Help need to know if I am on right track or lost?????????

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jshinklin

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Jul 5, 2008
108
Bucyrus, Ohio
Ok I am at day 3 of conversion and I am at a pale green color but SUPER cloudy. I held 15ppms over nite and still there 2 hrs after testing. My PH is at 9 and I added 53 oz of muriatic acid will that help clear the cloudiness??? my TA was at close to 300 and of course doing a conversion from baquPOOP i have no CYA. I think I just need reassurance that it will clear up and that I am heading in the right direction.

Pool size is 15'X 48" above ground round, vinyl liner, and a crappy cartridge filter(going to sand once conversion is over and complete)

Also I see white foam on the edges of pool is that white mold or a product of alot of chemicals?
 
You are on the right track. Don't bother testing/adjusting your pH during conversion.

What test kit are you using?

It will clear. Those that have gone thru the conversion will chime in soon.

Just keep testing and dosing.

And, Welcome to TFP! :lol:
 
jshinklin said:
Ok I am at day 3 of conversion and I am at a pale green color but SUPER cloudy. I held 15ppms over nite and still there 2 hrs after testing. My PH is at 9 and I added 53 oz of muriatic acid will that help clear the cloudiness??? my TA was at close to 300 and of course doing a conversion from baquPOOP i have no CYA. I think I just need reassurance that it will clear up and that I am heading in the right direction.

Pool size is 15'X 48" above ground round, vinyl liner, and a crappy cartridge filter(going to sand once conversion is over and complete)

Also I see white foam on the edges of pool is that white mold or a product of alot of chemicals?
Click to expand...

I'm not completely sure but I don't think that your ph has anything to do with your cloudiness. Converting will take you a little bit so just keep going.

It sounds like you have algea as that why it is green and cloudy. The white foam could be the dead algea that hasn't been filtered out yet. Make sure during this time you are cleaning our your filter often so it maximizes its efficiency. Just keep going I think you are on the right track.

It may not hurt to do a partial drain and refill too to make the process quicker....just a thought.

Good Luck. :wink:
 
partial drain and fill ......how much of 5300 gallons can I let out before it starts to affect my vinyl pool liner. I really dont want to have to replace it as well. Also we are planning to get a new sand filter system, would it be wise to do it NOW since my chlorine level held over nite or is it still too soon?
 
Alot of people will do partial refills during conversions or algea blooms to help it along. It was just a suggestion. I just did it with my 14,000 IG and it cut my time in half. If you don't have a well and have to pay for your water it might not be worth it for you. But with a AG pool you can drain and refill at the same time without affecting anything. Also without cya in your pool your chlorine will not continue to hold during the day. You are on the right track you can certainly keep going you just may end up using more chlorine to get and keep it clear.
 
Don't replace it yet, if you are only on day 3 of the conversion, you need to wait. Do a "search" (top right corner) for other threads about conversion. You'll see they can take days, or longer, and the key is lots and lots of bleach. You won't develop algae with that much bleach and you don't need to worry about CYA yet or anything. Once your water is clear you should be able to switch your filter/medium and then focus on balancing the other issues. I don't see any reason to do a drain at this time.

POP - lots of POP!!! (Pool Owner Patience)
 

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frustratedpoolmom said:
What is your brand of filter and/or pool? I love my cartridge filter. It may be undersized, but I'm just curious as to why you think it's "crappy"?
Click to expand...

it is 19 5/8" with an outside diameter of 7" and inside of 3". I just think they are tooo old and alot of things are by passing the filter even though I clean them twice a day.

Is changing you sand that much of a chore in a sand filter system, I know its not expensive like $20 for new sand. I can handle that if changing over right now to a sand system would give me better filteration.
 
When doing a baquacil conversion you need to stay steady and relax and enjoy the weird sights. Keep adding chlorine and wait for it to do it's job. The water will turn various colors and murky and there will be gunk and foam on the surface. Skim off what you can and let the chlorine take care of the rest. Give it a few days with consistent chlorine additions and the water will be clear and sparkling.

During the conversion, only test the PH when the FC level is below 5. You will get incorrect readings at other times. Be very careful not to lower the PH too far based on an inaccurate reading from when the FC level was high. Normally PH will stay reasonably stable through a conversion, but with a very high TA the PH might tend to drift up. You want the PH to be between 7.2 and 7.4 when the FC level is low. Ignore the PH reading at other times.

Replacing water can help speed up the process, but for most people it isn't worth it. Unless your water is practically free or the pool is small I would not recommend replacing water.

Wait till the end to replace your sand. Backwash the filter as needed during the conversion, which will be frequently during some stages of the conversion. If the pressure right after backwashing goes up a little from what it has been in the past that is not a serious problem. If your filter pressure is going way above what it used to be we should explore the filter issue a bit further to see what is going on, otherwise don't worry about it at all.
 
I havent had weird sites since day Thursday. friday and today have just been a milky pale green and dont see any improvement at all. Taking the water to pool store today for complete "work up". I was hoping I would be hitting clear water by day 4 but it isnt looking good at all. :cry:

I just keep putting in 96 ozs of bleach every 2 hrs, I only currently have a cheap walmart test which I am diluting to get a "better" reading on. I know its over 15ppm cause the color is a VERY reddish yellow instead of the normal yellow it i was at 5ppms.

I honestly think that changing the sand at the end of season would be well worth it if its gonna help my filtering out any. Alot is just by passing my filter and I watch it come in the return jet..even when my pressure is at normal psi. my psi isnt going up and my filters arent clogged I know I clean them twice a day.
 
If you are pale green, then you are getting close. When I did my conversion, it took about 3 days from this point to completion. You will be able to see noticable differences every day (meaning third step, fourth step, pool bottom....). Every pool is different, though. The best thing you can do to minimize the time is stay on top of the chlorine and have lots of POP (pool owner patience).

The foam (looks like bits of cardboard floating???) is just a byproduct of the conversion. You will also notice alot of the "foam" has settled once you can see the bottom. No worries. Just keep on top of the chlorine and brush, brush, brush.

I am going to be a bit of a heretic here....it sounds like you have an Intex cartridge filter. If you do have one, I would recommend either getting the sand filter installed if you don't mind replacing the sand or draining about half of the water from your pool and refilling. Either will greatly reduce the amount of time to complete the conversion. In any case, make sure you are changing/cleaning the cartridges frequently. The "foam" and stuff you are going to brush off the bottom will clog the cartridge in no time all.

Keep it up. This will al be over before you know it and you will be enjoying clear, sparkly water in no time :-D .
 
When I saw your gallonage, I realized what NCFlyersFan said, you have an intex filter system. Yes, then by all means, go ahead and replace with a sand filter. Intex filters are woefully inadequate.

Also, the fastest way to convert is KNOWING what your FC level is. Guessing, using OTO really isn't going to get you there faster. If you aren't reaching the level you should and coming up short, you are going to take longer than you should. You really need the FAS-DPD test to know for sure, that way you know exactly how much bleach to put it, and what level you are at and you can hold it there. That really is the key.

Good luck.
 
jshinklin said:
I honestly think that changing the sand at the end of season would be well worth it if its gonna help my filtering out any.
Click to expand...

One more thing...it won't be changing the sand at the end of the season....it will be changing the sand once the conversion is complete. No only does the baquagoo cause filtration problems due to its "sticky" nature, I am pretty sure it will continue to deplete chlorine and produce combined chlorine after the conversion is complete. My CC only reached 0 AFTER I changed my filter media.

Just my $0.02. Hope this helps.
 
WOOOHOOOO just installed the sand filter...a Hayward S166T and can already see a difference...been running about an hour and I can already see my temp gauge hanging from the side of the pool!!!!!!!! Which I havent seen in over a week :roll:

Had my water tested and couldnt get FC or CC tested cause I think I put WAY TOO MUCH BLEACH in and it was OFF THE CHART..it errored out their computer system... :oops: :oops:

Getting ready to go out and check it now since I havent added anything since 7am..hoping the Ohio sunshine has burned alot out. Guess I will check and if not leave it alone and keep running the filter system.
 
Well the test kit will have to wait till next week, If I ask for the credit card again anytime soon I might just watch my ole man put a gaint hole in the pool and seeing I just spent over $300 on filter system and close to $100 on chemicals to convert..I will wait till Tuesday to ask for more things... :lol: 8)
 

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