Another question about staining.

[dattia]

I have been engaged in an all-out war with my pool, but am gaining ground. That's the good news! I finally have my son to help me and we were able to remove the steps (ladder outside/stairs inside). They had significant staining on them which I assumed was from the black swamp that I started with. I remember the Vitamin C tablet trick that I have read about so frequently here and voila... in about a second, the stain revealed itself to be iron. I dissolved some tablets in water and it was strong enough to clean the stairs and the powder coated rails.

Does this mean that there is an iron problem now that must be dealt with or just a symptom of me having left the pool get into the condition that it was in by not covering/winterizing? The water does not appear yellow, it is a cloudy gray/green for quite a while now.

 

[duraleigh]

Yeah, the iron is still there to be dealt with. It is never removed from your water but put back into suspension and kept there with sequestrants.

 

[dattia]

OK, thank you. I have read about the different products available and it appears that my extremely high FC conditions (my pool has been in a state of perpetual shock for weeks now) may have an affect on them. Should I conquer the current conditions before adding sequesterants? I am not noticing any yellow in the water, just the staining on the stairs.

The stairs are a bright white now, I am surprised at just how easily the stains could be removed with just the vitamin C tabs dissolved in a bit of water. There was also some definite live algae under the sand treads on my stairs, it would have been totally invisible to me if I hadn't removed them. I have kept the steps on the lawn for now and am hoping that it will aid the clearing of my very stubborn pool!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I'd pick up a bottle of sequesterant and add it now, while continuing to clear your pool. IF it was going to redeposit (high levels) I would think you'd see staining coming back right away because that's what frequently happens at high chlorine levels. Don't give up your quest yet....

 

[dattia]

I'm in it to win it!