Green pool

[mumgoa]

You're in the driver's seat now. You learned the tabs/pucks lesson the hard way (high CYA) and now you know liquid chlorine is the best way to chlorinate on a daily basis, not just for the SLAM but afterwards as well. Next spring, if your CYA is low when you open, then you can use tabs for a short while, but only until you see the CYA at a a good level

As for your current situation, blue is good, but crystal clear is even better! Keep focused on the SLAM FC level of 20 and be vigilant with brushing and inspecting all areas of the pool. You'll see the results soon.

Thanks so much, friends. A great deal of help provided, Appreciate it

I can see the water getting better as it is blue for sure. Today I could see the shadow of the drain which I was not able to for days

I brushed again this AM

My CYA is holding steady at 45/50
However, FC was maybe 19 versus 20 needed. I may have lost 1 PPM overnight. I added half bottle of liquid shock

Is that enough loss or I thought I should have lost more as algae would be attacking FC?

 

[mumgoa]

On the lessons learned - use TF 100 test kit ( #1)

On root cause - I understand that my CYA was always around 50/60 but the targeted FC was preferred to be 3 by the pool store tests

The chart indicates that FC should have been 8 for that CYA level

I believe that is the main reason for my issue, correct?

Moving on, I am discontinuing use of chlorine tabs completely and basing my liquid chlorine use based on the CYA level which should be maintaind in the 40-50 ppm range

Questions:
At what level of FC does the water become harmful to pool equipment. I had a leak in my over ground PVC pipe connecting to pump diagnosed as a high Chlorine cause.
Is the desired FC level of 3 too low given that the ideal CYA range is 40-50?

Thanks

 

[Katodude]

On the lessons learned - use TF 100 test kit ( #1)

VERY Correct

On root cause - I understand that my CYA was always around 50/60 but the targeted FC was preferred to be 3 by the pool store tests

YES

The chart indicates that FC should have been 8 for that CYA level

Yes

I believe that is the main reason for my issue, correct?

YES

Moving on, I am discontinuing use of chlorine tabs completely and basing my liquid chlorine use based on the CYA level which should be maintaind in the 40-50 ppm range

Yes

Questions:
At what level of FC does the water become harmful to pool equipment. I had a leak in my over ground PVC pipe connecting to pump diagnosed as a high Chlorine cause.
Is the desired FC level of 3 too low given that the ideal CYA range is 40-50?

You can maintain up to SLAM level to be safe for swimming and pool equipment!! It is unlikely that they PVC pipe failed due to high chlorine.

 

[Newdude]

On the lessons learned - use TF 100 test kit ( #1)

On root cause - I understand that my CYA was always around 50/60 but the targeted FC was preferred to be 3 by the pool store tests

The chart indicates that FC should have been 8 for that CYA level

I believe that is the main reason for my issue, correct?

Boom. Here is your golden pool pro nametag. You are one of us now.

*everyone claps and we all enjoy some refreshments and cake*. Nice party you have here OP. Thanks.

At what level of FC does the water become harmful to pool equipment

Safe for swimmers is anywhere between minimum and SLAM. Your equipment is still safe above SLAM to an unknown level specific to your pool, but we don’t ever go there so it’s irrelevant.

You see how much leeway you have above minimum ? Lots and lots. You see how much leeway you have near minimum? Zero, or close to zero leeway. Respect that bottom line and don’t ever approach it with the absolute least of factoring in your daily loss in regards to minimum. Ideally you’ll leave yourself enough room for the daily loss and still be ‘in range’.

 

[mumgoa]

Thanks Newdude and Kato

Party time indeed

GREAT !!!!

Wow - That is good to hear. We are quickly approaching close of pool date so it would be good to be able to use the pool while SLAM is in play

A) With 1) a blue cloudy pool at 2) 20 PPM of FC, is it safe to swim or should I get it lower than SLAM level a bit Since SLAM levels are different by CYA, is it OK to get in with my current levels

B) As i mentioned I lost maybe 1 PPM of FC overnight - is that normal during SLAM and does it mean I am getting closer to the end goal?

 

[Newdude]

A) With 1) a blue cloudy pool at 2) 20 PPM of FC, is it safe to swim or should I get it lower than SLAM level a bit Since SLAM levels are different by CYA, is it OK to get in with my current levels

Up to and including SLAM is safe chemical wise. That # shifts a little if your CYA is a moving target, so many drop a few FC just to garauntee they are safe in range.

BUT.

for swimmer safety you need to see bottom. Somebody could have a medical event or be injured and you have 5 mins or less to not only realize something happened, but get them out. In panic mode minutes go by like seconds.

 

[mumgoa]

So good news is FC fell some so I added the remaining half bottle of shock

The filter gauge is up by a point or 2 meaning that there is not much dirt or debris captured which may be a good sign
However i was expecting a bigger drop in FC over 24 hours than 1.5 ppm

water is much better but still cloudy

have brushed twice and cleaned the walls

 

[Newdude]

So good news is FC fell some so I added the remaining half bottle of shock

Stay on it and you’ll make progress, even if it isn’t visible.

The filter gauge is up by a point or 2 meaning that there is not much dirt or debris captured which may be a good sign

It all depends on the baseline. Many of us only have a couple PSI at low RPMs and 1 or 2 might be 50%. If you have 25 PSI with a single speed pump then the 1 or 2 isn’t much.

water is much better but still cloudy

Once it goes milky/cloudy it shifts from a chemistry fight to a filter fight. Keep the FC up as you’ll expose more from the walls with each brushing and continue to kill any residuals in the water itself. You should notice the FC holding much better soon, maybe even fully holding, but don’t get discouraged if you lose some FC for a day or three. It just means you found more ickies that needed killing and it’s a good thing. Keep an eye on the filter as you’ve been doing and clean accordingly.

Stay the course. You got this.

 

[mumgoa]

Once it goes milky/cloudy it shifts from a chemistry fight to a filter fight. Keep the FC up as you’ll expose more from the walls with each brushing and continue to kill any residuals in the water itself. You should notice the FC holding much better soon, maybe even fully holding, but don’t get discouraged if you lose some FC for a day or three. It just means you found more ickies that needed killing and it’s a good thing. Keep an eye on the filter as you’ve been doing and clean accordingly.

That is great to know. With this turning into a filter fight, how do I know the sand filter is actually doing it's job?

With no need for sand change as we all agree, I had some doubts about the filter as I started this thread simply because of the great work it had done cleaning up the cloudiness in the past in a few hours

As far as we an see, I am on course but wanted to check into this variable

 

[Newdude]

With this turning into a filter fight, how do I know the sand filter is actually doing it's job

The FC will dissolve/kill some while the filter picks up some (now) dead stuffs. You track you PSI to know when you need to backwash.

As far as we an see, I am on course but wanted to check into this variable

Yup. Always ask. Some of the algae will just get eaten on a microscopic level. Some will die and fall to the floor (hence the need for brushing and vac-ing). Other algae will be killed and stay suspended in the water and the filter will do its thang. You have a 3 pronged attack going on and will continue to eye all 3. You got this.

 

[Newdude]

*also. It takes many many passes through the filter to get it all. At first you make visual progress by the hour. Then the day and all is still well. That last bit of not quite clear may take some time with a week or more. Don’t get discouraged, the process is still working even if you don’t get the daily gratification.

 

[DorsalSpine]

A sand filter will take some time to go from cloudy to clear. The worse it was to start with the longer it's going to take. You may have killed the algae but the filter still has a lot of work to do. You can't compare a little cloudy in the past that cleared quickly to a full blown start from green to clear.

 

[mumgoa]

The FC will dissolve/kill some while the filter picks up some (now) dead stuffs. You track you PSI to know when you need to backwash.

Yup. Always ask. Some of the algae will just get eaten on a microscopic level. Some will die and fall to the floor (hence the need for brushing and vac-ing). Other algae will be killed and stay suspended in the water and the filter will do its thang. You have a 3 pronged attack going on and will continue to eye all 3. You got this

 

[mumgoa]

Thanks. Here is my missing piece. My vac is a Pool Shark. I have not run it as i cant track in cloudy water. Plus it gets stuck on drain when pump is running.
My plan is to let it loose once bottom is visible

 

[Newdude]

Thanks. Here is my missing piece. My vac is a Pool Shark. I have not run it as i cant track in cloudy water. Plus it gets stuck on drain when pump is running.
My plan is to let it loose once bottom is visible

Gotta work with what you got. Some do better than others and you have to make it work for you. Whatever you get out is progress, even if it gets stuck for a while. Or you can wait until it’s clearer.

 

[mumgoa]

*also. It takes many many passes through the filter to get it all. At first you make visual progress by the hour. Then the day and all is still well. That last bit of not quite clear may take some time with a week or more. Don’t get discouraged, the process is still working even if you don’t get the daily gratification.

Good to know. Thanks . Working on these issues with a raging toothache since Friday. Finally got some antibiotics today so hoping for some hourly and daily gratification on that at least

As many things in life now that get associated, green stuff in pool and toothache will remind me of each other. Both be gone

 

[Newdude]

As many things in life now that get associated, green stuff in pool and toothache will remind me of each other. Both be gone

Soooooooooooooo glad I pointed that out above. You’ll be extra cranky with a toothache and throwing stuff over the visual pool progress stalling. It’s not actually stalling when that happens. You’re still making progress.

Feel better.

 

[mumgoa]

Thanks newdude

Yeah, glad you pointed out visual progress is not that obvious even though the filter is cranking hard

I will stay with that thought

I did add a gallon of 12.5% as it showed a loss of 1 ppm FC - not bad, but it feels like progress certainly

 

[Texas Splash]

You're doing great. Consistency, persistence, and patience.

 

[mumgoa]

Good morning

It's been looking real good. Real blue and portions are clear. I can see all the way to the floor in the shallow side and the main drain is more clearly visible

Hardly any loose algae on brushing

FC steady at 20 PM or maybe even a bit higher at 21 PPM
CYA is holding at 50

Thanks for all the help, friends. This is a real turn in this battle

1) Can i give the pump a break for 2 hours this afternoon so I can run the Tiger Shark (rain permitting) or wait until tomorrow?
2) When can i call this battle done and focus on maintenance as usual?