Hiya! First time pool owner

[Watermom]

It is ok to use cal-hypo for awhile but it does cause the calcium hardness reading to increase. If it gets too high, it can cause cloudy water issues.

You really need to get a kit so you don't have to rely on the pool store for testing. The one we recommend is the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C (same kit, larger bottle of some reagents). If you buy it through the Amazon link in my signature, the Pool Forum makes a little money on the sale which helps us keep this form online. Only buy if the seller is Amato Industries, however. Some other sellers are substituting the K-2005 which you do NOT want. If Amato isn't listed, wait a day or two and try again. They seem to restock pretty quickly when they sell out.

At the very least, pick up the 6-way test kit at Walmart.

[aylad]

The inline chlorinators can be used with reasonable success, IF you understand what the trichlor is doing to your water. First of all, it's lowering your pH. If you have high pH fill water, that's fine, but if your fill water is lower in pH, you might find yourself fighting that battle as long as you use the trichlor. Second, it's raising your CYA. YOu say you put CYA (same thing as conditioner) in it, but you never gave us a level....and you need to keep in mind that as your CYA level rises, so must your minimum chlorine level (see the Best Guess Chlorine Chart linked in Watermom's sig for more info on that). So..you can use it until you get tired of fighting the pH, or until your CYA gets to around 40 ppm or so, then you'll need to stop using it. Many people that do successfully use them are the ones that turn the flow rate very low, and supplement their chlorine levels with bleach. Inline chlorinators get people into trouble pretty quickly sometimes; that's why you need to understand what it does to your water, then taylor your use of it to your pool's needs.

Warning: if you're using a trichlor feeder, do NOT add cal-hypo directly into the skimmer. YOu can pre-dissolve it into a bucket and then pour it slowly into the pool if you want to, but you do not want cal-hypo to come into direct contact with trichlor, EVER.

But as WAtermom requested, please get a drop-based kit, or as a last resort go to a pool store that uses drop-based testing, and get your water tested and post your results here and we can help you from there. DO NOT let them sell you phosphate remover, algaecide, calcium to add to the water, or any other chemicals. Just smile and tell them you already have them at home.

[vaubach]

Ok, I got my water tested today at Leslie's. I last shocked the pool two days ago, and we had a hell of a thunderstorm that night too.
FAC: 5+
pH: 7.2
TA: 110
CYA: 60
Ca Hardness: 160
TDS: 400

He said all my levels were fine, not to add anything else right now but to keep the filter running to continue clearing it up. It is looking much better than it was. I did get in there and brush up all the algae on Wednesday, and that's when I shocked it again after. Unfortunately after the storm we had, I have some other debris I need to vacuum out now. But looks like it's supposed to be sunny and mid 80's for the next week or so, yay!

[PoolDoc]

+ If you've got a Leslie's guy who said your numbers are fine, and didn't try to sell you something . . . GO BACK TO THAT GUY!
+ If that guy continues to be available to you, you can probably get by with him, but if you want to be sure, go ahead and get the K2006 and learn to use it!
+ Put the ePool in your attic or garage sale. ORP does NOT equal chlorine level, so there's no way to maintain calibration. Ph electrodes drift over time -- in labs, they are re-calibrated weekly or even daily. If you can force yourself to ignore the pH and chlorine readings, it would be OK to keep it. But most likely you won't, and if you don't, it WILL get you in pool trouble.

[vaubach]

So far the pH readings on the ePool have been consistent with readings at two different pool stores (another Leslie's location was pretty far off), on several different occasions during the last month and a half. It doesn't give a definitive chlorine level actually, just <1, ~1, >2, so I'll just test specifically for that myself once I get the water clear again. The last time I shocked the pool was with a dichlor instead of the cal-hypo and I did notice a drop in the pH (although minor). I have bleach and borax on my shopping list for later, so I'll probably start supplementing my chlorine levels with bleach instead of relying on the chlorinator. I see that has contributed to an increase in the CYA as well.

[PoolDoc]

I'm not saying they are always wrong -- though in time that will happen -- I'm saying they are never RELIABLY correct, and they can be WAY off, with little or no warning.

I used to be a dealer for pH / ORP controllers for large commercial pools, and am very familiar with the 50 year old sensor technology involved. The electronics just adds a layer on top of the sensor output; they cannot compensate for the intrinsic limitations of the sensors themselves!