Green tint to fresh fill with well water

[mcgeggy]

I just replaced my liner on my 24' x 52" ABG round pool. The water is a murky green, but clear. I have been adding some of the metal out products but they don't seem to be doing anything at all. I brought up the pH to about 7.2 - 7.5 before adding the metal out stuff. I have not added any chlorine/shock at all yet. It's been about 2 days and there has been no change to the water condition. The pool walls feel slick. The pump/filter has been running continuously.

When I first installed this pool about 7 years ago, and filled with well water, I remember it being clear until I added the shock, then it turned green. If I recall, it took quite a few bottles of metal out to get it clear again, but each dosage seemed to improve the color from green toward clear. I remember reading that it is more difficult to achieve clear water if you add chlorine first and then the metal out, so I thought I was doing the right thing by using the metal out without chlorine this time around, but it seems like it is doing nothing. I've backwashed a few times and the water coming out looks clear (because in small amounts the water does look clear).

Getting frustrated! I had an old bottle of Pro Team Metal Magic that I've used, a new bottle of Natural Chemistry Metal Free, and the last product I used was Ultimate Backyard Products Metal Control. What is my next step?? (trucking in water to refill is too expensive).

Thanks!

 

[dkimble]

Welcome to TFP! I will let one of the experts give you some advice, but I can tell you that you have come to the right place. I have been using TCP methiads for 2 years now, and it's been the easiest 2 years ever.

 

[Richard320]

Forget the metals for the moment -- slick, slimy walls means algae. You need to get some bleach in that pool, fast. Target 10 FC and add it to the return stream, and then brush every inch to loosen the biofilm and expose the algae to the chlorine. The water will probably get worse looking once you start disturbing everything. Then test and replenish the FC. Somewhere in there, while you're taking a breather and resting your arms and back, add CYA to get to 30. Don't pour it into the skimmer. Your filter will likely start clogging with algae and you'll lose the CYA when you backwash. Put the granules into a sock or a nylon and tie it shut and set that in the skimmer or dangle it in front of a return.

The whole process is outlined in the SLAM Process article.

You need to get rid of that algae. You can swim in a pool with metal stains, even a little tint to the water. Face it, you drink that same well water and bathe in it! But who wants to get in a swamp that you can't see 6" through?

 

[mcgeggy]

Forget the metals for the moment -- slick, slimy walls means algae. You need to get some bleach in that pool, fast. Target 10 FC and add it to the return stream, and then brush every inch to loosen the biofilm and expose the algae to the chlorine. The water will probably get worse looking once you start disturbing everything. Then test and replenish the FC. Somewhere in there, while you're taking a breather and resting your arms and back, add CYA to get to 30. Don't pour it into the skimmer. Your filter will likely start clogging with algae and you'll lose the CYA when you backwash. Put the granules into a sock or a nylon and tie it shut and set that in the skimmer or dangle it in front of a return.

The whole process is outlined in the SLAM Process article.

You need to get rid of that algae. You can swim in a pool with metal stains, even a little tint to the water. Face it, you drink that same well water and bathe in it! But who wants to get in a swamp that you can't see 6" through?

But I can see clearly through the water to the bottom. It's been this color literally from the moment the water was over 3.5 feet high. I don't see even a hint of algae. Algae in my pool usually coats the walls and floor, and there is nothing. So I feel like there is not a n algae problem yet. More likely iron or some other metal from the well water. Don't you think it would be weird that the water coming out of my well would have algae in it?

 

[dkimble]

The OCLT test will tell you if it is algae. How do you test your water?

 

[mknauss]

The pool walls feel slick.

Follow what Richard outlined. You have algae.

 

[mcgeggy]

The OCLT test will tell you if it is algae. How do you test your water?

But there is no chlorine added to the pool yet so how would that test tell me anything ? I have the test kit sold here. If I had algae wouldn't I see sticking to surfaces like it's done 100% of the time in the past 16 years of having a pool? There's no possibility that the slick feel could be from the baking soda or metal out stuff?

 

[mknauss]

If you are convinced there is no algae then move on. Add enough CYA to get to 30 ppm and LC to get to 3 ppm FC.

The metals are secondary to getting the pool clean and sanitary. You can then manage the metals.

Search for Iron Filter on this forum. Lots of DIY ideas to take the iron out of your water.

Pool School - Metals in the Water and Metal Stains

 

[Richard320]

As much metal-out stuff as you've added, if your problem was metals, it would be gone. And gone fast. Check out the pictures and read the captions in this post: Well this is crazy, pool green in 1 hr...copper I assume - party tonight.

If it's algae or if t's Iron, bleach is what you want. It'll kill algae, or it'll oxidize the Iron into rust particles that can be filtered out, as seen in these two posts
A Tale of Two Filters... and Ugly, Rusty Water.
Results of first TF-100 test ran on fill water - Page 2

 

[mcgeggy]

As much metal-out stuff as you've added, if your problem was metals, it would be gone. And gone fast. Check out the pictures and read the captions in this post: Well this is crazy, pool green in 1 hr...copper I assume - party tonight.

If it's algae or if t's Iron, bleach is what you want. It'll kill algae, or it'll oxidize the Iron into rust particles that can be filtered out, as seen in these two posts
A Tale of Two Filters... and Ugly, Rusty Water.
Results of first TF-100 test ran on fill water - Page 2

Ok! I'll add the liquid shock. One way or the other, it sounds like this is the next step now. I'll report back the outcome. Thanks!

 

[mcgeggy]

Well, shocking did not change the color. Adding more metal out did not change the color. Making a DIY bucket poly fill filter did nothing - the poly fill stayed bright white. Adding more metal out with chlorine at 0 did not change the color. Why is my pool water being so stubborn this time around? Again, the water is clear - it’s not algae. My pump filter has been running 24 hours a day for almost a week now. Backwash water is always clear. I have a bag of ascorbic acid, but I’m afraid to use it because I’ve read it’s hard to get chlorine back up after, and maybe it’s only really meant to remove iron/rust stains from surfaces.

 

[Richard320]

I have no idea what to tell you now. Maybe the water is clear but the liner is tinted? How about just running a small spot with Vitamin C and see if the wall suddenly gets bright?

 

[mcgeggy]

I have no idea what to tell you now. Maybe the water is clear but the liner is tinted? How about just running a small spot with Vitamin C and see if the wall suddenly gets bright?

It’s a brand new liner, and the plastic white pool ladder steps do not seem to be stained. Iron seems like the most likely metal from my well water, and it’s probably making the water yellow which appears green against the blue liner. Maybe a specific iron remover would help? The metal out cleared things up in a few days after several doses when I went through this 7 years ago. After that it didn’t matter how much we’ll water I used to top off the pool- it never turned green again. In fact, 5 years ago the old liner developed a slow leak (which is why I replaced it), and the water level would drop a good foot/ foot and a half, so I was adding quite a bit of well water back into the pool year after year.