Cloudy water wont uncloudy ..

guardwife2 said:
as you can see from the pictures I dont think there is any change in the pool at all. so what do I do from here? I can keep doing the shock method but at some point in time that has to come to an end too. IN these pictures it shows the pool is more green then what it really is...Im beginning to wonder if it isn't metals in the water? scratching my head....
Hard to tell if metals are the problem. Metal in the water tints the water but the water is clear. Yours isn't clear. That's not to say there isn't metals but the cloudiness is from something else.

First off, Kudos on the shocking process. Wow. Your attention to detail and diligence is outstanding! Since your shock level is 16 and you go up into the 20's you can let it drift down to 16 before adding. That'll give you a little break here and there. But if you want to keep hitting it with those non-stop knockout punches--have at it. It's refreshing to see see someone battle algae tooth and nail in the correct manner.

Couple questions:
Are you running your filter 24/7?
How's your filter acting? Is your pressure rising as you filter?
How often do you have to backwash?
 
no well but we have iron in our water...the pool store tested for iron and none was detected. We also use a filter thing on our hose we purchased from the pool store..it is old though so could not be working real well. Even when pool is clear, without algae, there is a yellow color to it sometimes when we put in new water. But we add a metal out and it clears it up.

Yes, filter/pump runs 24/7..we always do. filter/pump is running good and out putting good. Pressure on the pump was alittle high, 18, this morning so I backwashed/rinsed this morning. first time I have done that since starting the shocking process it. I did backwash/rinse before starting it. I dont backwash alot just when pump seems to be running high or when I used the floc..I did it to waste but then would backwash/rinse the pump afterwards.
 
Guardwife,

My dear... Your pool looks better! It really does. If you switch between the images of the steps, you'll see it. The image you posted yesterday (think) barely shows that there whitish blobs that should be 3rd and 4th steps. The second image of the steps clearly shows the outline of the 4th step.

This is improvement! The green part often sticks a bit at this phase, slowly lightening up. Shortly, as you keep up the FC and shocking process it'll turn, cloudy blue. Then you'll have to wait some more to get past the cloudy, and it'll feel like forever again.

This is why we sell free POP here. You're doing great, I can see good things in your future. :~}
 
Ok, when you say it's a little high at 18 psi, what's the gauge read right after backwashing? The reason I ask is because excessive backwashing before needed is counter productive. The opposite also holds true. Let it go too long and the circulation slows to a crawl.

Backwashing should be done when your filter pressure reads 20 to 25% over clean pressure. For instance, if your clean pressure is 16 psi, you want to backwash when the gauge reads around 19 or 20 psi. It depends what your filter pressure is right after backwashing.
 
thanks Frogabog...Ill have to go back and look at the pics. Im still onward and upward with the shocking process. Im dead tired from being up most of the night but will work on it today too.

Yeggim-18 is high for us. My gauge usually is btwn 14/16 has been since we got the pool. We have replaced the gauge b/c I drop it and broke it last yr:( right now gauge is 16. Yes know what you mean when it goes to a crawl..we have had that happen a few times when we were working on our own trying to clear it up. but the circulation is working great right now..the water is really circulating and the in/out put is doing it jobs.
 
guardwife2 said:
thanks Frogabog...Ill have to go back and look at the pics. Im still onward and upward with the shocking process. Im dead tired from being up most of the night but will work on it today too.

Yeggim-18 is high for us. My gauge usually is btwn 14/16 has been since we got the pool. We have replaced the gauge b/c I drop it and broke it last yr:( right now gauge is 16. Yes know what you mean when it goes to a crawl..we have had that happen a few times when we were working on our own trying to clear it up. but the circulation is working great right now..the water is really circulating and the in/out put is doing it jobs.
Sounds like everything is in order. I have basically the same pool and setup as yours. How often do you have to backwash and how big is your filter?
 
yeggim

I only backwash if the gauge is running high, or we floc it, or the circulation goes to a crawl....this yr we have had to back wash a lot b/c we have been working on getting our pool clear since June. We have only swam in it like 3 times and that was very very early on like may/beg of June. as far as the filter size...I know we put 100lbs of sand in it and the rest of the details of it are in my signature. I can take a pick of it if that helps?
 
guardwife2 said:
yeggim

I only backwash if the gauge is running high, or we floc it, or the circulation goes to a crawl....this yr we have had to back wash a lot b/c we have been working on getting our pool clear since June. We have only swam in it like 3 times and that was very very early on like may/beg of June. as far as the filter size...I know we put 100lbs of sand in it and the rest of the details of it are in my signature. I can take a pick of it if that helps?
No need for a pic. I have the same filter. With water like yours, I'm guessing that you're backwashing once a day or so?
 

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Hi guardwife,

Sorry didn't get a chance to get on this morning. Seen your photos from this morning, and am perplexed at the lack of color change. With the shock level you have been at, we should have seen a bit more improvement. Now, this very well could be a stubborn algae bloom. So, I'm still not gonna rule that out yet. But, since you have brought up metals, I think we should at least try to rule them out. Is there any way you can get a full test for iron, copper, silver, etc. You may have to call around. Some pool stores can do it. Your municipality may also do it for you. If it is any metal that could be causing this, based on the color , my bet would be copper(copper oxidizes to green). Which leads me to the next question. How did it get there? Have you recently used any algaecides from the pool store, and if so, what kind. You mentioned a filter thing for your hose from the pool store, what kind is it? Do you have any reverse osmosis, natures way, or any other treatment hooked in line with your pools filtration system? For peace of mind more than anything I want to rule out metals. This does look more like an algae problem because of the cloudiness. Just want to make sure.
 
Gordyjamz:

Im not sure if I can find anyone around my town. I live in a small small town. The pool store has tested for iron, etc in my last round of testing with them and none was detected....I called our local pool here in town and they use bromine and only test that and Ph they told me. which doesn't help me. Our water people here in town are not very friendly so that rules that out. I have used algaecides one before I dumped half of our water out (before even started posting on here) and one after wards. the first one was Banish from the pool stores usually works awesome for us but this yr..did not. The second was a store bought one..HTH I believe. but we have backwashed/rinsed and refilled so many times since then--this is when we were flocking the pool--that is should be pretty well out of the pool. The filter thing we put on the hose is one you can buy at a pool store. Ill post pics of what I have. They both are pretty yellow from using them repeatedly. And nothing hooked to pump/filter but the pump/filter. I too am shocked at no change in appearance of the pool. esp since I stayed on top of it all night long. Im just scratching my head. Im beginning to think I have the pool that wouldn't or couldn't change. lol
 
I have used both of these hose filters....on our pool. Also...when we floc (see pics I posted of that) everything settles to the bottom and it is a yellow/green color....and the sides/top of the pool is clear but when I vacuum to waste it gets stirred up again and causes what you see in the current pics. It is getting less and less when we floc..before it was like sludge coming out...now it is just waste. hope that helps
 
What to do from here?.... Keep keeping at it. It can look the same on the surface but underneath it all the bleach is killing the algae. The point and time when shocking will end is when you have a crystal clear, sparkling looking pool and passed the OCLT. Once it is as that point then you'll maintain a daily FC level to keep it crystal clear and sparkling.

At the start of this season my pool was like yours. It took weeks of shocking and then finally I started to see a difference. With persistance and dedication I now have a clear, sparkling pool. I maintain a daily FC level of 7 bc of my sun levels. Daily I typically add about 1 to 2 cups of bleach. It will always be an ongoing process but it is well worth it. I went on a weeks vacation a few weeks ago, came back to a slightly cloudy pool. It was still clear but not as crisp as when I left. I knew crud was lurking and about to start growing on me. I kicked up my FC levels for a few days, tested OCLT, passed and now I'm back to being crystal clear and crisp.

You will always have to maintain your levels and hopefully never go green again! If you do tho, you now know how to handle it and what to do. :-D
 
Are you still adding floc while shocking? If so, I'd say cease that. I'm not entirely sure but it could be part of the stalling. Normally all you need is chlorine and filtering to clear the pool.

I still stand by my statement that it looks significantly better today. Firefox will stay at the same spot when you use forward and back, so if you chose page 5 (or is it 4? whichever has the images), stop at the step picture. Then chose page 6 and scroll to the same image. Stop. Then use the forward and back arrows to compare the images. It's different, for sure. If it's still green in a couple of days, then maybe worry some but for now I'd just let it work. It looks like algae, not copper to me. Copper is clear green, this is cloudy green. Similar to all the other green pools we've seen here.

Patience grasshopper... :~}
 
esim13:

Ok...that's what I plan on doing for now is keeping at it. Im really hoping it starts changing at some point in time to atleast give me some hope. haa haa

Frgoabog:

No, we stopped flocking BEFORE doing the shock process. So only doing the shock process at this time. I started the shocking process yesterday, continued it last night and still doing so today. So I haven't flocked for a few days. Yep....Im continuing on with the process....Ill keep posting test results...






quick question im throwing out there:

other than the risk to my liner what would happen if I totally dumped my water and refilled it? I dont want to do this..this is a LAST RESORT sort of thing. My husband and I were talking about this. We have decided we are giving the pool till the end of July to clear up and if it hasn't we are closing it up for winter. Then next yr totally draining it, cleaning it, putting in a cheap new liner if needed and hauling water in and starting over. It really sucks we haven't been able to use our pool at all this yr.
 
I didn't realize this was day 2 for you with shocking. You're still in the beginning stages, so don't worry right now about it not changing. It can take more than 2 days to change color. You are experiencing exactly why we do shocking as a process and not a one time event or product. As you can see, even high levels of chlorine take time to kill algae. You're still killing it, a lot of it is still alive. When it's dead, those algae carcases turn white/grey instead of being living and green. Miniscule little dead corpses will be floating around. That is the cloudy part. Ever notice that a algae filled pond or lake is nice and clear? You have some dead algae, and some live algae. Cloudy green is what you've got. Absolutely normal.
 
ok..Ill keep at it then. I just went out and retested. Ive been doing this about every 2 hours now....

FC 22
CC1

no bleach added. Someone told me earlier in the post not to add bleach over 20...to wait till it gets 20 or under to add bleach so that is what I have been doing.
 
You still have CC's, that's good. Keep on at it! Does your pool have debris in it at the bottom? I'm sorry if you answered that, I haven't read the whole thread. Having old, dead, decaying leaves at the bottom can slow the process down.
 

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