BBB'ers who have been down the road before;

Anyone who follows those simple principles and who is willing to add a little elbow grease can have a sparkly pool that costs hundreds of dollars less to operate every year than what the pool "professionals" and pool stores will try to sell you on.

[FormerBromineUser]

Congratulations! Did you test for FC loss from sunset to sunrise yet? I wouldn't bring FC levels down until you pass the overnight test once (and better yet, twice!)
What is your CC?