Persistent algae - finally beaten, I hope

[aeramsay]

I've used a lot of material on this website and after a long struggle with algae, I thought this might help someone else. We have a 24 foot above ground pool. We have constant algae growth for the last two years, even the day after shocking with chlorine levels still high. Last year we did two things which slowed the algae down, switched to using borates and drilled holes for circulation in our stairs.

This summer, the algae would grow on the bottom and sides. If you scrubbed, the chlorine in the water immediately dissolved it. We had the pump running 24 hours, ready to pull our hair out. I added algaecide a few weeks ago since we were going away and didn't want to come back to a green mess. Between the algaecide and the borates, the algae grew slowly enough to keep ahead of it if we scrubbed the pool down every two days.

On the weekend, I replaced the solar cover from a clear one to an opaque blue one since the cover was disintegrating. Each day, the amount of algae that appears over night is less than the day before, and the amount in the stairs where we can't reach is actually decreasing. Fingers crossed, but it looks like the cover was a big issue.

Worth noting, we have a heat wave this week so the pool temperature is 90, where it was in the 70s and low 80s when we were struggling.

 

[woodyp]

Welcome to TFP........but it sounds like you really never actually killed it. Have you met the criteria for SLAMming your pool in pool school?

 

[aeramsay]

Yes. But even with well balanced pool, we haven't kept it away for more than two or three weeks once the pool got above 60. This year since the borates were preventing wild growth, and we were too busy with other things the last three weeks, we were kind of ignoring it. My point was the astonishing difference from changing solar covers. Which does make it seem worth trying another slam.

We've had the pool for 12 years and only struggled for the last two or three years,which was when our local pool store switched to clear solar covers.

Changing it is clearly not the only factor, but worth trying for a pool in the sun all day.

 

[GuinnessPhish]

let's see the numbers!