Grrr! Algae literally stuck to the bottom
- Thread starter vwtoys
- Start date
No, that is normal so long as their is algae in the pool. The combined chlorine is chlorine combined with organics in the algae. Once the algae is completely gone, the CC should return to normal. To the extent that you can physically remove the algae via brushing and filtering out the algae and backwashing or cleaning your filter (depending on type of filter), then that will speed things up since it can take longer for chlorine to oxidize the algae, especially when there is a lot of it.vwtoys said:
Not yet. Some light brushing is removing the top layer which has turned more of a dark green color. Once brushed off, a fresh/lighter green color is now exposed again but it's not as dense. I'm guessing the chlorine hasn't had a chance to attack the stuff covered by the dark green layer (which I assume is dead algae). The pump is running and the water is still very clear.PoolGuyNJ said:
The stuff on the side is still pretty persistent. Is 15ppm not cutting it? A few hours ago I put in enough to get to 23ppm but it must have dropped somewhat by now with the sun and being consumed by algae. What's the recommended level of chlorine?
chem geek said:
Gotcha. I'm going to let the chlorine burn the algae some more, brush a bit to loosen up the dead bits and let the filter capture some of it, and clean the filter tomorrow.
It depends on your CYA level.
If you will post test results called for in Pool School, we can give you far better advice.
duraleigh said:
Sorry I didn't get to the CYA until now.
CYA= 20 (or less..)
TA=140
CH=250
pH~7.6 prior to shocking last week
FC=9ppm as of tonight
CC=0ppm
Water temp ~ 50-60 F, rough guess. As air temp ranges from 40s-70s F.
FC has now been bumped up to 14ppm to keep shocking. With CYA that low, 10ppm or more is shocking right?
Most of the green color on the bottom has disappeared.
However the stuff on the side is still there, but quite a bit lighter now. There's some grey matter on the bottom of the pool, which I have been brushing towards the bottom pickup to get filtered off.Like the Leslie's guy suggested level of 20ppm, my test results suggest the same or less CYA present.
I'm not sure where all the stabilizer has gone. I had 4 lbs of the stuff dumped in during the summer, and I used 6 to 8 3" tabs in the winter months while I was on vacation. You guys think I should put in a couple pounds of the stuff in a sock and throw it in the skimmer now? Maybe I'm burning through more chlorine simply by not having enough CYA. I had used up 11 gals of 12% in the last few days.Thanks for the help so far. Your help is appreciated.
I did a speed read over the thread. Have you cleaned your filter since you began this process? You might want to do this... Are you running your circ pump 24/7? If you are already at 9ppm, I would try to keep your shock level at 15ppm to help kill the remaining algae. Per your numbers, your shock level should be around 11ppm or higher.
Where in California are you?
Where in California are you?
salp said:
Yeah, i am planning to clean it out tomorrow and add new DE. It was cleaned in early December last.
The pump is running 12 hours a day but it's seen better days so I have a Pentair VF in store that's going to replace it.
I have the FC at 14.5 right now and that should hopefully do it for the night.
I'm in LA.
With your situation, you really need to be running 24/7 until algae is gone. FC level looks great. Clean your DE Filter, you will win the battle!
Thanks. The pool water is crystal clear and has been (at least visually) before I started attacking it with chlorine. It was just the green algae that has been impossible to brush off. I guess this isn't the regular mustard algae that could be brushed off easily in the years past. It's much more resistant to brushing. The pump will be running 24/7 the next few days.salp said:
With you guys' help I think I'm winning the battle. Most of the green stuff has lifted and died into grey clumps which is getting brushed and sucked in to the filter. The filter will get washed off tomorrow. I still have a good amount of algae hanging out on the sides and hopefully the continuous shocking will eat up the rest.
Vac out the dead algae. If there is live under it, it will get better exposure to FC and the dead stuff won't cloud up the water.
Scott
Scott
VW...pretty solid advice thus far 
. Also, I may have missed it, but given the "algae" on the side is so stuborn, have you tried rubbing the wall with a trichlor puck to confirm it is in fact organic? You seem to be at shock level so with the constant brushing I struggle with why it is still green, unless your CYA reading is off 
. Also, I may have missed it, but given the "algae" on the side is so stuborn, have you tried rubbing the wall with a trichlor puck to confirm it is in fact organic? You seem to be at shock level so with the constant brushing I struggle with why it is still green, unless your CYA reading is off The green "algae" that you see in the first pic, where the two large dark green patches are on the wall, have been there the longest. It has literally spread all around the pool in the last month. With the constant shock level (right now at 16ppm) the newer stuff has mostly died off. Almost all the stuff on the bottom has been killed. I still have a much lighter green where the 2 large patches are. But IT IS a lot lighter in appearance. I think I'll give it a few more days and see if it fades more. I'll post a picture when I get sunlight. I have not rubbed it with a trichlor. It is pretty cold and I'm hesitant to jump in.dmanb2b said:VW...pretty solid advice thus far
:lol:I don't know what's the matter with the CYA either. My 50/50 water/chemical mix did not yield any cloudiness so I could still see the black dot on the bottom of the CYA test tube. I just guessed that it has some since I've used 3" tabs in the last month or so. Don't know where the 4lbs of CYA went?!?! :?