When is draining recommended?

[gale]

I just joined a pool maintenance group on facebook and am shocked at how often people are recommending others to drain and refill. For things like algae, cloudy water, etc. I've seen some pretty green and cloudy pools in this forum end up crystal clear without draining and it seems like draining an above ground pool could be tricky what with winds and flimsy walls and such. At what point do you recommend draining??

FWIW we opened our pool a couple of days ago and it was neon green. Really gross. It's not clear yet but it's getting there, just with a good shock and constant filtering (so far). I don't think we've ever opened it without it being pretty darn green and so far (knock wood) we have not had to drain it.

 

[LFrankow]

Well my pool is about 12,600 gals which costs about 48$ to fill.

If it ever turns green on me I will do the drain scrub and refill, cheapest quickest fastest, 3-4 days versus 1-2 weeks.

But the water in my pool has been there since I filled it three years ago, and I don't plan on changing it out unless I change out the pool.

It is clear in the fall and muddy on the bottom but clear in the spring.

 

[Donldson]

Back when I did tech support "reinstall Windows" was shorthand for "I'm stumped so just wipe it and start over." Obviously there are times where there needs to be some water replacement: CYA, CH, bromine, and salt cannot be easily removed so a partial drain is in order. Also for small pools it can be the faster and more economical options, that is why there is the Temporary Pool Guide in Pool School that offers more abbreviated care techniques with the assumption that if things go bad the water will be dumped.

Wiping a bad computer was supposed to be the last resort, for something so messed up that it really couldn't be properly fixed. It was almost never done by the better techs. So when we would get someone who jumped to that almost every time, we knew we were dealing with someone who was not very good at their job. Likewise, if the mantra of that group is "drain it and start over" then it is not a very good group. Either they don't know enough to help someone fix the problem or they don't care to take the time to educate someone so it doesn't happen again. Either way, not a group I would want to be a part of.

 

[gale]

Yeah I don't think i'll take their advice on pool care. I mostly joined to learn about hacks and DIY things for the pool area. Like right now, I'm in the market for some steps plus I'm looking for ideas for landscaping around the pool. As for the pool water, it cost us over $200 to fill (we used a service-our well water would take more $$ than that to get the chemistry right) so draining would definitely be last resort for us. I think we'll need to change our liner in the next few years anyway so obviously that will require draining.

eta: speaking of computers-I got my first one in 2000 and at the time, had a lot of trouble with it. Dell techs insisted that reinstalling windows every few months was normal and expected. lol. After a year or two of that I complained loudly and they replaced my whole system (with a better one).