Please Review My Plan to Deal With Metal Stains

[Preacher]

Pool stained b/c of metal. Ascorbic acid treatment worked. Chlorine pucks didn't bring back the stain. But a few days after AA treatment, I had to SLAM it b/c it was turning green, and it stained again. I did not use a sequestrant after the AA treatment. So...

You guys tell me if my next plan of attack is wrong:

1. AA treatment.
2. Sequestrant
3. Pucks. No SLAM. Never SLAM!

Does that sound right?

 

[BoDarville]

Welcome to TFP!

Steps 1 and 2 are right. More information on these two steps is also available here: (Step 1) Ascorbic Acid Treatment, and (Step 2) Metals in the Water and Metal Stains. Note that you will need to repeat step 2 periodically to keep the metals from redepositing as stains.

As for Step 3, I would suggest using liquid bleach for ongoing chlorination as opposed to pucks. Continued use of pucks will raise CYA. This will require you to maintain ever-higher chlorine levels until CYA gets to the point that it becomes impractical to maintain the level of chlorine needed for proper sanitation. This will eventually necessitate a partial drain & refill and perhaps a SLAM Process which is what you are trying to avoid. Avoiding a SLAM is really up to you. If you are diligent about maintaining chlorine according to the CYA level, you may never have to SLAM again. I'm going on four years without SLAMming. Refer to the [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] for more information on the chlorine / CYA relationship.

 

[JasonLion]

It is possible to adjust the sequestrant level so that you can SLAM and not have any staining. This can get expensive, but is certainly possible.

Using polyquat while doing an AA treatment greatly reduces your odds of getting algae during the AA treatment.

 

[Preacher]

Thanks so much, guys, for your helpful and prompt replies. My pool is an inground, fiberglass pool installed in June 1998. It is 16 X 35 feet, with a constant depth of 4 feet. It holds 12,000 gallons.

Could you please give me your advice on whether or not this would be good AA to buy to use for my next stain treatment? http://www.amazon.com/L-Ascorbic-Naturally-Fermented-Crystals-Vitamin/dp/B003EE5MZC

Unless you know something cheaper and better, that's the way I'm leaning. But I value your collective wisdom! How much AA do you think I'd need to add to 12K gallons to get rid of the stain?

I'm concerned that if I take the chlorine down to zero again algae may start growing. I understand that technically I don't have to take the chlorine level down, before an AA treatment, I would simply need to add more AA in that case. Any idea how much more?

If I did drop the chlorine down to zero again, how long after the AA treatment/sequestrant treatment do you suggest starting to reintroduce pucks/bleach into the pool to avoid restaining?

For sequestrant, I was planning on using Metal Free. Should I pour in a whole quart, and how long should I wait after adding the AA to add it? Also, do you know of any better, cheaper product I should use than Metal Free?

Thanks so much for your help with this, I really appreciate it!

 

[Preacher]

Hey guys! Awesome news: The Ascorbid Acid Treatment totally worked! All my metal stains are gone! Threw in the sequestrant and am slowly adding chlorine and no problems so far.

But my water is now cloudy. How can I get my water crystal clear again, like it was before I added the AA and SQ?

 

[sixtz4me]

I just went thru the same process with my pool. The cloudiness in mine cleared as the chlorine reached about 3ppm.

 

[Preacher]

Awesome! Thanks...