Opened Up to Brown Pool

[firedrop]

3rd year pool owner here. 1st year no issues. Last year we had a hard time opening up the pool until I realized that the CYA was over the limit. A partial drain did the trick. I live in Southern PA, and last year we received rain, rain, rain and more rain. We closed the pool when the pump quit working (it was late July and still raining). We drained half of the water, put the cover on it and left it be. At that time it was green of course.

Through the course of the winter, the cover slipped off and left all of the maple leaves inside the pool. Not that it's back to not being a brick of ice, I started to clean it.
There was and still is a lot of leaves to be taken out. I'm brushing and removing the leaves each day. It's kind of hard since the water is brown. But I do know that the dark spots are my trouble spots.
I found a dead squirrel in the water. I'm not sure how long the pest was in there, but he was green and slimy. Should I be concerned?

My new pool pump should be here mid week.

Should I clean out more leaves before I hook up my pump?

I tested today and got these levels.

Chlorine 0
Ph was beyond 7.8
Alk 70
Hardness 100
CYA 20

 

[Texas Splash]

Should I clean out more leaves before I hook up my pump?

Absolutely! Remove as much debris as you can. While you're stirring-up all that water, you might be able to add some regular bleach and mix it around at the same time with your netting and brush. Might help keep things from getting too much worse. Maybe a gallon a day with good mixing until you get the system cranked-up again. Take pics each day to monitor your progress. Don't worry about the squirrel. The water will get sanitized once all of this is done. Welcome to TFP!

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Ooooh goodie! Another dank, dark pool clean up! They're fun to watch...... what!? No pics?!?!

I second the idea of a gallon of plain, unscented, non-Clorox brand bleach daily until you're up and running. You don't want to turn that pump on until you know the pool is free of debris lest you clog a line with something.

How are you planning on sanitizing the pool once its cleared up?

Maddie

 

[firedrop]

I'll get you some pictures tonight and upload so you can laugh at me.
Thanks for the suggestion of adding bleach every day while I clean up. I'll be sure and grab some today after work.
I'll need to lower my ph since it's considerably high. Then Slam it once I get the pump hooked up.
I will either use liquid bleach or liquid chlorine (depends if the chlorine is out in stores right now) I prefer the chlorine since it has a higher % than bleach. Either one will do!

 

[firedrop]

So, I've been fishing this stringy green substance from my pool. It looks like long strings of algae. Thoughts?
Now that I've slammed my pool, the color of course has changed to a brown/white.

 

[firedrop]

So I've lost my brown pool pictures. Sorry every one. But with daily cleanings and nettings it changed from a brown to a green. I added a gallon of bleach each day as advised. My PH reading was out of range high, I suppose it was from the large amount of leaves in my pool. Ph was adjusted down to a good range of 7.2.

I hooked up my new sand-filter pump and Slammed. My pool went from green to grey within hours. My nightly testing showed the ph went down to 6.8. Free Chlorine was 13ppm and combined was 2ppm.
I've back washed 5 times and rinsed after each backwash. I'm netting (most of the leaves are gone) and vacuuming and brushing.

This morning my pool is a teal color. Morning Testing showed ph at 6.8 and Free Chlorine was at 6.5, while combined was 1.5

Am I doing anything wrong?

 

[BuckeyeMac]

Looks like you're making progress...I was pretty much in the same boat as you less than a week and a half ago. I'm sure the experts will chime in, but with your CYA at 20, you need your FC level at 10+ and maintain it at that level. I'd add more liquid chlorine to get that FC up to SLAM level

 

[firedrop]

Thanks, I did forget to add that my CYA was 20. I honestly don't think I raised the levels high enough to make more of a difference. My fault for being in a hurry!

 

[Texas Splash]

Okay, now it's time to get critical about chemistry because when it comes to doing a true SLAM Process, it's all about proper numbers. I agree with Buckeye, your FC should be at least a 10 to be in true SLAM Process mode, and you need to keep it there. The pH is a bit low, so if you have a way to add some aeration you might do that as well. If not, we'll come back to that on your next pH result.

Ideally, your CYA should be a solid "30" to protect chlorine from the sun, which would make your SLAM FC level a 12, but your water and ambient temps might still be fairly cool working in your favor. But at some point you'll want the CYA at 30.

 

[firedrop]

Thanks Texas Splash. I'll get to Lowes tonight for PVC piping to aerate the flow. I'll also adjust my CYA and work from there. My water temp is 68 degrees.

 

[Rocco]

Please note that PH readings are incorrect when CL is above 10. If you believe your PH numbers are as low as 6.8 it may be worth letting your CL drop below 10, take a reading and adjust.
Confirm your new PH number and resume the SLAM.

 

[firedrop]

Thanks Rocco! I didn't realize that! I'm going away this weekend so I'm sure my CL will drop below a 10 so I can retest on Sunday night.

 

[firedrop]

Went to Lowes last night and made this contraption for an aerator. Cross your fingers it works. This will hopefully allow me to see my water flow in my outside cameras so I can check it out while I'm at work.
I also added chlorine and adjusted the CYA. I was unable to test last night and this morning due to it raining cats and dogs.
My backflushing has decreased as well. I'm down to 2 X's a day instead of 3.

 

[splashpad]

Went to Lowes last night and made this contraption for an aerator. Cross your fingers it works. This will hopefully allow me to see my water flow in my outside cameras so I can check it out while I'm at work.
I also added chlorine and adjusted the CYA. I was unable to test last night and this morning due to it raining cats and dogs.
My backflushing has decreased as well. I'm down to 2 X's a day instead of 3.

I'm really curious to see this in action!

The PH testing reagent reacts with FC over 10+, giving a false high(er) reading, which is why everyone is concerned with your PH/6.8 with higher chlorine reading. Vinyl does not do well with low PH.
If you can let your FC fall below 10 before leaving, to verify the PH would be good

Other than getting soaked, you can test inside with good lighting (The CYA test just needs bright indirect light for correct results)

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Good day Firedrop- just adding that gallon of bleach/liquid chlorine daily isn't a SLAM, but it was meant to put you in a "holding pattern" until you were able to obtain a test kit and use it to monitor your SLAM procedure.

You want to bring your FC up to the appropriate level based on your CYA level (see here --> Chlorine / CYA Chart - Trouble Free Pool ) then most importantly you keep it at that level as much as you can 24/7. Frequent tests thru the day to determine FC loss and add more bleach as needed to take it back up to SLAM level.

Keep your filter running, but check it daily to see if it needs backwashing (after it rises 20-25% off baseline).

The picture you posted in the net just looks like plant or tree debris to me. I hope it is clearing up??

Maddie <posting from sunny Italy>

 

[mknauss]

Maddie <posting from sunny Italy>

Show off ----------- I am jealous!

 

[firedrop]

She's coming along! Thanks YippieSkippy!!!

 

[Texas Splash]

Nice! It's getting there.

 

[firedrop]

Heres the start of the aeration! I wanted to be sure the first piece clamped on correctly. I'll install the other pieces once I get my waterline back up to where its supposed to be. Flowing beautifully.

PH has also been adjusted to 7.2. Waiting until Friday to test my CYA since the calculator showed it could take 24 to 48 hours.

 

[BuckeyeMac]

Nice DIY! Looks like your pool is getting better too!