Keep it there until the water is clear, CC is .5 or lower, and you can pass the overnight chlorine loss test. The OCLT is in Pool School, under How To.
New person to try the BBB Technique
- Thread starter pbuffington
- Start date
Well before starting the shocking process I would still continue to lower your cya level down to 50 ppm, that will require you to drain another (?) 45% of your pool. After that, then you can proceed with the shocking process. It will take a lot of chlorine if you pool is a green swamp. Maybe start with buying 10 gallons of the 8.25% bleach (or whatever else you can find cheap)...most likely you will be buying more.
Pam,
With a CYA that high it will take a TON of bleach, plan on 14 gal a day for 3-5 days (maybe longer depends on how green, how much vacuuming of the algae you do and the general personality of the pool.) a good portion of the Chlorine will be bound up by the CYA, the balance will be available to kill algae and be burnt off by the sun. The key is to KEEP the chlorine at shock level (day and night). Remember shocking is a process .. not a product. You are done shocking when you pass the overnight drop test and have crystal clear water.
With a CYA that high it will take a TON of bleach, plan on 14 gal a day for 3-5 days (maybe longer depends on how green, how much vacuuming of the algae you do and the general personality of the pool.) a good portion of the Chlorine will be bound up by the CYA, the balance will be available to kill algae and be burnt off by the sun. The key is to KEEP the chlorine at shock level (day and night). Remember shocking is a process .. not a product. You are done shocking when you pass the overnight drop test and have crystal clear water.
Generic, regular, UNSCENTED bleach. NOT outdoor, splash-less, etc. Concentrated is OK, but the outdoor and splash-less varieties have thickeners in them that will foam or cloud your pool, at least temporarily. The newer Clorox regular bleach is now 8.25% whereas it used to be 6% and these are fine to use. Off-brand Ultra bleach is fine, again if it's not a specialty (outdoor, splash-less) bleach.pbuffington said:
On Friday night, I started the shock Process, True to forums, I've used a TON of bleach, but it is changing colors. Today I added some DE to the filter to see if that would help filter out the algae. I think the "personality" of my pool is that of a bitter lonely old woman. I've been keeping the pool at or above the FC=35 since my CYA is at 90. I've also been brushing the pool. Yesterday you could see clouds of algae as I brushed, today you can't tell a difference when I brush. The Chlorine also dropped Significantly less (I"ve used less then half of the bleach today then I used yesterday). When should it turn white and should I be concerned yet. Attached are pics of the pool. Next I'll attach the equipment that goes with the pool.
Here are pictures of my pool equipment.[attachment=2:1elv1w8r]pump3.JPG[/attachment:1elv1w8r]
[attachment=1:1elv1w8r]pump2.JPG[/attachment:1elv1w8r]
[attachment=0:1elv1w8r]Sand Filter Label.JPG[/attachment:1elv1w8r]
[attachment=1:1elv1w8r]pump2.JPG[/attachment:1elv1w8r]
[attachment=0:1elv1w8r]Sand Filter Label.JPG[/attachment:1elv1w8r]
Any reason you have decided to not lower you cya to 50 ppm like suggested? It will make your life easier in the long run.
Keep an eye on your filter pressure. You're going to be backwashing fairly often in the beginning. If the pressure gets too high and the flow gets too low, your filter/pump isn't moving water anymore.
linen said:
I've reached the level in my monthly water bill, where if I go too much higher (with another 10-20,000 gallons) It's going to start hurting alot. Getting the CYA level down to 90 was a significant accomplishment. My goal is to remove & fill about 2 ft a month. We bought the house last August, and I had a ton of trouble with the pool last year and the pool store always said the CYA was 100 but it didn't matter, so I'm thinking it was WAY over 100 by the amount of water I've put in the pool so far.
Thanks
Pam
Just hang in there and follow the shock process to the tee and you WILL have a sparkling pool and have patience and tell the kids that once the pool is clean they will be the envy of the neighborhood........Mike
- Jun 14, 2012
- 2,668
- Pool Size
- 13500
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool Edge-40
Something that may not be obvious is that the way you drained and refilled reduced the effect of draining to a degree.
When you are attempting to remove CYA the more you drain at a any given time the less water you have to ultimately replace.
The way this works is not very intuitive. Let's say you have a 10,000 gallon pool with a CYA level of 100 and your goal is to drop this to 50. The simple solution is to remove 5000 gallons and then add back that much water without any CYA (tap water for example). However if you are only able to remove 1000 gallons at a time you will need much more water, because each time you add the water back the CYA disperses into the new water. This reduces the level overall that any given unit of water contains, which means each time you pull out the next 1000 gallons you haven't removed as much CYA as the last time.
You can do math to show the precise amounts lost and determine the impact of partial drains... But the basic idea is drain as much as you can safely do all at once and then add the water back to avoid wasting water and time.
Safely will vary based on each situation. Typical advice is to check the water take before draining. Also a liner pool should not be too empty for very long.
Sent via Tapatalk...
When you are attempting to remove CYA the more you drain at a any given time the less water you have to ultimately replace.
The way this works is not very intuitive. Let's say you have a 10,000 gallon pool with a CYA level of 100 and your goal is to drop this to 50. The simple solution is to remove 5000 gallons and then add back that much water without any CYA (tap water for example). However if you are only able to remove 1000 gallons at a time you will need much more water, because each time you add the water back the CYA disperses into the new water. This reduces the level overall that any given unit of water contains, which means each time you pull out the next 1000 gallons you haven't removed as much CYA as the last time.
You can do math to show the precise amounts lost and determine the impact of partial drains... But the basic idea is drain as much as you can safely do all at once and then add the water back to avoid wasting water and time.
Safely will vary based on each situation. Typical advice is to check the water take before draining. Also a liner pool should not be too empty for very long.
Sent via Tapatalk...
SO, It's been 7 days and I've stalled. 
The water went from a dark green to a light cloudy green which I take as a good sign, it holds chlorine, and the overnight drop is like a 2. I'm using Pool DE during the day, and backwashing regularly. I'm vacuuming daily at least, and am getting out minimal stuff now when vacuuming. What else should I do/try? I've been stuck here for 3-4 days and am desperate to make progress again. Of course, The Rains are here (I live in Atlanta) but they should be leaving soon. I've been keeping the FC up even with the rain, I was expecting several inches last night, so put in 1/2 gallon extra bleach and am at a 40 this morning. (We didn't get as much rain as predicted.)
Has anyone ever tried Alum to kill the algae so it can be vacuumed out to waste? How do I know if my sand filter is working properly? When I backwash it, the view glass shows cloudy/opaque with lots of floaters in it.
The water went from a dark green to a light cloudy green which I take as a good sign, it holds chlorine, and the overnight drop is like a 2. I'm using Pool DE during the day, and backwashing regularly. I'm vacuuming daily at least, and am getting out minimal stuff now when vacuuming. What else should I do/try? I've been stuck here for 3-4 days and am desperate to make progress again. Of course, The Rains are here (I live in Atlanta) but they should be leaving soon. I've been keeping the FC up even with the rain, I was expecting several inches last night, so put in 1/2 gallon extra bleach and am at a 40 this morning. (We didn't get as much rain as predicted.)
Has anyone ever tried Alum to kill the algae so it can be vacuumed out to waste? How do I know if my sand filter is working properly? When I backwash it, the view glass shows cloudy/opaque with lots of floaters in it.
Keep doing what you're doing. Sand is slow, so it's going to take some patience on your part.
SkyKid
0
you an also put a skimmer sock on the skimmer basket
That seemed to help me a lot when I went thru the shock process
That seemed to help me a lot when I went thru the shock process
If your sand filter is building up pressure between backwashings it is working, as has been mentioned sand is slow to filter out algae, just keep up the chlorine levels and get the sand filter time to do its stuff, adding DE as you are doing can speed things along. If things are not looking better in another 3-4 days it may be time to take a closer look for potential problems with the filter or chemical levels.
Ike
Ike
Well it is Still light green and cloudy. I've vacuumed it thoroughly and am now only getting out grit and the odd leaf or small stick. I'm using a skimmer sock, and it's getting grit. Still now real change since the 6th. I've been keeping my chlorine up and the overnight change is 1-2. Desperately considering algaecide's, clarifiers, Voodoo, nice green lawn, frog rescue society.....
If I Don't use DE, the pressure on my sand filter doesn't really change in 24 hrs. (maybe 1-2 psi). If I use PE, it goes up nicely, I backwash, and it seems to work. Although I'm worried that it's DE not sand I'm getting off the bottom of the pool. Did I mention this is a pretty shady pool?
Thanks
Pam
If I Don't use DE, the pressure on my sand filter doesn't really change in 24 hrs. (maybe 1-2 psi). If I use PE, it goes up nicely, I backwash, and it seems to work. Although I'm worried that it's DE not sand I'm getting off the bottom of the pool. Did I mention this is a pretty shady pool?
Thanks
Pam
Sand can sometimes take a loooong time to clear a pool. I'd wait another 3-4 days before trying something else.
SO, Patience has never been my strong suit. on July 9th, I went and bought a bottle of superfloc, and saw blue the next morning. I vacuumed it to waste the evening of the 10th, and added a second bottle of Superfloc (If 1 is good, 2 must be better), Vacuumed it to waste again last night, and it's looking great! I plan to vacuum it to waste again tonight, and then hopefully use it regularly for awhile. I'm VERY excited that I have a pool that the kids can see to the bottom of. Now I just have to keep it that way. I'm planning on draining and refilling towards the end of the season to get my CYA level down if I can make it that far.
Even though I deviated with the Superfloc from the BBB solution, I have to say I think BBB was VERY effective and Cost Effective to kill the algae to get to where the Superfloc was useful at all. I also understand much more about the chemistry of my pool then I did before.
Even though I deviated with the Superfloc from the BBB solution, I have to say I think BBB was VERY effective and Cost Effective to kill the algae to get to where the Superfloc was useful at all. I also understand much more about the chemistry of my pool then I did before.
- Jun 14, 2012
- 2,668
- Pool Size
- 13500
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool Edge-40
If it works great! Just understand it is an added expense that may not work every time.
Sent via Tapatalk...
Sent via Tapatalk...