Hello all, I have recently fought a long battle with algae in my pool. It took us about a week of treatment and everyday brushing and cleaning and shocking to get all the algae to die. Now that we are finally at a stage where it is all dead, I'm having a hard time getting the dead algae out of the pool. We have been cleaning the filter regularly every day and we have also tried using a coagulant that is supposed to make the filter more efficient, but we haven't seen any improvement and it's been about a week now. We do have a cartridge filter, and I just put a brand new one in last week. Is there something I'm doing wrong or maybe another chemical I should be using? I'm pretty new to owning a pool, and there has been A LOT of trial and error (mostly error) on my part, in learning how to maintain a pool. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Trouble with cloudy water
- Thread starter texasgirl10
- Start date
First off I want to say HI! I am so glad you found us and you will be too! We will take this one step at a time okay?
1. How are you testing your water?
2. What did you use to "fight" the algae?
3. What does the water look like now? A picture would be the best way to tell us.
I am going to give you a couple of links to read.
This one shows you how we beat algae:
Pool School - SLAM - Shock Level And Maintain
As you can see from reading this a good test kit is a must.
This link tells you the hows and whys of how we here at TFP take care of a pool:
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
I will leave you with this info. and wait for you to get back with me with the answers to the questions.
we CAN get your pool clean and trouble free!
Kim
1. How are you testing your water?
2. What did you use to "fight" the algae?
3. What does the water look like now? A picture would be the best way to tell us.
I am going to give you a couple of links to read.
This one shows you how we beat algae:
Pool School - SLAM - Shock Level And Maintain
As you can see from reading this a good test kit is a must.
This link tells you the hows and whys of how we here at TFP take care of a pool:
Pool School - ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry
I will leave you with this info. and wait for you to get back with me with the answers to the questions.
we CAN get your pool clean and trouble free!Kim
Thank you so much! I have struggled with learning the basics for a year now. So, to answer your questions, I'm testing my water with Leslie's Deluxe Poolcare DPD Test Kit that includes Free and Total chlorine, ph, acid demand, and total alk. I have also purchased a FAS DPD kit from taylor to test free chlorine. I tried treating the algae with the green to clean from leslie's, and it didn't work. Tried the SLAM method I learned about on here, and went through an entire 12 pack of 1lb bags of cal hypo before the algae was finally dead. The water is very cloudy now. Can't see more than a couple inches below the surface. I will attach a pic for you.
Give us a full set of measurements from your Taylor kit.
FC -
CC -
TA -
CH -
PH -
CYA -
Also, probably best to SLAM with plain chlorine (bleach or liquid chlorine shock) because this ONLY adds chlorine. For example cal hypo also adds calcium.
How are you normally chlorinating? SWG? Automated pump? Manually? If you are using pucks you may have too much CYA (stabilizer).
FC -
CC -
TA -
CH -
PH -
CYA -
Also, probably best to SLAM with plain chlorine (bleach or liquid chlorine shock) because this ONLY adds chlorine. For example cal hypo also adds calcium.
How are you normally chlorinating? SWG? Automated pump? Manually? If you are using pucks you may have too much CYA (stabilizer).
You are on the right track but you are not done. You need to finish it off with liquid chlorine or bleach (same thing, just different %).
The M of the SLAM is the most important part. M=maintain, as in maintain the FC at SLAM level until the pool is clear.
I hope this helps. Let us know how it goes.
Kim
The M of the SLAM is the most important part. M=maintain, as in maintain the FC at SLAM level until the pool is clear.
I hope this helps. Let us know how it goes.
Kim
Ok, here are my readings:
FC - 2
CC - 0
TA - 120
PH - 7.8
CYA - 55
So yesterday my ph and alk were pretty high, like 8.2 and 140ish. I treated with acid and the readings have come down a bit. But, we did get a lot of rain dumped on us this morning, so I'm not sure if that could have affected those things. Also, it seems odd that my free chlorine is 2 while my combined chlorine is 0. Is that normal? Yesterday my FC was lower and my CC was a lot higher. Does this have anything to do with me adding the acid in yesterday? I have not shocked between taking numbers yesterday and today. Just the acid.
FC - 2
CC - 0
TA - 120
PH - 7.8
CYA - 55
So yesterday my ph and alk were pretty high, like 8.2 and 140ish. I treated with acid and the readings have come down a bit. But, we did get a lot of rain dumped on us this morning, so I'm not sure if that could have affected those things. Also, it seems odd that my free chlorine is 2 while my combined chlorine is 0. Is that normal? Yesterday my FC was lower and my CC was a lot higher. Does this have anything to do with me adding the acid in yesterday? I have not shocked between taking numbers yesterday and today. Just the acid.
Yes, that is normal. When FC oxidizes waste it turns into CC. Over time the CC burns off from exposure to the sun or FC. The goal is to have FC and no CC. The goal is also to keep FC above minimum for your CYA at all times, [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA].
Adding acid and adjusting pH doesn't have any impact on FC or CC.
Adding acid and adjusting pH doesn't have any impact on FC or CC.
Once you get your pH down around 7.2 then you can start the SLaM.
According to this chart Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart with a CYA of 60, you need to raise your FC to 24 and hold it there until the water is crystal clear.
According to this chart Pool School - Chlorine / CYA Chart with a CYA of 60, you need to raise your FC to 24 and hold it there until the water is crystal clear.
At 8500 gallons, cooler temps, and shorter days this will be a pretty easy go once you get ready to start. Good luck, and keep us posted.