Heavy Rain - is this normal?

[LaurenB]

I’m really missing my (mostly) above ground pool. Last night we got torrential rain, probably 3-4”. I checked the pool before bed and it was still spotless as usual. This morning I came out to do some maintenance because the water is above the skimmers and I can’t even see the bottom! This happened literally over night. I’m including pictures - from yesterday and then this morning. There is a ton of dirt on the bottom in the shallow end - or is it sand from the filter possibly, could that happen? Never in 8 years with an above ground have I had this happen. Heavy rain just meant a clean pool with more water. Is this normal???

 

[V___25]

I'd run an OCLT just to make sure it's not something more serious. But with our pool, a ton of dirt does wash in from the concrete and the grass right next to it.

 

[LaurenB]

FC 6
CC 0
pH 8.0
TA 90

 

[JJ_Tex]

What is your CYA?

As to your question of "Is this Normal" the answer is no. Do you have drains/drainage around the pool? Water should never be flowing into your pool. Did you see this happening during your rainstorm by chance?

Was it really windy with the storm and possibly blew in dirt/debris into your pool? We get this with very strong winds blowing just the right way and will pick up the lighter pieces of mulch from an adjacent flower bed and blow them into the pool. Luckily for me the mulch mostly floats and ends up in the skimmer. From your 1 picture it looks like you have a fair amount of land around you so wanted to see if that is a possibility for you too.

 

[LaurenB]

The ground does slope downward toward the pool. We have gravel beyond the concrete. This is fairly new build so there isn’t any landscaping around the pool, the grass has not completely grown back and the gravel we put in has not fully settled. So erosion is definitely a possibility. I can see a dirt path leading to the steps from the one corner, attached a pick. Cya is (was) 40, have not checked yet today.

 

[JJ_Tex]

Ok, looks like you found the culprit. Your FC is right in line for your CYA, so that is good but feel free to keep it a bit higher and test often since the dirt has extra cooties that can eat up chlorine quickly.

I would keep an eye on your drainage in future storms. Maybe landscaping is the answer, or if it happens too often you may need to do something with the grading or drainage.

 

[LaurenB]

Thanks! Going to look into some plants good for erosion control in the meantime. I talked to PB, they said a French drain might be necessary if I can’t get it under control.

 

[mknauss]

The ground does slope downward toward the pool.

I can't imagine any pool builder doing this. It is part of our County Code that the pool coping must be 4 inches higher than the surrounding area. And we are in the desert!

 

[LaurenB]

I can't imagine any pool builder doing this. It is part of our County Code that the pool coping must be 4 inches higher than the surrounding area. And we are in the desert!

Let me clarify a little; my yard slopes down toward the pool, but they graded it so that it goes slightly back up, and the concrete is slightly sloped upward toward the pool. There is just that one spot in the photo above where the slope is a bit steep and that seems to be where the dirt is crossing the concrete into the pool.

 

[mknauss]

I would do something in that area to redirect the runoff away from the pool.

Water runoff into a pool can create significant ongoing chemistry issues. CYA eating bacteria, etc is no fun to deal with.