ph, alkalinity , chlorine

[annastasia76]

ok we've had the pool up for a while and it's just now started my skin itching when I stick my hands in it just long enough to test (I don't go in it) the kids have never said anything to me about itching or anything but when I tested, it says it has too much chlorine (I added extra chlorine because it was turning green), the ph is too low and the alkalinity is way too high by double. I'm assuming it's because I added too much chlorine. Is there anything I can do to fix this or is it better to drain and start all over?? I have a 16 foot round above ground pool, I think it's 3.5 foot deep. I'm afraid of adding super shock right now because everything is out of wack, or should I super shock it, will it help?? by the way, the super shock did nothing for the green but the chlorine cleared it right up (24 hours)

[chem geek]

You need to get a good test kit and measure your Cyanuric Acid (CYA) level, among other things. If it's high (> 80 ppm), you will need to do a partial drain/refill to lower it and need to cut back or stop using stabilized chlorine products (Trichlor, Dichlor). Read Defeating Algae.

If your skin is irritated from the water, then perhaps your pH is way off, probably low (especially if you have been using Trichlor without adjusting for pH) which is what you have indicated. This could be very damaging to your vinyl so you need to raise the pH right away and since your TA is high you can use 20 Mule Team Borax to raise it at least part way (to around 7.0) and then aerate the water to get the pH up the rest of the way. Since your TA is high and pH low, it sounds like a combination of Trichor usage and adding Alkalinity Up (baking soda) instead of using pH Up (washing soda, soda ash).