Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to death.

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amexpmh

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Jun 18, 2013
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I wish I'd found this forum a couple of months ago. I have been reading and learning and will be trying out pool clearing and maintenance procedures I have been reading about. I will order a test kit and report full test data soon. Meanwhile, I'm fighting a monster in my back yard. I have had the pool for 13 years and never had trouble anywhere close to this year. The pool store is running out of things to try and nothing has worked so far, except the cash register taking money out of my account.

The pool store is a BioLab store so several times we have done extreme shocks with Calcium based shock. When algae kept coming back they said I had Chlorine Demand. It took about $500 of more shock and I still had no free chorine. Even when algae looks dead the water has not cleared up, keeping the milky/chalky look throughout the year.

Recent additions of stabilizer have brought levels in line and the FC has been running in the 7.5-8.0 range. Their analysis says 3.0-3.5 is normal. Even with high levels of chlorine the green just keeps coming back. The pool has been flocked twice with no result. I've used some liquid shock. I keep Smart Sticks in the skimmers and have added several quarts of algaecide.

I know you need me to get the water testing done and post results which I will do, but this has been a strange year so far with the pool not responding to usual clearing procedures. I'm totally pool stored and can't believe the look of my pool after all those chemicals. I appreciate this forum and I hope to conquer this backyard monster with your help. Thanks.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

We hear this sort of thing all too often, chances are your CYA and possibly your CH are through the roof and will require substantial water replacement.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

Yup, where are you located, how expensive is water for you? Your chlorine levels are really not that high, and most likely being made ineffective by high stabilizer levels. Sounds like you've already read a lot of info available here. Get the speed stir when you order the kit, it will make testing very easy and quick for you which is a much more pleasant experience....
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

If you were using $500 worth of cal-hypo, your levels are most definately through the roof and it's probably why it looks so cloudy. :|

Hope you can get the test kit soon. It's a good one! :goodjob:
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

I ordered the test kit. That particular shock was 112 lbs of pre dissolve CLC. They said Calcium was at max and shock after that was a different product Smart Shock. I will get the water tested and get full results at the store prior to receiving my test kit. I also replace the sand in the filter. Any thoughts as to what should be used now to fight the green?
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

Head over to Pool School. We will help, but there's too much information to post here. After you read through a couple times, post your questions.

The short answer is, you need bleach, but we can't tell you how much until we get a lot more info from you.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

My test kit is shipping. I took water to the pool store and here are the results.

Temp - 82
FC - 0
CC - 0
pH - 8.3
TA - 166 Adj TA 136
CH - 276
CYA - 100

The pool has gone green again and is still cloudy. I'm going to the Pool School and will read the articles about clearing swampy water. I also plan to put these results in the pool calculator. Where do you recommend getting various chemicals to balance the water? I have bleach some other chemicals, but what is the best way to source items that I will need? Thanks again for your help.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

I get my bleach at Sam's or Walmart. The first thing for you to do is get your pH down to around 7.2 and do a couple of partial drain and refills to get CYA down. Then it's time for the shock process.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

Muratic Acid to lower Ph? What do you use to raise Ph when needed? Also, CYA I don't need to increase mine at this time, but what product do you use to increase CYA? I also kept chlorine sticks in the skimmers. Do I continue to keep sticks in the skimmers? Or does the periodic application of bleach maintain the chlorine level as needed? I can buy a whole lot of bleach for what the sticks cost. Last thought is for Algaecide. Is an algaecide product needed in addition to the bleach, etc.? I know I may sound like a pool store customer, but I'm just trying to make sure I get this right. Very tired of looking at a green pool this year.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

amexpmh,

Welcome to the forum. :lol: read "The ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry" up in Pool School....it'll answer many of your questions and cause you to ask some more...we'll all help.
 

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Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

amexpmh said:
Muratic Acid to lower Ph? What do you use to raise Ph when needed? Also, CYA I don't need to increase mine at this time, but what product do you use to increase CYA? I also kept chlorine sticks in the skimmers. Do I continue to keep sticks in the skimmers? Or does the periodic application of bleach maintain the chlorine level as needed? I can buy a whole lot of bleach for what the sticks cost. Last thought is for Algaecide. Is an algaecide product needed in addition to the bleach, etc.? I know I may sound like a pool store customer, but I'm just trying to make sure I get this right. Very tired of looking at a green pool this year.
Click to expand...
Acid lowers ph. Soda Ash or Borax raises it. "Stabilizer" raises CYA. Don't use the sticks, they add even more CYA. Daily bleach maintains chlorine level - many of us haven't had to do the shock process in years and years, and my pool is clear enough to throw a quarter in the deep end and call heads or tails from the deck. You do not need algaecide.

Everything you asked is in Pool School, by the way. First thing you need to do is go right now to Amazon or http://tftestkits.net and order a Taylor K-2006 or a TF100 test kit. The TF100 is the better value, bigger bottles of stuff in it. Order the XL option since your pool is green. I'm serious - do it now. And stay out of the pool store!
A little inspiration:
pretty-black-pool-t58442.html
first-time-pool-owner-t61565.html
a-little-encouragement-for-those-with-algae-and-new-to-bbb-t57137.html
frog-filled-green-swamp-to-oasis-work-in-progress-t48213-20.html be sure to look at page 2
before-and-after-t36785.html
a-final-picture-set-of-how-well-the-bbb-method-works-t33199.html
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

Answers in Red:
amexpmh said:
Muratic Acid to lower Ph? Yes What do you use to raise Ph when needed? borax or soda ash Also, CYA I don't need to increase mine at this time, but what product do you use to increase CYA? cyanuric acid aka stabilizer aka conditioner I also kept chlorine sticks in the skimmers. Do I continue to keep sticks in the skimmers? No. That is why your CYA is so high ... and we never recommend putting them in the skimmer Or does the periodic application of bleach maintain the chlorine level as needed? Yes. Bleach will provide ALL your chlorine when you add it on a daily basis I can buy a whole lot of bleach for what the sticks cost. Last thought is for Algaecide. Is an algaecide product needed in addition to the bleach, etc.? No algaecides are needed. Maintain adequate chlorine and you will not have algae I know I may sound like a pool store customer, but I'm just trying to make sure I get this right. Very tired of looking at a green pool this year.
Click to expand...
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

TF-100 kit arrived and I ran all the tests. Basic test the Ph was 7.8 and the Chlorine was off the chart (expected). The other test produced a FC of 21 and a TC level of 23.5. The TA tested 210. I had trouble with the CH test. After the first reagent my water was hot pink, not red. Then I added drops and swirled looking for it to turn blue. It went violet (purplish) but never blue. I stopped at 55 drops figuring I was wasting my chemicals. The pool store recorded it at 276 the day before. CYA was 90-95. This was my first run of the tests, any pointers are appreciated.

I am backflushing to remove some water and adding new water as I can. This will take several days to bring down the CYA level. Meanwhile I added bleach as prescribed to hit shock level according to the Pool Calculator. At this point the water is still green and not much different in appearance from the 0 Chlorine yesterday.

I will continue to test probably twice a day. I have some algaecide left, should I use it to help combat the algae? I realize once I get the water clear and in balance I will not need to add it anymore.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

Just keep replacing water to get the CYA down and maintain the FC shock level as diligently as you can. Showing CC of 2.5 and green in the water certainly means that the shock process is needed.

Clean the filter when the pressure rises 20-25% over the clean pressure.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

By this evening the FC has dropped to 11 and the CC 1. Ph was holding at 7.8. I added more acid to lower Ph again and added more bleach. I drained off more water and adding fresh. Repeat this again in the morning.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

The pH test is not valid when FC greater than 10ppm, do not adjust the pH in the middle of the shock process ... Although you were barely over 10 so the pH test was close.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

What about cleaning. Should I try to vacuum up some of the growth or keep the water circulating while trying to kill the algae? I am brushing to keep algae from settling on the skimmers, light, etc.
 
Re: Green and Cloudy with high chlorine. Pool Stored to dea

You can vacuum as much as you like. Either to waste or the filter. Just make sure to clean the filter when the pressure rises 20-25% over the clean pressure.
 

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