Massive pollen pod/oak worm drop, green pool

[Reid]

Hi everyone,

New to TFP. Seemed like a useful forum! We have had a massive oak pollen drop in the last couple of weeks and now my pool is green. I have been vaccuming daily, running the pump constantly, keeping the basket clear, and there still seems to be so much pollen. In the morning the pollen has settled on the floor and walls. The water is clear but yellow pollen + blue water= green I suppose. When I vacuum or brush it stirs everything up which makes it cloudier. I increased the chlorine yesterday it has been around 5 for 24hrs now. pH is 7.3, TA is 100, Cy acid is 50, and the flow rate has been at 275. All of that seems good to me unless I am missing something. I have a sand filter and have been backwashing more frequently as well. Trying everything I can think of. Is dilution the only way out of this?

Thanks for any input!

-Reid

 

[JohnT]

Welcome to TFP!

I don't think dilution will help. Run your pump wide open 24/7 and backwash the filter as needed. You may want to consider Skimmer Socks to help the filter out. Don't go off an leave the pool with them on until you see how quickly they fill.

Note that for CYA of 50ppm that 5ppm of free chlorine is just adequate and not elevated [FC/CYA]t[/FC/CYA]

 

[Reid]

Thanks John! I've dumped some water, I guess my thought process is if there is less water to pump through the filter then it might go quicker. I also know that clarifier is supposed to clump particles together for easier filtering. Do you have any experience with that working with pollen? Is it worth a try?

 

[pwrstrk]

Welcome to TFP !
Me personally I'd stay away from the clarifier's. Clarifier's can sometimes make things worse. Let your filter do it's job.
I'll second what John suggested about using skimmer socks. You can use a knee high nylon over your skimmer basket and that will work just as well. Just make sure to check it often as they can become packed with junk and restrict flow to your pump. I use them all the time when pollen is a problem and they work great. Look at it as a prefilter for your filter.

 

[Rocco]

Reid,

I also get a ton of pollen and tree debris all season long. I have found that the skimmer socks help a lot, it really helps you see that your equipment is in fact working as you can see how much pollen is getting pulled into the skimmers. Another thing that can help is to get a solar cover that will prevent most of it from getting to the water. The issue is getting the cover out of the pool without dumping everything into the pool.

In my case I am removing the largest branches of the trees that are closest to the pool with the goal of completely removing the trees, however the debris and pollen do not fall straight down so this only slightly helps.

 

[tim5055]

Thanks John! I've dumped some water, I guess my thought process is if there is less water to pump through the filter then it might go quicker. I also know that clarifier is supposed to clump particles together for easier filtering. Do you have any experience with that working with pollen? Is it worth a try?

Welcome to TFP!!

We don't recommend clarifiers.

Can I assume you are in Florida? That is the only Ocklawaha I see.

I think pump run time is the only real solution for your problem. Sweeping and getting it cloudy so it runs through the filter is probably a good thing.


What type of filter do you have and what test kit are you using to get your numbers?


It would help us if you would add the following information to your signature

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