can't clear pool up :-((

[rdbrya1]

Water was green/blue and now it's totally brown (can't see bottom)

Ch - 21
ph - 7.0
alk - 90-100 (instead of going green to red it went green to yellow/orange??...does this mean something or the chemicals bad?)
cya - 90

should I bring to shock level again or bring ph up first? :-(
any other suggestions?
(test with k-2006)

EDIT to add: tested neighbors clear pool and their alk test turned red like it should and not yellow/orange like mine.

is ch too high to accurateky test my ph right now maybe?

 

[mknauss]

Do you have iron in the water used for the pool? Going from a clear green to brown may imply the iron has precipitated.

I am not conversant in metal issues. Other members will join in.

Take care.

 

[Donldson]

Your pH and TA tests are being affected by the high FC. The pH test is invalid if your FC level is above 10, so just ignore that for now. Your TA test is being bleached out by the elevated FC, but it is still accurate. You are just looking for the color change, even if the colors are off.

I agree with Marty that it sounds very much like a metal issue if your water suddenly went from green to brown when you raised the chlorine level. Any chance you could post a picture of it?

 

[rdbrya1]

Thank y'all so much for the replies and the reassurance of my test colors being off!

ill take a pic as soon as I get home. How can I tell if there's an iron issue? I never added anything with iron that I know of nor have I tested for it?

 

[mknauss]

Iron normally comes from your water source. Are you on well water or city water?

You no not show what type of filter you have in your signature. You may be able to filter out most of this. When you get home put a bunch of paper towels in the skimmer with pump running and see if they turn brown.

 

[rdbrya1]

Iron normally comes from your water source. Are you on well water or city water?

You no not show what type of filter you have in your signature. You may be able to filter out most of this. When you get home put a bunch of paper towels in the skimmer with pump running and see if they turn brown.

Im on city water but I'm googling what you guys told me and it appears it's from all the algaecide my husband put in :-(. :-(
now im searching on how to get the iron out and super hoping that I do not have to drain and start over :-(

 

[Donldson]

Algaecide would not have iron in it. It might have copper in it, but not iron. Not that you want copper in your pool either...

I would stick to TFP for your information. There is a lot of really bad information out there that could put you in an even worse situation than you are in now. Have you tried putting paper towels in your skimmer like Marty suggested?

 

[rdbrya1]

Algaecide would not have iron in it. It might have copper in it, but not iron. Not that you want copper in your pool either...

I would stick to TFP for your information. There is a lot of really bad information out there that could put you in an even worse situation than you are in now. Have you tried putting paper towels in your skimmer like Marty suggested?

Thank you, I agree with sticking to TFP. I just put some paper towels in and will check them in a bit to confirm if they turn rust colored.

 

[woodyp]

High amounts of copper can precipitate out and show as black spots.

 

[rdbrya1]

It is definitely green this morning (not brown). But it is not like an algae murky green it's more of a clear green. The paper towel did not turn brown/rust or have black spots. Going to recheck numbers in a few min. Thanks all!

 

[mknauss]

Clear green is normally iron. If your FC dropped then the iron went back into solution.

You can sequester the iron. We have some folks more conversant in metals than I --

Take care.

 

[Swampwoman]

If you don’t usually have iron issues and you know that your husband added algacide that contains copper, it’s entirely possible that you’re oxidizing the copper at slam level. The high FC and a high ph can create that effect.

Why were you originally elevating the chlorine?

If you’re slamming because you had algae, you’ll need to finish the slam, then add a sequestrant like jacks magic or proteam metal magic to bind up the metal. If the levels are really high, you may wish to dilute. But high slam level will wear down the sequestrant, so don’t use it until you pass the OCLT and adjust your ph if needed.