Last October we bought a home with an in ground pool. The pool was in bad shape so we had a professional come out and drain the pool, scrub / power wash and refill, treat with chemicals, etc.. We also had to replace the pool pump and polaris pump and also bought a new polaris sweeper/cleaner. Well long story short we have not been such good pool owners over the winter monts, although I did cover the pool I looked under the cover yesterday and NASTY is back, its green again, not horrible like the first time but its getting there. I know nothing about pools and need to get it back to clear ASAP. I know about SHOCK and of course chlorine. What do you suggest to use and how. If I SHOCK the pool do I need to take the polaris out? All suggestions are welcome
Yes, take out the Polaris and Shock the pool, make sure the pump is running more than you normally run it. At my last house, we had a chlorine pool and had that same problem often. In our new house, we switched it from chlorine to salt. Much, much better. You can get a good salt generator in the $900-$1300 range installed. I would highly recommend it. No more dumping in Chlorine. Much better for your eyes and skin. None of that irritation after being in it for 15-20 minutes.
Yeah we looked at the salt water setup I've done alot of appraisals on homes with the salt water setup and it amazes me how simple it is to keep them clear but I need to get it under control this weekend. So pull the polaris, make sure the pump is running, throw in HOW MUCH shock??? Should I just do a few bags and watch??
Hmmm. Good question. I seem to remember doing like 3 gals of Chlorine and 1 gal of Acid to shock. But wait for someone to confirm, b/c I don't remember for sure.
just throw some HF in there...you'll be all set...nothing with ever grow in there again...or live...or anything :rofl2: just out of my own curiosity...these salt systems...does that make your pool a salt water pool as in you are basically in the ocean? or is that just a wintertime thing?
No, not like the ocean. That would suck. There is a a salt generator (basically a cylindrical tube) that naturally (by sunlight) turns the salt put in your pool into chlorine.
thats was my pops would put in our pool....he would also take the unit appart and clean the filters every so often. he said he regrets getting a house with a pool cause its a pain in the ass, being mexican...he doesnt want to pay for someone to clean it lol
I wish I could just bought all new stuff for the current set up and as soon as it warms up a little the backyard is getting a makeover
Wade, if I'm not already to late to chime in... Try to use liquid chlorine or mix the granular in a large pail of water and pour the water portion in, discarding the granular pulp (terriple for the alkalynity). It should clear in a day or so then you can throw your automatic cleaner back in to suck up all the crud killed by the shocking. You'll want to backwash for min. 3 minutes at the end of each day so the very fine residue sucked up by the cleaner doesn't get pumped back into the pool (or worse yet, clog your sand filter which will drive your pump pressure way up - not ideal for the pump). If you're just getting it pretty that's one thing...if you want to maintain clean water you're gonna have to buy a chlorine stabilizer and a whack of baking soda (to maintain Ph level, keeps skin nice) otherwise it'll burn off in a few days and you'll be back at square one. Leaving the cover off will also help limit algae build-up. Crazy but we're ice skating on ours now...crap, but maintaining nice water keeps the nice guests coming over in bikini's...
Here is how it sits now: Here it was the one day my son got to use it when it was warm: I found an old listing from 2 owners ago when they had it looking nice so there is potential just need the time:
