Brown Water! Yikes!!

[bunky]

Just found your site today. . .very interesting stuff! Great find!

Will try to keep my story short!! In ground pool, vinyl liner, chlorinator not working. . .water is very brown. . .have well water. ..have not added water since May. . .has been clean and clear since then but not now!! Chlorine was at zero. . .added 6 gallons of bleach today and have brushed and cleaned filters twice so far. Testing with test strip and all looks good now. Since adding bleach it has not cleared at all.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Just found your site today. . .very interesting stuff! Great find!

Will try to keep my story short!! In ground pool, vinyl liner, chlorinator not working. . .water is very brown. . .have well water. ..have not added water since May. . .has been clean and clear since then but not now!! Chlorine was at zero. . .added 6 gallons of bleach today and have brushed and cleaned filters twice so far. Testing with test strip and all looks good now. Since adding bleach it has not cleared at all.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Details, man, Details! We prefer you elaborate as opposed to keeping it short, LOL

Full set of test results, please. And post your specs, like your pool equipment, etc. in your signature line, you can edit it in your "profile.

And does your well water have metals? If yes do you regularly use a sequesterant?

When you say brown, the pool wall is brown, or the water, or what? I'm used to people describing the algae on here as green split pea soup and the like.

Welcome, hope we can help.

 

[Lukelou]

Hello, I use well water and found out I have metals. My water turned brown after I shocked it. But here on this site EVERYONE is going to ask for test results...free chlorine, CYA, T/A, pH....
You'll need to purchase a kit to give good numbers.
The sequestrant: Metal Out, Mineral Magnet, Metal Magnet...won't hurt-for 10,000 gallons throw in a whole quart. Hopefully you know how to deal with other issues like algae or cloudy water and know this isn't another issue.
Good luck. Read, read, read.

 

[austinsmom01]

Just found your site today. . .very interesting stuff! Great find!

Will try to keep my story short!! In ground pool, vinyl liner, chlorinator not working. . .water is very brown. . .have well water. ..have not added water since May. . .has been clean and clear since then but not now!! Chlorine was at zero. . .added 6 gallons of bleach today and have brushed and cleaned filters twice so far. Testing with test strip and all looks good now. Since adding bleach it has not cleared at all.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Hi! I too have well water and last year was my first season with an AG. Water was clear then I shocked and water turned a brownish green overnight! Thought it was algae but turned out the iron/copper in my water reacted with the chlorine turning it colors. This year when I started (took the pool down last year) before I shocked I put metal out in first then added chlorine and no reaction and no color change. After you add the metal out you'll just have to wait for your filter to do the work. It will clear up in a few days.

 

[bunky]

Thanks so much for all info. ..added signature line. . .hopefully w/ correct info! Will attempt to answer other questions here. . .you are all correct, need to read more and learn more! Have not had problems in the past. . .pretty easy to care for since it was installed but this is ridiculous! The water is dark brown, with a greenish hue, cannot see through it at all. . .it appears that there is some brown on the wall but hard to tell. Have been brushing pool and swapping filters most of the day. We have not had new filters in a few years. . .am trying to locate.

Using Aquacheck 7 most recent readings were:

TH 500
TC .5
FC .5
PH 7.2
TA 120-180
CYA 30-50

After reading some responses we did add metal magnet type stuff that we bought at Wal-Mart. . .only place open when I could get it tonight! We did add some more bleach (another gallon) after that since it was down from earlier in the day.

Have been out of town alot and the pool guy that we work with has been promising he would come out in a day or two for over a month!

Thanks so much for the help!!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Okay, I gotta suspect algae. If you have had the water in your pool since May, and it's been clear till now, then this has to be an algae bloom right? Otherwise if it were metals, you would have been adding maintenance doses of metal sequesterant, I would think, or seen other evidence of metals before now... That being said, your TH of 500 has me a bit concerned. Your TA is also high and the combination can result in scaling, especially if your PH changes....You need to order a good test kit and get to the pool store while you wait for your kit, and have them test the water, running a complete set, including metals and find out your CSI - saturation index. If they use strips to test then they are not very accurate either.

In any event, lets proceed on the assumption it's algae. It's going to take ALOT of chlorine.

How deep is your pool? According to the Pool Calculator, An 17 X 36 rectangle, with a depth of 3.5 feet is 17,500 gallons. That's alot of water, and I suspect since it's inground the depth is more than that. Do you know your exact gallonage or the depth of your pool?

In any event, for 17,500 gal it's going to take about 8-9 (large jugs - 174oz) jugs of bleach to bring you to shock level of 24 (I'm assuming here your CYA is 40-the strips are in accurate) because this could be a type of mustard algae from what you are describing....or your CYA could be higher than what you think so I personally believe that for now, till we know more, a shock of 24 is a good target for you.

So in other words, back to Wal-mart! to stock up. OR if you can get a better price on the 10-12.5% liquid chlorine at a pool store then buy all means stock up on that, be sure to use The Pool Calculator for proper dosing amounts.
To confirm metals - You can try putting a vitamin C tablet on the brownish areas if there are any on the walls, if it goes away after 30 seconds there are metals present.

So you will have a lot of bleaching and brushing to do over the next several days. Read the article turning-your-green-swamp-back-into-a-sparking-oasis-t4147.html and it will help explain alot.

Hope this helps and doesn't leave you feeling overwhelmed.

 

[bunky]

Greetings! Thanks for the help so far!!

Took water sample to pool place this a.m. - results are:

Saturation index .4
CYA 45
Total Chlorine .6
Free Chlorine 0
pH 7.6
Tot Alk 144
Adj Total Alk 130
Total Harness 329
Copper .1
Showing no Algae, Slime or Mold

Pool place recommended adding 2.75 qts Pool Magnet Plus, Sparkle Up, .5 lb of Lo 'N Slo and no chlorine for 7 days!!!

Did not add anything this morning, just changed filters again, looking better. . .I can actually see the bottom in the shallow end!!!

Thoughts?????????

 

[austinsmom01]

You said you already added the metal out from Walmart right? I can only advise that the filter will do the work and seems it is if it's already clearing. It will take a few days to clear. I've not had to add anymore to mine since April. Then again, I've not had to add anymore water from the well either. Not sure I'd let my pool go 7 days without chlorine though. I'll let the experts tell you about that. Now that I've battled algae, I check it everyday and don't let it drop past 3 ppm. IMHO I think you need to get some FC in there and let the filter handle the rest. Also, your TA seems high to me. Hopefully someone will come along soon with better answers.

PS, sounds like you need to fire your pool guy! This place is all you need! They have all the answers here and you are the one in charge!

Good luck!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Hi All, back from Michigan....

I agree with Austinsmom , ditch the pool store recommendations and just keep your FC up, do not wait 7 days....shoot for your levels according to the CYA chart, and use the metal sequesterant you have. You can always get a better MS if you don't think that brand is working. Jack's Magic Stuff is supposed to be good.