Dirty Pool! HELP!

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J

JamieMartin

0
Jul 4, 2017
25
Hardy, VA
Hello TFP! I've been lurking a bit the past few years, but really want the freedom from the pool store that I know rips me off. I've been trying to open my pool for weeks now and am at the end of my rope.

Some info: I have a ~15,000 gallon, in-ground, fiberglass pool with Hayward S220T sand filter and Pentair 1HP pump. My sand has not been replaced in at least 4 years, but I deep cleaned this year via tutorials I found on this site. The pump is about 1-2 years old. We did not have a cover on the pool this winter and there was A LOT of debris. This has now all been cleaned out with a mixture of vacuuming to waste, my Dolphin nautilus, and leaf skimmer. The pool was DARK green when we started back in May. I SLAMed for a few days and it got milky grey. This is where I run into problems. We got busy and didn't touch the pool for a few days and came back and it was BROWN. Milky, nasty, greenish brown. So, I restarted. Got the chemicals "right" (or what I assumed to be right - also don't have these numbers handy), but the water stayed brown. I figured maybe it was dirt run off since we just had a big storm, so I turned the pump off to let it settle so I could vacuum to waste. It. Never. Settled.

Needless to say, I got frustrated and forgot about the pool and just now revisited it this week (we have a 5 month old son, so life is busy!). Started out dark green, dumped a bunch of trade bleach and now I'm back to brown. I will say I've not been as diligent about fully SLAMing this time, mostly out of laziness and frustration. I'm not sure if the brown is dirt, or algae, or sand, or just my personal version of hades.

Levels this morning (with a Taylor FAS-DPD kit):
pH 7.0
FC 18 (after 2 overnights)
CYA 60 (I know I overshot this a bit)
TA 70
CH 60 (haven't added any this year)

Please help! I'm hoping to have the pool clean by this weekend.

Thank you!
 
SLAMming takes consistency and a whole lot of POP (pool owner patience). depending upon how consistently you are measuring FC, has everything to do with how well the SLAM will go.

if you really do well for a week, and then lapse for a couple of days, you might as well have thrown all of your work the past week out the door.

also, SLAMming with a CYA of 60 makes it a touch more difficult b/c of your increased number of FC level to keep at SLAM level.

if water exchange is a possibility, consider lowering your CYA to reduce FC SLAM level. if it is not an option, just be prepared to use more bleach.

document your numbers as you go, and be consistent in FC additions. and MAKE SURE you have all debris out of pool!
 
Your shock level with CYA at 60 is 24.
https://www.troublefreepool.com/content/128-chlorine-cya-chart-slam-shock

Check chlorine level.
Use pool math to determine how much liquid chlorine (aka bleach) to add.
Add the liquid chlorine & repeat every 2 hours if you can.
Keep the filter running 24/7 & don't backwash until the pressure is high.
Keep us updated on the FC level & how much chlorine you're adding.
Can you post a picture so we can see the present condition of the water?

Edit - Stock up on bleach. Use this formula to determine best price.
price/ounces/concentration
I bought "Pool Essentials" from Walmart last night. $3.64 for 128 oz of 10% chlorine.
3.64/128/.1 = .28 per effective ounce.
 
Mike1162 said:
Your shock level with CYA at 60 is 24.
https://www.troublefreepool.com/content/128-chlorine-cya-chart-slam-shock

Check chlorine level.
Use pool math to determine how much liquid chlorine (aka bleach) to add.
Add the liquid chlorine & repeat every 2 hours if you can.
Keep the filter running 24/7 & don't backwash until the pressure is high.
Keep us updated on the FC level & how much chlorine you're adding.
Can you post a picture so we can see the present condition of the water?

Edit - Stock up on bleach. Use this formula to determine best price.
price/ounces/concentration
I bought "Pool Essentials" from Walmart last night. $3.64 for 128 oz of 10% chlorine.
3.64/128/.1 = .28 per effective ounce.
Click to expand...

Just added 104 oz of trade bleach and turned pump back on. Here's a photo (excuse the cleanliness of the surround...):
unnamed.jpg

I've got my fingers crossed for clearer water. Will be diligent about checking every 2 hours today and keep you updated. Thanks for the help!
 
Follow through is what is going to bring you to the end and be able to enjoy this pool. Maintaining shock level is the most important part of the SLAM (shock level and maintain) process.
 
Being a newbie myself, I've received nothing but FANTASTIC (and very timely!) advice from the great folks here. One thing I've learned is that it's most helpful to put the pertinent details about your pool (and water supply) in your signature. Here's the link that I followed:

Rules for Signatures and Avatars - Please Read

Another thing I learned is exactly what Casey said - SLAM is Shock, Level And MAINTAIN. The only way you're going to clear up the pool is that last part - it's key! As has been mentioned many other times here on the forum, it didn't get that way overnight so it's not going to clear up overnight. It does take time and patience as jjwalker mentioned above.

Good luck!
 

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Keep at it, you can see the pool is a bit lighter shade of 'olive green'. Are you brushing every day? Maybe try shutting the pump off for an hour to let debris settle and vacuum to waste.

You keep mentioning "trade bleach", what is that exactly? What is the sodium hypochlorite content (%)?

A see by your signature that you fill from a well. Is sediment in the water an issue? Do you know if there are any metals like iron in the water?

You'll beat this, and we'll help. 9 out of 10 times chlorine alone is the answer.

- - - Updated - - -

I don't see a CC value? Have you tested for CC's lately?
 
domct203 said:
Keep at it, you can see the pool is a bit lighter shade of 'olive green'. Are you brushing every day? Maybe try shutting the pump off for an hour to let debris settle and vacuum to waste.

You keep mentioning "trade bleach", what is that exactly? What is the sodium hypochlorite content (%)?

A see by your signature that you fill from a well. Is sediment in the water an issue? Do you know if there are any metals like iron in the water?

You'll beat this, and we'll help. 9 out of 10 times chlorine alone is the answer.

- - - Updated - - -

I don't see a CC value? Have you tested for CC's lately?
Click to expand...

I am brushing daily. I tried letting it settle for over 24 hours before this round of SLAM without ANY settling, but maybe it has precipitated some and it will work better this time. I will try this evening.

My bleach is 10% sodium hypochlorite, which I now realize defaults to 12% on the calculator. Maybe this has been part of my problem... Ugh. Devil is in the details. Either way my FC has been holding, so not sure if it makes a difference at this point or not. I have not checked CC, but can do so this evening as well.

Although my water has not been tested recently, I am sure that we have iron issues as all our toilets and tubs have rust stains. We filled our pool last year with municipal water but top off frequently with well water.

Thanks for the help!
 

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