I'm chasing my tail!!! Please help !!

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I honestly have no idea what the demand is on a regular basis. I fired the pool service last week & before that I just wrote the check. But that is my next thing to research on the forum. Because I did already notice that the recommended chemistry listed on the door of my SWG does not match the recommended levels on here. And I have no clue how to set my timer ...yet. So, should I try to adjust any of my numbers Saturday morning before I leave? (If I pass OCLT)
My results on July 17 before the SLAM:
FC- 3.5
CC-.5
PH-7.0
TA-50
CH-400

I have been asking the pool guy to keep my PH around 7.2 because of the metal stains I recently removed 3 weeks ago with AA. & I know my prior pool service added tons of calcium about 3 months ago to help get rid of the metal stains back then... Which came right back about a month later:(
 
Tracie, two things to add.

1. Don't worry about the stains until you're done the slam. But purchase a start up dose, preferably of jacks magic purple since its formulated specifically for the high TDS environment of a salt water pool, to be ready when you're done. Slamming will have eroded your metal sequestrant. Its possible the sequestrant itself may take out the stain too. If not, and if its a fairly isolated area, maybe a spot treatment would do the trick to avoid the full AA treatment.

2. Re: your swg...after your slam, you will want to bump up your cya to 70-80 and run your swg to produce the TFP recommended levels for swg...that will help keep you out of the algae jackpot moving forward. Your pool guys were kinda boneheads for keeping the cya so low in this case. Good riddance to them.

Cheers to clear!
 
So last Saturday morning my pool passed the OCLT(or so I thought!!!) So before I left town, I turned up my SWG to 100% for 12 hours a day. And a week later, it is a hot mess!!! The algae is way worse than it was before I started the original SLAM, July 18-22. I am assuming I get to start all over again?! Do I raise my shock level higher than 12? Is it possible to have two different types of algae at the same time? Some of the algae looks light yellow & powdery, while under that I still have hundreds of tiny dark dots. I tested my pool for everything except CYA because it is almost dark & I didn't think I could get an accurate number. Here are my findings:

FC-5.5
PH-7.2
CC-.5
CH-400
TA-60
CYA-30 (tested 2 weeks ago)

Where do I start?

- - - Updated - - -

image.jpgHere is a photo of how it looks today.
 
This morning I finally passed my OCLT. But I swear there was a small amount of algae around the plastic piece that holds our vacuum into the side of the pool. I'm not sure what I should do. My FC was 12.5 at 7:00 pm & still 12.5 at 7:00am. The CC was .5 or less.( Very light pink). Do I start trying to put my pool chemistry back to normal or continue to SLAM? Also, when can I get an accurate PH reading? I want to try and see if Jack's Magic will lift any of my new metal stains caused by the high chlorine levels. Thanks
 
The PH test is valid when FC is 10 or less. Brush the fitting with a little brush daily and keep SLAMing for a couple of days to make sure it doesn't come back.
 
I'm out of bleach so I was unable to SLAM yesterday. But I did test the water after turning back on my SWG all afternoon. My FC was 6.5 @ 11:00pm & 6.0 this morning. I also used a toothbrush to scrub all the jet fittings & I definitely saw some green come off into the water. I also saw something of concern all over the vac hose. It is covered in tiny yellow dots that do not scrub off with the toothbrush! I will attach some photos. We usually leave the vacuum in the pool at all times. Before the SLAM, our pump was running about 12 hours a day. Do I need to take the hose out at night?
Before I raise my FC again :( I wanted to recheck the PH levels as my metal stains are looking pretty bad after two SLAMs. Can I also go ahead & add the Jacks magic now, or should I wait til I'm done SLAMing?
 

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Adding a sequestrant with high FC is not ideal. The high FC will oxidize the sequestrant quickly and the sequestrant will use up some of the FC which will hurt your SLAM. Stubborn algae needs to be brushed often and exposed to chlorine to kill it. Algae builds a biofilm to protect itself from chlorine. This must be broken through to expose the algea to chlorine. I would finish the 3 SLAM criteria first and then work on the metals.
 

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I'm good with SW's idea. My cleaner got some algae in it last summer and I banned it from the pool. Tossed it in the yard and then it got hailed on. I'm not sure I miss it. But, I have a bottom drain and I can sweep debris to the bottom drain when I'm brushing.

There are 3 criteria for knowing when a SLAM is comp,eternal here, SLAM Process
 
Yesterday I finally got up the courage to take off my light fixture & I think I found my source! It was loaded with bright green slime! I vacuumed up as much as possible & raised my FC to 12.5. According to the SLAM criteria, I would have passed. My OCLT has been fine for two days, CC is .5 or less, & my water is nice & clear. I will check OCLT again tomorrow & see if I killed it all. Then I will bleach & scrub my hose to death:)
Hopefully this is the beginning of my new TFP! ...Then I will go back the the original issue of my metal stains!
 
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