Ugly brown ring around pool walls

[Jeannie in CT]

Hi all 8)

Just opened our pool tonight to find we only have 2.5 feet of water in it and the entire pool (on the walls) has a coppery colored dark stain around the entire perimeter of the pool. I took a brush to it for a minute and it looks like it's not going to come off with a fight. Never had this problem before. Used the BBB method all last season. Any idea on how to easily get it off?

Thank you!
Jeannie :-D

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

You need to determine what kind of stain it is. Rub a trichlor tablet on the stain, see if it's organic. Hold a vitamin C tablet on the stain, see if it's iron.

Any chance you used copper-based algaecide at the closing? Copper staining of vinyl is usually permanent.

Try a magic eraser on an inconspicous area, if it will work you won't have to scrub hard. If you have to scrub hard, don't use it, it will take off any pattern in the liner.

 

[Jeannie in CT]

I didn't use any algecide when I closed the pool. I have a magic eraser. I will see if it works tomorrow. Thank you!

 

[Wolfmarsh]

I had the same thing happen, and I blame it on me not closing the pool properly, in addition to the temperature rising above 60 for an extended period of time after I did close it.

It stained every inch of my liner brown.

I used a magic eraser to get most of it, inch by inch, but there is still a light brown tint to the liner (it stained the heck out of it).

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Kinda sounds like Iron staining, vitamin c tablet would confirm. If positive, you can do the AA treatment, to get rid of it completely. Unless you can live with the light staining.

 

[Jeannie in CT]

Excuse my ignorance on this, but when you say Vitamin C tablet, are you talking about the actual vitamin that you swallow? Or is this the name of a chemical I need to get from a pool store. I have a vitamin store nearby and am anxious to figure out what this is and the best way to remove it.

Thanks!
Jeannie :-D

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

A tablet. Usually if the stain is iron, you just hold a vit c tablet on it, and the stain will lift, usually very quickly. If the stain is all over, like Wolfmarsh described, there is an Absorbic Acid treatment process for lifting the stains. The instructions are in Pool School.