pool newbie with cloudy water

[wackster]

Thanks, Pool Doc! Here are the fill water measures:
total chlorine - 0
pH - 7.5
TA 340
hardness 360
CA- the dot did not disappear

I started the bucket test with fill water. Fifteen minutes after the bleach, the water was pretty yellow. It's sitting overnight after the borax add.

[PoolDoc]

Iron, calcium and high alkalinity, all in the same water!

Ok. How expensive is it for you to refill?

You'll need polyquat, HEDP, and muriatic acid to start. Having the Unicels would make it easier.

You may want to start a http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?16992 -- lime softening bucket test.

It's possible to clean up the pool with polyquat, HEDP and Culator. But it *may* work using lime softening, and if it does, it will be both faster and cheaper.

[Watermom]

When you are testing your fill water, there is no need to run the CYA test. Tap water nor well water either one have any CYA in them.

[PoolDoc]

Missed that; thanks Watermom!

[wackster]

I have a frankenpool! It costs about $250 for a water delivery. Interested in the lime softening idea--I'll look into what I need to do for the lime softening bucket test. I started the bucket test on the fill water already.

[wackster]

Ok, I have the Unicel filters, polyquat and muriatic acid. I'd like to buy HEDP locally. What are the common brands? I also bought a filter/pump vacuum and a skimmer, which is in transit. Pool Doc, would you like me to do a lime softening bucket test before we move forward?

[PoolDoc]

Here are all the brands we've identified as unmixed HEDP -- dilutions range from full strength (60%) down to 1/3 strength. One huge caution; manufacturer's can, and do, replace ingredients with other chemicals or other dilutions without warning.

HEDP:

Jack's Magic Blue Stuff (20% solution)
Jack's Magic Purple Stuff (20% solution)
Jack's Magic Pink Stuff (60% solution)
ProTeam Metal Magic (30% solution)
RamChem Ram Metal Hold ((60% solution? )
Kem-Tek 338-6 Metal & Calcium Eliminator (20% solution)
Haviland Stain & Scale Magic (30% solution? )

We're pretty sure these two products are HEDP, in the dilutions described, as of summer 2012

Jacks Magic The Pink Stuff 1qt (60% HEDP) @ Amazon
20% KemTek HEDP @ Amazon

And YES, do a lime softening test. I just got feed back from "Old BAT" -- she completed the bucket test and went from CH > 300 ppm, to CH < 40ppm ! She has not done her pool yet, but that's exactly the sort of result we're hoping for. But, keep in mind that the bucket test requires you to vacuum sediment out of your pool. You can do this with a pole, a vac head and a vac hose, by setting up a siphon. But you'll need all those pieces.

[wackster]

Thanks, again! Did you want me to lime test pool or fill water, Pool Doc?

I checked the metal bucket test last night and there is some brown-orange substance both on the bottom of the bucket and floating on the surface. (See attached pic, if it worked right.)