Cloudy Water for days

[ctfortner]

I think I know the answer, but hope it will make me feel better to hear it.

I had been running a homemade pvc sprinkler for several weeks as well as my diving board waterfall often, and a couple weeks ago the pool got cloudy. Checked levels and PH was high, TA was a little high to. I removed the sprinkler for now, added some PH down (i am using MA now), it cleared up for a few days. Now about a week ago we got some major rain, my pool filled to within an inch of the top of the liner before I got home. I pumped it down to normal level but it is cloudy again.

Sunday (2 days ago) I checked again and PH was about 8.2, TA was 100. Water so cloudy I cant see from wall to wall (40') under water using goggles. I have to admit I was a bad boy here and didnt brush the pool after all the rain. There was no debris and I did run the Polaris, but didnt brush it.

I added enough M/A Sunday to bring it to 7.2 in hopes to lower TA as well. I have been running the pump 24/7 since Sunday and brushing 2-3 times a day and running Polaris in the afternoons for an hour also. I do notice every time I brush it I stir up brown dusty stuff which really clouds the water. Like I said been brushing 2-3 times a day and running pump and Polaris, but every time I brush it seems there is still a bunch of the brown dusty stuff stirring up as if its not leaving but just settling again until I brush again.

I havent been in the water since adding the MA so not sure if underwater vision is any better or not.

My test results from yesterday afternoon (after adding 1/2 gal M/A and 3# cya on Sunday).

TA - 75
FC - 8.5
CC - 0
PH - 7.2
CYA - 60ish (it was reading 50 on Sunday and I added 3# so this may rise some)

I "assume" my answer is wait it out and let it clear at this point. My FC has not gotten below 6 during all of this, I test it every 3-4 days. I back washed it on Sunday also, psi went from 20 down to about 15. I would call normal around 12 or so for mine. It is back close to 20 psi as of this morning.

I have a big party this weekend for my bday so I would like to clear this baby up before Saturday! Should I consider clarifier, or DE to the filter, or just chill out, keep brushing and running the pump?

 

[Leebo]

Cloudy water almost always means stuff's growing.

I'd take it to shock levels....and try an OCLT to see if anythings starting to form in the water.

 

[ctfortner]

I will do the OCLT tonight and bring it on up to shock level when I get home just in case. I am still learning this so bare with me, but wouldnt I see some CC in my levels if that were the case? I been checking FC and CC religiously for a while and the CC is consistently 0.

 

[Donldson]

This is from chem geek in another post:

Combined chlorine (chloramine, dichloramine, and nitrogen trichloride) primarily results from Free Chlorine (aka hypochlorous acid) oxidizing nitrogen based componds, such as urine/urea) ammonia, sweat, etc. If all you are doing is killing algae and not oxidizing the above, it's very possible you won't ever see CC show up before, during, or after the SLAM process.

So CC can be an indicator of something wrong, but no CC doesn't necessarily indicate that nothing is wrong.

 

[duraleigh]

but wouldnt I see some CC in my levels if that were the case?

No. CC's are an indicator that you need to shock but they are not the definitive indicator. Pretty common to hear of pools with algae but no CC's, really.

I think the sudden, increased FC level to SLAM value will get you cleared up. Keep us posted.

 

[ctfortner]

Ok thanks, I will bring her up to SLAM value tonight and post back. So you think I should just do this FC increase once at this point?

 

[Richard320]

Ok thanks, I will bring her up to SLAM value tonight and post back. So you think I should just do this FC increase once at this point?

Raise the FC level and give it time to mix well. Brushing helps. Then take a FC reading after the sun stops hitting the pool. Take another in the morning before the sun hits it again. If you lost less than 1 ppm, you're done. If you didn't, raise FC back to shock level and try again the next night.

We deal with facts here, not a "dump this much in every so many hours" like the pool store does. Only the objective facts, obtained by testing, will tell you when enough is enough.

 

[woodyp]

Just fixed a friends pool like that. SLAMmed it!

 

[ctfortner]

ok. so last night i came home and added 6 jugs of 8.25% bleach 121 oz. (according to p/s to get my FC up to 24). i let the pump run all night and day today and when I got home i tested the chemicals again. here are the results.

TA - 85
FC - 18
CC - 0
PH - off the charts assume due to high fc
CYA - 60

If i wanted to make myself feel better i could probably say its a tad better today, but not much. i added 2 and 1/4 jugs of bleach again this afternoon after that testing to raise the fc back up to shock level. i intended on doing the oclt test tonight. but (i tried this twice) when i try to test the fc and add the scoop of powder it briefly turns pink then right back to clear again?? i added the bleach over 3 hours ago and pump has been running ever since. how should i do the oclt test before i go to bed tonight?

got about 15 people coming in 2 and half days, someone re-encourage me that this can still be fixed please.

 

[ctfortner]

one quick update. i added a little extra powder and it turned red. i tested the fc and got 33.5. maybe i added a little to much. first, am i ok here? and second should i run the pump overnight and turn off the chlorinator or just leave it all off tonight? thanks

 

[Leebo]

i intended on doing the oclt test tonight. but (i tried this twice) when i try to test the fc and add the scoop of powder it briefly turns pink then right back to clear again??

One of two things could cause this....
1st is that you have zero chlorine in your pool. Very unlikely given your additions.
2nd is that you didn't use enough of the powder. Try retesting and adding two scoops of the R-0870 powder

It can be fixed....we promise you.

 

[Richard320]

ok. so last night i came home and added 6 jugs of 8.25% bleach 121 oz. (according to p/s to get my FC up to 24). i let the pump run all night and day today and when I got home i tested the chemicals again. here are the results.

TA - 85
FC - 18
CC - 0
PH - off the charts assume due to high fc
CYA - 60

If i wanted to make myself feel better i could probably say its a tad better today, but not much. i added 2 and 1/4 jugs of bleach again this afternoon after that testing to raise the fc back up to shock level. i intended on doing the oclt test tonight. but (i tried this twice) when i try to test the fc and add the scoop of powder it briefly turns pink then right back to clear again?? i added the bleach over 3 hours ago and pump has been running ever since. how should i do the oclt test before i go to bed tonight?

got about 15 people coming in 2 and half days, someone re-encourage me that this can still be fixed please.

If you get that flash of color, it means you need more powder. use the google search at the top of the page for "dpd flash" and you'll see that's fairly common.

You don't need to test anything right now but FC and CC.

Whether or not the pool will be clear in time is unknown, but you'll have to do this anyway to clear the pool, so you may as well keep your fingers crossed and hope for the best. You've got some momentum going, don't lose it.

 

[ctfortner]

thanks guys. see my post i added on if you havent already, i got the extra powder in and got a reading finally. please advise your steps for me tonight and/or in the morning considering what i know now. i am going to give it all i have until party time, just hope i dont have to cancel. thanks!

 

[PridgNYC]

ok. so last night i came home and added 6 jugs of 8.25% bleach 121 oz. (according to p/s to get my FC up to 24). i let the pump run all night and day today and when I got home i tested the chemicals again. here are the results.

TA - 85
FC - 18
CC - 0
PH - off the charts assume due to high fc
CYA - 60

If i wanted to make myself feel better i could probably say its a tad better today, but not much. i added 2 and 1/4 jugs of bleach again this afternoon after that testing to raise the fc back up to shock level. i intended on doing the oclt test tonight. but (i tried this twice) when i try to test the fc and add the scoop of powder it briefly turns pink then right back to clear again?? i added the bleach over 3 hours ago and pump has been running ever since. how should i do the oclt test before i go to bed tonight?

got about 15 people coming in 2 and half days, someone re-encourage me that this can still be fixed please.

Okay, first, you're doing it wrong. You need to maintain above 24 at all times. Raising it to 24 then ignoring the pool for a day won't do it. Raising it to 24 then testing in an hour and raising again, keep doing this until you know how high you have to raise it so you can take a break from adding chlorine without it dropping below 24 is the trick. Think of 24 as your minimum level, that is why we call it Shock Level And Maintain (SLAM), you have to keep it there, raising to that level once per day will just prolong the process.

If you can only test once per day, this will probably take longer than you have, but if you can test once at night, and once in the morning, you should use 24 as your minimum and set your target level to be whatever you expect to lose through sanitizing and sun exposure. Your OCLT will give you your baseline loss to sanitizing. So if you lose 6ppm between 8:00pm and 8:00am (assuming no sun touches your pool during those hours), then you should add 6 to the minimum (6+24=30) for each 12 hours you will not be able to test the pool and add Bleach. Sunlight will consume bleach as well, so you will have to make adjustments to your target to take that into account. The more often you can test, the better feel you will get for how to set your target ppm so you don't drop below 24, it is okay to overshoot, not okay to drop below.

 

[ctfortner]

Alright I left the pump off overnight. Checked the fc this morning and it had dropped to 25 (from 34). I added 2.5 jugs bleach to bring it back up to around 34 again in hopes that it wouldnt drop below 24 before i get home this afternoon. I turned on the pump as well and have the chlorinator running at 70% to help out also. hopefully it will be better when I get home this afternoon, I guess we are on the right track since I had such a big decrease in FC overnight.

 

[Richard320]

Alright I left the pump off overnight. Checked the fc this morning and it had dropped to 25 (from 34). I added 2.5 jugs bleach to bring it back up to around 34 again in hopes that it wouldnt drop below 24 before i get home this afternoon. I turned on the pump as well and have the chlorinator running at 70% to help out also. hopefully it will be better when I get home this afternoon, I guess we are on the right track since I had such a big decrease in FC overnight.

You want to leave the pump on the whole time, so that as the chlorine gets consumed in one area, fresh water with more chlorine can move in to replace it.

Reread the article on how to SLAM. It's right there in the prerequisites.

 

[ctfortner]

I realize that for the slam process, but for the OCLT I thought it needed to be off. I asked last night to be sure of what to do, noone responded to that though

should i run the pump overnight and turn off the chlorinator or just leave it all off tonight? thanks

I will leave it on from here on and just turn off the SWG if I do another OCLT

 

[ctfortner]

ok, an update. i came home hoping the fc hadn't dropped below 24 before i could add more bleach. fortunately it was 25 when i got here this afternoon. i added more to bring it back up to around 34 as i did yesterday so that i know it can ride through the night again and maintaint 24 and above and will top it off again in the morning.

pool is noticeably better today. not there yet, but better for sure. still hazy but not quite as much. continuing the pump running nonstop and hope it keeps clearing. i brushed it good all over again also. i think i will be lucky if all this clears up by saturday party time (just guessing at the rate its going), but its getting to the point where i feel good to have the party either way. so my question is this. i would prefer not to have my guest swim in the 25-30 FC range (even if its "ok" to do). the party will be 5 or 6 hours saturday starting about 2 pm and i can bleach it back up as soon as everyone leaves. should i just keep the fc above 24 until say friday night and then let it be what it will be until everyone leaves saturday or what? i realize it COULD result in a small step backwards but i am listening to your suggestions.

 

[Richard320]

ok, an update. i came home hoping the fc hadn't dropped below 24 before i could add more bleach. fortunately it was 25 when i got here this afternoon. i added more to bring it back up to around 34 as i did yesterday so that i know it can ride through the night again and maintaint 24 and above and will top it off again in the morning.

pool is noticeably better today. not there yet, but better for sure. still hazy but not quite as much. continuing the pump running nonstop and hope it keeps clearing. i brushed it good all over again also. i think i will be lucky if all this clears up by saturday party time (just guessing at the rate its going), but its getting to the point where i feel good to have the party either way. so my question is this. i would prefer not to have my guest swim in the 25-30 FC range (even if its "ok" to do). the party will be 5 or 6 hours saturday starting about 2 pm and i can bleach it back up as soon as everyone leaves. should i just keep the fc above 24 until say friday night and then let it be what it will be until everyone leaves saturday or what? i realize it COULD result in a small step backwards but i am listening to your suggestions.

Update?

 

[ctfortner]

yesterday morning the water was looking pretty good. fc was still at 25 and i raised to 34 while at work. came home yesterday and pool was really clear. fc had dropped to 18 yesterday afternoon before i got home, it was sunny all day. i bumped it bsack up to 24 last night. wake up this morning for party day and its been pouring rain all morning. go figure. in first pic i am standing on my diving board. pool is 8.5 deep here.