Cloudy pool

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D

Dent

0
May 15, 2016
10
Sarnia, ON Canada
I know I need my own proper test kit, but I just started reading/understanding this site and am wondering if you can help me until I can get my hands on one, which isn't easy in Canada.

Pool is Kidney shape 18-20k Gallons
Filter is Hayward s200 sand filter
SWG is Turbo cell t-15
3 Returns
1 Skimmer
Bottom Drain still works.
Hayward Super Pump 1HP

Pool results from Pool Store.

TDS 800
CYA 41
Tot Chlorine 9.7
Free Chlorine 8.5
PH 7.7
Total Alkalinity 94
Adj Total Alk 82
Cal Hardness 214
Salt 3200 (**my SWG says its at 3800 which I trust more)
Borates 5
Copper 0.1


Last night I decided to try putting my Chlorine up to SHOCK levels with 10 L of Chlorine 10.8% and with the SWG running at 100%. My strips already were reading 10+ at the time of adding.

The Pool Store test was run 19 hours after.

My pool filter was run from 6pm until 6 in the morning (I turn it off during the day due to really high Time of Use rates).

I just bought some more CYA to try to get it to 70 which from reading this site seems to be my goal.

I have been fighting a super cloudy pool since the end of last swim season for a month, and now already for a month this season.

I had it fairly blue and cloudy(this year), but now and even since last night it is on the green side of the spectrum and of course really cloudy.

I just changed over to SWG at the beginning of this year.

any ideas? or questions? I'm not even sure what else to say. I had thought that if I saw some improvement this morning in the water clarity/quality I would definitley keep it up. but maybe I should be doing something else.
 
Well, you are at a major disadvantage without the proper test kit, that's for sure. Here's what I would recommend:
- Do not add any of that stabilizer yet. Your water is cloudy and you already need to "SLAM" (link below). Adding more stabilizer would require more bleach.
- There's no way to correctly perform a SLAM without the proper test kit, or at least the FAS-DPD portion to test FC over 5ppm. Your FC SLAM level will be at least 12.
- One of the most critical tests for you right onw is the CYA test. It determines how high your FC (SLAM) should be (see the Chlorine/CYA Chart below). The pool store is notorious for getting that one wrong. I would not base any changes off of their CYA result.
- A SWG is not designed to maintain a SLAM. It just can't produce that much FC. That's where regular liquid bleach comes-in handy.

You should be able to order the Taylor K-2006C and/or FAS-DPD portion from: a place that sells Taylor test kits and reagents in Canada is “Water & Ice North America Inc” in Cambridge ON.
Commercial Swimming Pool Supply. They also have a branch in Nova Scotia. (902) 883-9120
Also try: Aquatech Logistics at Aquatech Logistics Inc. 1-888-624-0919

-
 
So for the time being I'm just guessing how much bleach to put in despite its inaccuracy. but now i have another question. i have added some DE tonight to the sand filter and the pressure went up, then started to catch some stuff because the pressure kept going up, and right about 5 PSI above normal My one return Jet started to shoot a stream of white (I asssume the DE). I stopped the Pump and backwashed. then started up again, no more white stream from the return.

Does the DE normally get pushed all the way through?
 
If the filter was overwhelmed with DE it's possible that happened. I wouldn't add DE just yet. That would be something we recommend towards the tail-end of the "SLAM". For now, just add about 1/2 gallon of bleach to the water each evening until you can get your hands on a FAS-DPD kit to test the FC at higher levels and begin that SLAM.
 
Does anyone else have a lot of greenery around their pool. I'm wondering if the green hue I see is just a reflection of all the green I have around the pool. In the early morning and at night it looks blue and cloudy, but during the day it has that green look.

Just wondering since I may not be fighting as much algae as I thought. Just whatever is causing it to be so cloudy.

Also I was told recently that my filter was too small and being overwhelmed by a 1 HP pump. Do you guys think this could be contributing to my issues?
-1 HP Hayward Super Pump
-Hayward S200 sand filter

Sorry I have so many questions.
 
Dent,

I thought I had a filter issue as well. It probably isn't that. If we assume your pool store nailed the CYA test (not a sure thing by any stretch), you would need to be maintaining FC levels at 16 to SLAM your pool. Get your test kit, trust me it was the best money I ever spent, start testing. With a pool your size, my guess is you can add a gallon of bleach a day at least until you do. Then just trust the process.

The following is a link tracking my initial slam, so you can see that it really does work, no matter what shape your pool is in: Lot of work to do...

One note. Make sure you are getting your bleach/liquid chlorine from a reputable store that turns their inventory regularly. For a while I was getting it at my local Home Depot and it had been there so long it was cruddy looking water. That may be a bigger problem in seasonal climates where stock can sit over the winter.
 
Raptor6408 said:
Dent,

I thought I had a filter issue as well. It probably isn't that. If we assume your pool store nailed the CYA test (not a sure thing by any stretch), you would need to be maintaining FC levels at 16 to SLAM your pool. Get your test kit, trust me it was the best money I ever spent, start testing. With a pool your size, my guess is you can add a gallon of bleach a day at least until you do. Then just trust the process.

The following is a link tracking my initial slam, so you can see that it really does work, no matter what shape your pool is in: Lot of work to do...

One note. Make sure you are getting your bleach/liquid chlorine from a reputable store that turns their inventory regularly. For a while I was getting it at my local Home Depot and it had been there so long it was cruddy looking water. That may be a bigger problem in seasonal climates where stock can sit over the winter.
Click to expand...
:goodpost:


And for Dent: at the right angles, I've seen a greenish tint from the reflection off some bushes in planters. Just standing up to change the angle disappeared it.
 
Greetings, Dent. On the kit front, don't know the name of it but there's somewhere in Port Huron where you can use an address for drop shipping ... A few of my friends up Sarnia way do this. So you CAN order a good test kit from TFTestkits.net if you have it shipped there.

I brought a Testkit across the border last year for friend in Petrolia and had no problems at the border ;)
 

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Hi again, Dent. I just wanted to note a few things.

If the pool store is correct, your TC minus FC shows more than 1 ppm cc, so the Slam is in order. The problem is that pool store readings of cya are usually notoriously incorrect and on the low side. So we can't tell you what SLAM rate would be correct and ergo effective if you're battling ascent algae, which will cloud the water without necessarily going green. The ratios are in the [fc/cya][/FC/cya] chart, see link.

You could try to perform the overnight chlorine loss test Overnight Chlorine Loss Test with your strips and the Aquarite off, but I'm not sure it would be accurate enough to tell you anything.

Couple of other notes:
Your filter and pump seem roughly same as mine (my filter's a 220 but for 23,000 gal) and sand doesn't generally go bad unless it was changed when this all started and was a bad lot or incorrect sand size, which happens a handful of times. Let us know if there's any correlation time wise on that front.

However, how old is the pool/filter and have you ever deep cleaned the filter? If not, might be worthwhile....use the search bar for the article on this.

Is your surface plaster, concrete or vinyl? If its vinyl, your ch level is fine. If its plaster, your ch is low...and your water ay be too aggressive for the plaster. Not sure that this would lead to cloudiness...but just checking.

Lastly, can you just run the filter 24/7 for a few days to confirm whether it makes a difference or not? Lotsa pollen this time of year if you're heavily treed. If doing a SLAM, you need to run it 24/7 anyway, but with the SWG off.

Hope that gives you some fodder for thought. Cheers to clear.
 
Not sure why my sig doesn't show but it's an in ground vinyl pool. The equipment I got with the house 9 years ago. I have changed my sand out a couple years a go when having issues. I have also deep cleaned this sand twice. Once just in the last week.

I will update when I get the kit. Thanks
 
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