First SLAM pool was not bad to start with but had some algae on the liner. Started Sunday the pool passed OCLT Sunday night and Monday night. CC is at 0.5 or below. Monday vacuumed up dead algae and tonight some more but it was a lot less than last night. Picture of pool is deep end about 10 minutes after vacuuming it this evening. I think I meet the criteria but if I see dead algae tomorrow on the liner should I continue SLAM?
SLAM Complete?
- Thread starter wprileyjr3
- Start date
If you passed the overnight test, I would continue the SLAM if you are visually seeing algae on the walls. Keep levels high for 48 hours with pump running and if no spots of algae on the liner are present, allow the levels to drift down and call it a day. Keep your minimums slightly higher for a couple of days and if no problems, then it is business as usual. If you find that your water is clear, but you are seeing spots on the liner, you could have a circulation problems. Can you describe the pool (Main drain, skimmer and return set up)?
It’s 18 x 34 two jets one in the shallow end near the steps the other jet is in the deep end. Both jets are on the same side of the pool. One skimmer in the middle between the jets. Bottom drain in the middle of the deep end. The Algae tended to appear on the slant part of the wall under deep end jet and some in the middle floor of the shallow end. Same places the dead algae is appearing.
Are the steps part of the pool, or do they drop in? It sounds like a pool my friend had. One skimmer deep end, one return shallow, one main drain deep end, with drop in stairs. The pool had limited circulation and it had to be brushed real well at least every other day or algae spots would show up. Chlorine levels were always on target and he had to keep the minimum at least 2 ppm higher than recommended. It was merely "dead spots" in the pool. I am guessing this is what you have.
Do you have 2" plumbing or 1.5" plumbing? You may want to look at the circulators to increase the flow. The One & Only Circulator . If interested, I would recommend calling the owner directly. He can ship out direct, instead of Amazon and they make the large/mega which may be a better fit, but you will need to go through the plumbing with him. These , neat but expensive return jets have done the job for some of my friends with a pool similar to yours.
Do you have 2" plumbing or 1.5" plumbing? You may want to look at the circulators to increase the flow. The One & Only Circulator . If interested, I would recommend calling the owner directly. He can ship out direct, instead of Amazon and they make the large/mega which may be a better fit, but you will need to go through the plumbing with him. These , neat but expensive return jets have done the job for some of my friends with a pool similar to yours.
The steps are part of the pool and I have 1.5” plumbing. I have checked Chlorine levels around the pool but only a foot deep. They were the same. I will have to get a deep sample and see if there is a difference. I think for now I will keep my chlorine 2 ppm higher and look into the circulator.
One way to know if you have circulation problems is to keep the chlorine levels at least 4 ppm higher than normal and run the filter as usual. Remember that pump run time is difficult to estimate because each pool is different. If after a few days, during hot weather you start seeing algae spots appear, that is due to circulation. Remember that water is entering the pool on the same side and shooting down into the water. The skimmer is picking up the surface, while the main drain is pulling from the bottom. Sounds like dead spots to me.
Only true way to eliminate this is constant brushing, longer period of pump run times, and higher chlorine levels. There are other things to check, but before we get into any other possible solutions, let's try this. Even the rotating returns may not be your solution and you would still have to brush. Please report back after a couple of days as well.
Can you tell me how far your filter/pump is away from the pool and whether on the deep, shallow, middle and which side? Thank you.
Only true way to eliminate this is constant brushing, longer period of pump run times, and higher chlorine levels. There are other things to check, but before we get into any other possible solutions, let's try this. Even the rotating returns may not be your solution and you would still have to brush. Please report back after a couple of days as well.
Can you tell me how far your filter/pump is away from the pool and whether on the deep, shallow, middle and which side? Thank you.
The pump and filter are about 40-50 ft away from the pool on the shallow end on the side of the pool with the jets, skimmer and steps. I will step up the brushing. Was doing it every midweek with the vacuum now robot on the weekend.
This means that the deep end is about 84' away, which is quite a distance. Check the return flow pressure with your hand. If you have a strong stream, the water velocity is sufficient, but still does not resolve the issue. Brushing mid week may have to be stepped up like I mentioned before. Only way to really tell is by experimenting with brushing, chlorine levels, and pump run times. How long is the pump running on a daily basis and when does it turn on?
The return on the deep end is pretty strong I can feel it push my hand if I put it in front of it. I also use that jet to blow the air out of the manual vacuum line. I have been manual vacuuming the dead algae out. I actually run my pump full time. I know it is excessive I have been looking at putting in a VS pump but as with life something else came up and used up that part of the budget. The amount of dead algae has lessened each day. My pool has past OCLT every night but has been 1ppm loss with 0.5 ppm CC. This morning CC 0 with no FC loss at all. So will see if I have dead algae in the pool. The pool is so clear last night I couldn’t tell if something was on the surface or the bottom of the pool when vacuuming.
Maybe it is not algae that you are seeing, but dirt and/or a little bit of pollen. I always recommend going down without disturbing the water too much with goggles to get up real close. If you have been brushing, using the vacuum, keeping your levels high, with the pump running all the time, there should be absolutely no algae whatsoever. Even surface dirt should not sink to any parts of the pool unless the pump shuts off as the skimmer will pick up the surface debris.
Finished the SLAM Friday. I let the FC start to drift down. I ran the robot in the pool yesterday. A small amount of dead algae and a few dead bugs on the bottom. Numbers yesterday were FC 7.5 CC 0.5 PH 7.4 TA 70 CH 200 CYA 50. Added LC to get to FC 10. I am going to hold it a little higher plus going on vacation at the end of the week. I have relatives that will add FC everyday usually the pool takes 1/2 gallon some really sunny days 3/4 gallon of 8.25%. So I am going to have them put 3/4 gallon to be safe FC may be a bit high when I get back but I prefer that to green spots in the liner. This morning the pool is crystal clear no stops at all on the liner. I really think I didn’t get all the algae in May when I opened the pool was not doing TFPC yet and just vacuumed it and “triple shocked” it. Seeing the pool now I notice a difference in the water. It was clear before but crystal clear now. Plus I think before it had a slight green tinge to it. My guess is I was barely holding it at bay and my FC dropped below min a time or two and algae started to win.
You may want to look in adding a DE alternative to the sand filter. I used Fiber Clear, and "WOW", what a difference. It took about one week before the water looked real polished. Purchased on E-Bay and the 3 lb. bag will last about 5-8 years, based on my pool. All depends on backwashing.
There was a 25 lb box of DE that was here when we bought the house last year. I just started to add about 2 cups to the sand filter after backwashing. Once it is gone, may take a while, I will probably switch over.