Not sure what to do next...

[tlarix]

Hello!

I just wanted to say how happy I am to have found this forum. I've felt very lost and overwhelmed with my pool and its nice to have such a good source of information.

We have a 12,000 gal pebble-tec pool, with a sand filter and a heater. We were using trichlor pucks for chlorine, but I have now switched to using liquid chlorine. I have the DPD kit from Leslie's - I have a FAS-DPD kit on order but it hasn't arrived yet.

The pool was fine until 2 weeks ago when it got very cloudy and green over a few days. I figured it was algae, so I decided to shock it according to the advice on this forum. My initial readings were:

FC: 0 ppm
TC: 0 ppm
pH: 7.1
TA: 100 ppm
CH: 550 ppm
CYA: somewhere over 100 ppm

I superchlorinated to about 25 ppm (as best as I can measure with my kit by diluting it. By the morning it had dropped to about 20 ppm, so I bumped it up again and repeated this for a few days and the color got much less green and more blue, but still very cloudy. I started this June 6, by June 13 it was blue and a bit clearer.

Then I might have made a mistake. Since the stabilizer and hardness were so high, I drained the pool down a foot and replaced the water last night. My new readings are:

FC: 12 ppm
TC: 12-15 ppm (not sure)
pH: 7.5
TA: 130 ppm
CH: 475 ppm
CYA: 100 ppm

So not the dramatic results I was hoping for but a small drop in CYA at least. The pool is still blue and cloudy. My question is, what do I do now? Replace the water again to bring the CYA down more? Apparently my fill water has a high TA (I tested the tap water at 160 ppm), is that going to be a problem? Do I keep shocking it until the pool clears? I really don't know what to do and I'm already panicking about the water and power bills for this month.

Thank you very much for any advice!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Your TA won't be a problem. I would do another partial drain and refill, if you got to at least 70 that would be more reasonable to deal with. It's really not practical to try to defeat algae with CYA at 100.

Welcome to the forum

 

[Butterfly]

Hi tlarix and welcome to the forum

I agree with FPM to do another partial drain/refill to get your CYA down to at least 70.

Got a pic of that pool for us? :-D

 

[duraleigh]

I agree with FPM to do another partial drain/refill to get your CYA down to at least 70.

Ditto. 50 would be even better assuming you do not have an SWG. I know the water costs afre high but you will quickly get the money back in reduced chlorine levels and your pool will become your friend again.

(Ditch the pucks :-D )

 

[Buggsw]

When you are running your chlorine that high, I'm not sure the CYA test is accurate. Seems to me that my CYA always tests high whenever I am at shock level. Why not get the algae problem taken care of first and get your water cleared up and then test your CYA again.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I don't necessarily agree... I think it would be wasting alot of bleach/chlorine trying to clear the algae, only having to drain/refill. I would target 70 on the CYA, refill, recirculate and retest and see where you are at. Over time, because you have a sandfilter, with backwashing the CYA will slowly lower. Who knows, you may find you like a CYA of 70ish, given your locale of Phoenix, AZ.

 

[Buggsw]

It's usually not recommended to drain a pool this time of year in Phoenix because of the heat.

 

[tlarix]

Thank you for all the advice so far.

I've heard about the heat being a problem, but is it still a problem if I only bring it down about a foot or half a foot at a time? When I did lower the water the other day I did it in the evening and overnight, so by the time the pool got low it was cool outside.

Oh, and I'll see if I can get a picture of it...gotta dig up the digital camera!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I think a foot at a time is fine, and doing it in the evening/night is a good idea.

 

[Butterfly]

Here's a thread that may be of interest. Drain/refill simultaneously by a member in Phoenix...

new-to-site-need-some-advice-on-cya-level-t11987.html

 

[tlarix]

Well, I looked at the pool this morning and to my surprise it looks much better! Color is normal and it is almost completely clear, about what it was looking before this whole thing started.

My FC was 12 ppm and the TC was about 12 ppm, maybe a little higher, its very hard to tell with the test being diluted. PH was sitting at 7.6.

I'm hoping my FAS-DPD test will arrive quickly so I can get a better handle on the chlorine levels.

So...now I am debating draining the pool another foot, or just watching and waiting to see what it does.

Also, we often has a bit of brownish stuff on the bottom of the pool and I noticed it again this morning. When you brush it it come up in a brown cloud. This dusty stuff has been around off and on since we moved in to the house last summer. Mustard algae or dust? We do get a lot of dust outside, we have to watch the deck table on a daily basis.

Anyways, thanks for all your advice so far!

 

[Mona]

I would say it's dust, since you're constantly cleaning it away. If you're cleaning it off your patio you know it's also going into the pool. Skimmer socks work well for capturing the dirt while vacuuming.