New pool owner, need some guidance please

[madwil]

the pucks will also drive your pH down, so you may need to adjust it up over time- but clear the algae first!

[SteveInFLA]

All the green is completely gone now, yesterday the FC reading was over 3.0 (my test kit only goes to 3.0), I would guess it was around 3.5 or 4.0 as the color was darker than the 3.0. Today it reads maybe 3.2, the water is blue but cloudy, I assume that is dead algae causing the cloudy water (?)

I have been out of pucks for a few days which is why I added the liquid chlorine but I'll get more tomorrow. Thanks Watermom for the info re the amount of CYA in the pucks (and all your info). I'm running the pump 24/7 as advised.

BigDave, the P-A-P concentration is listed as 10.5% on the 2.5 gallon jugs. Thanks for the warning re too much CYA, I think I did read that too much keeps the chlorine from working, I'll continue reading, I'm very good at many things but chemistry has never been one of them, I'm trying to learn this though !

Is it recommended to use a floater for the pucks or continue using the CL200 feeder ?

Thanks for the help,

Steve

[madwil]

since you have the feeder, I'd keep using it as long as you plan to use the pucks; the floater would just waste your money, IMO...
good to hear the green is gone!

[CarlD]

madwil's right: If you have a feeder, you don't need the floaters. Personally, I don't have a feeder, nor intend to get one. When I want to use pucks, $10 floaters are good enough for me. Can't see spending a couple of hundred bucks on a feeder.

[SteveInFLA]

Okay thanks madwil and Carl, that makes sense, I had read about some owners really disliking their CL200's so that's why I asked. One other question about the feeder: The control goes from 0 (off) to 8 (full on), is there a suggested setting for my size pool or is it just something I need to experiment with ? And I'm guessing I need to try to maintain 2 to 3 tabs in it ?

[BigDave]

Don't know about 0 - 8 (you will have to experiment and adjust for bright/cloudy and swimmer load) but high enough to make sure that you have adequte Free Chlorine all the time. Adequate, of course, comes from Ben's Best Guess chart and will depend on your CYA level - rising while you're using dichlor and trichlor.

Remember to stop using the chlorinator when you get your CYA where you want it.

[SteveInFLA]

Remember to stop using the chlorinator when you get your CYA where you want it.

Thanks BigDave, but what about the chlorine, how is the chlorine level maintained if the feeder is turned off ?

Also, I checked the FC tonight and it has dropped to about 2, maybe 2.5, looks like a very faint sign of green trying to start back on the white steps, should I go ahead and add some tabs into the CL200 feeder now ?