Water keeps turning hazy and losing its sparkle. What am I doing wrong?

[Kuhbander]

Good day all,

Im kinda at a loss here. For some season my water keeps turning hazy and losing its sparkle and im not sure why. I could use some advise.

At the end of July I performed a slam. Passed all 3 criteria, the water was beautiful! I was very careful to keep my FC at the recommended levels according to my CYA but after a week or two the water started turning hazy and losing its sparkle. I did the OCLT and failed. It made me think that maybe I didn't complete the slam even though I passed all 3 criteria.

We had a vacation coming up soon so I didnt want to perform another SLAM until we got back. While we were gone I had the dog sitter add 2 cups of bleach per day and that seemed to keep any visible algae blooms at bay. Then hurricane Irma was predicted to hit our area so I held off a while longer until that passed. Finally got to do the second SLAM around the second week of Sept. Everything was great once the pool passed. I even slammed for a couple more days after it passed just to make sure. The water was crystal clear! Now its starting to get a bit of a haze to it and doesnt seem to sparkle like it was. I can still see that I have phillips screws in my main drain so its not that bad yet but I want it to stay like its is after a slam.

After a slam and the FC drifts down, my SWG seems to keep the FC at 6ppm at 25% production for about 7-10 days then I start to notice a haze, check the FC and its down to 5ppm. I add bleach to bring it back up to 6 and bump up the SWG %. Now im up to 60% on my SWG. Im going to do another OCLT tonight but im pretty confident im going to fail.

Im a pretty "exact" kinda guy and I really struggle with the CYA test. I wish there was a more accurate way to test that. I even got the 50ppm CYA standard from TF test kits and I still struggle with it. (I can still see the dot at 50ppm) My CYA could be 60 or it could be 80. Its just not very clear to me, I figured Id go with 80.

Am I unreasonable to expect water water to stay as clear and sparkle like it does after a slam? Im not sure what im doing wrong or what else I can do. I follow the TFP method to a tee and im starting to lose faith in it.

Any suggestions or advise would be much appreciated!


FC-6
CC-0
PH-7.4
TA-70
CH-375
CYA-80

 

[pookiesunshine]

any info on what you've done regarding brushing, cleaning filters, emptying skimmer/pump baskets, etc.?

 

[Kuhbander]

I brush and vacuum weekly and clean my cartridge filter monthly. The pool is screened in so I don’t get much debris but I do get a few leaves from our potted plants once in a while.
I should also mention that it doesn't really get much of a bather load. Its usually just the wife and I floating around a few times a week.

 

[pookiesunshine]

well, circulation dead spots might be a factor but that would generally yield spots of algae not general haziness. Any recesses like underwater light niches where something might be hiding? otherwise i would just try raising your target FC bit by bit and see if that works. i'm sure someone else will chime in.

 

[Perpetual summer]

My suggestion, since your not very sure of cya from testing, maybe it’s higher. How long does your pump run daily? Could you be testing when chlorine is at its highest, and is actually lower at times. I would increase FC ppm higher to at least 8, see if it helps. Brush twice a week, might help also.
I will sometimes see a lack of sparkle..... a brush and it clears up.

 

[mknauss]

Rick makes a great point. The best time to test FC with a SWCG pool is right before the SWCG starts up for the day. So if that is in the morning, test in the morning. If you happen to run the SWCG in the evening, test just before it turns on. That way you are getting the lowest point in FC for the 24 hour period.

I also find keeping my FC at 10% of CYA keeps me from having any dips in FC due to birds, organics, etc. Does not look like you should have that issue though.

Take care.

 

[Kuhbander]

Thanks for the responses!

I run my pump 8 hours a day (9-5 (when the sun is on the pool) and my SWG for 7 3/4 hours a day (9:15-5) I do test the water just before the SWG kicks on. I learned that from you mknass. I was hoping you'd chime in here.

I do have a light niche so if I fail the OCLT tonight I will have to pull that out and do another slam i guess.

As far as circulation goes, Im pretty confident I have enough. I have 3 returns, a waterfall and a bubble/fountain on the sunshelf. I normally keep that one turned down to just a trickle just to help out with PH rise but I will open the vale up a little to see if that helps.

I've never seen any visible spots of algae. Maybe thats because of the color of the plaster. Its called blue granite. Its a blueish colored plaster with darker pebbles in it. The pool can be quite dirty but it doesn't show.

I will raise the FC to 8 and see if helps. Can anyone recommend another type of a CYA test that may be more decisive? I know the TF test is the recommended one, but just thought there may be another one that may be better for me.

Thanks

 

[mknauss]

Good to hear on the testing protocol.

The drop test with vial is the best CYA test there is. Just be sure to use the 'glance' method and do not concentrate on trying to see the dot. Once it is gone with a glance, that is the number.

Take care.

 

[BasicTek]

Can anyone recommend another type of a CYA test that may be more decisive? I know the TF test is the recommended one, but just thought there may be another one that may be better for me.

You might want to try buying a sample CYA and testing it a few times to verify you are doing it right and I take it you've checked out the video

 

[Kuhbander]

I do have the sample CYA and have watched the video. I follow the directions exactly but even with the sample solution I still see the dot at 50ppm even at a glance. Maybe a bad solution? The only thing I haven’t seen is a recommended background color. I have a gold colored travertine. Maybe I should try testing it in the yard with grass and see if that makes a difference.

 

[tucsontico]

You have a good plan to raise the FC a bit. If you haven't added any chemicals that would raise your CYA (pucks, dry shock, etc.) it is unlikely that your CYA has gone up. I'm guessing what has occurred is just the opposite. Your CYA has dropped (it decreases about 3-5 ppm per month in full sun) to the point that the amount of FC the SWG is injecting is being burned off by the sun. Also, as you mentioned, it is possible that your test chemicals have lost potency.

 

[pookiesunshine]

I do have the sample CYA and have watched the video. I follow the directions exactly but even with the sample solution I still see the dot at 50ppm even at a glance. Maybe a bad solution? ....

is the dot completely visible with no cloudiness whatsoever? if so, perhaps a bad standard. if not, what reading do you get for the standard? for example, if you read 40 for the 50 standard, add 10 to whatever reading you get for your pool water. if you read 30 for the standard, something is not quite right, either the standard or your technique.

 

[duraleigh]

Back to the original post...

For some season my water keeps turning hazy and losing its sparkle and im not sure why.

This doesn't have to be very complicated. You have suspended particulates in your water that keep it fropm sparkling.

1. If they are inorganic (like calcium, etc) your properly operating filter should take care of them. You should run it 24/7 until your pool sparkles. You must do all the ancilliary cleaning like brushing and cleaning filter as well.

2. If the particulates are the beginning of an algae bloom, you have in the past had inadequate chlorine to keep algae at bay (this is the cause about 90% of the time) You must elevate the chlorine to SLAM value and hold it there (still running the pump 24/7) until your pool is clear. If it hazes again, you are simply not keeping the chlorine high enough consistently enough.

It's really that easy.....solve one and/or two, and the pool will be crystal clear.