slick/slimey on vinyl pool?

[j'momma]

Hi, I've been doing household bleach in the pool for a few weeks now (since I found this site) and it has worked great, water has stayed clean and clear.

My pool is just a glorified wading pool (intex 12' by 30") with a 530 gph filter pump. I keep the filter going almost constantly and rotate filters everyday (put the clean one in while I wash the other one down). When I clean the filters most of what is in there is a greyish sort of slimey stuff. I'm pretty sure I'm getting good circulation as anything too heavy to be picked up by the filter is deposited in a neat pile in the dead center of the pool floor, I can syphon that one pile off and lose barely a gallon of water.

Sorry, don't have any chemical levels to report as I'm just using some spa strips from walmart and keeping the chlorine about 3 or so (as well as I can tell from dip strips).

Anyway, there is no visible problem yet, just starting to notice a sort of "slippery" feel to parts of the pool wall and floor. is this the beginning of a problem? or is that why you guys sometimes talk about "brushing" the pool walls? if so, can I just use a scrubby pad or toilet bowl brush (new of course) to brush the pool down?

Thanks!

 

[Hotrod30]

In my pool, when the vinyl starts to feel slimey, it means that algae is trying to start. I usually just increase the chlorine level in the pool and brush the sides and bottom. If no one is going to use the pool in the next day-or-so, I will pour more chlorine in the pool, but still brush the sides and bottom.

 

[kimrst]

Brush the sides and bottem of you little pool with a brush or maybe a soft broom. Then shock it with your clorax. Its amazing how brushing can help keep things at bay. It desturbs the algae as its starting. Kimrst

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Do your test strips give you a CYA level? Because if your CYA level is too high, your FC of 3 might not be high enough to prevent algae.

 

[j'momma]

thanks all, I'll up the chlorine and brush it a bit.

no cya on the strips. we'll get the "real" kit when we put it up next spring, at this point we only have a few weeks left and I can't spend the money on the big kit and then have reagents go bad before next year. Depending on money and space, we may get a bigger pool next year. My husband is impressed that I'm learning to keep the pool nice and clear on my own... in the past anything bigger than a literal wading pool that we emptied each time, got too messy and gross after just a few days.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I understand... FYI, the test kit, if stored in a dark place, controlled temps should last up to two years. YOu might run out of some of the test reagents, but they sell replacements of the indvidual tests. Anyway you can get the pool store or someplace test for the CYA? It really is a necessary number to know, otherwise your FC could be too low. They are directly related.

 

[cubbybeave08]

I would also add that it would be a good idea to have three or four filters on hand. You can only clean those cruddy litte filters so often...once you brush the slime...algae becomes water borne, and thus the filters are really put to the test...part of your problem may already be the filters and the fact that you are just refiltering back into the pool. These intex pools are tough to keep clean...We had on for five years...the thing you don't realize is that a lot of the algae forms on the underside of the blowup ring underneath the water line and if you are not brushing that regularly you can brush the bottom and the sides all you want and it will keep growing back...Like Pool Mom said keep up with the Chlorine and just go to Wal Mart and get the hth 6 way kit...It will give you pretty accurate readings for about 15 dollars. But get some extra filters...to keep on hand while you are cleaning this up...then go back to rotating...Even then you can only really rotate them about 3 or 4 times a piece, before they just don't do the job anymore.

 

[Guest]

Most pool stores carry or can get replacement filters for Intex pools that are Polyester (just like the filters in cartridge filters made for regular AG and IG pools) that are cleanable and will last for 3-5 years for just a little bit more than an Intex disposable filter costs! I know that they are available from Unicel and Aladding/Worldpool and I believe they are also available from Pleatco.
In the long run they will cost you must less than the disposable ones. Get a pair and rotate them so you always have a clean one. In addition to hosing them off soak the cleanable polyester filter montly in a 5 gal bucket of water to which you have added 1 cup of automatic dishwasher detergent powder like Cascade or Electrosol. Soak overnight and then hose off again.

 

[j'momma]

oops, forgot to report back!

you all are great.

I just slugged a lot more clorox in than usual (isn't that scientific of me?) and didn't even get around to scrubbing it. The next time we were able to get to the pool (it was probably two days) I had a lot of "crud" (dead algae ?) on the bottom (which vaccumed up just fine with my syphon hose) and the pools walls and floor were totally back to normal and rubbery feeling instead of slick. Also, i had not noticed that the water was slightly cloudy until it looked SOO sparkly again.

Only a few more weeks this year, but I look forward next year to doing it "right" and having a lovely pool for the whole summer season.

thanks again