Green pool, SWG broken - advise on how to maintain pool until SWG is fixed.

[trevsand]

Guys, I'm reading and following along and in need of my own help.
I have a Hayward SWG that is now not working and I'm waiting for a part to arrive. In the mean time my pool water (13k gallons) has turned green and continues to darken in color. I tried shocking it 7 days ago but it stays green. I've also ordered a test kit and waiting for it. What can I do in the meantime until the SWG is repaired and the test kit arrives?
Thanks for your help.

 

[cj3737]

Bleach, Bleach, Bleach....oh and circulate

Do you know what your current Fc level is?

 

[Mr Bruce]

Add 1/2 gallon of bleach every day with the pump running.

Which test kit did you order?

 

[trevsand]

I don't know any levels. I'll get a pool company test and report numbers. Can I use chlorox from Walmart?

 

[cj3737]

I don't know any levels. I'll get a pool company test and report numbers. Can I use chlorox from Walmart?

Eesh... we don't trust those numbers but its a start. Do you at least have an OTO? Good test kit on order (tf-100 or K2006)?

Clorox is fine but great value is cheaper... Look for 8.25% on the ingredients

 

[Mr Bruce]

I'd skip the pool store. Yes, chlorox is fine. Great Value bleach (8.25%) from Walmart is just as good and about $1 cheaper.

 

[trevsand]

I'm getting the tf100 kit.

 

[trevsand]

What's an OTO?

 

[cj3737]

What's an OTO?

OTO is a cheap tester from HTH... bought at walmart... Its basic function is to tell you if there is any chlorine in the water at all.. very unreliable

- - - Updated - - -

I'm getting the tf100 kit.

 

[trevsand]

I did a pool shop test 7 days ago. Zero chlorine. I shocked the pool and then it turned cloudy. Then I realised swg is broken. I'll do a test tomorrow too.

 

[trevsand]

Guys, are you sure bleach is safe for my salt water system? Worried that it might destroy the equipment.

 

[Mr Bruce]

Believe it or not, guess what the G in SWG is Genereratin'?

Chlorine!

 

[trevsand]

Haha, I figured but wanted to double check. Real newbie here. Thanks to everyone responding to this point. Hopefully we can figure it out.

 

[trevsand]

Guys, heres a picture of the pool. I added 1 gallon of Chlorox and am brushing 2x a day now.
Should I be adding more chlorine and cya while waiting to fix my SWG and for my test kit to arrive?
Is liquid bleach the best way to add additional chlorine?

 

[cj3737]

Stick to 1/2 gallon a day until your test kit arrives... then do a full blown test on everything you can and post the results so we can see what you have. Don't worry about cya until you have results. You definitely don't want to over shoot that one.

Bleach is the easiest way to maintain chlorine levels othe r than your swg. It only adds chlorine and nothing else

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[trevsand]

Good morning all,
I went to a pool store to test the water. Attached are the results.
My SWG should be fixed by end of day today.
I'll be adding 1/2 gal of bleach tonight.
Should I be backwashing and brushing on a regular basis - like 2 or 3 times a day?

View attachment 52829

 

[cj3737]

If these results are accurate, which most pool stores are not, then you PH is too high, FC is too low, and CYA is too low... Bright spot is no CC... In reality, this may be their tap water...which is why we don't trust stores or pool companies...

So, keep up with the 1/2 gal bleach daily until your kit arrives.

Brush 1-2 times daily if your schedule permits.. Don't need to back wash until your pressure gauge reads 25% higher than normal. IF you don't know what normal pressure is, do about a 1 min backwash then note the new pressure when you move the selector back to filter.

 

[jcowart]

Guys, are you sure bleach is safe for my salt water system? Worried that it might destroy the equipment.

Bleach is just a trade name. It is sodium hypochlorite. Just like picking up a box of store brand acetaminophen and not Tylenol. They have both the same active ingredients. The difference is price.

 

[trevsand]

Ok, I think I'm ready for your help. Thanks in advance.
SWG is up and running - its on SuperChlorinate and has been on for 5 hours now.
I have the Taylor k 2006 test kit and these are the readings:
Salt 2700
Chlorine 0.6
Ph - super high - looks like higher than 8.5
Al - 160

I'm still figuring out the kit but this is what I came up with.
The pool is getting greener still though.
What are my next steps?

Thanks again.

 

[cj3737]

Chlorine up and ph down...
Add enuf bleach to get chlorine up to about 5-7 then about 1/2 hour later add enuf MA to bring ph down to 7.5..
Wait about an hour and test for both again. Need to get your ph in control before we really hit your chlorine

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