Help! Big Time!

[PoolKid]

Okay, well i never ever spent $20 on water testing kit,

But i guess i have to, question how long dose this kit last?

another question how much is it going to cost to get the pool clean after i get the kit? i have no shock or anything just chlorine tabs, i cant get shock anywhere cause they charge to much at the pool store for it and my pool has a liner in it and looks like this pool http://aaabestbuy.com/ebay/pools/56951_large.jpg . give an estamite price .

I am talking about the 7 way test kit.

[Watermom]

You don't need to buy shock. You can just use plain, ordinary, unscented laundry bleach instead. That is what most of us here on the forum use for our source of chlorine. Much cheaper than buying pool store chemicals. It would also be helpful for you if you go to the sister site to this forum at www.poolsolutions.com. There you will learn much about taking care of your pool inexpensively. Also, read through a lot of the old posts here on the forum.

[PoolKid]

OKay, Well ill wait till i get the test kit befor anything, but how long dose the test kit last?

[ChuckD]

You really should get both that I listed. The FAS-DPD will be needed because it measures the chlorine in your pool in a way the other doesn't. Reread what I said about it before. Expect the FAS-DPD to last at least one season, mine lasted two but my pool gets light use.

The 7 way has various chems in it which can be replaced individually as needed. They're usually 6 or 7 bucks each. Most likely you'll have to replace the CYA test before the end of the season. The others will likely last an entire season.

And like Watermom sez, read, and read thru this site. There are lots of people with smaller pools than your and even less pool knowledge. And then there are some here who can talk chemistry and pool water science and pool construction with the best. That's what makes this site so valuable. No one's here to sell you anything except the cheapest way to maintain your pool.

Take a look in the "Off Topic and General Interest forum". The first four discussion areas are where everyone posts pictures of their pools. You'll get a good idea of the range of people who come here and the range of pools they own.

And notice how clear their water is too.

C.

[Ohm_Boy]

At least your math should be easy.
An 18'x4' above ground round pool should be approx. 6000 gallons. 1 gallon of 6% strength bleach should add 10 ppm of chlorine, if I'm mentally moving decimal points correctly.
So if you need to achieve a 25ppm rise in chlorine, it would take 2 1/2 gallons of bleach, etc.

[CarlD]

PoolKid:
Sorry I haven't jumped in sooner. Yes, read the stickies. They were written by some UTTERLY BRILLIANT moderators (J/K! -- Bet that made you laugh) . Seriously, we tried to make them clear and simple.

There are two other test kits on the market I know of that are pretty similar to Ben's kit and will cost between $60 and $90--and last for several years. Refills of the chemicals are available so they last basically indefinitely.

This is one place you cannot afford to skimp. What they will save you in Advil / Tylenol alone makes them pay for themselves.

Besides Ben's kit, there's the Taylor 2006 kit, which is also a FAS-DPD kit. Then Leslie's has an on-line store that sells a FAS-DPD Chlorine Service Test Kit (I think that's what it's called). This is made for Leslie's by Taylor and is basically the same as the 2006 but in a Leslie's box. Taylor sells refills of ALL its test chemicals, and Leslie's sells them on-line as well. Either of these kits will serve as well as Ben's--they aren't as nicely optimized as Ben's and you'll need refills sooner, but otherwise you'll get equally good results.

There are some other cheaper kits that are pretty good, but only for keeping your pool clean when it's already clean. They are much trickier to use (if you can use them at all) when you have a problem, like you do. One is the WalMart HTH 5-way drop test kit. If they have it, it's a bargain--but you'll need to research the Shot Gl*** method to measure chlorine levels above 5ppm (use the search function).

You are going to need to kill your algae first and that's going to take lots of chlorine--bleach is the best way to add it. Forget that algaecide. The only one to use is polyquat 60%. Brand doesn't matter. If the container says "Poly...<something>.... 60%" and the rest is inert ingredients, that's the stuff. If there's anything else in it, don't waste your money.

But the algaecide is for PREVENTING, not killing algae. Use bleach.

I'm going to tell you not to skimp on what you need, like test kits and algaecide because if you follow our guidance you'll save it all back and more on the junk you don't need that pool stores try to sell you.

Most of what you need for pool care is at the grocery store or hardware stores. But the test kit is what makes it all nicely possible. And you must use it regularly during the season.

I use Bleach, Borax and Baking Soda from the grocery store, Muriatic Acid from Home Depot (which I rarely use--I rarely need to add acid), and polyquat and stabilizer from the pool store. I rarely, if ever, use anything else. I NEVER use clarifiers, flocculants, metal removers, phosphate removers or anything labeled as "shock". All the pool store garbage. My water is clean, clear, sweet and sanitary all the time.

[PoolKid]

Okay thanks for all the info!

All see what i can do with the test kit,

Question

Pool Turned really green today lol, anyway i can add bleach now w/o the filter? If so will it bleach the liner? and how much (2.5 gallons)? Just to make the pool not so green so it buys me a little time to get the test kit? and how would i add.