Slightly cloudy water

[Rclcmama]

Hello everyone! This forum is such a great resource to new pool owners like us :-D

We have a 27ft round above ground pool - installed in June. We've been following the pool store's instructions for chemicals as follows:

Wednesday - check Ph - adjust to 7.4 - 7.8 as needed (have checked and never needed to adjust)
Wednesday - check total alkalinity -adjust to 80-120 ppm as needed (never needed so far)
Add 4 quick tabsto skimmer at night

Sunday: check Ph adjust as needed same as above
Add 1 1/2 lb shock and swim directly to pool water
Add 4 quick tabs to skimmer at night
Add 4 oz natural kleener
Add 9 oz poly 30 algaecide
Add 1 lb anchor (only recently started doing this since they had originally crossed it off list but sold me stuff anyway so I asked what I should do with it

A few weeks ago, when it was REALLY hot here, the pool looked a little cloudy - not discolored, just not as crystal clear as it had been. Pool store said to double up on quick tabs when it gets really hot. Did that and it cleared up.

Husband and at pool store to pick up patch kit and talked to guy there about cloudiness again and he says if weather is really hot again, use bag of shock instead of shock and swim to keep pool clear. Tried that, seemed to work, went back to regular routine since temps dropped.

Over 90 again for last couple of day, added extra quick tabs last night, pool is a bit cloudy this morning....

We run the filter all of the time. We also have an aqua pro heat pump that we run off and on to get the tmp of pool where we like it. Ran it yesterday for a bit but there doesn't seem to be a correlation between running it and cloudy pool.

If you're still with me, any advice re: cloudiness? Also, I am wondering about the whole routine we are on - it's expensive which I would not mind as much if the pool was always staying crystal clear!

 

[JohnT]

Welcome to TFP!

You are being pool-stored. Your cloudiness is likely a result of inadequate chlorination along with high CYA.

You should check out Pool School , particularly
Basic Pool Care Schedule

 

[Puffin]

If you can post a set of test results it'd go a long way in helping us diagnose whats going on.

 

[Richard320]

Textbook description of Pool Stored.

I concur with John T.

I suggest you head over to Pool School and get educated. If you really want to get a sparkling pool (that will be the envy of all who see it) in a hurry, go to http://tftestkits.net first and order up a TF100 and a speedstir. Then go to Pool School.

I spend a couple minutes a day on my pool, and it is so clear you can look through the deep end, about 8 feet, and tell that the drain cover screws are Phillips head. And I just use liquid bleach and Muriatic Acid. And a proper test kit! No fancy additives. No clarifiers, no algaecides. Never need to add "shock".

 

[Coastal Carolina]

Once you become a BBB'r, you will never want to go back. Prettiest, sparkalicious water you will ever see. Looks like a sea of glass!

 

[thepiratemorgan]

I spend a couple minutes a day on my pool, and it is so clear you can look through the deep end, about 8 feet, and tell that the drain cover screws are Phillips head.

LOL !!! Totally agreed.
And again I say ... I swear I could read a 14 font letter off the bottom of my 52" deep Above Ground ... ok maybe 16 font because I'm getting old, not because the pool is any less clear!!!
You NEED a test kit like the TF-100, it WILL save you money, time, frustration, and possible illness in the long run!!

 

[Suziqzer]

If you go by what the others have said ....read the pool school section and get yourself a good test kit. You'll be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to have a sparklingly clear pool all summer regardless of the temperatures.

The people here know what they are talking about and it's awesome. I encourage you to read through the forums as well and ask any questions you have as you go along.

Welcome to TFP!

 

[frogabog]

Welcome!

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ What they said ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Have your pool people ever asked you to check chlorine? Your prescribed routine and testing lacks the most important information. What is your chlorine level? Second most important information needed is CYA level. Actually, they are both equally important. For the time being, and so we can help you, can you take a sample to a pool store for a complete set of test results?

The test kit recommended above is essential. If you wish to cease pouring $$ into the pool via the pool store, the information provided here will do that for you, and it's FREE. Read pool school, more than twice. And ask any question here. Plenty of peeps around to more than happy to help.

 

[supertune]

What more can I add?
All is true with above posts, as I went through the same thing with my pool store all of last summer my first year with a pool, just as you are describing.
One day last May I decided I wanted to know more than the pool store was telling me to do. I Google'd "pool chemistry" and lead me to this TFP forum.
I started reading a lot and realized that I needed to do something different, so I went down this road of TFP way.
I have never been more satisfied with the results I MYSELF have achieved!
My pool is perfect ALL the time, is very easy to take care of and all my family want to come and swim at MY house now!
My pool care total was $8.41 for the month of July except electric and a pool net! (unbelievable here in FL)
# 1
Get a TF-100 kit, this is the best tool I have ever bought for my tool box! It can fix ANY pool water problem I have with my pool.
It tells me where I am with my water at all times. I wanted to learn as much as I could in a very short period, so I ordered the XL option with my TF-100 so I could test a lot more to help me understand this madness!
Once you have ordered your kit, just keep reading here and learn from what we did. Post your test #'s here as soon as you get your kit and we WILL be around to help you get POOL SPARKLYITIS status!

This is what you will get if you do this the TFP way...

Chuck

 

[dolphin]

I look at the white PVC drain cover in contrast to the dark tiles in my pool for cloudiness... Generally, i have crystal clear water... If it becomes slightly cloudy, i'll whip out a good FAS DPD test kit recommended by the good people here, to first see if i have CC's. If i dont, then i attribute the cloudiness to high pH, too high a CH or TA too high. Usually its due to the pH creeping a little too high, if it does i just add MA and the cloudiness goes away quite fast!
I always examine the pool surfaces if anything (algae) is trying to get a foothold.
Usually, if the pH gets a little too high, the water gets slightly but not too noticeably, cloudy but goes away with some MA