Sarah

Thanks again for all your help. I will keep posting as it progresses!

I tested the chlorine again and the first reading was a little darker than 5.0, then it just continued to get darker.

The test kit reads: To obtain free chlorine reading match the colors within the first 10 seconds of adding the OTO. The continous development of color indicates combined chlorine. The result should be fully developed in 2 minutes. I will do the test again and post the results. I really want to have this pool swimmable by the weekend. Think at this point I am just dreaming?

TuesdayI will re-test the chlorine/bromine levels and also the CYA. We've had 2-3 days of 90 degree weather so hopefully it can burn off some of that bleach!

Sorry I didnt get back sooner, but here is what we've done. I bought a diffrent test kit, called Aqua Chem , no strips. Before I tested it witht he new kit, I added a total of 2 1/2 gallons of bleach and about 2 cups of Muratic acid (called ph down at wal-mart). Ran the filter for over 24 hours. It started to clear, but only on the outer rims of the pool. I thought it coudl be that there was not enough water movement so I started to stir it around every hour or so until I went to bed. At this point I tested it with the strips and wierdly enough, all readings were normal, except that I didnt get a FC reading at all. Plus, my water was no longer just milky, it was also turning brown. Now, I tested it witht he new kit and here are my numbers: Chlorine and Bromine were way off the reading. The highest color it would read was a solid yellow and the water turned orange. I will re-test this tomorrow. pH 7.8 No hardness detected Alkalinity was 280ppm! The kit suggested not to perform the pH, TA or Water hardness if the Chlorine exceeds 3.0 or if the Bromine exceeds 6.0 so I dint know if these number mean anything right now anyway. I did not test the CYA with this kit (yet) Out of curiousity, I used another test strip and here are those numbers: TH : 200 FC/BR: 1/2 pH: 8.4 TA: 240 CYA: 150 Now what do I do??? I should have tested wtih the new kit before adding the bleach. How do I get rid of the high levels of Chlorine and Bromine

OK here are the results: POOL: TH- 200 FC- 0 pH- 8.0 TA- 200 CYA- 30-50 Tap: TH- 400 FC- 0 pH- 7.8 TA- 200 CYA- 0 Thanks for doing this for me!

Hello, I have Sand N' Sun pool from Wal-mart. I just filled it and followed the instructional DVD that came with the pool, but I have milky-white water. I have shocked the water, but not sure what to do now. I have been reading the posts at this site for the last hour and I am pretty sure I have to adjust the chemicals. Can someone list for me the order in how to correct this, or post a link to a list that may have already been made? Also, I was wondering how much climate and water source matters with pools. I live in Minnesota in a rural area. My water comes from our well, and it is hard water. Thanks!