Pool floor looks like a putting green

[birch]

Like many others that I've read, I tried to fix my algae problem and avoid posting. All summer I've been seeing green algae groming in spots and simply shocked and scubbed, 2 weeks ago, problem got worse, green covering 1/2 the bottom of the pool (water clear). I read about shocking, scrubbing, backwashing, and pool was clear for about 5 days...now green growing in same sections! Today i bought a testkit recommended on the site and levels were noy way off...here are the info and #s:
Pool = 22275 gallons
DE jacuzzi filter
filter runs from 9am-5pm
pool in full sun 11am-6pm
FC= 3 should be 6 add 92 oz bleach
TC=3
CC=0
BR=6
PH= 7.2 little low need to add 26oz soda ash
TA= 60 little low need 75oz baking soda
CYA= 55 did 2x cause seemed very high

I know FC should be around 6 for my #s, but my frog chlorinating system is on the highest #. The info said to add 92 oz bleach.
---If my chlorinator is already maxed, how will i maintain the appropriate FC???
---Can i put in a pound of shock powder instead?

I never had a problem like this before and it is making my retreat a prison sentence! What am i doing wrong???
*I did move the filter this year about 60 ft away from pool, but didnt have an effect on filter operation
*I have 2 dogs that are in and out of pool

 

[JasonLion]

Welcome to TFP!

FC at 6 is a good day to day level. But it isn't enough to kill off growing algae. Once you get algae, you need to bring the FC level up to shock level to kill it. With a CYA of 55, shock level is 17. Then you need to test the FC level and raise it back up to 17 fairly frequently until all of the algae is dead. While the FC level is high you need to brish the entire pool each day. For more information see this Pool School article.

Keep in mind that the frog is adding more CYA all the time, so the required FC level is going to continue to go up unless you switch to another chlorine source.

Regular household bleach is a good source of chlorine. You want plain bleach, no scents, additives, or special features. It is a little more carrying, but well worth it.

 

[birch]

Thanks for the quick reply
You said the keep the FC at 17 until the algae is dead...how will i know, i thought i killed it after major shocking , brushing and back washing b4 but it came back...is there an average time frame?

Also i have the frog system set at 10 (trying to keep chlorine level high) but you say it raises the CYA. Should i lower it or will that make things worse?

Thanks again, but i'm still confused about these 2 issues!

 

[duraleigh]

Hi, birch,

Welcome to the forum.

The frog adds CYA and chlorine to your pool....not good....you don't want any more CYA in that pool you just want chlorine. You need to remove the frog and just add chlorine to your pool. Lowering th e frog setting will reduce both CYA and chlorine.....not good......you need to remove the frog.

You said the keep the FC at 17 until the algae is dead...how will i know,

The process is complete when:
A. You hold FC loss to 1.0 or less overnite
B. Your CC's test .5 or less
C. Your water is sparkling

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

As a former Frog owner, my advice is remove it, you don't need it, but most of all, you don't want it.

Here's a bit of good info on the Frog and similar "alternative sanitizers"....Ionizers

And Another.

Besides all the useful info in these articles that will likely convince you, think of all the money you'll save not buying the expensive mineral cartridges and bacpacs....

 

[Swimgirl]

One thing I found out, with the Frog, at least mine, if you turn it off, it still circulates water in it slowly. So if you decide that you don't want the metals or the bac-pac (and I strongly recommend that you don't keep the metals or the bac-pac), but the Frog itself is difficult to remove, take everything out of it. It doesn't hurt if the Frog is still hooked to your system empty. I tell you, that thing has so many promises, and everybody who uses it eventually ends up mad at it - usually because of metal staining or algae, or both. Also, since you have used Frog, you do need to make sure your Ph stays good. It's especially important to have a good Ph before shocking. This is because of the possibility of metal staining if your Ph gets high, especially at shock levels of chlorine.

The "Pool Frog" is one prince that turns out to be a frog! :king:

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

One thing I found out, with the Frog, at least mine, if you turn it off, it still circulates water in it slowly. So if you decide that you don't want the metals or the bac-pac (and I strongly recommend that you don't keep the metals or the bac-pac), but the Frog itself is difficult to remove, take everything out of it. It doesn't hurt if the Frog is still hooked to your system empty. I tell you, that thing has so many promises, and everybody who uses it eventually ends up mad at it - usually because of metal staining or algae, or both. Also, since you have used Frog, you do need to make sure your Ph stays good. It's especially important to have a good Ph before shocking. This is because of the possibility of metal staining if your Ph gets high, especially at shock levels of chlorine.

The "Pool Frog" is one prince that turns out to be a frog! :king:

Good advice! Take everything out and set it to "max" and the water will just pass right thru. Throw out the cartridge and bacpacs.

 

[birch]

Alright, i see that the frog system stinks and am considering removal but then what? I read about chlorine at "poolschool" and it seems like the only real option is bleach. How do you chlorinate with bleach? Do you need to pour bleach in daily and check levels daily? From what i read, it seems like all other options are the same as the frog system concept.

After reading my post, i sound like a dope but i dont get how you guys chlorinate your pools w/o an inline chlorinator or dropping pucks into the skimmer..please help me understand because i feel like everything i am reading on this site goes against everything that i've been told by other pool owners and pool store employees.

 

[JasonLion]

A little less than half of us pour in bleach daily, a little less than half have a SWG system, and most of the remainder use The Liquidator (which adds bleach automatically). There are actually a couple of other good choices, but they aren't very popular (for example bleach feed systems other than The Liquidator).

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

I add bleach every other day. I add enough to bring me slightly above my "target" level according to the CYA chart...and then I skip a day, and then I test on the other day and see where I'm at and I add enough bleach to bring me back up to my target. So for me, my chlorine goes between 2.5-3 and 5-6. It works for me and then I'm not testing every day and adding bleach every day. IT was an adjustment at first, because I liked the convenience of the frog...but I got used to it, you will too. IT really is about 5 minutes every other day.

 

[Swimgirl]

Going out to the pool every day is a good excuse to get a little sunshine!

Seriously, poolmom has a good system of every other day; I myself find it just as easy to take a jug of 10% liquid chlorine and a measuring cup with me to the pool. Only takes as much time as pouring a cup of water; it's not like cooking where you have to be exact with measurements! :-D

Oh, and you can find out about how much chlorine you need to add using the pool calculator. Also, many test kits including the TF-100 have "cheat sheets" telling how much chlorine to add for how much of a PPM increase.

 

[birch]

Thanks for all of the tips..this "simple and cheap" idea of just using bleach or liquid chlorine sounded too good to be true. This is my last question...i think..if i remove the frog system, is there another chemical needed to keep the CYA at an adequate level that goes along w/ the bleach?

Hate to be a pain, but wanna have all the info b4 dumping ol' froggy!

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Your CYA can be purchased seperately....sometimes it's also called "Stabilizer".

Your level should stay constant, it's not like bleach that you add it routinely. It's only depleted thru fresh water replacement, like backwashing a filter or splashout, etc. dilution, thru rainwater (takes alot of rain). So pools with an "autofill" feature and a sand filter, they probably need to test it more often than a pool like mine that uses a cartridge filter and doesn't require backwashing.

Occasionally you hear of it being depleted over the winter but that's never happened to me. There's been some odd reports this year of several members reporting their's dissappearing or trouble maintaining it. Wierd. Anway, if you winterize, check it when you close and check it again in the spring. Periodically you may need to add some if necessary to keep it in range. It's not a test that needs to be performed routinely. Maybe every few months during the season, more frequently if you are trying to bring it in to range.