SOLVED: SWG making pool very bubbly?

May 31, 2013
88
St.Louis, MO
I just opened my pool on Sunday, it was gross and black. I vacuumed a lot out until it got dark outside and couldn't really see what I was doing anymore. I've been scrubbing and back washing since then I did pour a couple gallons of chlorine in (after checking pool math since FC was very low) and enough salt to get up to/little past the recommended salt level.

I checked the levels Wednesday night and adjusted them right away once I found out FC was only 2 ppm and CYA was 0! I should've checked the pool levels last night but got too tired, I did dump a gallon of 12% chlorine in to hold it over till I had more time to check everything after work today.

Sorry, I know this doesnt help but the levels are probably about (didn't have time to check before work this morning):

ph 7.2
FC 6-10?
CC 1
TA ~60
CYA ~30
Salt 3400
------------

So onto my main question, should my SWG be doing this? Or should I not even use it while SLAMing, I was hoping I could use it to bump up/maintain my FC level during the day? I turned it on before I left for work this morning and my girlfriend called me to tell me it looked bubbly. I had her turn off the SWG. This is my 3rd season with the pool, i've never seen it really do that. I've never cleaned the SWG :eek:


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Here it is now:
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Re: SWG making pool very bubbly?

Any chance you used some bleach that was not just plain bleach? If you use some easy pour, thicker bleach it has been known to foam and could be reacting with the SWG.

If not, sometimes these weird things just happen. I remember one where it looked like a cloud coming out of the jets and would turn the pool white ... just from bubbles due to the SWG.
 
Re: SWG making pool very bubbly?

That looks like either cheap algaecide or splashless bleach foaming up. The SWG is nothing more than an onsite bleach machine. Same process clorox uses, just on a smaller scale. My gut feeling is to turn the SWG back on and let it finish oxidizing whatever that foamy stuff is. Maybe it'll be done when you get home and can test things again.
 
Re: SWG making pool very bubbly?

The only chemicals i've put in there since i've opened it (not at the same time) are 4-5 gallons of HTH 10% chlorine, ~4lbs arm & hammer pool baking soda, 4.5lbs HTH stabilizer, 120lbs All natural salt, and then last night about a gallon of "12%" chlorine I got from the local pool store.

I forgot that I took a few pics of the pool last night when the SWG was on. I'll check the levels when I get home and run the SWG again. It got a little like this the other day so I don't think it was the chlorine from the pool store.
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Re: SWG making pool very bubbly?

This is just a follow up post in case anyone else ever has the same problem. I ended up disconnecting my salt cell and washing it out with water. There were a few pieces of grass on the inlet side that I saw, but I didn't see any build up of anything inside. I then dunked the cell in a bucket of water/muriatic acid as stated in the instructions for my model for a few hours.

None of the pool stores had the correct "cap" to close off one side of my cell (plus they wanted $30) so i ended up buying a bucket from Lowes for $3. So far so good, the cell is no longer making my pool cloudy and seems to be producing chlorine again.
 
I don't see why a little grass would foam up like that. any chance someone put something in the pool, almost like Mr. Bubble or something. Odd.

No one was putting anything in the pool, anytime I turned the SWG on, it would start foaming up like that. It would go away 15 minutes after I turned the SWG off. I think you're supposed to clean the salt cell out with a mixture of Muriatic acid/water every so often. Mine hadn't had it done in at least 5 years. (house say vacant for couple years, this is my 3rd season). No history on what previous owners did, other than selling the pool heater, appliances, and light fixtures on craigslist before they got foreclosed on lol.
 

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