Looking better! The end point is when you pass all 3 criteria to end the SLAM process: CC < 0.5, pass the OCLT, and the water is crystal clear
Dream Home.....Nightmare Pool
- Thread starter czipper
- Start date
Even better today…been a busy weekend, haven't been able to brush much and still there is improvement
Out of NaOCl now. Considering dichlor to get the cyanuric acid up. We'll see tomorrow how i feel.
Out of NaOCl now. Considering dichlor to get the cyanuric acid up. We'll see tomorrow how i feel.
I haven't reviewed your whole thread....are those stains or just algae that has sunk to the bottom of your pool?
i think its mostly flocculated algae and tree debris.The vacuum is not great, and I am going to start hitting the brushing much more consistently to help the deep end look less green. We are considering serioulsy a robotic pool cleaner which would help the cleaning process. Are the robots designed for serious cleaning tasks like this, or do they work only to maintain an already cleaned pool?
Hey Czipper, I also have a lot of tree debris in my pool on a daily basis, it is even worse after a rain storm or strong winds. I have been cutting branches down every fall and hope to completely eliminate the trees by the end of the year. If you are looking at a pool robot you can easily spend $900 or more. It may be more worth it to look at having the trees closest to the pool trimed back or cut down.
No photo today, trying to keep FC up, since I ran low yesterday. I also checked the pH for the first time in several days and it has inched up from 7.0 (now 7.2). I am not checking much else right now, nobody is going swimming anytime soon. I'll check everything else and do the OCLT when I think the green has disappeared, which it hasn't yet. Got a good brushing in today expect to have a good improvement tomorrow.
The last 10 yards seems to be be a lot longer, still wondering if the filter is leaking. If the shallow end keeps accumulating stuff at the bottom the next day I will suspect this is the case. 7 days to Memorial day. Will i be able to swim?….. stay tuned
The last 10 yards seems to be be a lot longer, still wondering if the filter is leaking. If the shallow end keeps accumulating stuff at the bottom the next day I will suspect this is the case. 7 days to Memorial day. Will i be able to swim?….. stay tuned
Pool looking even better, stuck in a close up of the deep end. Day 9, whiny pump running 24/7…PSE&G is loving me….. I am thinking the fam will be able to try out the pool on Memorial Day weekend…fingers crossed. Basically the pool eats a whole bottle of 12.5% NaOCl a day. Going to start boosting CYA, in stages. Yucky stuff keeps accumulating in the shallow end (and on the steps) the day after vacuuming and brushing everything into the deep end, I am fairly confident that the filter is not retaining everything (just backwashed yesterday). Given my distrust of anything the previous homeowner put his paws on, we are going to go for a new filter and a new pump, but keep this one going in the meantime.
Frank is coming on Thursday to hit me in the gut about my liner….
Frank is coming on Thursday to hit me in the gut about my liner….
That's looking so much better. Kudos to you for keeping up on it in spite of all the problems!
Here's a day 10 after taking a leaf rake to collect some large junk in the deep end. Still daily noticeable imporovement, despite my suspected filter problem. The only improvements aren't as obvious on the picture, its mostly the greenish haze that is now only visible in the deep end keeps lessening. Finally got around to adding the first round of CYA, its hanging in front of the return jet, I suspect it may take quite a while for it to dissipate, days even.
Frank supposed to show today to look at my liner, but I have a sinking feeling he wont come today (kind of a gross/rainy day. Is it just me or does nobody like to repair pool liners for money??
I've taken to shutting down the pump in the evening. No prime left in the morning, so I need to manually turn it on after filling the pump with hose water. Consistent with a beat up old pump/filter combo. As costly as it will be I'll feel better with a whole new Rig, and look forward to the ugly old heater being removed. I just hope I never meet the previous homeowners when I have a sharp object nearby....
Frank supposed to show today to look at my liner, but I have a sinking feeling he wont come today (kind of a gross/rainy day. Is it just me or does nobody like to repair pool liners for money??
I've taken to shutting down the pump in the evening. No prime left in the morning, so I need to manually turn it on after filling the pump with hose water. Consistent with a beat up old pump/filter combo. As costly as it will be I'll feel better with a whole new Rig, and look forward to the ugly old heater being removed. I just hope I never meet the previous homeowners when I have a sharp object nearby....
Day 13 - Picture looks great! FC dropped only one point overnight, less than 0.2 CC (pretty much not detected). Water Crystal Clear?? No there is a lingering haze, maybe slightly green in the depend and stuff still accumulating in the shallow end, I wager that this is being spewed out by the return jets because of the poor condition of the Frankenstein DE filter. 3 full days the Cyanuric Acid in the stocking hanging next to my return jet still has not fully dissipated, and it wasn't even the fill dose. man that stuff takes a long time to go! Maybe I'm doing it wrong, have to check it out. Supposed to get new pump/filter on Day 12, the parts hadn't come in yet so they stood me up….story of my life. Another week not being able to get the pool to completion. Naturally Frank was a no-show on Day 11 to come look at my liner problem.... Aren't any pool liner people here on Long Island interested in work?
Anyone know a good DIY thread for vinyl pool liners?
Anyone know a good DIY thread for vinyl pool liners?
For a Frankenpool, you are making great progress.
It looks a lot like a standard hayward grid DE filter. Photos or the interior would help. I would assume if the grids were torn, you would see a white stream of DE every time you ran the pump. With DE and dirty pool, you will see the pressures rise quickly if you are vacuuming to the filter. DE is very effective at filtering junk and it can be challenge with a bunch of leave or tree spermies.
I have a PoolSkim and it really helps with the floating debris from my crepe myrtles. The crepe floats for hours before sinking. The PoolSkim collects it within an hour while the pool is filtering.
It looks a lot like a standard hayward grid DE filter. Photos or the interior would help. I would assume if the grids were torn, you would see a white stream of DE every time you ran the pump. With DE and dirty pool, you will see the pressures rise quickly if you are vacuuming to the filter. DE is very effective at filtering junk and it can be challenge with a bunch of leave or tree spermies.
I have a PoolSkim and it really helps with the floating debris from my crepe myrtles. The crepe floats for hours before sinking. The PoolSkim collects it within an hour while the pool is filtering.
Be sure to squeeze the sock of DE several times a day, that really speeds up the dispersal process.
So much better! My thoughts are... if you get a new liner, you'd have to dump all the sparkly water! :thumbdown:
You have done a great job at getting the pool clean and clear!
You have done a great job at getting the pool clean and clear!
Yes, I did techguy, thanks! Last week of school and my brain is a bit fried! Too much paperwork!
You have done a great job!
Liner repair----you are dealing with the trades. They are NOT fun to deal with. You will make many phone calls, receive few return calls and even fewer show ups
Just keep calling around to the local pool shops and ask who they use. Look in neighborhoods and see how has a pool and ask them who does/did their work. One day you will find someone to help. Just make sure to check their work.
Good luck! Kim
Liner repair----you are dealing with the trades. They are NOT fun to deal with. You will make many phone calls, receive few return calls and even fewer show ups
Just keep calling around to the local pool shops and ask who they use. Look in neighborhoods and see how has a pool and ask them who does/did their work. One day you will find someone to help. Just make sure to check their work.
Good luck! Kim
AT THE THREE WEEK POINT: I left a lag between postings, because not much is happening... FIRST the long winter/spring is lingering (Game of Thrones style) and a week after memorial Day swimming weather is not really here on Long Island. That's a bummer, BUT it has given me time to feel the pool out without a constant effort to keep it safe for the fam to use. Pool temp remains in the shrinkage range (low 50s), but with consistently higher temps coming I know that will improve soon. The pool is so shady I dont know how much more to expect though. ALICE actually brought up replacing the old oil heater, but we decided to wait for a later year due to cost.
I think SLAM was finished at about 2 weeks, but I have been getting lazy about the FC because it has been in a good range with a bottle of 12.5% NaOCl every other day. Reaching swimming temps might get me more pro-active. I put about 4 lbs CYA in the pool over last week but not yet registering on the test. So in goes the rest of the 10 lb bucket this week. I have taken the water to the local POOL GIANT for testing for comparison to mine and their numbers agree with mine for the most part. AND they haven’t tried to sell me anything. Maybe I’ve pre-judged them too harshly…..I am still waiting for my filter/pump replacement, now next week is the target date…..I have given up on recruiting someone for the liner at the moment too much effort and frustration (see pics in my first post). I am probably just going to devise some home remedy to shield the openings from water entry (rain and pool) and let it ride (DIY suggestions welcome). The liner is not ripped at all so water entry from behind the top is probably the only significant danger of leaving it open (maybe critter nesting?), but please feel free to chime in if you have another view of the situation…
The water looks really inviting now, and its basically ready for swimming if you have a wet suit. 2 pics, one shows the pool in the sunlight but has the jets on so the water is kind of fuzzy, the other is later in the day so the pool is in shade, but the jets are off so you can see the lingering debris at the bottom much better. I need to get a better vacuum because the pool's skimmer vacuum really stinks. Do cordless pole-vacuums work like a handy pool dust-buster as the photos suggest, or a just a compact version of the skimmer’s pretty mild suction?…. We’re In the market for a robot, does anyone have a favorite they want to put in a plug for?
I think SLAM was finished at about 2 weeks, but I have been getting lazy about the FC because it has been in a good range with a bottle of 12.5% NaOCl every other day. Reaching swimming temps might get me more pro-active. I put about 4 lbs CYA in the pool over last week but not yet registering on the test. So in goes the rest of the 10 lb bucket this week. I have taken the water to the local POOL GIANT for testing for comparison to mine and their numbers agree with mine for the most part. AND they haven’t tried to sell me anything. Maybe I’ve pre-judged them too harshly…..I am still waiting for my filter/pump replacement, now next week is the target date…..I have given up on recruiting someone for the liner at the moment too much effort and frustration (see pics in my first post). I am probably just going to devise some home remedy to shield the openings from water entry (rain and pool) and let it ride (DIY suggestions welcome). The liner is not ripped at all so water entry from behind the top is probably the only significant danger of leaving it open (maybe critter nesting?), but please feel free to chime in if you have another view of the situation…
The water looks really inviting now, and its basically ready for swimming if you have a wet suit. 2 pics, one shows the pool in the sunlight but has the jets on so the water is kind of fuzzy, the other is later in the day so the pool is in shade, but the jets are off so you can see the lingering debris at the bottom much better. I need to get a better vacuum because the pool's skimmer vacuum really stinks. Do cordless pole-vacuums work like a handy pool dust-buster as the photos suggest, or a just a compact version of the skimmer’s pretty mild suction?…. We’re In the market for a robot, does anyone have a favorite they want to put in a plug for?
I have one of the cordless "dustbuster" types that I bought a few months ago and I love it. Pool Blaster Max. My pool is pretty small compared to yours.
Recently the birds have been bombing the pool every day and I've been using the vacuum for that. It works really nicely. It has a tiny bag so it's not for picking up big stuff but for small debris (berries and bird poop!) it works great.
The battery lasts for a long time too. My last charge went for 4 quick vacuum sessions on different days. I have used it for a more thorough slow vacuum of the whole bottom and I can get through just about the whole bottom with one charge. (That is for a full vacuum when I had a lot of small tree garbage on the floor.)
The best part for me is that I bought it with cash rewards that I had on my credit card so it didn't really cost me anything. lol I really like it though. I don't ever get out the big hose and pole vacuum anymore.
Recently the birds have been bombing the pool every day and I've been using the vacuum for that. It works really nicely. It has a tiny bag so it's not for picking up big stuff but for small debris (berries and bird poop!) it works great.
The battery lasts for a long time too. My last charge went for 4 quick vacuum sessions on different days. I have used it for a more thorough slow vacuum of the whole bottom and I can get through just about the whole bottom with one charge. (That is for a full vacuum when I had a lot of small tree garbage on the floor.)
The best part for me is that I bought it with cash rewards that I had on my credit card so it didn't really cost me anything. lol I really like it though. I don't ever get out the big hose and pole vacuum anymore.