I think I may officially hate my pool! UGH

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Basset_Hounds

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May 13, 2012
48
Okay....first I'll give you test results.

FC-24 (I'm in the shock process right now)
PH-8.2 (Do I need to worry about lowering it now, or wait until shocking is over?)
TA-240 (Eek, I know, but from what I understand I don't need to really worry about that at this point)
CYA-60
28,300 Gallon pool (If I calculated right). Above ground 33'x54"
Cartridge filter.
I have the "good" chlorine test kit (totally can't remember the name right now)

This has been such an ongoing process my head is spinning, so don't be surprised if at some point, I don't even make sense. I don't know if this is more of a vent, a search for advice, or a need for someone to tell me to just keep trucking! Long story short, started out my season pool-storing it and with pucks. 2 weekends ago, in the middle of a small algae outbreak, I finally became sold on BBB. By small algae outbreak, I mean my water turned SLIGHTLY green, and the only actual algae I could see was in the filter cartridge. I started shocking by BBB standards. Well, as close as I could anyways since I work during the day. Night 2 it passed the overnight FC test. Vacuumed the dead algae to waste and thought I would good. ONLY thing was, I let my FC fall lower than I should have (didn't know at the time), and had quite a few of us in the pool on Sunday after a long day of softball.

Earlier this week, I found more green in the filter. GREAT. Assuming it meant algae was back (I can't find ANYTHING telling me if this is a red flag or not but I'm sure it is), I started shocking again. This time, I still can't get it to hold overnight. Last night I lost 2ppm FC. Well, I'm home today so at least I can monitor it hourly. HOWEVER, I'm adding water right now (have to, it's getting too low to filter). So what do I do in this case? Being forced to add water during the shock process? Just throw extra chlorine in on the hour??????? I also really want to vacuum it to waste to get what I am ASSUMING is dead algae off the bottom. I also think there is some dust (it's very dry here right now, and we live on a farm, and they just did hay. Oh, and we had a windstorm last night). Would it be best to just not worry about vac. to waste while shocking right now? Or run the auto vac and let it get what it can filter out for now????

And then there is the heaven knows how much I have spent in bleach the past two weeks. Granted, it's super hot right now so I know that has to be eating some of it up..... My husband I think is starting to be ready to have a small cow. I tell him "once I get this shock process over it will be better" to which he says "you said that last time you shocked it). I need to start using the solar cover more I guess, to help with the evaporation. It's already cut in half, I've decided I am going to go ahead and cut it in quarters to make it less of a pain (that sucker is big!)

All I know is, we decided to go above ground over inground because he didn't want something so permanent before we knew we didn't mind taking care of the thing. I think he is right on that one, because as much as I LOVE water and having a pool (wait, maybe I should say loved???), there is a part of me that wants to get the bobcat out and just demolish the thing today.

OH. And if this helps or not...my water is crystal clear. I mean, I'm sure if I got in it with a mask on, I could see some of the dead algae floating when I tried to see across the pool underwater. But otherwise, sparkly clear.

The only good news is that I am well stocked on beer and tequila.............
 
Fill the pool where it needs to be.......shock PROPERLY.............and enjoy the beer and tequila while you wait. I'd go a couple of points of FC higher than your 24. Won't hurt a thing. Sounds like you're just on the edge of an algae outbreak so I'd just let the system filter do it's thing. Brush the pool while shocking it. PH level is moot at the moment. Worry about TA later. Clean the cartridge regularly. High FC levels aren't good for the old auto vac. Hang in there.
 
It doesn't sound nearly as bad as you think. Most likely there's a little area of low circulation or something where a bit of algae survived - you dump a dirty softball team in the water and then forget about it for a few days and wham - a little green. It's annoying - but your pool doesn't sound out of control.

Go ahead and vacuum out the gunk - that certainly can't hurt.
Fill the pool to the right level
and bring it up to shock

Dont worry about testing it every hour - couple times a day should do you at this point. Don't worry about adding water to it while you are shocking. It'll be ok.

If after this you still find you get that occasional patch of green - you are either letting that FC level drop or you want to run your FC level a ppm or 2 higher than where you've been.

Hang in there - you've got this.
 
Thanks so much for the encouragement! One thing I forgot to add: I don't know how much of a difference this makes but I had my gallons calculated wrong at 27500. Just starting calculating at 28500(the extra 200 to be safe) yesterday
 
Basset_Hounds:

Chlorine is more aggressive at lower pH levels, meaning the same FC level at a pH of 7.2 will have more disinfecting power than it does at a pH of 8.2, all other factors constant (http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/swimming/pools/disinfection-team-chlorine-ph.html).

Your pH of 8.2 is definitely high by any standard. I would lower it by using either Muriatic acid (MA) or dry acid. I would lower pH to between 7.2 and 7.5 (avoid going below 7.2, though). A side benefit is you will be simultaneously lowering TA (which is high), but the main focus is on lowering pH right now. After the shock process, I would shoot for a maintenance level of between 7.4 - 7.8.

Your CYA is borderline high. Wouldn't take any action right now - just keep an eye on it and avoid having it go any higher (e.g., avoid pucks and dichlor or trichlor "shock").

Seconding enjoying beer and tequila - will make this process seem to go faster.

zea3 beat me to it: Was editing my post to ask if your pH was measured before or during the shock process. If measured during the shock process, it will spike up. Next time you need to shock, I would measure pH before beginning the shock process and bring it down to 7.2 - 7.5 prior to commencing the shock process.
 
Pull out your ladder and scrub it down good with bleach. Ladders and steps often have nooks and crannies where algae can hide and grow. What level was your FC when you were not shocking?

Don't worry about the pH during the shock process. High FC will cause a temporary spike in pH levels that will go down when the FC goes down.
 
Bo-I have the MA here and ready for lowering my PH. My hubby is going to have to do that when the time comes, I'm way too clumsy to want to handle that stuff :) As for the CYA, what do you guys think is the ideal number? I was thinking something along the lines of lowering it to 50, maybe 40? We are in a heat wave that is supposed to last for the next week, so my thinking is after the next few days, the water is going to be warm enough that we will want it cooler, so then would be a perfect time to do a drain and add. I know my hubby will be the one to want the water cooler, so instead of doing a drain/fill now, I'm waiting for it to be HIS idea, lol.

Mod, I DO have steps, and I truly HATE HATE HATE those things and I do think they could possibly be the cause for some of these algae issues. They are made by Built-more???? They have NO holes for circulation at all. For now, I have been using a turkey baster to shoot chlorine behind them and trying to send some of the water behind them when I fill. They are drilled into the deck and heavy. I am pretty sure I am going to convince the hubby to pull them out so I can clean them and drill some holes in them while they are out. Which is going to thrill him, I just know :). If I had MY way, I would ditch them all together and just get a plain jane ladder. But at this point all he is seeing is the $$$$$$ I'm dropping into the thing.

Just a sidenote on the hubby. He bought our farm six months before he met me. The very first thing he did when he bought the place was bulldoze the 3 year old pool that came with the place. He had no desire to have a pool, thinks they are nothing but a pain in the Rear. It took me 8 years to convince him that they aren't that bad, and to let me get a pool. And here we are! This is doing nothing to convince him otherwise. Poor guy, it's like neither of us can win! It would probably be a little easier on him if the hot tub wasn't leaking either..... haha! That we have under control though!
 
Basset_Hounds said:
As for the CYA, what do you guys think is the ideal number?
Click to expand...

I'm assuming your pool is manually dosed with chlorine (e.g., no SWG). If so, a CYA of between 30 and 50 is considered ideal.

Just to confirm on the pH: Since you've already begun the shock process, I wouldn't lower it until done shocking due to the high FC level causing a spike in pH. When done, I would get it in the range of 7.4 - 7.8 (lower part of range in warmer water temps & upper part of range in cooler water temps). If you need to shock again in the future, then I would lower pH to 7.2-7.5 before beginning the shock process.

As for the pool itself, they really are quite easy to maintain if you follow the steps on this forum and Pool School. I switched to BBB about a year ago and went from regularly using a dozen or so chemicals down to primarily two (bleach and MA). In addition, I'm running my pump about 50% as much as I did before BBB. Pool has never looked better, not to mention the $ savings.
 

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Also. I just discovered the canister on the third step that holds the sand in it is easy to remove. I put a mask on, got down there and took the best look that I could. There is a little dirt down there but nowhere near as bad as I thought it may be. No greenness. Felt around the best I could, felt nothing slimy. Now I know I couldn't full investigate but it was better than what I was expecting!
 
BoDarville said:
Basset_Hounds said:
As for the CYA, what do you guys think is the ideal number?
Click to expand...

I'm assuming your pool is manually dosed with chlorine (e.g., no SWG). If so, a CYA of between 30 and 50 is considered ideal.

Just to confirm on the pH: Since you've already begun the shock process, I wouldn't lower it until done shocking due to the high FC level causing a spike in pH. When done, I would get it in the range of 7.4 - 7.8 (lower part of range in warmer water temps & upper part of range in cooler water temps). If you need to shock again in the future, then I would lower pH to 7.2-7.5 before beginning the shock process.

As for the pool itself, they really are quite easy to maintain if you follow the steps on this forum and Pool School. I switched to BBB about a year ago and went from regularly using a dozen or so chemicals down to primarily two (bleach and MA). In addition, I'm running my pump about 50% as much as I did before BBB. Pool has never looked better, not to mention the $ savings.
Click to expand...

Yes, it is manual! May look into SWG at some point, just not anytime soon. Got enough on my plate :)

Thanks so much for the advice, it is VERY appreciated.


My parents' had a pool for years and I swear I don't know how they did it. All they had was bleach and an OTO kit. Didn't even have a brush. They never ever EVER had the first issue. Always sparkling clear and perfect. And the kicker is, every year they used water straight from their POND to fill the thing!!!
 
OH, and another question. We are having a party on the 3rd. SHOULD I get this under control by then, I'm sure there will be lots of pool usage that night. Wondering how high I should bump my FC up beforehand, and how high afterwards?????
 
On the brushing...don't forget to scrub up on the underside of the cap around the pool. I was in the shock process for almost a MONTH before I finally realized that's where it was hiding. I'd have everything pass, let the kids swim, and BAM, right back to algae. Turns out, everytime they swam, they were splashing the water up to where I'd missed brushing. Once I scrubbed up under there - I passed the OCLT!
 
Basset_Hounds said:
OH, and another question. We are having a party on the 3rd. SHOULD I get this under control by then, I'm sure there will be lots of pool usage that night. Wondering how high I should bump my FC up beforehand, and how high afterwards?????
Click to expand...

I had a pool party a few weeks ago, about 2 dozen or so guests. I bumped my FC up toward the high end of my target range for my CYA level the night before and ran the pump a bit longer than I normally do. I turned the pump back on in the morning and about 1/2 to 1 hour before the party, I tested and topped off with enough chlorine to bring my FC to the very top of my target range.

After the party, the water lost a little bit of sparkle (quite normal with high bather load). I tested chlorine levels and dosed chlorine back to the top of my FC target. About 1/2 to 1 hour later, I took another FC and CC reading so I could run an OCLT. Ran pump all night. Passed the OCLT and had no CC. Water was crystal clear and had regained its sparkle.
 
This will give you some sympathy for those who operate commercial/public pools with higher bather-loads. It's not easy to keep such pools clean, especially when people don't shower/rinse before getting into the pool. Even in our own pool, the suntan lotion that comes off the skin forms a film on the water that takes time to break down or be filtered out. Of course, if the suntan lotion is rubbed on a half hour or so before one gets in the water and if one doesn't glop on too much it would be better.
 
coffeegoddss said:
On the brushing...don't forget to scrub up on the underside of the cap around the pool. I was in the shock process for almost a MONTH before I finally realized that's where it was hiding. I'd have everything pass, let the kids swim, and BAM, right back to algae. Turns out, everytime they swam, they were splashing the water up to where I'd missed brushing. Once I scrubbed up under there - I passed the OCLT!
Click to expand...
Good thought! Off to do that now!
 
When there is wind or hay particles in the pool, toss the kids in and get them all to march around in a circle to make the water spin. Then get them out and let the particles gather in the middle of the pool where you can vac them out easily. Maybe best done at the end of the day of swimming.
 
Well go figure... We had a storm with 3.5 inches of rain early this morning and our power went out ever since. Which means no filter running. My fc was down from 26 to 23. Back to it....hope power is back soon
 

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