Frustrated with cloudy water not going away

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h82goslw

0
Nov 10, 2016
27
Schenectady NY
Opened my pool exactly two weeks ago and water was dark green and very dirty due to multiple rips in my winter cover and a lot of organic material making its way in (long story).
I have run the filter non-stop 24/7 since then and water is much better....but still cloudy. I have swept, scrubbed, vacuumed and backwashed many, many times. Even brought my water to be tested at pool store twice after doing my own testing just to make sure my numbers were good (second trip there this week, they sold my wife an additional 3 bags of salt and clarifier, even though my salt is 3800. They suggested talking to their "chemist" if those two things didn't clear up the water).

My numbers seem ok:

Free Chlorine 3
CC .2
ph 7.7
CH 240
TA 100
CYA 60 (little low for salt water?)

Not sure if this has anything to do with it....but my control panel is throwing codes for air temp sensor and water temp sensor, which has been a problem since opening the pool. Will deal with that this week. Any help would be appreciated!
 
You could also be throwing a code depending on the current water temp (too cold) or low salt. If you don't have a salt test kit already, I would recommend getting one just because SWG salt sensors can sometimes go bad. Don't add anything from the pool store. Your remedy is regular bleach - the plain stuff with NO additives. Since your CYA is 60, your SLAM FC level should "24". Oh, but before you increase the FC, make sure to lower the pH to about 7.2. Follow all the notes on the SLAM Process page and you'll do fine.
 
Agree... I would follow the SLAM procedure for your pool... it may take some patience though...LOL. I did my SLAM earlier this month and the results came out great. As far as your control panel is concerned, you may need to bring in the experts for that or you can type "control panel" in the forum search bar to see if anyone in this forum had the same problem you had.

zea3 said:
How much chlorine have you been adding? You should follow SLAM Process procedures and add liquid chlorine to the pool. Don't try to slam using just the output from your SWG, it can't keep up with demand and you will shorten its life.
Click to expand...
 
I've added A LOT of chlorine....
started off with 2 - 5 Gallon jugs the day I opened
over the first week put in 3 - 1 gallon jugs of bleach
last saturday put in 1 gallon of liquid chlorine from pool store
friday put in another 2.5 gallons of chlorine

In the last two weeks I've put in 9 pounds of stabilizer, 3 pounds of calcium hardner, 30 ounces of muriatic acid, and 8 pounds of baking soda. Looks like I need to put in some more muriatic acid to lower the pH.

- - - Updated - - -

I also have the test kit for SWG and 3800 is what I got when I tested this morning.
 
When doing a SLAM to remove algae, it's all about consistency and focusing on the following:
1 - Validate your CYA (60 in your case)
2 - Lower pH to 7.2
3 - Increase FC to 24 and keep it there

From that point you follow all the other details on the SLAM page and over the course of a few days you should see the improvements. You don't lower the FC level until you pass all 3 SLAM criteria. That's very important.

I also have the test kit for SWG and 3800 is what I got when I tested this morning.
Click to expand...
Then a low salt content should not be the issue, but if your water is still chilly the SWG may not be producing chlorine yet.. For the SLAM, you turn off the SWG and use regular bleach anyway.
 
h82goslw said:
...
In the last two weeks I've put in 9 pounds of stabilizer, 3 pounds of calcium hardner, 30 ounces of muriatic acid, and 8 pounds of baking soda. Looks like I need to put in some more muriatic acid to lower the pH.
Click to expand...

This is could also be part of the cloudiness, a vinyl liner pool doesn't need calcium =) And both baking soda & washing soda will knock excess dissolved calcium out of solution (had this experience personally)

- - - Updated - - -

Would you be able to post of clear picture of the pool water for us? Thanks!
 

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h82goslw said:
Opened my pool exactly two weeks ago and water was dark green and very dirty due to multiple rips in my winter cover and a lot of organic material making its way in (long story).
Click to expand...
Ugh, ripped cover woes!

h82goslw said:
I have run the filter non-stop 24/7 since then and water is much better....but still cloudy. I have swept, scrubbed, vacuumed and backwashed many, many times. Even brought my water to be tested at pool store twice after doing my own testing just to make sure my numbers were good (second trip there this week, they sold my wife an additional 3 bags of salt and clarifier, even though my salt is 3800. They suggested talking to their "chemist" if those two things didn't clear up the water).
Click to expand...
Have you added the clarifier? (what brand?)

h82goslw said:
My numbers seem ok:
Free Chlorine 3
CC .2
ph 7.7
CH 240
TA 100
CYA 60 (little low for salt water?)
Click to expand...
What is the temp? You don't want to run the SWG right now, so the CYA is fine.

h82goslw said:
Not sure if this has anything to do with it....but my control panel is throwing codes for air temp sensor and water temp sensor, which has been a problem since opening the pool. Will deal with that this week. Any help would be appreciated!
Click to expand...
What is the water temp?

h82goslw said:
I've added A LOT of chlorine....
started off with 2 - 5 Gallon jugs the day I opened
over the first week put in 3 - 1 gallon jugs of bleach
last saturday put in 1 gallon of liquid chlorine from pool store
friday put in another 2.5 gallons of chlorine
Click to expand...
None of this is bad =)

h82goslw said:
In the last two weeks I've put in 9 pounds of stabilizer, 3 pounds of calcium hardner, 30 ounces of muriatic acid, and 8 pounds of baking soda. Looks like I need to put in some more muriatic acid to lower the pH
Click to expand...
The baking soda raises the TA of the pool, which can raise the PH, so that is creating a seesaw effect.

Texas Splash said:
When doing a SLAM to remove algae, it's all about consistency and focusing on the following:
1 - Validate your CYA (60 in your case)
2 - Lower pH to 7.2
3 - Increase FC to 24 and keep it there

Then a low salt content should not be the issue, but if your water is still chilly the SWG may not be producing chlorine yet.. For the SLAM, you turn off the SWG and use regular bleach anyway.
Click to expand...
 
h82goslw said:
Water is about 60 degrees. Can’t remember why I put baking soda in. Clearly that was a bad move. My SWG was on 80% for almost a week. I just turned it off. Will get more bleach today.
Thanks all for your help.
Click to expand...

Actually I had to clarify my response =) Baking soda is used to raise TA, which can in turn raise PH =) That wasn't bad. The calcium/hardness increaser was unnecessary :D (for vinyl liners)
 
Update: Pool just as cloudy as it was 2 days ago. Still running filter continuously.
I've added 4 gallons of bleach, 40 ounces of muriatic acid and 2 pounds of stabilizer.

Numbers from this morning:
FC 4.5
pH 7.6
TA 90
CH 250
CYA 70
Salt 3800
Pool temp is 70 degrees

I'm at a loss....still can't believe water is cloudy. More bleach? Turn heater on and raise water temp? Don't understand why pH is still that high. Part of me wants to drain pool and start all over.
 
h82goslw said:
Update: Pool just as cloudy as it was 2 days ago. Still running filter continuously.
I've added 4 gallons of bleach, 40 ounces of muriatic acid and 2 pounds of stabilizer.

Numbers from this morning:
FC 4.5
pH 7.6
TA 90
CH 250
CYA 70
Salt 3800
Pool temp is 70 degrees

I'm at a loss....still can't believe water is cloudy. More bleach? Turn heater on and raise water temp? Don't understand why pH is still that high. Part of me wants to drain pool and start all over.
Click to expand...

To follow the TFP method fully and correctly: Pool School - Getting Started (especially Pool School - Recommended Pool Chemicals)

You will need to add bleach on a DAILY CARE schedule to maintain target of 5. Do you have some sort of water feature on the pool? (aerator, waterfall, slide, etc)

With CLOUDY water, you will want to consider a (proper) SLAM Process (link), this is NOT a one time treatment, rather it's a regimen of consistently adding liquid chlorine/bleach daily until your water clears. Your SLAM chlorine level Goal is FC/28 with CYA/70. SWG should be turned off (so as not to shorten it's lifespan, you will be manually adding the chlorine your pool needs).
SLAM Process recommends starting a PH level of 7.2, so you can add another dose (PoolMath) of muriatic acid to lower from 7.6 to 7.4 (with your lower TA, I wouldn't shoot for 7.2 directly as you don't want to lower PH too far). In 30-60 min retest PH, if it's lowered, proceed (and follow through) with SLAM Process

No more additions of stabilizer :), your pool is vinyl = no more solid forms of chlorine OR calcium/hardness increase, you're actually near the top end of acceptable CH for vinyl w/SWCG

Per Pool School - Recommended Levels,
 
I also would like to point out that this thread started on May 20th. So while you were adding quite a lot of chlorine before the thread started, you weren't actually doing a SLAM. The numbers were not SLAM correct. In addition, you unfortunately added more products to the water (i.e. calcium and stabilizer) which weren't needed at the time. The stabilizer increased your CYA which now required a higher SLAM level. But now we're watching things closely to help you. Lots of folks above with good points, so I'll just keep this quick:
- Focus on one more CYA test (see process below) and adjust the FC accordingly then maintain it.
- Brush everyday and backwash when PSI increases by 25%; vacuum when you see any build-up.
- Inspect, inspect, inspect every inch of the pool for potential hiding spot for algae. Ladders, steps, skimmer, behind lights, flaps in the liner, anything. It doesn't take much.
- Read the SLAM page once a day as a refresher.
- When was your sand deep cleaned last? Might be time. Deep Cleaning a Sand Filter
CYA Testing:
Proper lighting is critical for the CYA test, so you want to test for CYA outside on a bright sunny day. Use the mixing bottle to gently mix the required amounts of pool water and R-0013 reagent, let sit for 30 seconds, then gently mix again. Recommend standing outside with your back to the sun and the view tube in the shade of your body at waist level. Then, begin squirting the mixed solution into the skinny tube. Watch the black dot until it completely disappears. Once it disappears, record the CYA reading. To help the eyes and prevent staring at the dot, some people find it better to pour & view in stages. Pour some solution into the viewing tube, look away, then look back again for the dot. Repeat as necessary until you feel the dot is gone. After the first CYA test, you can pour the mixed solution from the skinny view tube back to the mixing bottle, gently shake, and do the same test a second, third, or fourth time to instill consistency in your technique, become more comfortable with the testing, and validate your own CYA reading.
Click to expand...
 
I haven’t even looked at my sand filter in 11 years.
Click to expand...
Ooooh! A science experiment. :mrgreen: Make sure to snap a pic or two when you crack it open to show us what may be in there. It's always good to show others who have never done a deep clean.
 
h82goslw said:
Splashpad thanks for tips.

Texas, you got me fired up. I haven’t even looked at my sand filter in 11 years. Duh!! When I get home tonight I’ll go through the filter cleaning process immediately. Thank you for posting the link to that.
Click to expand...

Texas Splash said:
Ooooh! A science experiment. :mrgreen: Make sure to snap a pic or two when you crack it open to show us what may be in there. It's always good to show others who have never done a deep clean.
Click to expand...

You're welcome! It's all TFP =)

Oh boy, yes PLEASE take & share pics of that sand condition!!
 

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