Filling up pool for the 1st time

[kimkats]

SWEET! That is what I was hoping for! Nothing wrong with the water!

Not sure why you have having the DE act as it does. Has it been raining there a lot so you are having to backwash to dump some water out?

 

[ellislo]

Ya, it rains a lot recently, I just vacuum to waste to clean the pool and lower the water level at the same time, never use the backwash since added DE.

Yesterday, Pump pressure reading 10psi when pump was turned on. Added total 3/4 cup DE (1/4 cup DE at 10mins interval) to get pressure up to 11psi. From my observation, thereafter:
- 4hrs, pressure reading 15psi; slow water flow from return
- off and restarted pump; pressure reading 10psi; after 4hrs, pressure reading 14psi
- today, after running pump for 1hr, pressure reading 11psi

Maybe my filter needed more time for the DE/pressure to stabilize

 

[Dirk]

Just completed my OCLT:
- 24 Jan, 7pm: FC 7.0
- 25 Jan, 6:30am, on pump for circulation; 7:00am FC 7.0

How was the CC?
And the water clarity?
Passing the OCLT (which you did) along with CC ≤ 0.5 and clear water indicates no algae in the pool.

 

[ellislo]

CC< 0.5, water clarity is good, and my FC is quite consistent, around 7-8.

We only use the pool during weekend to allow time for the sediment to settle down between Mon-Fri. I will vacuum the sediment on the floor to waste on Sat morning. Have been doing these for the passed few months.

Will just keep an eye on my filter pressure/DE for the time being. Maybe I haven’t got enough of DE in the filter yet.

 

[kimkats]

.............so the water looks good in all ways..............now lets talk about your sand in your pool. Do you remember what kind of sand was put in the filter? We don't usually go down this rabbit hole but nothing else is showing up as a problem.

 

[ellislo]

I am using the glass media that came with my intex filter:
Intex Glass Filtration Media for Swimming Pool Sand Filter Pumps 25Kg #29058, Grey, 58.4x33x14 cm: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors

2-3 months ago, I have opened up the filter to clean the media and top up the media to the recommended level with:
Glass Pearls Filter Media - Waterco

 

[kimkats]

Stop putting DE in your filter. You have a sand filter listed so I thought you were using sand. Please add the glass filter media to your signature by your listed filter. This explains what you are seeing/experiencing when you add the DE.

I would flush out your filter with a good long back wash to get the DE out of the filter. If you keep seeing stuff in the pool I would think about opening your filter to remove the glass media to rinse it all out.

 

[ellislo]

Ok, so I am not suppose to us DE for glass media . So actually what is the effect of having DE with glass media? Make the filtration worst?

 

[JJ_Tex]

Ok, so I am not suppose to us DE for glass media . So actually what is the effect of having DE with glass media? Make the filtration worst?

I think Kim is saying that the sediment you are seeing is the DE you have been adding to your glass medium.

 

[ellislo]

It can’t be the case as the sediment are there well before I adding DE. The reason I add DE is because of the consistent sediment on the floor and I need to vacuum to waste weekly to maintain the pool water clarity.

 

[ellislo]

See what I found in the rabbit hole @kimkats ....
what are those green stuff

I poked the green stuff and I can see some white powdery stuff, I suppose those are the DE?

After backwashed....

 

[kimkats]

You found the problem..................algea! The white stuff may be left over DE. Did you do a deep clean of the filter for the last pic?

 

[ellislo]

I just done a backwash only, have done a deep clean 5 months ago.

So basically, my pool water has algae? So the brownish sediment are dead algae? How is this possible given that I have been maintaining my FC My only solution is SLAM?

My chemical reading taken yesterday:
FC 8.0
CC < 0.5
pH 7.2 (added 720g soda ash)
TA 60
CYA 60

 

[kimkats]

The green stuff is telling the story of what is going on. Green = algae

I will tell you quite a few people have found the glass does not work as well as sand. What I would do is SLAM the pool. Making sure to check on the filter to see what is happening in it.

 

[ellislo]

will SLAM the pool.

Given that the following are the indicators that SLAM is completed,

• CC is 0.5 or lower;
• You pass an OCLT shows a loss of 1.0 ppm or less);
• And the water is clear.

and I have already achieved the above before SLAM, then how long should I SLAM, 2 days? @kimkats

 

[ellislo]

Started SLAM with CYA 60, hence target FC 24:
19 Feb 7pm FC27 CC0.5
20 Feb 7am FC25.5; 6:30pm FC18 -> added cal-hypo 450g; 9:30 FC27
21 Feb 7am FC24.5 -> added cal-hypo 350g; 6:42pm FC23
22 Feb 6:40am FC21.5 CC0.5 -> added 500g cal-hypo; 6:38pm FC22
23 Feb 6:29am FC20.5 -> added 700g cal-hypo; 6:34pm FC22.5
24 Feb 6:30am FC23 CYA60 -> added 700g cal-hypo; 6:50pm FC24.5
25 Feb 6:31am FC25.5 -> added cal-hypo 500g; 7:18pm FC24.5
26 Feb 6:47am FC26

On 24, 25 & 26 Feb morning, I have recorded a higher FC compare to previous day evening FC. i did notice the water temperature in the morning is 27.5 degree Celsius and evening 29 degree Celsius. Throughout the SLAM I only added cal-hypo in the morning after testing the FC. Both trichlor chlorinator and SWG were off. I just ensure that in the evening I still have approx FC24. I run the pump/filter 4hours from 7am-11am and 5pm-9pm daily and brushed the pool twice daily, in the morning and evening.

Pool water does look crystal clear today without any brownish dead algae on the floor, which I normally have to vacuum to waste weekly.



1. Any idea why my FC higher in the morning? Does the different in water temperature of only 1 degree Celsius has effect on the FC reading.
2. Having recorded 3 day consecutively with no loss of FC in the morning, can I finally declare victory over algae invasion?

 

[Dirk]

2. Having recorded 3 day consecutively with no loss of FC in the morning, can I finally declare victory over algae invasion?

Did you mention your CC level? If that's less than 0.5 then you're done! Good job. It sure looks an awful lot like a pool to me!!

 

[ellislo]

My CC maintained at 0.5 throughout SLAM.

The moral of the story, no slacking in pool maintenance . I haven’t had any issue when I vacuumed my pool once a week in the beginning. The algae problem happened when I just skipped vacuuming the pool for once only. I guess once a week vacuuming is the absolute minimum require for my pool.

 

[ellislo]

Pool War: The Algae Strikes Back!

The algae are backed again . I have been using SWG with CYA 70 and maintaining the FC around 6.5 consistently. What I have reduced is the frequency of brushing to once a week and running the pump at 4hrs per day, as I only need to run my SWG at Max setting for 3hrs to maintain the FC.

I am suspecting the following factors may caused the algae outbreak:
1. 4hrs of pump run time not enough for pool circulation, hence FC doesn’t reach every corner of the pool
2. Brushing once a week not enough to stir up the algae for the FC to work effectively
3. Intex pool inherent bad design for the pool circulation or under power pump

Any advice on the above and possible other factor is very much appreciated.

 

[Dirk]

I think your three-point hypothesis is sound. Here's the thing. TFP offers "recommended" levels. They're just that, recommendations. TFP numbers can't possibly account for every pool, in every part of the world, under every imaginable condition. So every pool is different, and unique. You start with TFP numbers and then adjust what works for you pool. Sometimes that means more or less FC, more or less CYA, etc.

And if skipping brushing or vacuuming for just a week is all it took for algae to take hold, then my pool would be more algae than water!!

You have either chronic algae, because you've never really cleared the pool of it for good, or your pool is being subjected to algae-prone conditions, or both. You probably need to up TFP's numbers some.

You did the SLAM. Was it clear of algae for a good while after that? Or did it come back relatively quickly?

How often do you let FC get low, and how close to minimum FC do you let it get?

So after this SLAM, this is what I'd do. First, make sure your SLAM is really done. Don't skimp. Don't cheat the SLAM, and even let it go on for a bit longer. Be sure you hunt down anywhere algae could be hiding and clean it out. Inside the skimmer. Behind the light. In a ladder or other fixture. Under the drain cover. Etc.

Once you are absolutely sure the algae is gone, start running the FC level a few points higher than you have been. My minimum is 3 and my target is 5. I treat my target as minimum and up the target, just to make sure I never get algae. So my "fake" minimum is 5, and my target is 6 or 7. If I get to 4, I treat that like a red alert and get my FC back above 5 immediately. So even though my real minimum is 3, I never let my FC get anywhere near it, and never below it. Well... almost never...

I've had algae exactly once since I took over the pool. A very slight tinge. I had a hot set of days, and a pool party and I got lazy testing for FC. That was the Perfect Storm. Once I saw the green, I tested and found I had accidentally let FC slip to 2 or 2-1/2. So see, even though my minimum is 3, I can't afford to let it get near 3. And I can't afford to be lazy about testing, especially when it's hot. So I keep my pool a point or two above TFP's recommended target level.

So that's how I do it...