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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:26:19 PM EDT
Hello Hive,
I just bought a house with a pool; what do I need to know? A pool inspection will occur before closing and there are other conditions in place to cover major malfunctions. What I need to know is what are the best chem's to use? Are there any things to do that will keep the overall maintenance cost, in the long run, down? 
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:27:16 PM EDT
[#1]
You now have something extra to take care of
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:27:57 PM EDT
[#2]
Only thing you need to know is that it's a really bad idea.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:28:44 PM EDT
[#3]
Pump it out, fill the hole with sand.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:28:55 PM EDT
[#4]
If it's not already, switch it to salt water. That way instead of running to the store for chlorine all the time, you can just buy a huge bag of salt.
Buy a robot to vacuum. It'll do it daily for you, so you won't have to, they run a few hundred bucks, but so will a pool guy. If needed you can "shock" the pool, get used to the settings on the pump, like waste, recirculate etc. Clean traps daily. Crap gets in there, just clean it. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:28:57 PM EDT
[#5]
If you have small children - or any children you will need to be more vigilant than you have ever been in your life!
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:30:06 PM EDT
[#6]
Tell me more about these conditions in place.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:30:48 PM EDT
[#7]
Troublefreepool.com
It's the ARFcom for pools. Salt water (SWG) is a decent idea. Eta: depending where you are, I would be willing to help you out with the basics. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:30:55 PM EDT
[#8]
Quoted:
Hello Hive, I just bought a house with a pool; what do I need to know? A pool inspection will occur before closing and there are other conditions in place to cover major malfunctions. What I need to know is what are the best chem's to use? Are there any things to do that will keep the overall maintenance cost, in the long run, down? Go to Trouble Free Pool and start reading in the "Pool School" section. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:32:31 PM EDT
[#9]
Don't neglect the pool.
Salt systems are nice. Troublefreepool.com is your friend. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:33:01 PM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryYep, taking care of a pool is pretty easy. An hour or two a week and NEVER let the chemistry get off.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:34:03 PM EDT
[#11]
Your backyard has a hole in the ground with water in it.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:35:33 PM EDT
[#12]
I see a short, dark, handsome man in your future. He will be driving a 14 year old Chevy truck with 3 bald tires and a retread. His headache rack is homebuilt, and holds all he necessary tools necessary for him to make a living off your poor decision. He name is Juan, and he smokes a lot of dope while he does his thing.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:35:36 PM EDT
[#13]
Empty wallet,that shit will nickle and dime you to death
Watch your pets and kids like a hawk too |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:38:26 PM EDT
[#14]
It comes with a robot vacuum, and I have no concern of a pool guy. Wifey is plenty satisfied and I own multiple shovels.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:40:28 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Yep, taking care of a pool is pretty easy. An hour or two a week and NEVER let the chemistry get off. This is a picture of taken last year while opening.  Attached FileI use the Trouble Free Pool chemistry method. (Note all the bleach bottles....) 41,000 gal, SWG, Vinyl liner. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:41:13 PM EDT
[#16]
I will also echo the recommendation to go and read everything you can at TroubleFreePool's Pool School.
Like you, I recently purchased a house with a pool. I SLAM'd it once 2 months ago and it's been perfect since then with minimal effort on my part. Seriously, the water is crystal clear and the water chemistry is easy to take care of. The water in my pool literally sparkles when the sun hits it. Buy a real test kit like the TF100 from tftestkits.net, get the XL option and the SpeedStir. Don't get test strips, don't go to the pool store. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:41:21 PM EDT
[#17]
Though young, all kids are fantastic/elite swimmers. My biggest concern is them trying to jump off the deck into the pool. I really want to try to!!!
 
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:42:11 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
If it's not already, switch it to salt water. That way instead of running to the store for chlorine all the time, you can just buy a huge bag of salt. Buy a robot to vacuum. It'll do it daily for you, so you won't have to, they run a few hundred bucks, but so will a pool guy. If needed you can "shock" the pool, get used to the settings on the pump, like waste, recirculate etc. Clean traps daily. Crap gets in there, just clean it. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:42:45 PM EDT
[#19]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
This spring I had a work trip and came home to a literal swamp. Tadpoles and water beetles galore. Took about a month to get all of the muck out of the pool and ready to swim. This is a picture of taken last year while opening. https://www.AR15.Com/media/mediaFiles/446553/pool-258389.JPG I use the Trouble Free Pool chemistry method. (Note all the bleach bottles....) 41,000 gal, SWG, Vinyl liner. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:43:03 PM EDT
[#20]
Does he have some for me?
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:43:39 PM EDT
[#21]
Can be a nightmare that you don't get near as much use out of as you thought you would. You will be expected to throw parties.
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:43:51 PM EDT
[#22]
Don't let the negative Nancy's get you down OP. It's really not that difficult to keep up with. I don't know what kind a foofoo faggot dogs the other posters have but most dog breeds can swim.
ETA: you need a pool guy about as much as you need a gunsmith you clean your firearms. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:50:03 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
How long were you gone, a month? I inspect, clean filters, etc twice a week A robot is a MUST IMO, just put it in and let it run while you drink beer. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:51:25 PM EDT
[#24]
PA?
Don't know....totally different from owning a pool in the south. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:52:29 PM EDT
[#25]
congrats.
 Indoor or outdoor, the cover is good. (speaking fom experience about a 45x15 x 3-11 indoor.
Know how your pumps/valves/filters work. Mark the pvc with a sharpie to show flow direction, once you figure it out. Buy chlorine tablets (3.5" on sale and stock them. Keep a few bags of shock handy, especially after the kids have a get together. MAKE SURE you are covered insurance wise. don't cheap out. know what the local code AND insurance expects for perimiter fencing if outdoors. buy towels. enjoy. |
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:54:42 PM EDT
[#26]
The pool guy may bang your wife...
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Posted: 7/19/2017 11:57:31 PM EDT
[#27]
Quote HistoryQuote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Hello Hive, I just bought a house with a pool; what do I need to know? A pool inspection will occur before closing and there are other conditions in place to cover major malfunctions. What I need to know is what are the best chem's to use? Are there any things to do that will keep the overall maintenance cost, in the long run, down? Go to Trouble Free Pool and start reading in the "Pool School" section. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:03:44 AM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Pump it out, fill the hole with sand. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:05:52 AM EDT
[#29]
OP: having my pool stay this clean and sparkling takes about 5-10 minutes every other day (measuring chlorine and other chemical levels, cleaning out the skimmers, and catching stray leaves with a net) and maybe 1-hour/week (sometimes every other week) brushing the sides/bottom and manually vacuuming out any stuff that the skimmers didn't catch. One day I'll get a robot but for now I just vacuum manually.
Seriously: Go to TroubleFreePool and read their Pool School articles, especially read the SLAM article. I'd guess 98% of pool owners don't take the time to learn how their pool chemistry works, so their pools constantly jump from clear to green to murky to clear -- spending untold money and time at the pool store. There's a better way. You need to realize that chlorine is not the most important chemical in your pool: CYA (aka cyanuric acid, aka "stabilizer") is more important. It protects chlorine from UV damage so the chlorine lasts longer in your pool and it buffers the harshness of the chlorine. Without it you'd spend 8x as much money on chlorine, easy. Your level of chlorine that you need in the pool depends on your CYA level. Too much stabilizer and you can't economically keep enough chlorine in the pool to keep it sanitized. I opened my pool in early May and it's been crystal clear since then. I've spent a combined ~$250 on a test kit (~$120?) and chlorine since then, plus a few dollars on stabilizer and <$10 on muriatic acid (lowers pH that naturally rises over time). You'll eventually learn how much chlorine your pool 'eats' per day. Mine, which is roughly 22k gallons, needs about a half-gallon of 10% chlorine per day to keep the FC ('free chlorine') levels where they need to stay. Most of the time I end up putting in a gallon every other day. On sunnier days it uses more since the chlorine gets destroyed by UV rays. 
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:11:31 AM EDT
[#30]
A saline conversion is worth every Penney, and will pay for itself in 1 season. My buddy has a solar system that keeps his pool in OK warm year round. Helps with winter maintenance, plus gets an extra month of use on both ends - I kind of want the same thing.
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:12:43 AM EDT
[#31]
Once a month burn a $100 for 11 months, on month 12 burn 3 or 4.
Seriously for what I pay someone to run chemicals I'd probably pay in chems doing it myself. I do all my own repairs. Inyopools is a good source for parts but shop around prices vary wildly. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:13:56 AM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Yep, taking care of a pool is pretty easy. An hour or two a week and NEVER let the chemistry get off. Quote HistoryQuoted:
I feared the pool when we bought the house. It's only a pain if you let it be. Quality test kit. Test FC every day and you're golden. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:16:20 AM EDT
[#33]
Keep the pH neutral. My nephew has a 40'x60' pool that he spends a depressing amount of money on due to the fact it's surrounded by pine trees. The chlorine will quickly dissipate if the pH isn't close to 7.z
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:16:26 AM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
That's the key. Test FC everyday. 5 minutes. Quality test kit. Test everyday. Easy. Everything else test once a week or two. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:17:30 AM EDT
[#35]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
You now have something extra to take care of I went out of way to find a house with no pool and that is hard to do in Arizona. You can hire a pool man or dedicate some time each week to cleaning that fucker. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:17:44 AM EDT
[#36]
Fill it full of Concrete, It would be cheaper in the Long Run.
Former Pool Owner, never again. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:22:19 AM EDT
[#37]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
If it's not already, switch it to salt water. That way instead of running to the store for chlorine all the time, you can just buy a huge bag of salt. Buy a robot to vacuum. It'll do it daily for you, so you won't have to, they run a few hundred bucks, but so will a pool guy. If needed you can "shock" the pool, get used to the settings on the pump, like waste, recirculate etc. Clean traps daily. Crap gets in there, just clean it. Everything he said, exactly as he said it. Pools are great. If you're unfamiliar with them have a pool company come give it a "check up". While the guy is looking things over, hit him with any questions you may have. 99% of any problems that you may encounter and the fixes are well documented on the intergoogles. The salt water thing is an absolute must. I screen mine every few days, the robotic cleaner has to be cleaned once a week, backwash the filter, dump the screen, etc. All this "work" is done in the cool of the evenings usually with music or ball game and a drink in play. Real backbreaking stuff. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:25:57 AM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
One of the guys over at TFP says it best: a pool is like a pet, you still have to feed it every day even if you don't want to play with it. It's also similar to brushing your teeth: do it every day for a few pennies per day, or spend thousands at the dentist once every year or two. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
My cya is high so I vacuum to waste. I spend 2 hours max per week making a perfect pool. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:28:34 AM EDT
[#39]
Aquachem testing strips have been a livesaver to me. Try 'em. If not saltwater use one or two floaters with chlorine tabs. Robots help..... a lot.
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:30:22 AM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
You get to know your pool. All I care about is FC and CC. I check my pH once a week and know when it's time to add backing soda. My cya is high so I vacuum to waste. I spend 2 hours max per week making a perfect pool. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
My cya is high so I vacuum to waste. I spend 2 hours max per week making a perfect pool. In all fairness, I did have to cough up an unexpected $130 and a few hours of my time for a replacement pump motor after a lightning strike.  It also took out my cable modem and wireless router but that's another story.
Installing the fence was the biggest pain the ass I've ever dealt with, but absolutely required since we have 3 small children. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:33:49 AM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
OP: having my pool stay this clean and sparkling takes about 5-10 minutes every other day (measuring chlorine and other chemical levels, cleaning out the skimmers, and catching stray leaves with a net) and maybe 1-hour/week (sometimes every other week) brushing the sides/bottom and manually vacuuming out any stuff that the skimmers didn't catch. One day I'll get a robot but for now I just vacuum manually. That is some nice looking water! Going to PoolSchool, I've decucted that: Seriously: Go to TroubleFreePool and read their Pool School articles, especially read the SLAM article. I'd guess 98% of pool owners don't take the time to learn how their pool chemistry works, so their pools constantly jump from clear to green to murky to clear -- spending untold money and time at the pool store. There's a better way. You need to realize that chlorine is not the most important chemical in your pool: CYA (aka cyanuric acid, aka "stabilizer") is more important. It protects chlorine from UV damage so the chlorine lasts longer in your pool and it buffers the harshness of the chlorine. Without it you'd spend 8x as much money on chlorine, easy. Your level of chlorine that you need in the pool depends on your CYA level. Too much stabilizer and you can't economically keep enough chlorine in the pool to keep it sanitized. I opened my pool in early May and it's been crystal clear since then. I've spent a combined ~$250 on a test kit (~$120?) and chlorine since then, plus a few dollars on stabilizer and <$10 on muriatic acid (lowers pH that naturally rises over time). You'll eventually learn how much chlorine your pool 'eats' per day. Mine, which is roughly 22k gallons, needs about a half-gallon of 10% chlorine per day to keep the FC ('free chlorine') levels where they need to stay. Most of the time I end up putting in a gallon every other day. On sunnier days it uses more since the chlorine gets destroyed by UV rays. http://i.imgur.com/61hyTQG.jpg |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:35:13 AM EDT
[#42]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
FPNI I went out of way to find a house with no pool and that is hard to do in Arizona. You can hire a pool man or dedicate some time each week to cleaning that fucker. Quote HistoryQuoted:
Quoted:
You now have something extra to take care of I went out of way to find a house with no pool and that is hard to do in Arizona. You can hire a pool man or dedicate some time each week to cleaning that fucker. What is this cleaning the pool you speak of? |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:36:20 AM EDT
[#43]
Will I be good to go if PH > 7.2ppm < 8.0ppm?
If I use a salt system 3,000 is the number? What are the pros/cons of a salt vs. chem system? |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:48:22 AM EDT
[#44]
When you get tired of it fast, it will cost you about $9k to have it broken up, the pieces hauled away, and the hole filled in. Then enjoy the $100 month savings in electric not having 2 pumps running all the time.......nor will you miss the 90lb drums of chlorine powder and tablets you've been buying. Ask me how I know all this! If a boat is a worse money pit then a pool, then Lord save those who own a boat.
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Posted: 7/20/2017 12:52:48 AM EDT
[#45]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
Will I be good to go if PH > 7.2ppm < 8.0ppm? If I use a salt system 3,000 is the number? What are the pros/cons of a salt vs. chem system? But you must purchase a quality test kit. Absolute must. Buy the tf100 kit from the site and get XM option. Get the speed stir. Just do it. Read and understand the cya and FC relationship. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 1:02:57 AM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
When you get tired of it fast, it will cost you about $9k to have it broken up, the pieces hauled away, and the hole filled in. Then enjoy the $100 month savings in electric not having 2 pumps running all the time.......nor will you miss the 90lb drums of chlorine powder and tablets you've been buying. Ask me how I know all this! If a boat is a worse money pit then a pool, then Lord save those who own a boat. We love our pool. Use it just about every day and all day on weekends. Our home is like a resort house. Pump electricity is 50 bucks a month. Chlorine about 20 month. Baking soda 5 bucks a month. Coming home to my resort house everyday. Priceless. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 1:05:07 AM EDT
[#47]
Quoted:
Hello Hive, I just bought a house with a pool; what do I need to know? Funny you say that. What you need to know is that Bees LOVE pools. They love hanging out, drinking pool water, swimming and floating on the surface. I know two people here in AZ that can't use their pools because Africanized bees hang out. And once they pick your pool as their party spot, you'll never get rid of them. But the humans can use the pool at night because the Bees go back to the HIVE. So Bee Ware! |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 1:05:15 AM EDT
[#48]
OP: something else I just thought of. You're about to get very well acquainted with your local small wildlife unless the whole thing is screened-in.
Small critters frequently like to go for a swim, too. So far this season I've pulled out numerous toads, a bullfrog, a bird, and 2 mice out of my skimmers. Also a large turtle that I put back in the pond behind my house. Not to mention untold numbers of beetles. Earlier tonight I pulled a dead rat out of the deep end.  My pool is right next to a thick wooded area though so YMMV.
Due to situations like that, keeping your chlorine at appropriate levels is of paramount importance. Chlorine is a fantastic sanitizing agent and a little goes a long way, but it will be ineffective if your CYA levels are too high. With all that being said, I doubled my normal 1-gallon dose of chlorine tonight due to the dead rat.
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Posted: 7/20/2017 1:10:05 AM EDT
[#49]
Quote HistoryQuoted:
OP: something else I just thought of. You're about to get very well acquainted with your local small wildlife unless the whole thing is screened-in. Small critters frequently like to go for a swim, too. So far this season I've pulled out numerous toads, a bullfrog, a bird, and 2 mice out of my skimmers. Also a large turtle that I put back in the pond behind my house. Not to mention untold numbers of beetles. Earlier tonight I pulled a dead rat out of the deep end. My pool is right next to a thick wooded area though so YMMV.
Due to situations like that, keeping your chlorine at appropriate levels is of paramount importance. Chlorine is a fantastic sanitizing agent and a little goes a long way, but it will be ineffective if your CYA levels are too high. With all that being said, I doubled my normal 1-gallon dose of chlorine tonight due to the dead rat. |
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Posted: 7/20/2017 1:17:18 AM EDT
[#50]
I think that sums up everything... |
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