PoolForum FAQ
I'm new to the PoolForum. What do I need to know?
Welcome to our forum! We are glad you found us and registered. There is a
lot of good information here that can help you maintain your pool easily without
breaking the bank.
A couple of tips to help you post:
- Please read through the 'stuff' at the top of most of the forums.
Usually, you'll find answers to many questions there, even before you ask them.
Even if you don't find your answer there, you'll be able to ask a much better question,
and get better answers,
after you read the guides.
- Remember the search function can help direct you
to similar questions/answers as well. For new users, the BEST search is the
Google search of both PoolSolutions and the PoolForum -- there's a link just
to the left of this FAQ. (vB search is available only to subscribers.)
- Start your own new thread for a new problem instead of tacking on to the
end of somebody else's thread -- it's hard to answer two people at once.
- As a rule, don't post in threads over a year old (LOOK AT THE DATE!)
Often, the original poster is no longer watching that thread.
- Post questions in the appropriate forum. Example: Questions about an
algae problem or a pump problem do not belong in the Forum Q & A section. (If by
chance, you do in the wrong forum, one of the
moderators will usually catch it and move it into the appropriate forum.)
- If you have a salt water system, be sure to post your chemistry questions in
the SWG section. It's confusing, and results in poor answers, if you post
elsewhere without revealing that you have a salt water system.
- If you don't get an immediate response to your new thread, please don't
start another one in another section. We've all seen your posted thread,
guaranteed. We may have had a chance to read it or, more likely, are waiting
for someone with a little more knowledge of your problem to answer you.
I posted, but it didn't show up. Why?
Like most popular forums, we have an ongoing battle with spammers. Posts by
new members, with few exceptions, are moderated. This means that, after you
post, a moderator has to check your post before everyone else sees it. During
the pool season, the wait is usually less than a couple of hours.
Why am I a *RESTRICTED* User -- how can I change that?
Unfortunately, I (PoolDoc) have to spend 1 - 2 hours each morning check the logs for
hackers, removing spammers who've registered here, and the like. I've had to remove as
many as 30 in a single morning. Some sneak through. The *RESTRICTED* account allows them
(and you) to post questions and get answers, but not do much more. That lets legitimate
users (like you, I hope) solve their problems, but keeps the bad guys from being able
to do much damage.
Long time users (mostly, pre-2006) are in a different user group, with more privileges.
New users who post regularly, knowledgeable and helpfully will be promoted on an irregular
schedule (as I notice them!). Otherwise, you'll need to
subscribe.
What's the relationship between the PoolForum and PoolSolutions?
When Ben (PoolDoc) started PoolSolutions in 1996, there weren't any forums like
this. He started a PoolLetter, which he mailed out from 1998 - 2001, but that became
unwieldy. So he started the "PoolSolutions Forum" which became the PoolForum.
PoolSolutions contains the articles and guides that are the basis of the "BBB Method"
of pool care. PoolForum is the discussion about applying that method. Beginning
this year (2011), he's moving all the guides, stickies, articles and so on to PoolSolutions,
where it can be indexed by Google and found by new pool owners more easily.
What do I have to do to be able to post instantly?
Well, you can subscribe as a lifetime subscriber ($120) or a supporter
($36). For now, at least, spammers aren't willing to pay that much. We have had
spammers subscribe at the lower levels . . . and then want a refund when I
banned them for spamming!
Or, you can post well and helpfully for awhile
and . . . that's all I'm going to explain. If I explain exactly, some of the
spammer slimers will program their bots (XRumer) or Indian wage-slaves to try to
do just that.
What is "bumping" and why hasn't my question been answered yet?
If you post a question and have not received any replies after a day or two,
please give your thread a "bump" to bring it back up near the top of the forum.
Sometimes, with the number of posts that come in, a thread will accidentally get
missed. Then, as more new posts come in after it, yours may gradually move on
down in the list and sometimes get buried where it no longer receives many
views.
However, if you "bump" it and still get no replies, it may just
mean that nobody knows the answer to your question. (Especially if you notice
that there have been many views to it. Construction and repair questions,
particularly, may not be easy to answer.)
How can I search the forum?
Most of the time, the best way is with this link
allowing you do do a Google search of all of PoolSolutions and
the PoolForum.
Google Search PoolSolutions and 30,000+ PoolForum posts
Other than that, you can try the link in the upper right, but
I'm making changes in the vBulletin search process, and that may
or may not be working.
Why do some member profiles show that they joined in 1969?
The PoolForum has been online, in one form or another for 11+ years, and has
gone through 5 software or hosting versions. During one of those transitions,
the actual join date of existing members was lost and reset by the software to
1969.
How can I delete or move a post?
Only a moderator or I can -- but you can ask us, by posting a request in
that forum, or by emailing me at poolforum AT gmail DOT com.
How can I add my own personal info -- about my pool or something else -- at
the bottom of my posts?
Go to the "Settings" link (upper right, after you've logged in) and then
select "Edit signature" from the column on the left.
What do the appreviations here mean?
CL = Chlorine
TA = Total Alkalinity
FC = Free Chlorine (the amount of Chlorine available to “sanitize”)
CC = Combined Chloramines/Combined Chlorine
TC = Total Chlorine (FC+CC)
CYA = Cyanuric Acid (Stabilizer, Balance, Conditioner)
CH or CAL = Calcium or Calcium Hardness
ALK = Alkalinity, TA
TEMP = Water Temperature
SWCG = Salt Water Chlorine Generator (preferred over the next one!)
SWG = Salt Water Generator
IG = In Ground
AG = Above Ground
PPM = Parts Per Million
Trichlor = a type of insoluble stabilized chlorine, in tabs,
pucks, sticks or maybe, granular.
(trichloro-iso-cyanurate, trichloro-s-triazinetrione,
trichloro-iso-cyanuric acid).
Dichlor = a type of soluble stabilized chlorine, usually in
granular form
(Sodium dichloro-iso-cyanurate / Sodium dichloro-iso-cyanurate / Sodium dichloro-s-triazine trianediaydrate)
Calhypo = Calcium Hypochlorite
Bicarb = sodium bicarbonate (alkanlinity increaser, etc.)
(thanks, Sherra!)
Polyquat = the *good* algicide
(poly
[oxyethylene (dimethyliminio) ethylene (dimethyliminio) ethylene
dichloride]),
Fe = iron
Cu = copper
PVC = poly-vinyl chloride, used to make pool piping.
DPD
OTO
phenol red
I've seen a "PoolLetter" mentioned -- where are they?
They were published, by email, from 1998 till 2001, in 4 volumes. They are
currently available only in the "Subscriber" archive here. All paid subscribers
have access to them.
--
--
--
--
--
--
--
--
To do: difference between users and subscribers; pictures & attachments;
how to customize your profile;
