Some algae problem

[setsailsoon]

Hi Chris,

I am all set to start the slam process today. I will run the pump 24/7, and top off to slam levels few times today. However on weekdays, I will be able to do it only twice (before and after work). Will that be an issue?

The usual schedule setup with the pentair easy touch is as follows:
pool - 10 hours
Spillway - 1 hour in the morning, and 20 minutes in the evening
Waterfall - 10 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the evening.

My logical thinking with the schedule is, filtered water should run through the spa to keep it in the circulation.

Is this schedule adequate for maintenance, or should it be tweaked?

I thought the info under our username (pool size, surface etc) is the signature, which I did add. I will look through it again to understand what I might be doing incorrect.

Thanks
Avi

Avi,

Your setup for maintenance looks fine to me. Main thing to do is just make sure the pool is skimmed and clean. Every pool is a little different so there's no fixed amount of time or amount of pool volume. What do you clean the pool with? Suction cleaner, robot, manual scrubbing? For now you'll be in SLAM mode so pump runs 24/7 and you scrub daily. You'll want to circulate through the spa all the time so you kill all the algae.

Sorry for the confusion on the signature, looks like you figured it out. Please post a set of test results to let us know how you're doing. Remember your pH test will not be reliable at slam FC levels so it's good to start low in the pH range.

Chris

 

[ANash]

Brushing the pool walls and floor is a must! If your algae has built up a biofilm over it, that biofilm acts as almost as an impermeable cover. Brushing disrupts that biofilm and lets the chlorine in to slay the green nasties.

Monitor your CSI with that calcium and let it help guide you in keeping things in check so that you don't experience scale. Often keeping the pH on the low side is what folks out west do to handle that.

Maddie

Hi Maddie, thanks for the input. I didn't about 2 hours scrubbing the walls and getting all the algae I could.

There is a waterfall with rocks and there was tons of algae. However, there are so many nooks and crannies, that I am sure I did not get all of it. I hope that does not become a constant source of algae.

I have not looked into CSI, but I surely will.

Thanks,
Avi

 

[ANash]

Avi,

Your setup for maintenance looks fine to me. Main thing to do is just make sure the pool is skimmed and clean. Every pool is a little different so there's no fixed amount of time or amount of pool volume. What do you clean the pool with? Suction cleaner, robot, manual scrubbing? For now you'll be in SLAM mode so pump runs 24/7 and you scrub daily. You'll want to circulate through the spa all the time so you kill all the algae.

Sorry for the confusion on the signature, looks like you figured it out. Please post a set of test results to let us know how you're doing. Remember your pH test will not be reliable at slam FC levels so it's good to start low in the pH range.

Chris

Hi Chris,

I have a suction cleaner that's runs though the pool .

To me, running constantly through the spa, during slam, made sense, but a previous post suggested I don't need to circulate through the spa all the time and twice a day would be adequate. Or, I may have misunderstood. So, today, water circulated for about 2 hours through the spa. I can change settings tomorrow morning.

No worries about the signature. Thank you for guiding me.

Cheers,
Avi

 

[ANash]

Hi guys.

I checked FC last night at 10 pm and it was 25ppm (50 drops). This morning at 6:30am, FC was 24.5ppm (49 drops).
CC was 0.
Water is clear.

Since it meets all criteria, should I consider slam a success? Or, as it has been only 1 day since slam began, should I continue for another day or two?

Thanks,
Avi

 

[MITBeta]

I would keep it going for another day and do another Overnight Chlorine Loss Test tonight. It's cheap insurance and way easier to continue a SLAM that's nearing its end than to start a new one.

 

[PoolStored]

Many SLAM for 1 day after passing. Just for insurance. YMMV

 

[Newdude]

Me is +3.

Extending SLAM takes almost no effort. You'll lose a few extra ppm to the sun from the higher FC and hold the rest. You're done babysitting the FC and the filter. Hold it 2 days, for all you've been through. For what, like, 3 gallons of chlorine?

 

[ANash]

Sounds good. I will maintain slam for 2 more days. Thanks.

 

[setsailsoon]

If it was me I would go two days also. Kind of takes most of the effort just to get started so might as well do an extra day. Also check everything very very carefully to be sure you have no hidden algae anywhere and make sure you circulate through the spa lines.

Sounds like you are really catching on to this quickly. Tfp pools are just simple to take care of!

Chris

 

[ANash]

If it was me I would go two days also. Kind of takes most of the effort just to get started so might as well do an extra day. Also check everything very very carefully to be sure you have no hidden algae anywhere and make sure you circulate through the spa lines.

Sounds like you are really catching on to this quickly. Tfp pools are just simple to take care of!

Chris

Catching on quickly because of the guidance from the amazing group of people here.

There is a rock water
fall feature, that have so many nooks and crannies, and I possibly could not clear all the algae away. That is my only concern in regards to maintaining the pool algae free.

I will try the best I can.

Thanks to all of you.

Cheers,
Avi

 

[Mdragger88]

Spray it directly with a 50/50 bleach/water mix & go to town with a brush. Rinse well. Once you clean it up & regularly run the waterfall with proper fc levels according to the FC/CYA Levels it shouldn’t reoccur.
You got a pic?

 

[ANash]

Spray it directly with a 50/50 bleach/water mix & go to town with a brush. Rinse well. Once you clean it up & regularly run the waterfall with proper fc levels according to the FC/CYA Levels it shouldn’t reoccur.
You got a pic?

On Sunday, when I was brushing the walls during slam, I got into the pool at the waterfall with a jug of chlorine. As I was brushing, I was putting chlorine onto the rocks and tried to push it into the crevices. Even with that, I felt there were areas I could not access. I tried the best I could, and it did look a lot better after I was done.

 

[ANash]

Hi guys.

Tomorrow I will be done with slam.

What's next?

I plan to clean the filter next weekend.

I allow the FC to come down to 9 ppm (recommended level for 60 cya), and maintain.

What is the best way to maintain? Checking FC daily and adding chlorine, though ideal, may not be feasible. What is recommended?

Do I check rest of chemistry after the FC comes down to 9ppm?

I bought boric acid, before I came across TFP. At what point should I think about adding it to the pool?

Thanks,
Avi

 

[Oz Swimmer]

On Sunday, when I was brushing the walls during slam, I got into the pool at the waterfall with a jug of chlorine. As I was brushing, I was putting chlorine onto the rocks and tried to push it into the crevices. Even with that, I felt there were areas I could not access. I tried the best I could, and it did look a lot better after I was done.

That rock waterfall looks great, but a nightmare to keep clean! Have you considered using a high pressure washer to clean where you cant access a brush or similar? Just need to be mindful of not getting foreign matter into the pool.

If you can't test and add liquid chlorine daily, then a SWG is worth considering. SWG How It Works - Further Reading

 

[Bperry]

Hi guys.

Tomorrow I will be done with slam.

What's next?

I plan to clean the filter next weekend.

I allow the FC to come down to 9 ppm (recommended level for 60 cya), and maintain.

What is the best way to maintain? Checking FC daily and adding chlorine, though ideal, may not be feasible. What is recommended?

Do I check rest of chemistry after the FC comes down to 9ppm?

I bought boric acid, before I came across TFP. At what point should I think about adding it to the pool?

Thanks,
Avi

You might be able to go 2-3 days between testing and chlorine additions once you get a feel for the pool needs.

I’d recommend leaving the boric acid until you know if it’ll be helpful or not.

 

[Mdragger88]

Carefully using The pressure washer on a regular basis to deal with the waterfall rock situation sounds like a great idea

As @Bperry said once u get a feel for your pool’s consumption you can likely dose every couple days. Most pools use 2-4 ppm of fc/day depending upon the season. So basically dose to high target or a dab above & replenish before you hit minimum whenever that is based on your testing.
Depending on your budget - as mentioned above- a salt water chlorine generator does the daily dosing for u! Also some choose to use an automatic Stenner dosing pump for liquid chlorine.

How to Chlorinate Your Pool

Before chlorinating your pool, you should know these simple tips. Learn the best way to add chlorine to your pool.

www.google.com

As for borates, you want to have your TA where u want it (in the 60 range) before adding. Here’s some more info on that

Borates in pool - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[ANash]

Carefully using The pressure washer on a regular basis to deal with the waterfall rock situation sounds like a great idea

As @Bperry said once u get a feel for your pool’s consumption you can likely dose every couple days. Most pools use 2-4 ppm of fc/day depending upon the season. So basically dose to high target or a dab above & replenish before you hit minimum whenever that is based on your testing.
Depending on your budget - as mentioned above- a salt water chlorine generator does the daily dosing for u! Also some choose to use an automatic Stenner dosing pump for liquid chlorine.

How to Chlorinate Your Pool

Before chlorinating your pool, you should know these simple tips. Learn the best way to add chlorine to your pool.

www.google.com

As for borates, you want to have your TA where u want it (in the 60 range) before adding. Here’s some more info on that

Borates in pool - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Thanks Mdragger88.

I will try to maintain it daily and learn how the pool behaves.

In regards to borates, I thought it is a good to have in pool irrespective of it is needed or not.

As recommended by Bperry, I will hold off on borates for now. Once I learn more about the pool care, I will consider putting it in (it is sitting in the garage anyways).

Cheers,
Avi

 

[Orion7319]

will hold off on borates for now. Once I learn more about the pool care, I will consider putting it in

If you have dogs, you might not want to add them. I am not sure how bad they are for dogs, but I have heard they could be an issue as borates can be toxic for them. It’s one of the reasons I don’t feel the need to bother with them myself.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Yes, NO Borates if you dog drinks in pool water. That can be unintentional drinking too such as while swimming....so be aware.

Don't rush borates... if done before your pool is settled and stable in pattern it makes making changes in pH more difficult.

Maddie

 

[setsailsoon]

Hi guys.

Tomorrow I will be done with slam.

What's next?

I plan to clean the filter next weekend.

I allow the FC to come down to 9 ppm (recommended level for 60 cya), and maintain.

What is the best way to maintain? Checking FC daily and adding chlorine, though ideal, may not be feasible. What is recommended?

Do I check rest of chemistry after the FC comes down to 9ppm?

I bought boric acid, before I came across TFP. At what point should I think about adding it to the pool?

Thanks,
Avi

Avi,

Congrats on the very successful SLAM! Here's what I do next:

• Test for FC, CC until FC gets below 10 ppm then check and adjust pH to get it within range.
• Then run FC on the high side (~9) as you get the feel for how much you consume daily. This should get you to the point that you can test every other day.
• With your high CYA level you'll have to run fairly high FC levels and never below 5 ppm.
• In a few weeks you should test CYA again. It will drop over time but often takes weeks to drop 10 ppm.
• Your TA will drop as you adjust pH with acid. Let it drop and you will find pH easier to maintain. I ran 50 in my pool for years.
• I would not mess with borates until you get your TA lower. You may find this is all you need to do and if it does the trick you can save yourself the hassle of yet another chemical to maintain.
• If you want to make your pool much easier to maintain install an swg. It makes pool maintenance a snap and truly does make the water feel much less harsh.

I hope this helps.

Chris