Black Algae on Pebble Tec Finish Pool

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Tjhoagland

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Sep 16, 2017
4
Cape Coral, FL
I'm brand new to the site...

I have been battling with small brown spots on my pebble tec finish pool for about 6-8 weeks now. My local pool store said it's most likely black algae and a "bear" to get rid of. I have been scrubbing them off with a wire brush and of course, the spots creep back every 2-3 weeks. The pool store suggested after I scrub them off to take a chlorine tab and scrub over the spot to help kill the root, which I did yesterday. I have also found, thru my snorkling, that there are a few deep crevices in the pebble tec and I can't scrub it all out. They then suggested to treat with a black algaecide - will this work? I've been reading a few threads and it seems everyone is SLAMing with liquid chlorine. We live in SW Florida and our temp is still 90, pool is 86 degrees and will remain open all year long. We are still using the pool every few days and all weekend long. I only have a simple 3-way liquid test kit and 4-way strips, don't know the best way to handle SLAMing, if necessary. As of yesterday:

FC - 3.0
PH - 7.4
ALK - 100
CYA - 60

I am 12,000 gallon pool with only 6 foot deep end. Also, pool is only 2 year old and never had this problem before.

We had hurricane Irma through my town, so my CYA is a bit lower than I like. I had added 2 lbs. shock to pool over past few days to sanitize and get chlorine back up again. I am also a salt water pool, so added 40 lbs. of salt (was low).

Thank you for any help you can provide!
 
Welcome to TFP!

To rid your pool of the algae and to have a truly beautiful, clear trouble free pool, you need to get a good test kit. There are 2 that we recommend here, the TF-100 from TFtestkits (best value containing more of the reagents we use) or the Taylor K2000C. They (and your pool) are worth the investment. As previously stated, your FC is too low for your CYA, however, without a good test kit, your "guess" strip results are not accurate. We also do not have faith in pool store testing as they are in the business to sell you magic potions to fix your ailments, and their testing methods are suspect. If you learn to do your own testing, you will KNOW exactly where you are at and the experts here can help you get everything dialed in just right. Without accurate results, it's difficult to really help you. Please don't add any algacide as many contain chemicals you do not want in your pool and can/will cause other problems.
Blessings!
 
Tjhoagland said:
Remember that I have a salt water pool. My FC should be between a 3-5 and CYA 60-80, this is different than a chlorine pool. Thx!
Click to expand...
First, a salt pool is a chlorine pool. You are just manufacturing the chlorine on site rather than bringing it home in a bucket or a bottle.

I think you will find that what we teach about caring for pools is very different from what you have been taught. Science proves that while protecting chlorine from the UV rays of the sun CYA inhibits the ability of chlorine to sanitize/oxidize contaminants in the pool. Therefor saying every salt pool should have the FC between 3-5 is proven false on its face.

FC should always be maintained as a ratio of FC to the amount of CYA in the pool. This is why we have developed a chart showing at what level chlorine should be maintained based on the amount of CYA. You will actually see two charts on our [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] page because it has been found that a salt pool with its slow regular additions of chlorine can maintain a slightly lower ratio of chlorine.

Throughout TFP, you will read that we suggest certain levels that good science and practical experience has taught us fall within safe ranges.

Further reading of posts here will draw you to the inescapable conclusion that these guidelines work.......in thousands and thousands of pools worldwide. Our goal is to teach pool owners what has been proven to work time and time again and then let them use that information to their benefit.

What we teach is documented in our Pool School.

We generally suggest new members start with these three articles:

ABCs of Water Chemistry
Recommended Pool Chemicals
How to Chlorinate Your Pool
 
See Post #2. The link there provides the forums guidance on how to attack Black Algae. Be sure to test that it is Black Algae. That process is also detailed in that link.
 

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