Pollen or mustard algae???

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cubbybeave08

cubbybeave08

0
Feb 2, 2008
908
Northwest Indiana
I have a 24ft agp...For the past week I have had a problem with sand...it was sand initially...I picked it up and felt it in my hands...it was grainy and did not disintergrate in my hand. This weekend I noticed that after a couple days of vacuuming up the sand every day...it stopped coming back. Now I have a brown powdery substance on the bottom of the pool. I vacuum it up, and the next day it is back all over the pool in the little wrinkles on the bottom of the pool...This is my first year with a pool...The water sparkles all the time...It has never been cloudy, and I keep the pool at about 3-4 ppm all the time...PH holds at 7.4 to 7.6, hardness is 170 and alkalinity is 110 ppm. My CYA is probably a little low...just retested it and it is about 25. I add 36-50 ounces of 10% clhlorine every couple of days...the past week has been extremely hot. Last week we had two huge cloud bursts. On Thursday we had enough rain to bring the water up over the skimmer...just filled to 2/3 of the skimmer plate...so it was up at least two inches...I have trees on three sides of the pool, but the pool is in the sun...Same thing happened on Friday...both days I had to drain water off of the pool to bring the water down to skimmer leves...Could the brown dust on the bottom be pollen from the trees. I notice that when I vacuume and the skimmer is not running the surface of the pool is covered with a dusty substance. Is that tree pollen that then sinks to the bottom and rests in the wrinkles and divits in the liner???

Chlorine seems to hold very well. Although I need a better test kit...I do know that I do not show CC's

The water does not seem to be a problem...I think I might take a dip and try to suck some up in an eyedropper and look at it...
 
Getting dust settling on the bottom of the pool for several days after a storm is quite common.

Mustard algae will spread and grow up the walls of the pool if you don't shock the pool. Dust/pollen will keep re-appearing, but will never accumulate on the walls of the pool. If you do shock the pool, mustard algae will mostly disappear as long as you are at shock level and brushing occasionally. Dust will continue appearing at the same rate when you are at shock level.
 
JasonLion said:
Getting dust settling on the bottom of the pool for several days after a storm is quite common.

Mustard algae will spread and grow up the walls of the pool if you don't shock the pool. Dust/pollen will keep re-appearing, but will never accumulate on the walls of the pool. If you do shock the pool, mustard algae will mostly disappear as long as you are at shock level and brushing occasionally. Dust will continue appearing at the same rate when you are at shock level.
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jason,
Put the mask on and went to the bottom and collected a sample or three. got out my son's micro scope...It isn't very good but I can tell it looks sporish...like pollen...spike around the edges, and round...not the description I saw earlier about algae. So I think you are right...I get a lot of leaves in the pool and try to get them out as soon as i can...but i wonder if a lot of this isn't breakdown from the chlorine...I was just in the pool and when I brush my foot over a spot it felt kind of slimey and a dark cloud appeared and then dissapated. However, I did not vacuume yesterday and did on Saturday...but we have had rain for four of the past five days and quite heavy rain to...The brown stuff is all over the bottom but not on the walls. They are not slimey at all.
 
Frustrating, isn't it?

I get dirt similar to what you describe. Mine isn't from trees, it comes from agricultural dust, but it settles on the water surface and then sinks to the bottom and collects in small crevices and little indentations. I vacuum when I have the time. When I don't, I put a sock in the skimmer basket, brush the floor, and turn the pump on high for 2 or 3 hours. That often takes care of most of the dirt.
 
AnnaK said:
Frustrating, isn't it?

I get dirt similar to what you describe. Mine isn't from trees, it comes from agricultural dust, but it settles on the water surface and then sinks to the bottom and collects in small crevices and little indentations. I vacuum when I have the time. When I don't, I put a sock in the skimmer basket, brush the floor, and turn the pump on high for 2 or 3 hours. That often takes care of most of the dirt.
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So what you're saying is that I am just refiltering through the skimmer and back into the pool? If i get a pool sock that will be trapped in the sock? I will try that. It certainly doesn't seem like Algae...I looked at it under a microscope and it looked like pollen or dust, not Algae. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
Some of it may well not get trapped in the filter medium and is then circulated back into the pool, yes. But more is added, too, so even when you end with a clean pool floor after vacuuming, you can expect to be more of it again the next day, especially during heavy pollen season.

I've found skimmer socks to be very effective, particularly when I've brushed the pool to re-suspend the 'dust' and ran the pump for a while. I normally run the pump at night at low speed. While this turns over the water volume and skims some debris off the surface, it has no effect on debris that's on the bottom of the pool, the 'dust'. Stirring the dust up while brushing and then running the pump is a good mechanism in my pool for clearing much of it out.

From what you describe you saw after your diving expedition, it doesn't sound like algae but rather organic matter carried by wind and rain - non-algae organic matter, I mean.

It's helpful to know what the CC reading is, and maybe you'll decide on a test kit that can measure them, because long before your water loses its sparkle the CC reading can warn you of an impending problem.
 
AnnaK said:
Some of it may well not get trapped in the filter medium and is then circulated back into the pool, yes. But more is added, too, so even when you end with a clean pool floor after vacuuming, you can expect to be more of it again the next day, especially during heavy pollen season.

I've found skimmer socks to be very effective, particularly when I've brushed the pool to re-suspend the 'dust' and ran the pump for a while. I normally run the pump at night at low speed. While this turns over the water volume and skims some debris off the surface, it has no effect on debris that's on the bottom of the pool, the 'dust'. Stirring the dust up while brushing and then running the pump is a good mechanism in my pool for clearing much of it out.

From what you describe you saw after your diving expedition, it doesn't sound like algae but rather organic matter carried by wind and rain - non-algae organic matter, I mean.

It's helpful to know what the CC reading is, and maybe you'll decide on a test kit that can measure them, because long before your water loses its sparkle the CC reading can warn you of an impending problem.
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Anna,
I have a CC of 0 at this point I bought a Taylor DPD last weekend, I know I should have gotten the FAS-DPD, but they didn't have one...I am looking on line to see if they have just the FAS_DPD for the chlorine and they do so I may head back to Leslie's this week and purchase that...but with the DPD I can match the colors, and it is not as acurate as counting the drops...but I can safely say the colors show no CC. I have no smell either and the suites don't reek when we take them off. However I would like to go with the FAS_DPD to be sure...Next Spring or should I say over the winter I am going to buy the Kit from TFP...This way I will always be sure...Ask PoolMom...I am becoming quite the fanatic about my pool...I hate leaves!!!They are the bain of my pool existence...They make me crazy...One is too many! Thanks for your suggestions on the skimmer sock...
 
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