Anyone ever had pea soup pour out of your filters?

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3

3des

0
Nov 23, 2010
29
DFW
My nightmare season marches on...

I've changed my filters for the 2nd time this summer trying to clear up my pool. Even tho the pressure registered as clean, I just can't get my pool blue again even tho my numbers look really good. Granted this last bout of green happened on account of a transformer problem on my IC40 a week ago. It's been 1 month now of sad imperfection after a text book year last year. :(

FC: 5.5
CC: .5
TC: 6
PH: 7.8
TA:100
CH: 210 a month ago according to pool store (my test liquid is bad)
CYA: 100
Temp: 87
Salt: 3100
Borates: 40-50 (test strips are hard to read)

I'm going to the pool store tomorrow to get a more accurate read on CYA. If it's really >100 I'll know I'm in trouble and why. But I've read that the presence of algae can push this reading higher as well. I did the OCLT at the end of July and lost .5. Every 3-4 days my pools is COVERED in dingy, yellow, stuff, all walls, the floor, steps, everywhere. It turns my filters yellow and pours out a dirty disgusting murky yellow-green when sprayed out. The filters pick it up but it just seems to come back and doesn't consume CL. My pool is surrounded by mature trees that rain leaves constantly but this seems excessive. I didn't have this trouble last year, not like this.

The filter on the far right has been sprayed off for comparison:


Some of the pea soup runoff:


To say I'm getting sick of this would be a pathetic minimalism. Any ideas what might be happening here? Has anyone else seen this soup pour out of their filters?
 
In the middle of clearing a nasty algae bloom yes, I have flushed pea soup green water out of my DE filter. You can tell if the nasty water will obscure the CYA test by using your test vile and filling it with pool water. I doubt it will obscure the dot enough to make a difference in the CYA test result. My pool was almost black at its worst but the water samples looked relatively clear when I collected them in a squeeze bottle.

Odds are your CYA is higher than 100. With a SWG your CYA should be at 70ppm. Try testing your CYA again with a mixture of 1/2 pool water and 1/2 tap water for the sample and double the result.
 
Thanks for the reply. Well the plot thickens and now I am totally perplexed.

You're right, the pool water alone did not obscure the dot. 50/50 mix yielded a 50 reading. hmmm so I went back and pulled another set of results. I poured in a jug of bleach yesterday to shock just in case the high CYA was throwing off the CL:

FC: 8
CC: .5
TC: 8.5
PH: 8+
TA: 110
CH: ?
CYA: 50 (WHAT???!)

The pool color is somewhat improved but it still frustratingly cloudy:


I've noticed this twice now, after spraying off the carts. It leaves behind a powdery white "something". Undissolved Borax, CA, or CYA? I have no idea but doesn't look like dirt.


So my CYA suddenly reading LOW is concerning and high PH is something I've always had a problem with. Every few days it's right back up. I have air entering my system somewhere so get regular bubbles out of the returns. Even letting PH ride on the high side for long periods (last year) I've never had trouble like this.

Another bit of history. So in early July when I still had a blue pool, my CYA read low then too after a big add in June. I do the sock in front of the jet method and added 7lbs. I also added CA and a little borax this season. 2 weeks ago my filter pressure went prematurely high (dirty) then one day I noticed white chunks of stuff in front of every return. The filter pressure dropped down after this event. Not sure what the white stuff was (borax?) but things have been weird since. I added 12lbs of CA back in May but have changed the filters twice since then.

This was my pool at the beginning of July. You can see off to the right my CYA dosing station.


What am I missing?? What should I do next?
 
Good point. But when I pulled my full panel, the native CYA test yielded 50 as well...Just did it again (all pool water) and it seems to be ~80. I wish there was a more scientific method of doing this test. :(
 
Back from the pool store to compare results. Some align, some don't.

FC: 4
TAC: 4
Salt: 3500
CH: 240
CYA: 90
TA: 90
PH: 8.1
Phosphates: 300 ( :lol: )

So PH is too high, I dumped in 3 qts acid just now and swept again. Even at CYA of 90, that's still not unreasonable, right? There is a ton of leaf activity right now but I still don't get the color + clarity of my water. My carts are <2 years old and I have 2 sets I alternate so no way they are bad.
 
In your current situation I would advise you to lower the CYA to 30 and complete the slam process. You will know the slam process is complete when you meet all 3 of the following criteria: 1) You pass the overnight chlorine loss test (OCLT). 2) Your CC is .5 or less 3) You water is clear. You should brush the pool daily, including all the nooks and crannies where algae can hide. Be sure to check behind the pool light also. Use the Pool calculator to determine your slam (shock) level. Turn the SWG off during the slam process and use liquid bleach only.


After the slam process is completed raise the CYA to 70 and use liquid bleach to dose the pool until the SWG is able to maintain the daily FC target level.
 

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Thanks Zea, solid recommendation. Not fun, but doable.

Pressure gauge appears to be working fine. 0 when pool is off, climbs when building pressure, fluctuates slightly letting out air etc.

Stabilizer added via the sock in front of the jet method.
 
Quick update.

I figured I'd wait one more day before starting the drain process and gave the pool a final chance through the overnight run. Well this morning the pool is blue again. I think the following can be taken away from this experience, (please add to or correct me on any of these).

-Running a high CYA provides great sunlight protection for your CL and SWG but this is the only benefit.
-Allowing FC to drop to 0 during this condition and gaining an algae bloom (inevitable) will be very difficult and take longer to get rid of without lowering CYA.
-High PH and high CYA don't mix and appear to affect the overall chemistry in a much more dramatic way (color, clarity).
-FC readings can be suspect at high CYA levels
-Any kind of required shocking, MA or otherwise, become extremely difficult at high CYA levels
-Bottom line: don't run a high CYA, it just makes everything harder
 
I don't think CYA interferes with FC readings using the FAS-DPD test, but CYA buffers the available chlorine, protecting it and also making it less effective. So, at higher CYA, you need higher FC to do the same job.

Absolutely agree that CYA > 80 makes the water hard to manage!
 
-Running a high CYA provides great sunlight protection for your CL and SWG but this is the only benefit. Close enough

-Allowing FC to drop to 0 during this condition and gaining an algae bloom (inevitable) will be very difficult and take longer to get rid of without lowering CYA. Close enough

-High PH and high CYA don't mix and appear to affect the overall chemistry in a much more dramatic way (color, clarity). pH and CYA are unrelated and neither affects water clarity

-FC readings can be suspect at high CYA levels No.

-Any kind of required shocking, MA or otherwise, become extremely difficult at high CYA levels True, but MA is not related to shock value

-Bottom line: don't run a high CYA, it just makes everything harder Don't run excessive CYA. consult the FC/CYA chart in Pool school and, yes, it does make everything much more difficult
 
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