Is the SLAM method right for you?

[Sybrash]

Ok. Let me start off by saying I am by NO means an expert or anything close to it. 90% of what I have learned has been at TFP and I am so grateful for that!

I have to say, there is something very gratifying about taking a pool that looks like a lake and turning it into a sparkling oasis! With that being said, absent any insight someone may be able to provide me, it may not be your best option.

Last year, when it came time to open our pool, I didn't do too much research, threw a bunch of chlorine in the pool, didn't see results, got frustrated and emptied my pool. What?! Yes, I emptied 14,000 gallons of water. Shop-vac'ing the last 1/2 inch of water out of the pool was quite tedious and probably took a couple of hours. I then spent another couple of hours with a scrubby sponge and soapy water scrubbing down the pool liner. We then filled it and within a week or two it was warm enough to swim in. The cost of filling the pool - about $50-$60.

This year, we decided to go with the SLAM method rather than go through ALL THAT TROUBLE of shop-vac'cing water out and hand scrubbing.

We are currently on day 8 or 9. We have used nearly 70 gallons of 10% chlorine (at $3.00 a bottle - which isn't a bad price, but...) We have gone through one brand new filter ($70) and are on our second and our water still is not clear. It turned toxic blue after the first day, and has gotten just a bit clearer each day since. Our CYA is at 40 and we've been running the PH a bit low (7'ish) because chlorine is more effective and we were expecting a lot of rain (that has yet to materialize) which always jacks our PH way up. We have washed our filter out over a dozen times and spend 1.5-2 man hours per day skimming, vacuuming, brushing, cleaning filters.... We have had 0 CC for 3 days and yet we are still cloudy.

So, 4-5 hours and $50-$60 or 20+ hours $300+?!

I'm sure there are other considerations though. A) We live in central Texas and our pool is in complete sun. B) We have a large property with a ravine so when we do drain our pool, we can drain it down into the ravine and not flood our yard.

With patience, rest assured, the SLAM method DOES work - it just may not be the best option for you.

I am concerned - if anyone can provide advice - I did a test today and I lost 5 ppm FC in one hour - which is equal to about 1 gal of 10%- despite the fact that I am getting zero CC readings. At this rate, I will need to put several gallons in per day just to keep it from getting an algae bloom since we are gone from the house 12 hours per day. Any thoughts?

 

[ajw22]

I am concerned - if anyone can provide advice - I did a test today and I lost 5 ppm FC in one hour - which is equal to about 1 gal of 10%- despite the fact that I am getting zero CC readings. At this rate, I will need to put several gallons in per day just to keep it from getting an algae bloom since we are gone from the house 12 hours per day. Any thoughts?

For many people draining the pool risks the pool popping out of the ground from high ground water. There is the water exchange method if you have abundant and inexpensive water.

Up your CYA to 50 - 60 and you should lose less FC from the sun.

 

[Poolzzz]

If you're losing 5 ppm per hour I'm curious how you were doing your slam being away for 12 hours at a time. Could be why your slam has been dragging on.

 

[woodyp]

Welllllllllllll.......if you have considered following all of our methods including properly closing and opening your pool........(not just the SLAM procedure).........your pool should never be bad enough to require a 70 gallon of bleach SLAM.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Many folks in the west, California for example, are under strict water limits and *can't* empty and refill their pools. One recent poster in Mexico has to share one community sistern and can't use its limited water for a pool. Fiberglass pools should almost never be emptied, and emptying a vinyl lined pool can seriously risk shifting the liner and having problems later with it. Plaster pools shouldn't be exposed to the heat and sun empty during much of the spring/summer/fall in hot climates. Water is expensive in many areas and its cheaper to SLAM.

Just a couple examples why a SLAM is a good idea for them

For many here it would be cheaper to drain and refill, and have a fast SLAM.

Maddie

 

[Jimrahbe]

S,

I am a firm believer that if you live in a place where water is cheap, it is almost always less expensive, and less work, to just drain and refill your pool...

I am talking where you have a swamp, not just when your pool is a little cloudy..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Sybrash]

,

Welllllllllllll.......if you have considered following all of our methods including properly closing and opening your pool........(not just the SLAM procedure).........your pool should never be bad enough to require a 70 gallon of bleach SLAM.

Agreed; however, we are obviously past that point and that doesn't help with my current situation. But thanks all the same!

 

[Sybrash]

Many folks in the west, California for example, are under strict water limits and *can't* empty and refill their pools. One recent poster in Mexico has to share one community sistern and can't use its limited water for a pool. Fiberglass pools should almost never be emptied, and emptying a vinyl lined pool can seriously risk shifting the liner and having problems later with it. Plaster pools shouldn't be exposed to the heat and sun empty during much of the spring/summer/fall in hot climates. Water is expensive in many areas and its cheaper to SLAM.

Just a couple examples why a SLAM is a good idea for them

For many here it would be cheaper to drain and refill, and have a fast SLAM.

Maddie

Agreed! I only named a couple of reasons why emptying and refilling might not work for someone, but there are certainly other reasons - water restrictions being one of them!

 

[Sybrash]

If you're losing 5 ppm per hour I'm curious how you were doing your slam being away for 12 hours at a time. Could be why your slam has been dragging on.

We did the best we could. Although, I will say, we used more chlorine on the days we were home to check it every couple of hours so although it might have shortened the SLAM time a bit, we probably still would have used the same amount of chlorine. We would bring it up to about 40 before we left in the morning. As soon as we got home, we would test and bring it back up to 20. Our CC remained fairly low after the 1st few days. Certainly may have been a little quicker if we had the luxury of being home all day. Which brings up another issue with the SLAM method - not everyone who has a pool is retired or can (or even wants to!) take vacation just to get their pool in line.

 

[Sybrash]

For many people draining the pool risks the pool popping out of the ground from high ground water. There is the water exchange method if you have abundant and inexpensive water.

Up your CYA to 50 - 60 and you should lose less FC from the sun.

Thanks for the advice! I will try increasing CYA. We are fortunate that we have the ravine to drain the water. Certainly wouldn't want to attempt it otherwise! I'll have to look up the exchange method.

 

[mknauss]

We would bring it up to about 40 before we left in the morning. As soon as we got home, we would test and bring it back up to 20.

Just to point out, raising your FC level above SLAM level does little good other than waste chlorine. The excess FC is consumed by UV very rapidly. Also, that excess FC can have detrimental effects on vinyl liners.
As long as the FC is above the minimum level for the CYA, it is consuming organics. Albeit slowly. So in your case, the SLAM would take longer if you were unable to test and dose with chlorine the preferred 3-4 times per day.

 

[Wobblerlorri]

In your original post you said your CYA was 40 -- that would mean a SLAM level of 16 ppm chlorine. In your post #9 you said you "bring it up to 40" then up to 20 when you get home.

40 ppm chlorine corresponds to a CYA of over 100, which is not recommended. 20 ppm needs a CYA of 50, which you don't have. You should be adding and keeping 16 ppm Cl2 during your SLAM.

I get you and everyone else is working, but I think 40 ppm is excessive. Maybe restart your SLAM on a weekend where you can monitor the Cl2 more closely and keep it at 16, then on Monday you can be more relaxed with the levels.

I just don't see the benefit of adding that much FC to a pool with 40 ppm CYA.

 

[Sybrash]

Just to point out, raising your FC level above SLAM level does little good other than waste chlorine. The excess FC is consumed by UV very rapidly. Also, that excess FC can have detrimental effects on vinyl liners.
As long as the FC is above the minimum level for the CYA, it is consuming organics. Albeit slowly. So in your case, the SLAM would take longer if you were unable to test and dose with chlorine the preferred 3-4 times per day.

Thank you! Good to know. We actually only did that on Thursday and Friday because when we got home Mon-Wed, FC was about 5 or 6 so we put the extra in and therefore, when we got home Thursday and Friday, it was about 13. I was concerned about the wear on the liner though.

 

[Sybrash]

In your original post you said your CYA was 40 -- that would mean a SLAM level of 16 ppm chlorine. In your post #9 you said you "bring it up to 40" then up to 20 when you get home.

40 ppm chlorine corresponds to a CYA of over 100, which is not recommended. 20 ppm needs a CYA of 50, which you don't have. You should be adding and keeping 16 ppm Cl2 during your SLAM.

I get you and everyone else is working, but I think 40 ppm is excessive. Maybe restart your SLAM on a weekend where you can monitor the Cl2 more closely and keep it at 16, then on Monday you can be more relaxed with the levels.

I just don't see the benefit of adding that much FC to a pool with 40 ppm CYA.

My original post also said "I am by NO means an expert or anything close to it." The "benefit" I hoped for it to have (since I couldn't actually find an answer) was that it would not be as low as 5 when we got home from work. To that end, it was effective as bringing it up to 40 only dropped it down to 13 during the day. My error, it was 50 when we started (hence the 20 ppm) but lowered some due to adding more water due to evaporation and water loss every time we cleaned the filter (2-6 times per day.)

 

[AndyTN]

Welllllllllllll.......if you have considered following all of our methods including properly closing and opening your pool........(not just the SLAM procedure).........your pool should never be bad enough to require a 70 gallon of bleach SLAM.

I agree with Woody's post. How did you close your pool this past winter to even get into this situation? Many people on this site posting about swamps are new owners who inherited swamps from previous owners. Simply putting a tarp over your pool during winter and basic chemicals gets you to a point of running your pump for 3 days in March/April to get it clear. The people in the South who don't actually close/cover their pools will run the pump and maintain chemicals all winter. You said you had the same situation last year when you decided to drain the pool vs. SLAM. Seems like the root cause is the lack of preparation for the winter, not the SLAM method.

 

[Bvacchiano]

Any chance you actually have a higher CYA than u think u have and you just aren’t getting to shock level?

 

[Donldson]

My original post also said "I am by NO means an expert or anything close to it."

Yes, but you started this thread to offer your form of advice. So you can't really hide behind that statement, if you want to share your ideas then they will be picked apart. And there is plenty to pick apart here...

 

[Sybrash]

Yes, but you started this thread to offer your form of advice. So you can't really hide behind that statement, if you want to share your ideas then they will be picked apart. And there is plenty to pick apart here...

I'm simply stating that the SLAM method may not always be the best option - and I still stand behind my statement. I also don't have a problem having my ideas picked apart - that's kind of why I'm here. Perhaps you aren't familiar with self-deprecating humor.

 

[Sybrash]

Any chance you actually have a higher CYA than u think u have and you just aren’t getting to shock level?

I've tested about 6 times over the last 10 days. If anything, it may be a little lower now. And, I wanted to test it last night and we tore the house apart looking for our refill bottle of R-0013. I mean, where does something like that go?! haha I just used it to fill the bottles last week. Now I have to order more before I can test again. Seriously bad timing.

 

[Wobblerlorri]

My original post also said "I am by NO means an expert or anything close to it." The "benefit" I hoped for it to have (since I couldn't actually find an answer) was that it would not be as low as 5 when we got home from work. To that end, it was effective as bringing it up to 40 only dropped it down to 13 during the day. My error, it was 50 when we started (hence the 20 ppm) but lowered some due to adding more water due to evaporation and water loss every time we cleaned the filter (2-6 times per day.)

On the contrary, what you did was burn off 35 ppm Cl2 instead of 11 ppm. In other words, you wasted 24 ppm chlorine.

I still think you will have better luck by testing your CYA and then SLAMming with the appropriate level of chlorine. Not several times the appropriate level.

Claiming a procedure essentially doesn't work just because you didn't do it properly doesn't have legs.