Help... green pool... here are my numbers...

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DLD

DLD

0
Aug 24, 2011
23
Hello,

:( :hammer:

I need therapy!
I have a green pool.
in-ground fiberglass pool
chlorine pucks type
20,000 gallons
getting my water checked at the pool store (of course they are sassing me)(I just ordered a test kit)
FC - 5.8 (been adding jugs of bleach from walmart since saturday - green is 90% gone now - we have gone through about 20 jugs)
TC - 6.8
CC - 1.0
pH - 7.5
Alkalinity (w/stabilizer correction) - 65ppm
CYA - 85ppm (yesterday it was 50)
clarity: clear
these numbers are from the pool store today.

Help, what do i do next?? do i have to wait for the kit... yikes
I have two six yo boys and they can't wait......................

Thank you,
Dara.
:(
 
Welcome to TFP DLD!

What test kit did you order?

You do not have to wait for the test kit to shock, but you really need a way to test at least TC (Total Chlorine) and pH which is not strips. Walmart usually has a cheap kit that could tide you over until your kit arrives.

Your pool store results show CA, do you know if that is actually CYA or is is CH (Calcium Hardness)?

How long has your pool been green? You mention that you pool has good clarity. Does the water just looked tinted, or is the clarity obscured somewhat by the green?

Pool school (see link in my sig) has a ton of great information that will help you. Take a look at this post: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/defeating_algae
 
I posted this in the other thread, but it looks like you figured out how to post a new topic so here's my reply:

Is the "CA" number you gave us for Calcium or Cyanuric acid?

If it's for CYA, the numbers you've been given are totally suspect. You could have 100ppm or 20ppm CYA with those kind of variable results. Who knows?

Regardless, if your CYA is 50 you need 16ppm chlorine to shock the pool. If it's 85, you need 22ppm. 5.8ppm is far far too low, well under the minimum for either of those values.

More bleach :~} Use the pool calculator to determine how much you need to add to reach shock level. Although unless you added CYA between yesterday and today I couldn't tell you which number to use. I'm leaning towards the higher value since you use trichlor pucks though.

If you can lower your pH to 7.2 with acid, do that before you raise it back to shock level (22ppm). If the CYA is really 85, a partial drain and refill would serve you best, especially while shocking. As you can see the difference between 50ppm and 85ppm for shock level is quite a bit.
 
How many tests have they done for you? What CYA values other than these have you seen, and what else other than trichlor pucks have you put in the pool?

How many pucks have you added to the pool since it was filled? Have you used dichlor shock powder product as well?

If you can give us some more information maybe we can find a best guess number for you to use till your kit comes in.
 
History,

This is our 3rd summer. hubby has been caring for it with pucks, and powdered shock... about a month ago it bloomed green and the pool store said shock with powder.... i doubt hubby used the amount of shock they said to use... anyhow, pool got worse not better... over a couple weeks it went, green, dark green, black as a bullfrog pond... then the store gave him algecide and hubby read the label and balked! did not add. then hubby went on a 3 day trip and wifey searched net and found you all!!

Remembering that my grandmother kept a pool for 50 years with only bottles of bleach.... i knew you guys were for real. so on saturday i started dumping in bleach... i have added 3 to six bottles a day and had the pool store test it three times - its driving them crazy but they keep testing.
8/16/2011 - CYA 65ppm, FC 5, TC ?
8/24/2011 - CYA 50, FC 6.3, TC 9.00
8/25/2011 - CYA 85, FC 5.8, TC 6.8

Oh, on Monday when hubby got back from travel and saw the pool slightly less brown/green - he went out and added a 32oz bottle of Super Floc. In which i chewed him out strongly and ask him to get onboard. And now he is.
Yes the pool was like lake water and you could not see more than a foot into it, if that. And now with the bleach it is clear but a scum of green particles on the bottom and steps, but today we could see the light green frisby's location on the bottom and got it out finally!

We do have a cheezy home test kit, but the FC only goes up to 5. :?
 

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RESPONDERS - please keep OP's experience level in mind. Advice needs to be kept at a VERY elementary level while OP is learning.

DLD,
Start reading Pool School in the upper right corner on every page.

Particularly, read "ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry" and "Shock your pool" in the "How to" section. you will need to have an understanding of the information therein.

OK, I just saw your latest post. I would suggest you continue to add one LARGE jug of Clorox each day until your kit gets in. Post a complete set of test results when it does.

You must manually help to clear the pool. Your pump should be running 24/7 and you should be brushing the sides and floor at least once daily. Have you cleaned your filter? Please post back after reading the articles and we'll go from there.

PS - NOTHING else in the pool but bleach....there are no magic bullets for your task.

Tell us the state and city in which you live.
 
Great,
Bartlesville, OK It is in the northeast corner of state.
The calculator showed to add 6 jugs bleach based on a 22ppm target and my 5.8ppm FC reading from pool store test this evening. Can I add the six jugs?
Can I adjust the PH?
 
I'm not sure without a good test kit I would suggest adding that much at once. You'll run the risk of damaging the liner. Your pool is going to be out of commission for a few days until your kit arrives (shipping really is great, 3 days and I got mine) and then a few more days after that until the pool is clear. You're going to spend a few hours per day testing/shocking/testing/shocking and so forth until it clears up. Use the experience to learn the test kit (it's not tuff) and in the future you will enjoy a sparkling pool for much less than relaying on the pool store.

If you're really in a hurry, maybe add a few extra jugs per day, but only after you get a result from the pool store on your FC numbers. What type of filter do you have?? If you have a DE filter I'd also suggest picking up an extra bag of media.....I'll guess you will need it.

Good luck....listen to the members and advice on the board. These guys take pride more in the "Green to Clean" pool stories more than their own pools.
 
ok, i memorized the pool school how to shock instructions. i have been following that pretty well this week, but not vacuuming as much as should have. We have a cartridge filter.
 
I would suggest keep trying that then until your kit arrives. Once it shows up your pool will clear up in no time. I went back and re-read your pool store results, and I take back my suggestion on relaying on their results. If all you've added was bleach I don't see how your CYA level could bounce around so much. Not sure if I would rely on their test accuracy that much.

New suggestion......One bottle of bleach twice a day and call us when the kit arrives. :D
 
Leave the pH alone and focus on keeping chlorine in your pool and brushing and cleaning.

sorry forgot.... yes we cleaned the paper coagated type filters on Sunday
Click to expand...
. What was the psi reading before you cleaned it? What was it after you cleaned it? What is it now? My point is that your cartridge filter requires VERY frequent cleaning in your situation and it sounds like you are not doing that. Tell us more about your psi readings.

You are trying to fix several weeks worth of water mismanagement in 24 hours. I wish we could help you do that but it won't work. You are going to have to get methodical and precise in your dosages and testing and then your pool will clear.

You are also going to have to put some mechanical effort into it....brushing, cleaning, running your pump (is it on now?)

I would suggest you not put in six jugs (what size jugs are you talking about just so we are on the same page) but you could put in two jugs daily until your kit gets in. That'll keep the algae from advancing and prevent you from unnecessarily overdosing.
 
Good advice these folks are giving you (2 jugs a day, don't worry about ph right now). Since your pool store results are all over the place, you are flying blind. Since you have the kit coming, there is light on the horizon.
 
DLD, I live in Bartlesville too! I'll pm you my phone number, and I can come check it out if you need help, especially when you get your kit in.

I plugged the numbers in the calculator, and if your CYA was 40, it says to put 2 big bottles in to raise to a level of 16. We need to get a solid CYA measurement. The CYA shouldn't vary so widely between tests as it's pretty much impossible to go from 50 to 85 in a day unless you were purposely adding it. It could be the sample is going bad by the time you get to the store, or a different person is doing the test.
 

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