I have either mustard algae or pollen showing up on the bottom of my pool. After doing a search on the forum and reading countless posts, I am still not sure which one I am dealing with. The spots do vacumm up very easily and seem to show up more after a couple days of rainstorms. Doesn't seem to have anything to do with sun vs. shade either. Anyway, I went ahead and shocked this morning to 22fc which is higher than what I need for my cya level(which is around 30). Should I run the vacumm right now with the pool at shock level? I was curious to see if the spots went away without vacumming while at shock levels in an attempt to determine if I have pollen spots or mustard. Seems like I read somewhere on here that mustard algae would vanish while at shock levels only to return when the FC comes back down? How long would that likely take? I shocked about 3 hours ago and so far there has been no change to the spots.
Mustard Algae/maybe pollen?
- Thread starter budysr
- Start date
Vacuum them up, or brush them into the drain and then see if they come back while you are at shock level. If they come back at shock level then it isn't mustard algae.
Thanks Jason. I'll go ahead and vacuum up the bottom as these spots haven't changed all day and I know my FC is waayyyy high still. I am temporarily somewhat in the dark though on my numbers till I get a test kit in later this week although I have a good idea where I am at. I never had much of a daily FC loss(about 1 to 1.5ppm) all along so maybe its pollen and not algae? How long could it take for the FC to drop from 22 to a level that is swimmable if my CYA is around 30(and I don't have algae eating it up)?
With CYA around 30 you will lose more than 50% of your FC each day to sunlight, so your levels will fall in a day or two.
How long till Mustard Algae reappears?
Its been since Monday and I havent seen the brown spots I vacuumed up reappear. I have not added any more chlorine since the original shock I put in Monday morning so I doubt I am at a shock level by now. How long does mustard algae normally take to reappear in the same spots? I am now thinking that I have some kind of pollen that groups up in spots on the bottom over time, likely coming from the many oaks that are near the pool.
Its been since Monday and I havent seen the brown spots I vacuumed up reappear. I have not added any more chlorine since the original shock I put in Monday morning so I doubt I am at a shock level by now. How long does mustard algae normally take to reappear in the same spots? I am now thinking that I have some kind of pollen that groups up in spots on the bottom over time, likely coming from the many oaks that are near the pool.
Re: How long till Mustard Algae reappears?
Keep your FC at somewhat higher (say 30%) than the recommended levels and algae of any kind should never reappear.
I may not understand your post....is their a reason you want it to show back up?
Moved to the original topic. Hopefully it will make more sense now. JasonLion
Keep your FC at somewhat higher (say 30%) than the recommended levels and algae of any kind should never reappear.
I may not understand your post....is their a reason you want it to show back up?
Moved to the original topic. Hopefully it will make more sense now. JasonLion
Very frequently, that brownish yellow precipitate we see on the bottom of our pools is just plain dirt. Just as a house gets dusty, so does a pool. I understand why it's easy to come to the conclusion that it's mustard algae. I mean, algae is the enemy, right? We're constantly on the lookout for even the merest hint. From my reading here and elsewhere I've learned that mustard algae isn't all that common, for one, and for another, its prime season seems to be August. Pollens and environmental dust and dirt are generally more likely to dirty up a pool than is mustard algae, especially after rain storms.
Sometimes a duck is really just a duck.
My initial approach on dirty looking stuff on the bottom is to vacuum it. If it gets sucked up and isn't back in the same spot again 24 hours later, I don't give it another thought, especially if my water looks clean and the balance hasn't changed. That CC test is truly a valuable tool.
Sometimes a duck is really just a duck.
My initial approach on dirty looking stuff on the bottom is to vacuum it. If it gets sucked up and isn't back in the same spot again 24 hours later, I don't give it another thought, especially if my water looks clean and the balance hasn't changed. That CC test is truly a valuable tool.
I guess its just dirt and maybe pollen that I am seeing. I just assumed the worst and wanted to make sure that I was ready to deal with it if I had mustard algae. I have not seen brown spots reappear in many of the same spots since monday morning(but they have in other spots) and I have not kept the water at shock levels either. I may have over-reacted but I am just being protective of my water. Thanks for the comments!
That's called "Sparkly-Pool-Itis" and its a bit contagious here on the forum. 
We treat it with POP... 
(I did the same thing you did last summer... )
We treat it with POP... (I did the same thing you did last summer... )