very first algae problem...I think!

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midtngal

midtngal

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Oct 26, 2007
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Nashville, TN
So, I have been a member here since 2007, opening my pool in 2008. I have followed the BBB method since day one. I have never had an algae problem in all that time, until now. And I can't seem to get convinced of yes or no that I do or do not have it. There are (or at least were before I vacuumed) yellow and brown "stuff" in spots all around the pool bottom. It wasn't on the walls that I could find. I vacuumed yesterday and swam last night and the floor did not feel slimy at all. In fact, it was "squeeky" clean feeling! When I got up this morning and checked, there was more stuff settled in places on the bottom. I decided it may be time to SLAM it for mustard algae. I should point out that my FC has never been below 5 and my CC has never been more than .5 and mostly 0 since opening in April. Last Sunday my FC was 5 and it had started getting a little cloudy so I decided to boost it a little and then forgot for a couple of days and so today's reading was 14. But, it had gotten a lot more cloudy and started getting worse when my plumbing for the cleaner went haywire. I also need to point out that I have a row of 100 ft white pines next to my property that are not mine that give me plenty of grief with those needles! But, a couple of points that make me think that I do indeed have the algae are, #1 - when I vacuumed this afternoon, the skimmer sock was clean when I finished...if it was pollen, wouldn't it have been a big bunch of muck?? And, #2 - at 3:30 when I added the bleach that the shock called for, my FC was 40. At 7 pm, it had gone down to 35 so I added the 8 c. of bleach to bring it back up to 39. At 9 when I tested again, it was still at 39.

yesterday's test results...

pH 7.5
FC 14.0
CC 0
T/A 80
CYA 80
salt 3260

My #'s suggest there is not a problem but the pool says there's something going on! Is there any particular thing I can test that will tell me whether it is indeed MA? And, if it's not, is there something, maybe Polyquat 60, that wil clump this pollen out of the pool and give me sparklypoolitis again??

Thanks so much for any help you can give me!
 
pooldv said:
An Overnight Chlorine Loss Test will tell you if there is algae. If that passes and the CCs are below one and the water is clear then you have essentially passed the 3 SLAM criteria and the next step is to raise FC to Mustard shock level form24 hours and brush a lot. More here, Pool School - Mustard Algae
Click to expand...

So, this morning the pool is still cloudy and the FC dropped 6 points overnight. Thanks for the link pooldv...that's where I had been reading when I decided to post because I wasn't convinced one way or the other. I guess this tells me that even if my #'s are perfect, I have MA. So, I'm off to bring my FC back up to 39....:(
 
So, I just checked the FC level again. Going with the 8 c. bleach added at 7:30 did bring it back up to 39, I am at 36. So, I will add more bleach to get to the 39 level again. The pool is starting to look a lot better! I'm curious of your thoughts on using Polyquat 60 after this MA is dealt with in order to maintain the water and keep from getting this again. With plenty of storms during the summer and the row of pine trees, I believe this is going to be a battle all summer. I can say with confidence that this happened a couple of years ago but I was having issues with reagents as well so I didn't address it like I should. I took the road that it was pollen. As part of the fix for the reagent problem, I drained about 3/4 of the pool and that solved whatever MA may have been there as I never had this problem again until now. Maybe using the Poly would keep this at bay??
 
Polyquat 60 is a preventative of algae. It is not very good at killing existing algae. Chlorine is good for that.

You seem to do a good job of keeping your chlorine up but I don't see you talk about brushing you pool floor and walls much. That should be done daily until the pool is clear. Mustard algae (if it's that) must be brushed up into the chlorinated water so the chlorine can kill it.

Reread the SLAM article and make sure you are brushing and running your robot (or vacuum) as often as you can
 
duraleigh said:
Polyquat 60 is a preventative of algae. It is not very good at killing existing algae. Chlorine is good for that.

You seem to do a good job of keeping your chlorine up but I don't see you talk about brushing you pool floor and walls much. That should be done daily until the pool is clear. Mustard algae (if it's that) must be brushed up into the chlorinated water so the chlorine can kill it.

Reread the SLAM article and make sure you are brushing and running your robot (or vacuum) as often as you can
Click to expand...

Hi Duraleigh! I'll admit I'm not as good about brushing as I should be because I leave my cleaner in the pool and it runs every night. BUT, right now I can't run it at all because that pipe keeps blowing off the plumbing for some reason. I've got another thread going on THAT issue! :(

All this water balance problem started when I couldn't use the cleaner. In brushing just now, they was no "dust-up" and there hasn't been any settled residue this morning like I've seen the last several days.

I was asking about the poly for when I get this cleared up and the cleaner running again. Would it be a good idea to start using a maintenance dose?
 
pooldv said:
An Overnight Chlorine Loss Test will tell you if there is algae. If that passes and the CCs are below one and the water is clear then you have essentially passed the 3 SLAM criteria and the next step is to raise FC to Mustard shock level form24 hours and brush a lot. More here, Pool School - Mustard Algae
Click to expand...

pooldv,

So are you saying that it is possible to pass the OCLT test and still have Mustard Algae, or am I misunderstanding your post? My pool passes the OCLT but I am still getting debris on the bottom and in the seams that will not filter out and the water is totally clear, just the bottom is dirty.

Thanks,
cruiser310
 
pooldv said:
Yes, it is.
Click to expand...

Pooldv,
Thank you very much for this information. That explains several of the dirt issues that I am having with my pool. I guess I will be raising my FC to mustard algae shock level in the near future and hopefully that will solve my dirty pool floor problem.

Thanks again,
cruiser310

25,000 gallon, 33'x54" Round AG Sharkline Matrix, 26" sand filter, 2 speed, 1 hp Pentair optiflo pump
 

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Okay...so I started this shock procedure at 3:30 yesterday, bringing the FC up to 40. At 7 pm I tested and it was 35 so I added the amount of bleach required to bring it up to the 39 I was given as my MA shock goal. At 9 pm it was 39 so I did not add any more bleach. At 7:30 this morning I got a reading of 33, so I added the necessary amount of bleach to bring it up to 39. At 10:30 am, I got a reading of 36 so I added the amount needed for 39. At 1:30 I got a reading of 29 and then added the amount needed for 39. Just now at 4:15 pm I have a reading of 34. So, it's now been 24 hours and the pool is much improved but just a smidge cloudy. Do I continue until I am no longer losing CL or stop and let it fall to normal? It has been in the sun all day but now is out of the sun for the rest of the night.

Appreciate all the help I'm getting!
 
I am reading your post and I too have brown type spots . All the levels were tested and looked good but I treated for mustard since I had a few spots...I know how more brown spots that do brush off with wire brush. Not sure what I should try next. Good luck with yours as well.
 
Well, I guess I will stop treating and see how things go. Is there a particular number it needs to get to before I can swim again?

Thanks Hagan! Good luck with yours! I'm glad someone else has been helped by this process of mine! Good thing I work from home or it might not have gone so well! :D
 
Mustard algae is a real pain. When I came back from vacation last month to a cloudy pool with large swaths of yellow smear on the floor and walls, my FC was 5.0, CC was 0, CYA 60. I was above my targets for chlorine and still had a disaster on my hands.
 
She's almost back to Sparklypoolitis! :p Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

IMG_1932.jpg~original
 
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