Newbie with Blue, Cloudy Pool and No Answers

[Albie]

Greetings, everyone. Looking for some (a lot) of help, and if what I've read already on this site is any indication, I want to say thanks in advance.

Second year pool owner
Northern Virginia
~36,000 gallons
Chlorine
DE filter
Polaris vacuum

Opened "professionally" 10 days ago ($425); have run filter continuously since, have backwashed and recharged w/ DE 4 times in 10 days (although, pressure has been holding steady at 20-22 psi).
Started green, turned blue and cloudy 5 days ago.
Leslie's tested the water and told me to raise pH, raise hardness, add PhosFree, keep shocking daily with granules, backwash frequently ($270).
5 days now and still blue and cloudy, with a layer of sediment.

Confused. Angry at expense. Bought a Taylor Complete FAS-DPD test kit ($75) and will test tonight and follow-up with results. Just wanted to introduce myself for now and set the stage. Looking forward to interacting with you all.

Thanks, Al

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello and welcome to TFP! Your story is so common. Pool store testing, products, followed by WE CAN HELP! Here you go:
1. Post those K-2006 test results for us as soon as you can. You did right by getting that kit.
2. Stay far away from the pool store
3. If your pool is cloudy/green you have algae and need a TFP "SLAM" (link below) Read that page now.
4. Start looking around for the best value in regular bleach. No scented or splashless stuff, just regular bleach/chlorine (sodium hypochlorite). That will be your primary sanitizer from now on.
5. Do you have chlorine tabs/pucks in the water? If so remove them right away.
6. For now, just about 1 gallon of regular bleach to your pool each day. That should keep things from getting much worse until your lot arrives.

Glad to have you with us!

 

[Albie]

TS, thanks a lot! Will be posting test results tonight. REALLY appreciate the help. Al.

 

[Albie]

I'm back. No change to conditions from original post. Water still cloudy and blue; layer of sediment; DE filter still at 22 psi. I removed all chlorine pucks.

Here are test results:

FC=2 ppm
TC=2 ppm
CC=0 ppm

pH was below the scale. Added 6 drops to raise to 7.4. Table from test kit says to add about 6.5-7 lbs 100% sodium carbonate to raise pH to 7.4 based on my pool size.

Total alkalinity = 40 ppm calcium carbonate

Calcium hardness = 390 ppm calcium carbonate

CYA = 34 ppm

Phosphates = 0


I read the SLAM page. Please confirm what I think I should be doing now:

1. Raise pH to 7.2-7.4 by adding soda ash. I have 5 lbs on-hand so I think that might be enough.

2. Add regular chlorine bleach until FC=14.

3. Brush daily.

4. Monitor FC; maintain 14 until pool is clear.


Questions:

- Any Idea how many gallons of bleach I should add to start with?

- I do not have a vacuum; will I need to hire someone, or will the filter take care of it?

- During this process, do I need to continue to monitor CYA? Monitor and adjust pH?

- Any idea how long this will take until the water is clear?

- What have I missed?


Thank you all very much.

Al

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello Al. To answer your questions:

Any Idea how many gallons of bleach I should add to start with?

Best to use the Poolmath calculator (link below) so you can determine the exact amount. Just takes a little practice getting used to it, but it's a great tool.

I do not have a vacuum; will I need to hire someone, or will the filter take care of it?

You will need a manual vacuum. Nothing fancy, but a hose long enough to get around with a regular vacuum head. You can only sweep and stir-up so much before you need to vacuum.

During this process, do I need to continue to monitor CYA? Monitor and adjust pH?

During a SLAM, you will only be focusing on the FC and CC. Your test CYA in the beginning and pH in the beginning. Make sure to adjust pH to 7.2 (orange) before starting a SLAM.

Any idea how long this will take until the water is clear?

Depends on the testing accuracy and discipline of maintaining your SLAM FC level. Follow all the instructions on the SLAM page (link below) and it works best that way.

Now AL, I have to ask ..... are those test results from YOU or the pool store? You said you got your test kit, but some of those numbers look like store testing. So if you have ANY questions about the K-2006 test kit, just ask. We want to make sure you are comfortable testing and do it right on your own. That's always going to be #1.

- - - Updated - - -

Your steps 1 thru 4 seem to be quite logical, so do what you can and let us know if you have any questions.

 

[Albie]

Yes, used my Taylor Complete FAS-DPD test kit purchased today. Just read the manual and followed all the instructions. I'm an engineer - maybe that's why it looks like a store report? I find the testing pretty straight forward - the problem is knowing what to do with the results. Your help is invaluable, thanks again. I'll be posting updates.

Al

 

[Albie]

After 2 days of slamming, pool is cloudy with sediment still. Here are tonight's test results:

FC=8.5 ppm
TC=9 ppm
CC=.5 ppm
added 293 oz bleach to raise FC back to 14

pH 7.2

Total alkalinity = 70 ppm calcium carbonate

Calcium hardness = 380 ppm calcium carbonate

CYA = 36 ppm


Please consider this: as I was adding DE after backwashing, cloudy water was spewing forth from my pool jets into the pool. Is my water actually fine, and the cloudiness and sediment is just DE? Are my grids faulty? If so, then what? Replace them I assume. I had the filter apart recently and the grids looked fine, but it was just a cursory look. If I'm getting blowback, then I guess the grids must be bad. Can you guys please advise? I do not want to be chasing the wrong problem when all I should have been doing is fixing my pump and getting the DE out of my pool. I attached a pic of my valves and how they are positioned. Are they as they should be?



Thank you all again for the help. Much appreciated. Al

 

[Texas Splash]

Al, there certainly could be a compromise in the grids which would require repair/replacement. Or perhaps one of the fingers or manifold connections simply became loose? It would be good to verify. As for your water, it sounds like you need to continue the SLAM. What really caught my eye though was that CC. Are you sure the CC is 9? You multiplied the number by 0.5? Basically divided by 2?

 

[Albie]

I wrote that CC = .5. (TC-FC)

Is DE filter disassembly and inspection something I can do myself? Do my valves appear to be in the right positions? Thanks, Al.

 

[Texas Splash]

Doh. You're right. It's time for my meds. Then you're in good shape it would appear ... except for the potential grid situation.

- - - Updated - - -

Yes, you can do DE filter maintenance yourself. We have some good threads here about it and many on YouTube as well. Your valves look to be in the open position to allow suction from both main drain and skimmers (shallow & deep).

- - - Updated - - -

DE Filter Cleaning Tutorial
Use and care for DE filters
Cleaning a Hayward Pro-Grid, Micro-Clear, Super Star-Clear D.E. Filter - YouTube

 

[Albie]

Thanks, Pat. Going to focus on the DE filter performance. More to follow...

Al

 

[Albie]

UPDATE: so, after completely disassembling my DE filter, cleaning out several pounds of old DE, reassembling, recharging, and 24/7 running, my pool is clear, albeit with lots of previously blownback DE settled to the bottom. My chemistry is good, too.

Questions:

1. If I have a piston-type backwash valve for my DE filter, can I manual vacuum to waste? Pool store said I needed a multi-port valve in order to vacuum to waste.

2. If the pool is clear, and chemistry is good, is it safe or unsafe to swim if there's DE still on the bottom?

3. In keeping the pool chemistry balanced, in what order do you take care of levels that need adjusting? Chlorination first? Then pH? Then.....?? If there's more than one level out of tolerance, can they be addressed simultaneously, or does one need to adjust levels in a certain order? I understand each water chemistry level individually, but not certain about the interdependencies. Is there a link to the best info on this topic?


Thank you all very much for your help.

Sincerely, Al