help. algae is kicking my butt

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Randysmith112186

0
May 12, 2014
7
Danbury texas
hello guys.
I have heard great things about yall so hear it goes.
I have an above ground 27 foot by 52 inches deep
d.e. filter
I let my pool go for about 6 months (it was then a sand filter). now I am attempting to clean it up. the pool guy put in a ton of shock and soda a\sh. then put in swamptreat. next a ton more shock. that was a month ago.
now I have a ton of dead algae I cant get out of my pool. the d.e. filter clogs up too fast and the sand one would not filter out the fine particles.
my pool has clarifier and floc in it. the floc only dropped a little bit.
here is my problem. I don't have enough time ( every 2 hours to bump and change the d.e.
any suggestions.
p.s. I cant get the pool to hold chlorine.
f.c.=0
c.c.=1
p.h. 7.5
alkalinity= 230
cya=20
please help
 
:wave: Welcome to TFP!!!

Do you have a recirculate function on you DE filter? What specific filter do you have?
Please add your pool details to your signature and location to your profile as described HERE as it will help us help you.

Do you have one of the Recommended Test Kits?

Sounds like you have been throwing a lot of chemicals in the pool with no real plan ... many of which we would never recommend.

You need to follow the SLAM Process to clear up the pool. You will also just have to keep cleaning the DE filter. They work very well, but when trying to clear a lot of debris they can be a big pain.

How much Pool School have you read? Start with these:
ABCs of Water Chemistry
Recommended Pool Chemicals
How to Chlorinate Your Pool
 
No. We believe that CHLORINE will solve most organic problems in the water. And a working filter is required to get all the debris and dead organics out. Bleach, just happens to be the best source of chlorine because it does not have all the side-effects that the solid forms of chlorine do. The other forms are fine if you understand everything that they do to your water.

The TFPC method is really just about understanding your pool’s chemistry and through accurate testing, adding only what the pool NEEDS and not what someone wants to sell you. It is not about only using certain chemicals, that may or may not start with the letter B :D
 
Got ya
I have been doing a lot of reading on here but have been letting a pool guy attempt to clean it
Our agreement was I don't have to pay until he gets it cleaned. Well when he told me to drain and refill I fired him and did not pay due to previous agreement
Plus now I'm strapped money wise so now I'm gonna go y'all's route
I will post more info as soon as I can test it
Thanks guys
I already feel like I've come to the right place

- - - Updated - - -

Oops
I also meant to ask
My pool is sooooo big for an above ground that it seems to circulate everything to the middle so the skimmer does not filter all the water. Any recommendations?
 
Ok first thing is you say you bump the filter. I take it you have a perflex DE filter. As the others have said DE filters are very good at keeping a clean pool clean. Do you have the full kit with the base. The pump filter and base as one unit or is the filter just sitting next to the pump. I ask because the perflex kits does not have a way to pump to waste. If you do not have the kit and have room, most recommend installing a three way valve between the pump and filter. That way you can vacuum and discharge the water before it gets to the filter. Another option that may help is using a skimmer sock or knee high in the skimmer.

Now on to the chemistry. What we teach is learning what your pool needs by accurate testing. Every pool has it's own personality. You will need to get a good test kit with the FAS/DPD test for chlorine. There is a link above in one of the other posts. With that kit you can then find out exactly what your pool needs. There are different forms of chlorine. We push liquid chlorine or bleach because it does not really add anything extra. The "shock" that pool store sells you add other things. Cal-hypo add calcium, Tri-chlor and Di-chlor add CYA. Your slam level is based on the CYA level in the pool. Using bleach the CYA level stays the same.
 
I just finished turning an almost black pool crystal clear and blue using bleach, baking soda, and borax. It took me about a week and we have roughly a 23 to 24,000 gallon pool. It took some hard work vacuuming and brushing for several days and constantly checking my numbers using a FAS/DPD test kit. We have been swimming for several days now and I check my numbers in the early morning before work and at night around sundown so I can adjust. I had used tri-chlor last year and ended up with high CYA and a pool that started turning green despite adding more pucks than called for last summer. Add to that bald cypress needles made their way under the pool cover and formed a thick mat that needed hand vacuuming. I had to get into the pool at one point, and the water temp was 59,to get the matted needles out. Luckily it has sinced warmed up to the 70's. Give up on the pool guy and do it yourself with BBB. It takes a little bit to understand what you are doing but then it clicks and now it just makes sense and the pool is crystal clear for a lot less money. You will be glad you did and so will your wallet.
 
Randysmith112186 said:
My pool is sooooo big for an above ground that it seems to circulate everything to the middle so the skimmer does not filter all the water. Any recommendations?
Click to expand...

Everything will filter, and the pool will clear. I've got a 33' round with no main drain, and it filters just fine. You'll probably just notice that larger debris (leaves, bugs, etc.) will tend to settle on the bottom in the middle. You'll have to vacuum to get the bigger stuff up.

You've gotten a lot of good information so far, but there's a lot of information. If you're feeling overwhelmed, don't worry, we were all there once. Spend as much time as you can stand in Pool School and it will start to come together.
 

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Don't take it the wrong way but you really can not take control without the right testing equipment. Pool stores will test your water for FREE but the chemicals they sell you are not. They are in the chemical sales business. It has also been proven that pool store test are very unreliable. I have taken water samples to multiple pool stores within minutes and got very different readings. Chlorine is the best at killing algae but it is based on the CYA level. The pool store uses terms like shock. They see normal chlorine ranges as .5 to 3 and do not take into account the buffering from CYA. They sell you a bucket of "shock" that will raise your FC but will not keep it there. It will also probably add even more CYA. When it does not work they will sell you two buckets of "shock". With the TF-100 or taylor k-2006, they both use the same testing regents but the TF-100 will give you way more test, you can learn just what your pool needs. My personal example was after hurricane Rita. I cleared my pool with $89.00 of walmart great value bleach. My sister finally asked for help after she hit $300 at the pool store and their next plan was just drain and refill.
 
Randy, Continue to read Pool School and purchase a TF100 XL. You will not regret this small investment to your pool. You can be assured that your test results are reliable and you can SLAM the pool and finish the OCLT and know you're finished. :goodjob:
 
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