Getting cloudy

[cnshough]

So, yesterday I noticed my water was a little cloudy. Today, a little worse. My test shows:

FC: 5 Just used last 2 tablets, will be switching to liquid bleach now
CC: 0
pH: 7.2
TA: 80
CYA: out of titrant, so I'm not sure
CH: 0

pH was at 7.2 yesterday, so I put a box of Borax in, which should have raised it to 7.5, but today, it's 7.2 again. We also got a very light rain shower yesterday afternoon. I know the TA being low can cause the pH to jump around, but can the low TA also cause the cloudiness, or is it something else?

Also, I just put new timer trippers on 2 or 3 weeks ago, and have the pump running from about 6:30am-7:30pm. 13 hours. High temps have been in the mid to upper 90's for several weeks now.

 

[Patrick_B]

Sounds like you're about to bloom some Algae. Getting cloudy first is a classic sign. Get some Bleach in there Pronto. I would target the FC for your last CYA, plus a little. See if your pH will rise on it's own for now.

 

[cnshough]

are we talking SLAM here, or just adding a gallon?

 

[Patrick_B]

What was your last CYA level, and where has your FC been lately? Also, are you sure about the CH at zero?

 

[cnshough]

last cya was 110, so I drained about 1/4 of the water and replaced. haven't checked since. CH is 0, it's a vinyl liner pool

 

[cnshough]

Also, I MIGHT have enough DPD powder to do 2 more tests. How bad will this be if I wait for more to come in, which would probably be next week some time.

 

[jblizzle]

You need to correctly test the CYA (possibly replace water) and then SLAM the pool correctly.

Order the CYA and FAS-DPD refills ASAP.

One 121oz bottle of 8.25% bleach will add 4ppm to the pool ... do that every day and you may hold things from getting too much worse until you can test.

 

[cnshough]

UGH! CYA is at 120! Partial draining has begun. I would guess I'm gonna have to do a partial drain and refill 2-3 times in order to not remove so much water that the liner starts pulling away. Is that right?

 

[jblizzle]

Generally we say as long as you leave 1 foot of water in the shallow end, you should be fine ... assuming your ground water level is not very high.

 

[cnshough]

So, yesterday I drained about a foot of water and refilled. It didn't seem to do anything to reduce the CYA level. Today, I drained again. This time, down to where there was about 16" of water left. Now I'm refilling, about 30 minutes in, and notice the liner is wrinkled in one corner. Will this straighten out on it's own or did I do something wrong?

 

[jblizzle]

Depends on what the wrinkle looks like I think. Can you kick/push it back in place?

 

[cnshough]

They're easily moved, liner just seems to be loose in the corner. A couple of corners, actually.

 

[Patrick_B]

Good deal on that one.

 

[cnshough]

You think it'll straighten out on it's own, then?

 

[cnshough]

So, after draining and refilling, my cya is still high, at 130 according to the pool store. I'm not sure I can afford the water bill if I drain and refill again! Can I start the SLAM process and just add enough bleach for this much cya?

 

[linen]

So, after draining and refilling, my cya is still high, at 130 according to the pool store.

There is your problem, you are assuming the pool store cya result is accurate. This is the test that is most often messed up by pool stores. I would get some more titrant before doing any more drain/refills. It would stink if your cya is actually down where you can manage it, and your drain/refills are just wasting your water.

 

[cnshough]

Ugh! OK, I'll get some more titrant.

 

[cnshough]

You were right. Pool store was wrong. Way off. Said 130, but drops say it's at 80 on a cloudy day, so it's likely even lower than that!

 

[cnshough]

After 1 night of SLAMming, my pool looks WAY better. Problem now is that I ran out of dpd titration last night. I thought I had plenty but was way off. What should I do? Stop slamming until I can get some more?

 

[danacc]

You won't be able to slam properly without an accurate way to test high FC levels.

That shouldn't mean you stop adding chlorine, though. Add at least your typical daily amount so that you don't lose all progress. I'm sure somebody smarter than me will chime in if there's a different recommended amount in this scenario.