getting clear sparkling water?

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randelli

randelli

0
Mar 27, 2010
79
Last week you guys helped me with an issue of sand/silt getting in the pool through the returns. I replaced the sand in my filter and that problem is solved.

It has been a week and the water is still cloudy. The water does not look dirty or green - it is pale blue - just not very clear. I tested the water yesterday with an Aqua Chem tester that only teste CL, BR, and PH. The CL levels at the first 10 seconds were 0.6; and after 5 minutes were 1.5. The BR level after 5 minutes was 3.4. The PH level was 7.6.

I know that this test kit is very basic and doesn't cover everything. I also do not know how old it is or how long the testing chemicals are good for. I will have Leslies test this afternoon and will post those numbers later today. I do plan on buying a better test kit soon.

Everytime the pool gets like this my wife wants to buy some clarifier to collect the floaters and trap them on the bottom. Does this work - or does it cause future problems? It seems that when I start using those types of products I have to keep using them or start using other products to counter the side effects.

I want to have clear sparkling water for once..........
 
There is about a 95% chance you have inadequate chlorine in your pool. It's less than 100% because we don't know how much CYA is in your pool.

Without a good kit, you can only guestimate but if you will bring your FC up to around 5ppm and hold it there continually and run your pump 24/7, your water will likely clear up in a day or two. (Disregard the Br reading...it's not applicable)

The Clarifier may or may not work. Few of us use it here on the forum as we have learned that adequate chlorine levels is the key to crystal clear water.
 
Well I added bleach last night to raise the CL level. I am off to get the water tested at Leslies.

Here is the pool:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u34/ ... G_0002.jpg
IMG_0002.jpg


Here is a close up of the water:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u34/ ... G_0001.jpg
IMG_0001.jpg
 
Get a full set of water test results and post them. The best plan is to buy your own test kit, but results from a pool store will do. duraleigh is probably right that you simply don't have enough chlorine, but there are a couple of other possibilities that we could check for by seeing a full set of water test results.
 
Here are the test results:

FAC: .5
TAC: .5
CH: 250
CYA: 40
TA: 90
pH: 7.6
Copper: 0
Iron: 0
TDS: 600

They recommended adding a little Fiber Clear to the sand to aid in filtering. I guess this is similar to adding DE?
 
Yes, fiber aid would have the same effect as DE.

Algae does seem like the most likely possibility. Your FC level was too low this morning and it is too low right now. With CYA at 40 you want FC to be between 3 and 7, and never below 3. When FC goes below 3, algae has a chance to get started. It doesn't take much algae to cause the water to get cloudy.

You need to get your FC level under control. At this point that means shocking the pool to get rid of any possible algae, and then afterwards maintaining an FC level of at least 3. If you do that, the water will most likely clear up.
 
That power powder pro is actually 73% cal-hypo. For your size of pool, a cya of 40 ppm, your shock level is 16 ppm. For a 17,000 gallon pool, you should have added a bit over 3 pounds to raise your FC from 0.5 to 16. How much cal hypo, in pounds, is 6-8 scoops? Cal hypo will add calcium to your water. Given you have 250 ppm calcium now, your better off using liquid chlorine. Its cheaper, and wont add anything extra to your water.
 
Did you use the pool calculator to figure out how much cal-hypo to add to reach shock level? :)

Are you sure 6-8 scoops is enough? (How big are the scoops?) Cuz I calculated 2-3 lbs to reach a FC of 15-16 (your shock level). Also since your CH is 250 at some point soon you'll need to stop using cal-hypo and switch to bleach exclusively.

GMTA! BK406 and I are thinking the same thing... :goodjob:
 
I didn't even think that deeply about it - I just tossed in the stuff I had.

8oz (volume) scoop = 11 oz (weight) of power powder pro. I put in between 4.125 and 5.5 pounds of the stuff. I do have some liquid bleach that I plan on using when I run out of the powder and pucks. I only have 5 pucks and about 10 scoops of powder so it should be soon.

What happens if I put in too much shock?
 

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With a plaster pool it isn't too bad when you add too much chlorine. Extremely high FC levels can cause metal corrosion. Normally it takes either much higher FC levels that you would have had, or prolonged exposure (weeks) before there are problems. If you have a vinyl liner it could be a much more serious problem, as extreme FC levels can shorten the life of the liner significantly.
 
It rained last night and was pretty windy, but still..............

I added 182 ounces of 6% liquid bleach. We will see what that does. Should I be putting this through my filter or only recirculate the water? I am filtering it now.
 
You still have not added enough chlorine. If your FC was 1 this morning, you need to get the FC back up to around 16. This is roughly 4.25 gallons (3 jugs of 182 oz bleach) to hit the shock level for your pool (17,000 gallons at a CYA of 40 ppm). You need to reach shock level and HOLD it there until you get no overnight loss of chlorine. The key here is to maintain the FC at shock level until all the algea is dead. Think about it this way. When you take antibiotics, you should take the entire dose prescribed, not just until you feel better. It takes the entire dose to kill the bug. Not a perfect analogy, but you get the idea. If you never reach shock level and do not hold it there, only a bit of the algea is killed, but a lot remain and it will get going again. Adding a bit of chlorine here and there is not going to do much good except waste chlorine. Add enough bleach to keep as close to shock level as possible at all times. This is the only way to really clear up the water. Use the pool calculator and read the shock article in Pool School.

Edit: you can leave the filter on re-circ, but most filter to remove the dead algea. I would set it to filter.

pool-school/shocking_your_pool
http://www.poolcalculator.com/



http://www.poolcalculator.com/
pool-school/shocking_your_pool
 
I wonder how much chlorine I can buy at a time without getting a visit from Homeland Security?

It sounds like I should buy 10 of these containers and add 3 a day until it stablilizes, right? I will pick some up on the way home and try again.

Thanks for the tips. I went to the pool calculator - it is confusing - I saw a thread explaining it so that is my read for the evening.
 
randelli said:
It sounds like I should buy 10 of these containers and add 3 a day until it stablilizes, right? I will pick some up on the way home and try again.
Click to expand...

No. Add as many as you need to maintain your chlorine level as often as it needs to be added. Waiting a full day will delay the cleanup as the lower chlorine level lets the algae restart. Pretty well every time your FC drops near 0ppm, you are starting from scratch with your algae battle.
 
So for example, say later this evening you test and your FC is 9, you use the pool calc to figure out how much bleach you need to raise from 9 to 16, and that's how much you add this evening. In the morning, you test again, and add the appropriate amount according to the pool calc. It's not necessarily going to be a set amount each time - it always depends on your test results.
 

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