do you have an auto fill on the pool? When was pool complete, has it been losing water since completion? You can take some phenol red and squirt some under the water next to any fitting, ie: returns, light, pool sweep fitting and if the phenol red (comes in test kits) gets sucked right in then the fitting is not secure to the pool wall.

The best place to buy chemicals is the place with the most knowledgeable staff, free computerized water testing with print out & instructions. Cheapest is NOT always best, different companies/manufacturers use different %'s and there for the 1 l.b. bag of shock @ big box store for 1.99 is not as good as the 2.99 bag at the place with the good staff and free water tests.

The $ amount per year will depend on your water, start-up chemicals could cost very little to $200.00 + (what is naturally in the water makes a difference) and then the use of the pool, bather load, animals etc. during the swim season will determine how much $$ too.

daisee86

I live in Denton.
There are a couple of test that you can do to determine if the pool is losing water.

Mark the water level along the tile line 24 hours later return and measure the water loss.

You can also do what is called the bucket test. Fill a bucket and place it in the pool like on a step or bench. Mark the level on the inside the bucket along with the pool level on the outside of the bucket. 24 hours later return and measure the water loss in both the bucket and on the outside of the bucket. If both have lost the same amount then no leak is present. If pool lost more than the bucket then you need to have someone check pool with more advanced test.

In our area it is not uncommon to lose 3/8 to 1/2 per day.

Endure can be added at any time as it does not evaporate and can only be lost through backwashing, splashout or leaks. So I would wait until you determined if the pool is leaking.

Cheaper is not always better. I would recommend using a pool store that you fell comforatble with as they can offer much more than many of the big box stores.

You can check out the following website for more helpful information. www.gohlkepools.com

Hope this helps

Hi daisee86...I'm north of both you and "pools" but still in TX. Your water loss sounds unusual to me for this time of year but "pools" bucket test should help you know that for sure.

I was also new to pools some time ago and went to a site similar to the one I've linked below. IMO, they have all the info you could ever want to know about pools.

Again, IMO, you should not have to spend $700-$800 in chemicals unless you have a humongous pool!! You can buy most of what you need at grocery stores or big box stores like Sam's, Lowe's or Home Depot. Get yourself a good test kit, like the one linked through the site below, and you can take care of everything yourself. I knew NOTHING about pool water balancing and have learned everything from many of the posters at the site below, as well as some good advice here. My pool remains clear and trouble-free.

Here is a link that might be useful: Trouble Free Pools link