Heck of a time - any tips?

[mphsamy]

I am having a heck of a time getting my pool opened and cleaned. Finally solved pressure problem, been brushing the sides to get rid of algae, vaccumned some yesterday and today, but still can't see the bottom, the water is so dirty. Been running filter 24/7 for past 5 days, backwashing as needed. Got my test kit and these were my results yesterday:
FC 13.5
CC .5
TC 14
TA 90
CH 80
CYA 70
PH 7.2

Really not sure where to go from here....

 

[JasonLion]

With CYA at 70, shock level is 20 to 28, so you need to bring your FC level up. It would also be a good idea to perform an overnight FC loss test to see if you have killed all the algae yet or not.

After the algae is all dead, it can take another several days to a week for the filter to finish up clearing the water.

 

[zea3]

With a CYA of 70 your shock level is 20. You need to keep the FC at 20 until the pool clears and you do not loose more than 1ppm of FC overnight. You may want to drain some of the water to lower the CYA to 30 or 40, as that would lower shock level to 15 and require less chlorine to shock and then maintain your pool. Are you using solid or liquid chlorine in your pool?

 

[mphsamy]

Added liquid bleach 250 oz 6% about an hour ago and just tested my water. Seems my TA has risen alot and still not up to shock level. How often should I test and keep adding?
FC 15.5
CC 1
CYA 70
TA 120
PH 7.6

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Your TA is fine.

You can test and add bleach as often as hourly - it helps speed things up too.

 

[mphsamy]

Well I was feeling a bit discouraged until I looked at the picture of the pool when I first opened it..I guess it has improved a little! Thanks to TFP!
Last readings of the evening
FC 21.5
CC .5
CYA 70
I brushed and brushed, vacuumed once, backwashed...I hope to see some more improvement tomorrow.
Bedtime for now!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Your shock level is 28 - you need to raise the chlorine level up to shock level or it won't clear....

 

[mphsamy]

Grrrrrr- it rained last night
FC down to 15...
off to buy more bleach...

 

[JasonLion]

Keeping track of your overnight FC loss from day to day is a good way to get a sense of your progress. The less chlorine you lose overnight, the closer you are to done.

 

[cardiacmommy]

Keep working at it...took about 10 days to clear my pool up. It's looking great now! I can see the whole bottom and there is a little debri to vacuum and then it will be GREAT. I still have to do an overnight FC to make sure it's holding. I work night so can't do it until I'm off a shift. I didn't think it was ever going to get clear but I kept it at shock and kept running my pump with the occasional backwashing, vacuumed about 6x and brushed the sides probabably the same...and finally it's purdy Keep the faith!

 

[mphsamy]

Last night test results
FC 30
This AM (it rained last night)
FC 20
CYA still 70
and
CC still .5
I added 364oz bleach then had to go to work.

It seems that I lost a lot of FC overnight, and shouldn't my CC be rising if I am killing algae? I'm a little confused on that part. The last 2 mornings I went out to the pool there was also a definite chlorine smell. The water still looks the same. I've been brushing 2-4 times a day. I probably need some POP sent my way...but shouldn't I be seeing somewhat of a difference in the water?
I really want to swim this weekend!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

The CC won't necessarily be rising - it goes up and down and you may not see the increase all the time.
Yes, def need some POP. The more often you add bleach to hold it at shock level the quicker it will go. When it drops down in between bleach additions it slows things down. Not much you can do about at night, one has to sleep...
You can make a lot of progress in a week....hang in there.

 

[cardiacmommy]

Keep it at shock and continue to vaccum and brush and backwash as needed. It will get there..I am now a believer myself! Definitely hard to have that POP though!

Oh and I never had CC over 1-1.5 My pool started with frogs, mosquitoes and tons of leaves and tree limbs. I thought I needed to put trout in it to eat all those little flies hanging in it

 

[mphsamy]

Thanks everyone for all the encouragement....the support here is awesome!
I know my pool has a lot of dirt down on the bottom that I can't see, and maybe some other crud in the deep end. I got out most of the leaves with a leaf rake a few weeks ago. I have been reading about vacuuming to waste but am afraid to mess up my precarious balance by screwing around with stuff too much. Do ya'll think I should just vacuum though the filter tomorrow, or vacuum to waste (the water level is not high so I would have to add new water)? If I am understanding correctly when I vacuum to waste the water I am sucking up bypasses the sand filter and goes straight out to the sewer?
I swear I saw the bottom of the shallow end today!

 

[Butterfly]

You are correct, when you vac to waste, you bypass the filter.

The water level will go down rather quickly.
You should have a hose or two adding water while you are vac'ing.

Vac'ing to waste will also lower your chems (thinking mainly CYA).
A lower CYA will have a lower shock level and take less bleach/liquid chlorine to reach.

CYA of 70 is on the high side for a non SWG pool.

Knowing that you want to swim this weekend (and if it was my pool) I'd vac to waste

 

[mphsamy]

Re: Heck of a time - any tips? Getting THERE!

Thought I would update and maybe get some idea where to go from here - I so want to be in the pool by Sunday!
I finally saw the main drain for a moment today - first time ever!
I've been keeping the pool at shock levels - between 22-28 all week. Vacuuming and sweeping and backwashing.
Numbers on 5/19 were:
FC 22
CC 1
TA 160
CH 60
PH 7.5
CYA 60

Just took the numbers when I got home today and added 182 oz bleach it's a bright sunny day so I guess that's why FC dropped so much - It was at 22 this AM.
FC 18
CC .5
PH 7.8
TA 130
CYA 60

What should be my plan today and tomorrow? I'm off the rest of today so I'll definitely vacuum again this afternoon.
Here's some pictures to show progress - and a tip for anyone feeling discouraged - take photos! It really is uplifting to see the change!

 

[mphsamy]

Re: Heck of a time - any tips? NEW Pics added!

New pics

 

[Butterfly]

Have you done an Overnight FC Loss test?

 

[mphsamy]

I plan on doing that tonight - today was the first day the pool was all blue.

 

[Butterfly]

We'll see how your overnight test goes. Good luck

When you meet this three criteria, you are done shocking:
CC is 0.5 or lower;
An overnight FC loss test shows a loss of 1.0 ppm or less;
And, if you don't have a FAS-DPD test kit, the water is clear.

It's nice to see blue water