5th day of SLAM complete...pool still cloudy... time to add DE to sand filter??

[crocop]

So I completed 5 full days of SLAM...but i am still doing it since I have not passed the 3 criteria of the test.

My current numbers:

CYA 30.
FC has been above 12 (usually around 14) the 5 full days
CC 0.5

I usually lose only 2.5 FC per whole day and like 1 at night.

Pool is still cloudy though. I brush twice a day and although I see it getting better, and I can now see the brush in the bottom of the shallow end, its still pretty cloudy. The progress is just slow! is this normal?

I back washed 2 days ago, and since, the pressure has only risen 1 PSI so I have just left it.

Is now the right time to add DE to the sand filter? Or is it still too early?

It is going to be 30+ Sunday and would like to enjoy it if possible?

 

[drharris]

I'd go ahead and do it, as long as you'll be around to check it every 30 minutes or less. I'll put it this way - my pool started crystal clear after my liner this season, and I used hairnets in the skimmer. The filter pressure never rose even a single PSI in 3-4 weeks. On a whim I decided to start supplementing my filter with DE, and within a day I had to backwash. That made me a believer. It really does help capture the stuff that barely squeezes through the sand. It can't hurt anything as long as you're around to check, so I'd say go for it.

 

[crocop]

I'd go ahead and do it, as long as you'll be around to check it every 30 minutes or less. I'll put it this way - my pool started crystal clear after my liner this season, and I used hairnets in the skimmer. The filter pressure never rose even a single PSI in 3-4 weeks. On a whim I decided to start supplementing my filter with DE, and within a day I had to backwash. That made me a believer. It really does help capture the stuff that barely squeezes through the sand. It can't hurt anything as long as you're around to check, so I'd say go for it.

I am currently using hairnets in the skimmer too. It did catch a lot of gunk, but not so much the past few days. I know just leaving the filter as is and continuing the SLAM will clear it up eventually, but my sand filter is so slow. hah

Thinking of trying the DE route, but would probably wait until Saturday so I can monitor it.

I can also add DE at night right, and just backwash before bed and it should be okay? PSI wise i mean...

 

[drharris]

You could go the route of "temporary" DE additions (add when you get home, monitor and then backwash before bed, don't add more until next day). Backwashing removes most (if not all) of it, so you shouldn't have to worry overnight. Once your pool is clear again, you can add it and not have to monitor PSI more than daily, but if your water is cloudy it can rise within an hour in some cases. The stuff is pretty cheap per dose, so doing the temporary route will give you a few hours of benefit at a time, which is better than nothing at all. Then on Saturday you can let it run all day.

That said, DE isn't exactly the best for the environment, so I'd only go this route if you have a way to backwash without potentially hurting things. The occasional backwash isn't so bad, but doing it every day just for a little benefit might be going far, depending on where your backwash goes to.