Algae on inside border of skimmer?

[ED-209]

Greetings fellow BBBr's & TFPr's

I have a quick question today.

Well since 4/6 everything has been goin great, my levels seem great, adding bleach every other day, clear water, no visible algae around returns, steps crevices or the light but for some reason when I take my finger and rub the inner part of my skimmer frame (feels like the material that surrounds just the inner frame is fuzzy) where water enters the skimmer I see a small amount of what appears to be green dust.

Before I got to this forum and learned the right way to take care of my pool I would get a good amount of this green dust but once I went through draining to lower my CYA, got my FC levels in the correct range, no CC, and passed the OCLT test I thought I wouldn't see this happen anymore so now I'm puzzled/worried.

Before my pool was clear when looking at it but I ended up having algae as I couldn't maintain my FC levels because of high CYA but now it seems the levels are right and sustained and I am just losing normal Cl each day, around 1.0 - 2.0, due to the sun so I am back to feeling clueless and wonder if I have to go through the shock process again and if my pool isn't safe to swim in.

Below are my levels as of 1:00 am this morning (except CYA) and I added 96 oz of 6% Bleach to raise it to about 9 as my pool is 15500 gallons and the poolcalculator shows my FC target levels to be 5 to 9.

FC: 6.0
CC: 0.0
TC: 6.0
PH: 7.5
ALK: 80
CH: 120
CYA: 60 (as of 4/6)

Thanks for any advice\help and if you need a pic I can add one a little later but hopefully with my description someome will know what I mean.

 

[Richard320]

Last summer while in the pool, I spotted a thin line of green on the grout line in my skimmer, just above the water level. I figure that waves would keep it damp, but since it wasn't submerged all the time, the chlorine couldn't get it. I just took a scrub brush and worked the whole area over and kept it well rinsed and that was it. It hasn't returned.

 

[duraleigh]

ED-209,

Please be VERY careful! I think you may have caught sparklypoolitis. Somehow, it seems to be transmitted through this forum and people who have recently turned their pools into crystal clear water seem to be most susceptible.

Seriously, It will be almost impossible to keep ALL algae out of every nook and cranny in your pool. There are just some areas where the FC doesn't get to circulate enough and algae is right there waiting to bloom. However...


1. Algae alone does not make your pool unsafe. You should feel comfortable to swim in your pool.

2. Brush that visible algae off. Just mixing it into the main body of water will kill it. It may grow back so just make it part of your routine to brush that area whether you see algae or not.

3. It looks to me like you're doing everything right. Perhaps you can redirect your returns to change the flow pattern of your water and see if that helps.

 

[ED-209]

Re: Re: Algae on inside border of skimmer?

ED-209,

Please be VERY careful! I think you may have caught sparklypoolitis. Somehow, it seems to be transmitted through this forum and people who have recently turned their pools into crystal clear water seem to be most susceptible.

Seriously, It will be almost impossible to keep ALL algae out of every nook and cranny in your pool. There are just some areas where the FC doesn't get to circulate enough and algae is right there waiting to bloom. However...


1. Algae alone does not make your pool unsafe. You should feel comfortable to swim in your pool.

2. Brush that visible algae off. Just mixing it into the main body of water will kill it. It may grow back so just make it part of your routine to brush that area whether you see algae or not.

3. It looks to me like you're doing everything right. Perhaps you can redirect your returns to change the flow pattern of your water and see if that helps.

LOL on the sparklypooliyus and yes I am so happy as my OCD is having a blast with my new pool process\obsession.

Soooooooooo glad to read your reply about the algae part and that is what I was hoping. I'll just get a small crevice brush and make sure to just brush this part at least once a week vs. using my finger as I've had so many incidents with spiders hiding in the roof of my skimmer and right when I start rubbing that part they jump out at me and scare the living you know what outta me LOL. Hopefully once I get the screen enclosure all bugs will be gone

I'm still too paranoid to put back in my ladder as that is where the algae loved to live but I took it out in January so it should all be dead but we hardly ever used the ladder, the polaris would get stuck on it and without the ladder the pool looks so clean and nice.

Thanks so much for the help and will put my 2c in wherever I can to help others but still being a newbie I don't want to give the impression I am an expert just want to give back any help I can as I am so grateful.

 

[ED-209]

Forgot to ask, since you mentioned the returns, I have 2 and they are the eyeball ones and are on the same side as the skimmers and I have no clue which way to turn them, in same direction, opposite directions or facing each other? My pool is a vinyl sports pool with two shallow ends at 3.5 ft and slope towards the middle to 5.5 ft. I do have a booster return in the middle which I might use one a week for the polaris otherwise it's open with normal waterflow.

I just didn't know if they should be in the same direction or if they should be pointed towards the closest skimmer which would make them point outwards away from each other in different directions.

Thanks again

 

[maxepr1]

Ed, the idea is to get the water to circulate in the pool so the skimmer gets everything. In my pool I have 6 returns pointing in an counter-clockwise direction. That's what works for me. Just want the surface debris moving in a direction that the skimmer will suck it in. Every pool is different. You just want to eliminate dead spots. Trail and error.

 

[ED-209]

Re: Re: Algae on inside border of skimmer?

Ed, the idea is to get the water to circulate in the pool so the skimmer gets everything. In my pool I have 6 returns pointing in an counter-clockwise direction. That's what works for me. Just what the surface debris moving in a direction that the skimmer will suck it in. Every pool is different. You just want to eliminate dead spots. Trail and error.

Thanks Max and completely understand and will just play around with it.

Take care and Happy Pooling

 

[savela]

I had the same issue, just above the waterline in my skimmer. I now use a chlorine bottle to spray a mist around the edges every week or so just to keep things tidy. Works for me.