My Battle with the Green Abyss

[bpw3000]

My Battle with the Green Abyss

Hello all. I've been using this site the past couple of weeks as I'm attempting to clear up my
pool. I decided I would registered and get in on the action here. I'm working with a 30k gallon
above-ground with a vinyl linyl and sand filter. The pump has been out the past couple of years
and the pool has been uncovered. Needless to say, I am trying to clear a major green algae
problem.

Here's what I'm working with on day 4 after my thorough cleanout and brushing:

It's still pretty bad.... there are three steps there and the 2nd one is just barely visible.

Day 1

I started by testing the TA and ph. Adjusted TA ~90 PPM to using baking soda . Adjusted pH to 7.4 using dry
acid. Added 3 lbs granular shock and 3 stabilized chlorine tabs. I ended breaking up the tabs for
faster release.

Days 2

Found pool school and pool calc. Wonderful, gotta love the internet. CYA was measured at 15-20 PPM. Added enough liquid bleach to get up to 12 PPM. Measured FC again after 30 mins and it had dropped to around 9, so I
brought it back up again. This cycle continued. I also brushed as well as I could, but my deck doesn't give me much access to half the pool. My pole being messed up doesn't help much eiither. The water has turned more of a blue color, but is still very cloudy/murky.

Day 3

I continued monitoring FC as much as I could and kept the pool at shock level. While brushing, I
lose my brush and half my pole...... great. Water still looks terrible.

Day 4

I let the FC drop today while at work. I came home and tested the FC and it was at 2. The water
still looks horrible and my brush was in the middle of the pool, so into the abyss I went. I
retrieved my brush and noticed the middle of the pool was loaded with leaves. I got my net and
pulled net full after net full of leaves coated with green algae off the bottom. I spent an hour or
so doing this, then brushed the whole thing thoroughly from in the pool. I proceed to
thoroughly clean myself with antibacterial soap and went back out. I backflushed my pump,
cleaned my strainer, and brought the FC back up to 10+........ and the cycle begings again.
Hopefully removing the solids and getting the good bushing in will help.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. I'm going to try and keep this updated.

 

[linen]

Welcome to tfp, bpw3000

Any more of the debris you can get out with the net will help alot. Other than that, it reads like you are doing the shocking process correctly.

CYA was measured at 15-20 PPM.

How/who measured this?

If test strips ignore their readings. If pool store, beware, they are notoriously bad on this measurement.

How have you been chlorinating your pool before you started the shocking process?

 

[Vette]

Keep putting bleach! Sorry about your brush! Don't give up on it, you have to keep that FC level high! Do you have a test kit that measures Combined Chlorine? You're going to need that when you get to the end of the process to determine when you are done shocking!

 

[Richard320]

That was a fortunate accident. The more organic sludge you pull out manually, the less the chlorine has to break down. So you'll use less chlorine, the chloriine can work on the algae, and everything will go faster.

 

[bpw3000]

How/who measured this?

I measured myself using test strips. I'll definitely get myself a more advanced test kit next season.... I waited pretty late to get the pool going so I probably won't splurge on it this summer.

How have you been chlorinating your pool before you started the shocking process?

Back when the pool was up and running it was on a steady diet of different granulated shock and chlorine tabs. Honestly, I never did much research until now so I was doing a lot of guessing and making a lot of errors in the past.

Do you have a test kit that measures Combined Chlorine?

I'm using 6-way test strips right now that give me free chlorine and total chlorine measurements. I'm guessing if I take the difference between total and free, that would give me the combined chlorine reading. Am I correct on that?

I just did a test and FC is still at 10+ (strips only go to 10). PH seems to have actually dropped a bit. Weird, I thought it would go up if anything. Should I mess with pH during this process or just let it be until all the algae is dead and gone?

I'm wondering about stabilizer as well. FC is dropping much faster during the day than at night. Any opinions on if I should try to get the CYA up a bit? It is on the low side according to my strips, but I guess they aren't the most accurate. I just took a trash bag full of empty 1.4g bleach jugs to my dumpster..... it just looked crazy to me for some reason. lol. Thanks guys, I'll update again tommorow morning after a level check, FC re-up and brushing.

 

[Vette]

Don't mess with PH. Chlorine is priority 1 right now.

 

[bpw3000]

Don't mess with PH. Chlorine is priority 1 right now.

10-4.... thanks

 

[jblizzle]

It is going to be very tough to finish this off using test strips.

Seriously consider ordering one of the recommended test kits if you have not already.

Posted with Tapatalk ... sorry if I sound short ... hate typing on phone

 

[linen]

As jbliz said the strips are tough to work with...often times wrong, especially on cya. Since you have been using tabs and granular chlorine (is it cal-hypo or dichlor?) I would guess your cya is high and that will require a lot higher shocking FC level if it is.

 

[bpw3000]

Well, I couldn't resist one more test before bed. FC is still 10+. Tomorrow I'll try diluting a sample so maybe I'll get a more accurate reading. Total chlorine reading was around 3 if that tells anyone anything....

As jbliz said the strips are tough to work with...often times wrong, especially on cya. Since you have been using tabs and granular chlorine (is it cal-hypo or dichlor?)

I took a look at my old stuff and it's dichlor. Keep in mind, this pool has been untouched for almost two years though.

You guys have got me eyeballing the TF-100 now...... maybe I can explain to the misses that it'll save me from buying bleach by the case in the future... lol. I'll test again in the AM and give you guys an update.

 

[frogabog]

Total chlorine is always at least as high as free chlorine.
Your proof that those strips are steering you wrong is right there. Tc cant possibly be lower than fc. Certainly not 7ppm lower.

You're talking to some very serious recovering strip addicts. We've seen the skewed results steer us wrong. We've also used said strips next to a good kit and seen exactly how inaccurate the are. Trying to adjust a pool based on strips and have much success is next to impossible.

edit: fixed my stupid phone typos

 

[techguy]

CYA normally will not go away on its own, but it has been known to. Wal-Mart sells a 6 way kit that may help but it still missing the critical FC cc tests.

 

[supertune]

Hi bpw3000 and welcome to TFP!
The methods taught here work and works all the time.
A proper test kit is MANDATORY imo.
This is the Snap-On tool of the pool water chemistry.
It will fix and prevent problems that you will have and not have.
All your going to do here is have pain and frustration for longer than if you were to have a proper kit. This is not even talking about $$ yet...
You have to win over the algae, and you'll not know when that is using bogus test strips.
The supplier for the kits is only a couple of days away in NC.
I'm all in to help once you have a TF-100 test kit.
Get the XL option since your going to war on this pool and this will allow you to test more and more often to up the learning curve.
I was scared to death and way overwhelmed when I landed here with my pool I was ready to get rid of, Intex 15'X48", that the pool store could not make me happy with and I could not learn or understand pool chemistry with them. All they wanted was to have me bring in a sample every week and sell me something to do this or that and I was never happy with the pool clarity.
I DID get rid of the pool! But for the right reason, too get a BIGGER ONE!
Yeah! Thanks to TFP my pool is perfect all the time and never needs shocking, I don't even care if I have storms, rain or sunlight and heat... it doesn't matter I can keep my pool perfect very easy now. This is now become very elementary.
I now suffer from Sparklypoolitis!
I am a Platinum contributor because I want everyone who comes here to Trouble Free Pool to have the same success that I enjoy with my pool and family.
Chuck

 

[Swampwoman]

Welcome, and kudos on your recovery to date. I might target higher in my chlorine applications were I flying blind re cya/test strips, but I also strong reccomend getting your hands on a kit in short order. What you save in bleach etc. Truly can pay for the kit.
While you're waiting for a kit, keep up the shock and awe.

Also, just FYI, it is possible for a stagnant pool to form a particular kind of bacteria that "eats" the cya in some process that also involves converting it to ammonia. (I am no chem geek -- maybe he will chime in to explain coherently I know this because it happened to my foreclosure swamp. So don't be too mystified by a cya reading that is lower than it "should" be based on past product use. (my predecessors used trichlor tablets in an auto feeder -- a feast of cya that caused ammonia off gassing that you could smell a hundred yards away once it was stagnant )

That said, you really really do not want to add cya until you've done a real test to get a read. Once you confirm you actually need it, you can add the slow-dissolve kind in a sock by a return jet, or buy the expensive instant kind you just pour in while circulating the water. The slow kind will not reliably show up on readings for several days.

Best wishes!

 

[bpw3000]

Total chlorine is always at least as high as free chlorine.
Your proof that those strips are steering you wrong is right there. Tc cant possibly be lower than fc. Certainly not 7ppm lower.

Thanks for pointing that out..... these things really are junk.

Thanks for all the replies everyone. I'm going to order my TF-100 asap. Until it gets here though, I"m going to keep at what I'm doing with the strips. They've got to be *a little* better than flying completely blind. FC based on strip test was still at 10+ at 7am. My filter was also pretty full so I did a backwash. I'm hoping this is a good sign.

 

[linen]

I'm going to order my TF-100 asap.

Until it gets here though, I"m going to keep at what I'm doing with the strips. They've got to be *a little* better than flying completely blind. FC based on strip test was still at 10+ at 7am.

I am not sure they are better. You could get one of the cheap OTO 2way (sometimes called 3way) testers (you can get them at most hardware stores, home centers, and walmart) and use that to measure your chlorine using a dilution method. It is not very accurate, but probably a lot better than strips.

 

[mtucker]

I learned the hard way with test strips. I used the strips until I got th TF-100 kit. Results from the test strips were way off.

 

[techguy]

The cheapest OTO drop based tester is better than the best test strip as far as I have seen. They are sold everywhere including every 'box' store and many grocery stores. Orange or brown may not be colors on the scale but they do tell you that you really do have tht much CL... it wont tell you 8, 13, 23 or 33 but you can at least TRUST the result. a test strip...no guarantee if that color means 1ppm, 5, 10 or 20, they really can be that bad.

It's almost better without test strips and looking at the pool and watching it change colors from swamp to neon to grey to blue.

 

[bpw3000]

Alright guys, thanks for all the responses. My TF-100 is on it's way and should be here in 3-5 days. I've been adding bleach at least twice a day, but I've been going by the strips so I may not be getting my FC up high enough. The water has turned more of a milky white than it was so hopefully Ive been doing some good. I do have an OTO kit already, but it measures TC instead of FC.......

 

[Richard320]

Green to white is good news. Check the progression here