It's a new year and I have the same problems. Please help.

[cowboycasey]

it is probably algae that just can't be seen, a long as you FC is going down and your CC is present your fighting something... and that is a good thing, it means your getting there

 

[jhuehne]

Morning test:

FC 16
CC .5

Let it sit?

 

[Mr Bruce]

Yes. I would test midday/mid afternoon if possible. You are probably pretty close to done with the SLAM. How does the water look?

 

[jhuehne]

The water still looks clear, but I still have the brown stuff on the bottom of the pool. I just uploaded 2 new pictures:

Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet

How do I get this stuff out? I didn't have it last year or when I opened the pool. I've tried brushing it, sucking it into my filter, and pumping to waste. I've also used my robot cleaner which picks it up because I see in the bag. Unfortunately it keeps coming back. It re-appears with or without my solar cover on the pool after I vacuum or robot it out.

It is brown in color and has a silty/slimey type appearance and behavior when you try to brush it.

I have a bottle of algaecide still, that is called Quash! When I bought it earlier this year I was told it would be used only after a SLAM.

Active ingredients:

Poly [oxyethylene (dimethyliminio) ethylene (dimethyliminio) ethylene dichloride] 20%
other ingredients 80%

If this algaecide is junk, I can still return it as I have the receipt.

I'm not putting anything in you guys don't suggest, so I wanted to ask what you think I should do to get rid of this brown substance?

Thanks!

 

[jhuehne]

My Dad is over today to give me a hand with the heat pump when it arrives. We just took a look at the pool and the brown substance. We brushed it and when it gets brushed it makes a streak in the water then totally disolves. My Dad wondered if it could be rust or some type of super fine brown dirt. We're grasping here.

If it was rust, we already added 4 bottles of iron remover from the pool store, the week we opened and it didn't remove it. I also have a white bag called Culater that is a metal remover you supposedly put into the skimmer. We never used it.

What advice do you have for this?

Thanks!

 

[PAGirl]

Looks a lot like algae. Keep vacuuming, brushing, and slamming. It might help to use the Culator.

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

[jhuehne]

FC = 14
CC = 1

Going to add some more LC. I'll look for the Culator and put that in this evening.

 

[jhuehne]

FC = 13.5
CC = 1

Added more LC. Also have the Culator in skimmer now. The brown stuff re-settled after the last brushing. I'll try to do one more round tonight when the rain breaks some.

New supplies came in today:

tf-100 test kit
taylor salt test kit
taylor speedstir (which I really like)

 

[kimkats]

I would vacuum the brown stuff to waste as often as you can AND try to keep track of how much there is each day with a photo to see if it is getting less.

Also try to suck some up with a turkey baster and squirt it out on a paper towel in a colander to see what it looks like dry.

Kim:cat:

 

[duraleigh]

I am late to this thread so I may be overlooking something significant.

The brown "dust" you see is dead algae. Vacuum it up with a manual vac and then be prepared to do it again tomorrow AM.

Sorry to be abrupt but you are over complicating something that doesn't need to be.

SLAM your pool. read "The ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry" up in Pool School. This article must be followed exactly to clear your pool. Post back if you have any questions about the procedure.

Don't take any shortcuts, especially don't add things the article doesn't tell you to add.....only chlorine. You chlorine should be held up around 16 this whole time.

Stay on your subject.......that means keeping your FC around 16.o ppm CONSTANTLY. Disregard pH, disregard CC's and disregard all your other chemistry until the dead algae is vacuumed and removed from your pool.

Once that brown algae is removed from your pool, we'll do an OCLT but it is pointless until the brown stuff disappears.

 

[jhuehne]

@Kim So you want me to pump to waste then add more water after? I'm at the correct water level now.

I just forcefully brushed it again and one thing I can bring up is that even in the spots where there are no brown clumps on my liner, I'm seeing it stir up a brown cloud when I brush harder. I swapped brush heads from the vacuum head to just a brush and it kicks up alot more of the brown cloud. Since the brushing earlier today with the same head I haven't noticed it clump up as much.

I expect overnight it will happen again and I can try to get some in the colander tomorrow. I don't have my ladder in yet since it's been in the 40's and raining the past 3-4 days. I'm going to try and use a new tube squirter that my kids have to work as a longer turkey baster and lean over into the water from my retaining wall with it to get some of the brown substance then get it in the paper towel/colander.

I'll put another post up after I try that and increase my brushing the next few days. Should I consider raising the FC to a higher level than 16?

Thanks..

 

[jhuehne]

@duraleigh thanks for the reply. I have a few questions.

What do you mean by a manual vac? All I've done so far is vacuum into the pump/skimmer directly, and I have done bypass to waste on my sand filter to vacuum out of the pool. I have shop vacs, but I'd like clarification what you mean. I don't have a dirt devil anymore as we returned/upgraded that to a robot cleaner. I'm ok getting a different vac to help fix this, just need some direction on what would be best.

I will re-read the docs you suggest and keep the FC at 16.

Thanks for the help. I'm still learning.

 

[duraleigh]

A manual vac is simply a vacuum head that attaches onto a metal or fiberglass pole and is manually pushed back and forth across the pool surface

 

[jhuehne]

I have one like this but it is a triangle and is not weighted so it pushed up easily. I'll try and get a better one. Would it be ok to use my robot cleaner while doing the SLAM?

 

[jhuehne]

My last 4 tests:

FC: 13.5
CC: 1

FC: 13.5
CC: .5

FC: 12.5
CC: .5

FC: 12.5
CC: .5

I've been at a CC of .5 for 24 hours. I up my FC with LC but it goes back down. I'm not sure if I should continue this process? The water is clear still and the brown stuff I've been vacuuming up with my robot. I ordered 3 new manual vac heads since the one I have is junk. The new heads should get here tomorrow.

 

[Mr Bruce]

At what intervals are those tests? What does an OCLT look like?

 

[jhuehne]

@Mr Bruce:

First test was yesterday morning. Second test was yesterday at noon. Third test was this morning at 6am. Fourth test was now (approx noon). I just read on the OCLT and I didn't record night to morning as it suggests.

 

[Mr Bruce]

You are probably not far away. What's your CYA?

Do an OCLT and let us know how it goes.

 

[jhuehne]

Cya: 40

 

[Mr Bruce]

Yeah, losing 3 FC in 4 hours in MN means you are losing to organics still.

Also, you are hurting yourself by not doing at least one more test/add at night, that way 100% of the FC goes to fighting the bad stuff and not getting "used" by the sun.