CC High and not going down

[Squeek15]

Opened Pool was green and some leaves had got in from the winter cover ripping.
We have vaccumed, backwashed and then added the 1/4 of water back up to operating level. After 5x Shock It Bags ("Sock It") the water is now "blue" again just you can tell by looking at the stairs that it is cloudy. Also the test strips kept telling us zero Chlorine, low stab but the rest was ok. So we took a sample to the pool store (a couple of them and they all had similar results).

Levels

• FC - 0.67 pm
• CC - 7.33 ppm
• TC - 8ppm
• PH - 7.8
• TA - 110 ppm
• CH - 250 ppm
• CYA - 3ppm

We got told VARIOUS ways to correct this HIGH CC content. Told not to add stablizer, to add stab tabs, then granular stabilizer to up the level faster. Then keep shocking, then told not to use a chlorine shock as any higher it will bleach or ruin the liner. Told not to add stabilizer (too late), told to add cholorine not nonchlorine shock, told the opposite from two ppl at the same store even...

So have used a whole 8kg pail of Oxy Pro Shock (non-chlorine). This dropped it less than 0.5 ppm for CC. We have left the cover out, the sun has been out mind you we did have one MAJOR downpour.

Now after not much of a result I am told to go back and get another 8kg pail of Oxy, but at 65 bucks a pail plus tax and getting no where I am starting to wonder what is up. We did just add the first 8kg pail over 3 nights (and of course it rained in between). But I just was wondering if ANYONE has had this issue and same thing throwing money into the "water" and getting no where. Every night there is a dead algae on the bottom I vaccum, and the pool for the first time in 2 weeks looks quite clear where I can see across to the other side and to the bottom, yet a bit cloudy if you look at the stairs yet and not as "sparkley". My husband also added this blue cylinder sock thing to the skimmer that is to help clean cloudy water but it did nothing. But I know the cloudy is from the CC being so high. The filter is working just fine from a test I did. Anyone with similar issues and got rid of CC, your tips would be helpful. I feel like after 4 stores they seem not to have run into this before.

Other Side Notes:
15 x 30 Above Ground Pool, Sand Filter, DE Filter, and will have salt cell hooked up just haven't used it yet (past 5 years + used just chlorine tablets etc). But until things are balanced we are not turning on the salt cell/dumping salt in etc.

 

[tim5055]

Welcome to TFP!!

NO, they have seen it a lot of times. The problem is that their only answer is to sell you as much as they can. No more $65 pails of stuff. You need chlorine. Most of us here use bleach.

The cloudy is algae growing in the water. If you leave it the cloudy will turn to green.

My first suggestion is to stop going to the pool store. Their only response it to sell you something else.

We can teach you how to get it sparkling and keep it that was for a lot less money than the pool store.

Not much credence is given to pool store testing. While you would think that a "professional" would be the best, unfortunately in most cases it is quite the opposite. Between employees who blindly trust the word of chemical sales representatives and high school kids working in the pool store for the summer you end up with poor results from their testing. But, what can you do?? We base our pool care system on accurate testing and only adding what the pool needs, when it needs it. To do that you need your own accurate test kit. In Canada your only choice is a Taylor K-2006 kit. You need to order one ASAP.

Do not turn on the SWG until you get this cleared up. You want to add a bottle of plain bleach to the water each day until you get your own test kit.

While you wait for it to get delivered, you have a homework assignment. Start with the directions on SLAMing your pool in the How To section of Pool School. After that check out these:

ABCs of Water Chemistry
Recommended Pool Chemicals

 

[Squeek15]

Thanks, not sure what happened this winter. Did everything the same as we always had or so we "thought". Obviously something went amiss to displace stabilizer and then must have been leaking the tannins from the leaf/water/snow melt into the pool or just the free chlorine was used up when the water temperatures hit a couple times in the spring and we left it closed. Here nor there it is what it is. High CC and low stabilizer.

Yes I had read and came across your SLAM and with my background in Bio-Chem I understood it and agreed it was the route to take. I just was not sure on the role of too much chlorine and how well the liner would hold up, as we much prefer to NOT add that to the cost this year and like our dark blue liner not a white one so took the cautious route of oxy. I can try bleach I will freak out if it wreaks the liner.

Alright...we will look into getting our own test kit as we just have the test strips right now and one can never tell if it is bleached or not (reading for FC). I know stabilizer takes a bit so I wasn't as concerned when I tested this morning and still saw a low reading even though I added 900g of granular stab last night.

I have been doing a bunch of calculations on how much "bleach" to add.

I know its CC X 10 = 733 ppm would be the Breakpoint it has to reach. Now the rest seems to vary on how much bleach to add to reach that point.

Pool - 49,000 L
Liquid Bleach - 10.8% sodium hypochlorite in a 5 L Jug.
(Most household bleaches do not put the % on the jug).

 

[jblizzle]

I have been doing a bunch of calculations on how much "bleach" to add.

I know its CC X 10 = 733 ppm would be the Breakpoint it has to reach. Now the rest seems to vary on how much bleach to add to reach that point.

Pool - 49,000 L
Liquid Bleach - 10.8% sodium hypochlorite in a 5 L Jug.
(Most household bleaches do not put the % on the jug).

Welcome to TFP!!!

Your calculations are just bogus. The CC x 10 is not true ... another pool store myth.

You really should not have added CYA before dealing with the apparent ammonia issue.

Just add 10ppm of FC and retest in 30 minutes ... repeat until the CC drops and the FC holds. Then follow the ShockLevelAndMAINTAIN Process.

None of this is possible until you have the K-2006 ... and order refills for the FAS-DPD as you will need them. You can not get the recommended TF-100 up north unfortunately.

 

[Squeek15]

Thanks yes trust me after being at several pool stores and being told different things by different people even in the same store ...trust me I get the "myths". I dealt with this when I had a salt water fish tank and fish stores. Always did my own research before buying anything. Now apparently will have to do the same thing. Just have not had issues until now.
Ok thanks ...used http://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html and said to use 1.15 gallon (4.25 L) of bleach to get up to 10 FC (from 0.67 and a 49000gallon pool). So I will try that however I just have test strips at the moment that only measure FC. So I will have to rely on PS for their tests until we can get a test kit and of course they are only open every day until 6pm. So I can only add a jug of 5L bleach each night basically and check each day then do it again ....until we look into getting a test kit ourselves. Kids are starting to drive me crazy. Luckily we got the sprinkler hooked up or else.

Thanks for your tips, any help is much appreciated at this frustrating juncture.

 

[Donldson]

First, welcome to TFP!

....until we look into getting a test kit ourselves.

Are you familiar with the expression "putting the cart before the horse"? That is what trying to fix the problem before getting the test kit is. A good, well regulated SLAM of the pool is required to clear your CC and get things going well and that is impossible to do without testing yourself with an accurate kit. By the time you factor in the mileage to get to the store to perform the tests, the extra chlorine you will use due to potentially inaccurate results and the inability to test after 6pm, as well as the temptation to buy their 'potions' you are going to lose money by not just getting the proper kit now.

Trust me, I don't say this out of anything but personal experience and having seen it time and time again here. Your experiences of throwing money at the pool with no results and the frustration are not new. Most of us find the site feeling the same way. You are in good company and we are only offering advice we followed, or in some cases wished we followed when we started.