SLAM and being patient

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R

rdesgagn

Member
Jul 27, 2021
10
Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada
Pool Size
60000
Surface
Vinyl
Chlorine
Liquid Chlorine
Hi everyone,

My pool was lime green 1 week ago. I brought my CYA up from 0 to about 40. I have started to SLAM which according to the CYA/FC chart is around 16 ppm. I've been SLAMING for 7 days now. The water is not lime green anymore but isn't clear yet. It's kind of a blueish color but still can't see the bottom. I've tested for CC and it is about 0.5 ppm with the TFP-100 test kit. I'm assuming that all the algae is not dead yet and I need to have more patience. Is it normal that the SLAM process can take up to 2 weeks ?

Thanks,

René
 
rdesgagn said:
Hi everyone,

My pool was lime green 1 week ago. I brought my CYA up from 0 to about 40. I have started to SLAM which according to the CYA/FC chart is around 16 ppm. I've been SLAMING for 7 days now. The water is not lime green anymore but isn't clear yet. It's kind of a blueish color but still can't see the bottom. I've tested for CC and it is about 0.5 ppm with the TFP-100 test kit. I'm assuming that all the algae is not dead yet and I need to have more patience. Is it normal that the SLAM process can take up to 2 weeks ?

Thanks,

René
Click to expand...
Yes it’s normal. How fast/often are you bumping it back up to SLAM level? You might post your current test results. Keeping a log really helps. The pool math app has an option to track results and share them automatically on the forum.
 
So cloudy green is an active bloom, and once it goes milky you've either killed or mostly killed the algae and it shifts from a chemical battle to a mechanical battle, needing to filter it all out.

You keep the FC up because each brushing/ vac may expose new layers of algae on the floors / wall that need to be killed, but for the most part the FC holds well now. The effort needed for the back half of SLAM is more user friendly, but with the rapid visual progress tapering off, it's much more frustrating.

You're making progress even when it doesn't seem so. That water being filtered is also mixing and will take many, MANY 'turnovers' the filter to get it all. Imaging using a 5 gallon bucket to remove and refill it. The first bunch of buckets would make a good dent but you'd quickly be dumping clean water with less and less dirty water. The light haze would take forever to get. (By hand).

Crack a beverage. Enjoy that you aren't babysitting the FC. Brush and vac daily, at least once. Clean the filter as the PSI dictates. Use some of your free time to go on a full blown algae treasure hunt. It can hide in plain sight. Ladder rails hold a couple of gallons of old water, each. The light niches too (if old school). Autofills, all up in the skimmer, stair trims, every inch is suspect until you prove otherwise.

Then go back to patiently waiting for the filter to do its thing. Stay the course. You got this. :)
 
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I see progress. This morning it seems less cloudy. Can't totally see the bottom pattern yet but can make out some leaves hanging in the middle of the pool. @Newdude : you are saying I don't need to babysit the FC anymore. Do you mean I have to stop SLAMing ? I thought I needed to stop SLAMing when the pool is clear, it passes the OCLT test and CC is 0.5ppm or less.

Thanks everyone
 
rdesgagn said:
you are saying I don't need to babysit the FC anymore. Do you mean I have to stop SLAMing
Click to expand...
Noooooooooooo


I'm saying that once the FC holds for many hours, you're not testing every 2 hours because it's still there 6 to 8 or even 12 hours later. Which is easier to not have to baby sit it.
 
Pools, even the best designed ones, are not at all hydraulically efficient for mixing and treating water. It takes a lot of turnovers to make any headway on turbidity reduction. As @Newdude said, it’s a battle of wills on the backend of the SLAM process.
 
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Good morning everyone,

I think I'm almost done SLAMMING my pool. I am grateful of all the support/answers I got here. However, when testing for FC and CC I sometimes notice something weird. I get how to do FC testing with the instructions provided with the TFP-100 kit. When I test CC, I add 5 drops of R-0003 then mix with a little stick. I then look at the water color, if it's clear it means I have next to nothing CC wise. However, if the water color goes back to that pinkish color, it means there is some CC in the water. You then count how many drops of R-0871 you add before the water color goes back to clear (of course mixing after each drop). Most of the time, I only need to add 1 drop so CC = 0.5ppm which I think is acceptable. If I leave the water in the chlorine test tube for let's say 5min, the water color will change again from totally clear to a pinkish shade. Is that normal ? Is it because FC and CC are temperature dependent ?

Thanks,

René
 
rdesgagn said:
if it's clear it means I have next to nothing CC wise. However, if the water color goes back to that pinkish color, it means there is some CC in the water. You then count how many drops of R-0871 you add before the water color goes back to clear (of course mixing after each drop). Most of the time, I only need to add 1 drop so CC = 0.5ppm which I think is acceptable.
Click to expand...
Yep
rdesgagn said:
Most of the time, I only need to add 1 drop so CC = 0.5ppm which I think is acceptable.
Click to expand...
Also yep
rdesgagn said:
If I leave the water in the chlorine test tube for let's say 5min, the water color will change again from totally clear to a pinkish shade. Is that normal ?
Click to expand...
And again...yep :)
rdesgagn said:
Is it because FC and CC are temperature dependent ?
Click to expand...

No clue. I'm sure someone here with a bigger brain than mine can explain the chemistry tho :)
 
It will always go back pink if left to sit. To put it in layman’s terms The reaction of the reagents for the test is only good for a short while. @JoyfulNoise can explain further.
One note- you are only supposed to use the dipper to scoop the dry dpd powder.
The samples are meant to be swirled - no stick involved. Introducing a stick/ reusing the dipper for this introduces more variables to the test & can possibly contaminate the sample. Just swirl.
 
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