Get The Iron Out

[tgsetliff]

Good Day,

I have an above ground pool, 18 x 33 and we just replaced the liner a few weeks ago. I had to refill off of a well which has heavy iron so once the pool was filled, we had a really nice looking mud puddle. Initially, we put in about 7 gallons of bleach, a box of Borax and 2 bottles of MetalOut. After a couple of days, there wasnt a lot of change but our filter was heavily loaded with iron. We added 4 more bottles of MetalOut and I rinsed out the filter daily but still didn't see any noticeable improvement. After doing some reading here at TFP, I added in some pillow batten to the skimmer and slowly, the water went from muddy brown to teal color. I still can't clearly see the bottom but I can see the brush and vacuum heads when on the bottom. While the filter still gets pretty loaded with Iron, I'm not catching as much in the pillow batten. I have vacuumed a few times and brushed daily and I do not see as much sediment being stirred up from the bottom. We have not been using any bleach because it seemed like the iron was just eating it up. Currently, Chlorine is 0, Ph is at 6.8 and the alkalinity is at 50.

My question is, should I start putting bleach in now and get the Chlorine level to what it should be or do I still need to be fighting the Iron problem first? If it's Iron, are there any suggestions on what I else I could try to get it gone?

Appreciate any input that anyone can provide.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

If there is any way you could drain the pool then, and truck in clean water?

Often when adding chlorine the iron will come out of suspension and look horrible but you can capture it then. I'd keep going with the polyfill and perhaps a slime bag. Google "Slime bag".

Iron in water
Water turned brown. What to do?

Maddie

 

[tgsetliff]

Thank You for the reply. Unfortunately, trucking in water isn't a financial option. I do have a filter system on the well for the water inside the house and when adding water to the pool, it does go through that filtering. I didn't fill through that initially because I didnt want to abuse the system that much. We will start adding in the bleach and continue with the polyfill... and look into the Slime Bag as well. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[zea3]

Go ahead and add the bleach, you don't want to start growing algae on top of the iron. Have you looked at the DIY rust filters for intex pools on youtube? You may want to try that as well. Here is one that gives good instructions for building the filter. How to get rust out of pool water - The easy way - No more brown water! - No more red water! - YouTube

 

[tgsetliff]

I have started adding Bleach and the iron has been forming and settling on the bottom. I have been vacuuming and discharging the water so I dont get it blown back in. The water does seem to be clearing now as I am able to see the bottom more clearly. I will continue with the polyfill and brushing and vacuuming daily as that seems to be doing the trick. Thanks for all the advice!!