So I think I have algae.....

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KarenNJ

KarenNJ

0
May 7, 2017
301
Northern NJ
It is only on the bottom and if I touch it with the pole it dissipates. It seems to be settled in the dips of the liner. It has been cool and cloudy/rainy lately so no one has been in the pool since Sunday (today is Thur). Free Chlorine has been staying consistent at 5ppm the past few days with no one swimming (was up to 8 when we had a bunch of people in). CC has always been at .5 and CYA is at 70. I did a OCLT on the 20th and experienced no loss. We had a bunch of kids in on 7/21 but I bumped the chlorine up before and after.

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Fri 7/21 - Had a very high bather load for a few hours. I bumped the chlorine up and vacuumed as soon as everyone left. It was sunny and hot (78-80 degrees)
Sat 7/22 - Warm (75 degrees) and sunny. FC = 8ppm
Sun 7/23 - Higher than normal bather load but for a very short period (no longer than an hour). Cooler and cloudy. FC = 5ppm
Mon 7/24 - Cold and rainy. No one in pool. Visually looks ok but did not check levels
Tue 7/25 - FC = 5ppm. Cloudy and cool (62 degrees)
Wed 7/26 - FC = 5ppm. 75 degrees with periods of sun. No one in pool. No tests (we were out all day)

Today
temp - 74 degrees
FC - 5
CC - .5
PH - 7.8
Salt - 2870 (I need to add some, getting to the store today. SWG not giving errors)
CYA - 70
TA - 170 (slowly getting it down)
CH - 250


Pool still looks clear -
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So since my CC are .5 and my water is clear I guess I only have to SLAM until I pass a OCLT? Should I do a OCLT before I slam? I don't know what else it could be if it is not algae. We do have moderate levels of grass and ragweed polled right now. but I have no noticed it on other surfaces.
 
So i went out to dump bleach in to bring the level up and will be heading to the store shortly. I am going to get the supplies needed to SLAM. I went over to the "dead zone" in my pool where stuff seems to collect and it is much worse over there. It varies from a yellow to brown color and looks more of a film vs. a clump of dirt.I looked around and do not see pollen built up anywhere. I would think I would see it on the top rails.
 
So now I am totally confused. I did the OCLT last night. Starting at FC = 9 and CC = 0. Pump was running on low, SWG was off. This morning it was FC=9.5 and CC=0. FC went up?

Yesterday my FC was at 5ppm so I added what bleach I had remaining in the afternoon then went to the store. I added some liquid chlorine in the evening with the pump on high and took the first reading 40min later. I suppose the FC could have gone up a bit after the 40min but I cannot imagine much more. I did the test the exact same way both times.

So what the heck is this stuff all over the bottom of my pool? This is the longest stint we have not been in it due to cooler weather so maybe this is just pollen over the course of a few days without little legs moving it around? If I pass the OCLT and my CC is 0 and the water is clear is it 100% not algae? If it is not I don't know what the heck it is. I can't understand how so much pollen would be in there.

The only thing that has changed in the pool more recently was my father added weight to the ladder by hanging jugs filled with crushed stone that was just put around the pool (dirty) in bleach jugs with bleach inside to prevent mold. The top was firmly put on and they were hung under the ladder on the inside of the pool. The tops are on tight so I can't imagine any dirt from the stone seeping out.

I don't know what to do next.....Do I just vacuum up the stuff and see if it comes back?
 
Your first pic looks like it could be just a bit of algae, but the second looks like dead algae collecting in the creases or low spots. It appears you have maintained an adequate FC level, you may need to brush more often. Especially true when the pool doesn't see much use for a few days. You may have some areas of lower circulation that allow those minor spots to get started easier. I maintain FC at the top end of my target range, around 9 with CYA of 40, it certainly stays well above minimum at all times but I still get small spots. Kinda hard to tell if it's dead or alive, it isn't stuck on but still has a green tint when you brush it.

I had a hard time keeping the spots away, I could brush or vac but it would come right back overnight. Initially I thought it was regrowing, but I think it might just be the same stuff I brush away that settles back. It did seem that every week there was just a little more. It's such a fine silt, every time you get near it with the brush or vac it kinda goes poof and it's gone, but doesn't stay in suspension long enough to get filtered out. I brush but rarely ever hand vac, I did run a suction side cleaner but it really didn't work very well. I bought an E10 robot and ultra fine filter a few weeks ago and it has helped a bunch. Even a week after running it there is almost nothing. On the initial run the filters were coated and the filter box even had a kind of sludge in the bottom. We've had two weeks of mid 90's and high humidity so the pool has been used a lot more, that might skew my results but so far I'm pretty happy with the results.
 
Here are pictures from the "dead zone" where it is occurring more. If I touch it, it'll kick up like dust and dissipates. There was a period where my FC was too low (got down to 2ppm) but I did the OCLT after that and I passed. I had done the OCLT because my SWG didn't seem to be keeping up with our load (thread about that sep).
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When you are running the FC test, hold the bottle completely straight over the test vial and allow the drops to form and fall off naturally, swirling between drops. Go ahead and vacuum the pool, but run the oclt again tonight to make sure it was run correctly.

If you have an area in your pool that gets low circulation, brushing it while the SWG is generating chlorine will make sure everything is mixed in well. You may want to consider bumping up chlorine production to keep 6 or 7 ppm of FC and see if that takes care of the debris formation.
 
I am not holding the bottle straight. I hold more at a angle so too much doesn't pop out when I flip it upside down. I am also squeezing to get the drops to form. BUT, both tests were run the same exact way. I will start doing that going forward.

Yes, I have a very obvious dead zone where everything collects at the far end. I just wish I knew what this stuff was!
 

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KarenNJ said:
I am not holding the bottle straight. I hold more at a angle so too much doesn't pop out when I flip it upside down. I am also squeezing to get the drops to form. BUT, both tests were run the same exact way. I will start doing that going forward.

Yes, I have a very obvious dead zone where everything collects at the far end. I just wish I knew what this stuff was!
Click to expand...
Holding the bottle vertically straight will help keep the drop size consistent. Also, do not rush the drops, I try not to drop faster than 1 drop per second when using my Speed Stir.
 
I need to get a speed stir. It is a pain trying to drop and stir. Told my husband something is on the floor and I'm trying to figure out if it is algae or not but i am passing all the tests so l will vacuum and see if it comes back. His response, " you could have the pool store test the water".....ugh
 
So I took a sample and this is what it looks like (found pic online) under 40x magnification so I think it is algae. I just cannot understand why I have passed 2 OCLT tests this week. CC's are 0 and water is clear. It is only on horizontal surfaces. Not on the walls or behind the stairs where the shade is. The walls of the pool don't feel slimy at all.

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I was able to vacuum all of it up (was in pool with goggles). I could see it getting sucked right up into the hose. The water never turned cloudy and I was able to get most of it without it getting kicked up. Should I just SLAM? I will run a OCLT again tonight making sure I hold the bottle as suggested. If it is algae do I have to leave all the vacuum equipment in the pool during the SLAM to sanitize it?
 
Cool pictures....do you work in a lab or do you own a microscope with a camera? I think everyone should own a high-powered optical microscope...there's just so many cool things you can do with them....but I think I'd rather spend $50k on a truck :geek:

Yep, that's standard blue-green algae.

Why? Well, algae is in the environment no matter what you do. You could have a circulation dead spot in your pool and the algae was able to get a little start. I would suggest simply setting your target FC levels a little higher and be sure to check on water circulation in the pool. Brushing is one of the best ways to keep water well mixed.

Do you have kind of automatic cleaner or robot that can help to keep the water properly agitated?
 
This is a picture I found online because I cannot take a pic of what I am seeing in the microscope. My sample looks the same. So how do I have algae but no chlorine loss? could it already be dead? I don't have auto anything! I have 3 kids who are in the pool all the time with a couple friends so they normally keep the water moving really well. This only occurred when we did not have anyone in the pool for 4 days and lots of cloudy weather. Should I just SLAM or do another OCLT before?
 
Oh, ok. I thought you snapped that picture.

I'm going to guess here but I suspect the lack of circulation allowed the algae to get started in your pool. I would highly recommend you check the direction of your return(s) and point it down so that water is properly circulated. You might also consider some kind of automatic cleaner (perhaps a suction cleaner) that can be left to run in the pool when you don't use it. This will help to keep the water moving.

Algae will not necessarily cause a huge chlorine loss until it is able to establish itself. You're probably growing it at such a slow rate that your SWG is able to keep up. As well, if it's mostly dead algae, then it's really not going to be a huge factor.

You might SLAM the pool after your weekend festivities are over....
 
Ok, sounds like a good plan. I did start a thread about my SWG not being able to keep up like it should (based on the calculator) so maybe this has been brewing the whole time. I will do another OCLT tonight just to see what I end up with.
 
KarenNJ said:
We were supposed to get rain last night so running the OCLT tonight. Starting at FC - 8.5ppm CC - 0
Click to expand...

Rain is not typically a problem. There would have to be several inches of water rise in a pool to have significant impact. As long as the pump is allowed to run for an hour or so, any rain water at the surface should be fully mixed into the bulk of the pool. A little bit of brushing will help too.
 

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