I am in day 6 of trying to convert my pool from bacqa to chlorine. I also purchased the test kit from this site. I have used over 100 gallons of bleach so far and pool water is still green. At 7:30 pm tonight I added the amount of bleach I needed to bring up to 15ppm and 30 mins later I checked the level and it was down to 4ppm. I really don't understand how it could go that low so fast. I am hoping I am doing the test right. I put a scoop of the DPD powder in the cylinder with 10ml of pool water and swirl until it turns pink. I then put in 1 drop at a time and swirl the FAS/DPD until the water turns clear. When the water turns clear after you swirl and then turns pink again do you add more drops to make it stay clear? Hopefully I am doing everything right. I just want to see clear water again. Thanks for any help you can give.


30 ft round AG
23000 gal
200lb sand filter with 2-speed pump

It is being consumed by the baqua goo and other organics that may have taken up residence in your pool. Your pool must have been loaded with baqua or algae (or both) but your only choice is to stay the course and continue to keep your chlorine up.

I can understand that it gets discouraging but you must have faith that this will work.....simply because it will.

So keep your FC up constantly....don't let it slip down as low as you have been.....that allows algae to regrow. The more consistenly you can test and re-add chlorine back up to 15, the quicker the conversion will go.

Welcome to TFP!

When doing the FAS-DPD FC test, you want to add drops fairly quickly, swirling the entire time. As you are getting near the end the pink will fade and there may be moments when the sample looks clear for an instant and then is pink again, or gets so pale you might think it is clear but there is still some pink. At some point right after that it will turn completely clear and stay that way for a while, perhaps a minute, sometimes longer sometimes a little less. Don't wait the full minute, after 15 or 20 seconds you can go ahead and move on to the CC test, add the 5 R-0003 drops and start the CC test. If you take too long doing the FC test and the CC level is fairly high the sample can turn pink more quickly than a minute.

Try to be patient. Some conversions take longer than others. One good way to measure your progress is to see how far the FC level falls in an hour after adding chlorine. The higher the FC level after an hour the closer you are to being done.

When you have a chance, double check that your PH is still reasonable. Try to measure the PH at some point when the FC level is relatively low (perhaps the first thing in the morning). You want the PH to be between 7.2 and 7.4 when the FC level is near zero.

Another thing to check is your source of bleach. Dollar stores almost always sell inferior bleach that has lost it's strength, and some house brands that are not labeled with a percentage have a much lower percentage of bleach than you might expect.

Like Jason said. The R-0871 only needs a second or two of swirling to take effect. I can't do constant swirling like he says, but 2-3 swirls between drops is enough.
--paulr

Don't give up, just keep at it , I used about 70 big jugs (174 oz.) of bleach in the first couple of days. It seems like all I did every hour was feed the baquacil monster...lol..eventually it will get full! When it starts to clear you will be amazed!

I'll admit I didn't keep a close eye on how much clorine I used in the beginning and I probably over-chlorinated, but it did take a lot of time and patience. I was using a cheap test kit and was just going on the assumption that it was less than 5ppm's every hour I checked it, (which the first day it was). So I was adding about 3-4 of the 174oz bottles of bleach every hour for the first couple of days. Trust me, I am just finishing up my conversion and it has been probably about 7 days, and over 100 bottles of bleach and my baquacil levels weren't even that high, as I did not add any at the end of last year. So if you had any measurabe levels it's going to take longer. Just keep at it. You won't believe how clear and sparkily your water will be. I still can't believe it. I just stand on my deck and watch it shine!

Thanks for all your help. At least I know I am doing the test right. This site is been wonderful. The pool is clear, just green. I get the bleach from the grocery store and wal-mart. I read on here not to get it from the dollar stores. Just put in the last of my bleach this morning and now off to get more. Will keep you updated. Thanks again!

Hello....I felt your pain!!! I am at the last stage of my conversion (changing out my sand this morning!)...at the beginning I thought it would never come around...jug after jug of bleach!! I would get frustrated then these great people here would reassure me that I was doing everything right....and they were right!!! It took about 2 1/2 weeks for me..one day I walked out to the pool and the water was crystal clear...like never before!! Just be patient and it will work...and have some POP! (pool owner patience!!)

And don't be afraid to ask anything...you will get fast responses here!!
Keep us updated and try to record the look on your face the day you walk out to a clear pool!!!

Curt

Jason, when you say the sample gets so pale it looks clear but there is still some pink, and at some point right after that it will turn completely clear - Do you mean when it's so pale but still looks clear, is that when you stop adding the drops, or do you keep adding the drops till it is completely clear? I've been adding the drops until it is completely clear so I'm wondering if I should stop adding drops when it looks almost clear instead.

jewels-gt, I just finished my conversion and I can tell you that you're going to love your pool and be so happy that you converted. Our pool has never looked so good.

You keep adding drops till it is completely clear. I was trying to say that it can get really close to clear a drop before it turns completely clear. The very nearly clear but still a little pink stage comes right before you are done, ie you still need to add one more drop.

Ah, got it! Thanks, Jason

By "clear" they all really mean "colorless" as in no hint of pink remaining. The solution is always clear (i.e. transparent) as far as I'm concerned.
--paulr

Topics Merged by Moderator. Please keep your related posts on one thread.

8 days and 171 gallons of bleach so far. Water is a beautiful clear lime green and sparkles like a jewel. Am I getting close to seeing the water becoming a beautiful clear blue with the same sparkle? Is it o.k. now to just add the bleach early in the morning and a couple of times in the evening after the sun is off the pool? The sun hits the pool all day long. Also, is it safe to be in the water at this point? Having 90 degree weather yesterday I couldn't help but take a couple of quick dips.

Jewels, we need to see some test results.

Sorry, here are my readings.

FC - 15
CC - 12
TA - 200
PH - 7.5

Your numbers look good. The high CC level means you still have a ways to go. Things are moving along, baquacil is getting turned into CC. Keep at it and the pool will be perfect in several days.

Thank you. Was hoping for better news. I guess I need more POP! Do I still need to keep adding chlorine constantly or is it o.k. to put it in early in the morning before the sun hits and then wait til the evening when the sun is off the pool?

There is no harm in slowing down and only adding chlorine in the evening. That will take a little longer, but uses less total chlorine because less chlorine will be lost to sunlight.

Good morning everyone. Still working at doing my conversion. Yesterday morning I added my chlorine and then it started raining. Didn't add anymore because of the rain. This morning I checked my levels and they are:

FC - 2
CC - 8
PH - 7.5
TA - 200

It is going to rain all day again today. Should I still be adding the bleach or wait until rain has gone through? It is suppose to rain tomorrow also. My water is still a clear green but not as bright as it has been.

If you don't mind getting wet, I would keep at it.

Thank you. Don't mind getting wet at all. I am heading out now to add bleach while it's a light rain.