Staining/Dingy all over fiberglass pool - Won't brush off - New to pools

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Bjvazquez9899

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Jun 9, 2015
8
Prairieville, LA
Hello all! I am learning how to take care of a "new to us" small fiberglass IG pool. We bought a house a few weeks ago and had multiple issues right off the bat.
Those issues have now been resolved (spewing gaskets, pump stopped working due to rock in impeller, new impeller and spring gasket, new multi-valve on filter, pool flipped to green overnight, etc...) I have crashed coursed myself and am only using test strips to monitor my water right now. I know that I need a good test kit, but I am wanting to be sure that I buy a good one without going overboard. W
ith all that said:
My pool water has been clear for several days now....YAY!!!! It's the little things in life. :)

My current issue is that I now have stains all over the surface of the pool where the water is. It is not dark... more like a dingy white. It won't brush off. From what I have read, I am assuming that it is a metal stain. I think that I understand "sequestrant" is some sort of metal out addative, but before I start adding anything to my pool water to make things worse for myself I thought I would try starting a thread to get some useful advise.
I have been using 3" chlorine tablets (I think that is what trichlor means) because my husband went out and bought a bucket of it before I could stop him. I plan on using those up and then will consider going to bleach. I have baking soda, muratic acid, cya stuff from leslie's, a bottle of blue liquid hth pool stuff for clearing up cloudy water, and I plan on getting some mule borax too.
I think i am armed with what I need, but now I need to know how to move forward from here. I have read/referenced the pool school info quite a few times and I am trying to get things my chemicals in line.
I was having FC at 10 until i figured out that i could reduce the tablets by closing the valve some.
How can I get the staining to go away??
 
Bjvazquez9899 said:
My current issue is that I now have stains all over the surface of the pool where the water is. It is not dark... more like a dingy white. It won't brush off. Can you post a picture of it? What is the base color of your pool?

From what I have read, I am assuming that it is a metal stain. Do you know for a fact that you *have* metals in the water? Another possibility is scaling from excess calcium.

I think that I understand "sequestrant" is some sort of metal out addative, but before I start adding anything to my pool water to make things worse for myself I thought I would try starting a thread to get some useful advise. My advice is hold off adding anything until you know for sure you need it. Sequestrants will "envelope" metals yet they really still remain in the water and can "fall out" back into the water under some situations.

I have been using 3" chlorine tablets (I think that is what trichlor means) because my husband went out and bought a bucket of it before I could stop him. I plan on using those up and then will consider going to bleach. You can keep those pucks covered and save for particular times such as vacations, but continued use will jack up your CYA and cause you all sorts of grief.

I have baking soda, muratic acid, cya stuff from leslie's, a bottle of blue liquid hth pool stuff for clearing up cloudy water, and I plan on getting some mule borax too. Don't buy anything you're not sure you need as you might not need it at all or need to avoid using it because of its side effects on your water. Far better to spend your pool dollars one of the recommended test kits

I think i am armed with what I need, but now I need to know how to move forward from here. I have read/referenced the pool school info quite a few times and I am trying to get things my chemicals in line.
I was having FC at 10 until i figured out that i could reduce the tablets by closing the valve some.
How can I get the staining to go away??
Click to expand...
Test and post your chem levels, and perhaps the pic. Lets see if we can figure it out
 
The discoloring doesn't really show in the pic. it's more visible in person. I will take newer readings this afternoon and try to post them. Here are the ones i was getting on Sunday before i turned down my chlorinator on yesterday.
Using strip test strips:
fcl ppm -10 (pegged out...could be higher, but that is what the strip goes up to)
ph-8
alk ppm-120
cya-200 (max on strip)

Using aqua check test strips:
ph-7.8
fcl ppm-10
alk ppm-120
cya-300 (max on strip)

I don't know if this helps.
 
Re: Staining/Dingy all over fiberglass pool - Won't brush off - New to pools
The discoloring doesn't really show in the pic. it's more visible in person. I will take newer readings this afternoon and try to post them. Here are the ones i was getting on Sunday before i turned down my chlorinator on yesterday.
Using strip test strips:
fcl ppm -10 (pegged out...could be higher, but that is what the strip goes up to)
ph-8
alk ppm-120
cya-200 (max on strip)

Using aqua check test strips:
ph-7.8
fcl ppm-10
alk ppm-120
cya-300 (max on strip)

I don't know if this helps.​
 
Wow. CYA 300?? pH 8??? CL maybe 10...maybe not?!

Around this place we don't give much credence in test strips, and they certainly don't provide the more exact test values that the drop tests we recommend and that we like to work off of when making assessments of our water. Pool Stores don't do a lot better either.

Based on your strips, your CYA is astronomical <ok, maybe I exaggerate but...> and your pH is too high. You don't have a value for Calcium Hardness (CH) which when too high combined with high pH can cause calcium scaling. If your pool is white it might be what you're seeing?

If your pool has metals in it, it might be the cause of your stains but you'll need to test for them to know. Got any Vitamin C Tablets laying about? Holding Vit C to a stain for a few minutes can help diagnose it if it disappears. If you hold a chlorine puck to the stain will that make it go away?

Being that your water volume is small, if you had a vinyl pool I'd suggest just draining and refilling. But you NEVER want to entirely empty a fiberglass pool for fear of floating. The water has to be drained and refilled in smaller amounts like a fourth at a time...and repeated until the test results come back prettier with lower CYA, etc.
 
I hear ya. Well I have not had much change in the pool, it looks the same for the past few days.
The pool is white sides with a blue bottom.
Sorry it has been taking so long to respond, but a new move, small kids, work, and unpacking has been eating up all of my spare time.
I brushed the pool and it did not remove film, but when I use my hand to wipe it away it does seem to rub off some that way. The water is still clean and clear. I have not put anything into it since Sunday.
I went to a local pool store last night and they were still out of test kits. Then I tried another store and all they had was a small basic 3-step test kit: bromine, ph and something I can't remember. So I figured I was better off putting my money on the better kits.
I did pick up some Clorox and borax so I can have things on hand when I need them.

- - - Updated - - -

I did test water last night, but no major change so I figured it was not worth posting. Trying to get a better one to test today.
 
@poolnoob.ca - I wish I had read this yesterday. I just got online and ordered the TF-100 with the XL option, borate test strips, and stirrer. :)
Maybe I will get lucky and they will put in today's mail. For sure I will have it by Monday. I will keep monitoring with strips until then.
pool still looks great. I am just holding out on the metal out additives until I know for sure what i am working with. Thanks for checking back and keeping up with my progress.
I am going to work with it again tonight/tomorrow to see where the strips tell me my levels are. I will post more over the weekend too.
I checked with strips on yesterday, but I noticed that some of the squares are not colored all the way. I am not sure why, but will check again today.
 
I second testing stains with a Vit c tablet. (just rub a tablet on a stained area--if it disappears its metal!) I have fiberglass pool as well and will periodically get pale brownish staining. I treat with citric acid below recommended amounts( I literally just need to turn off pump, sprinkle a small amout where staining is--let it sink for an hour or so, pump back on and they are gone). Not sure yours will be as easy as that, but here's to hoping, if it is metal staining. though read the link here for more info....
Ascorbic Treatment to rid Pool of metal stains
 

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Okay all! I just got and tested my pool water withy new quality test kit. FC - 8ppmCHardness - 100ppmTA - 260Ph - 8.2 (using basic k-1000) I have DPD test but have to figure out how to test it. Will post soon.Br - 10 (using basic k-1000)CYA - 100ppmBorate - 30ppmThe discoloration is still there, but I amore worried about getting water right first. I can tackle that problem afterwards. I have not tried the vitamin C trick yet. Need to get vitamin c first
 
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