What is causing this reaction?!?!

[duraleigh]

I don't believe a salt cell can produce that. I do believe you have something in your pool that is causing that foaming (duh!) but it is not your cell. Are you saying that when you turn off the cell but leave the pump running that the problem is solved?? (I suspect an air leak but it would continue whether or not the cell was working.)

What is "pool magic"?? got a pic?

Your FC is reasonable at 7.5.....leave it for now.

 

[JamesW]

It looks like Pool Magic contains surfactants, which can cause foaming.

That might explain it.

C9-C11 alcohol ethoxylate is an emulsifier and a surfactant that breaks the surface tension of water, allowing things to become clean.

 

[jenniferm1209]

It looks like Pool Magic contains surfactants, which can cause foaming.

That might explain it.

Ok. So what can I do to solve this? Do I have to drain the pool? Would one little 1 liter bottle cause the pool water to react like this all year? It does only happen when the cell is generating. If I turn it off but leave the pool running this doesn't happen.

 

[JamesW]

This happens sometimes. I'm not sure why. Something is in the water. Maybe the Pool Magic. Maybe something else. I would try a SLAM. If that doesn't work, I don't know what else to do other than a water change.

Note that a water change by draining and refilling is not a simple thing and should not be done without researching how to do it safely.

For a vinyl liner, there's no easy way to drain and refill. You can do multiple partial water changes. Never drain below the ground water level or the liner can float. Never drain to less than 18" in the shallow end.

 

[Flying Tivo]

My first step would be to try to eliminate most of the foam with a leaf rake.

 

[homegameroom]

The bottom line: Something has been added to your water to create the foam. I had a similar issue (before I followed the forums advice and became a disciple of the TFPC method) when adding algecide to my pool (even though it was labeled "non-foaming"). My waterfall from the spa made it look exactly like your pool.

The SWG appears to be doing this because it generates bubbles. You would have the same foam if you had some other kind of water feature (waterfall or fountain). It will dissipate over time.

Not that you may want to add anything additional to the pool, but I have used the foam-away spa products in the past to get rid of this. And I highly recommend studying and switching to the TFP method of maintaining your pool- it truly works, and you will probably save money and, believe it or not, time!