New Pool Owner - Dark Green to Blue-White -To... Now What?

[poolcrazy]

I see this topic has been discussed before, but I wanted to give some particulars:

1. Bought a house with a 41'X24' pool. As I have never seen the bottom of the pool, it looks like it goes from about 4' in the shallow end to 12' in the deep end;

2. It uses a Purex Triton Nautilus Plus (36) DE filter with a 1 HP Hayward pump. (There is a booster pump for a Polaris auto cleaner, but I'll figure that one out later.)

3. Day one: Opened the Pool (six days ago)... took off the cover which was filled with holes and scooped out 3 cFt of leaves. Dark green water! Started system with a "Pool Company's" help. He told me the filter was in ok condition. Told me to backwash the system when psi went to 20-24 on the guage. (Start psi was 12)

4. Shocked the pool first day with 4lbs of shock; on second day, no real improvement in water color... still dark green. Backwashed about three times. Replaced DE with 3lbs of DE per each backwash;

5. Day two and three: Kept pulling leaves out and skimming... 12 more cFt of leaves came out on days two and three. At the end of day three water is lighter but still dark green. Continued to Backwash and replace DE. Noticed some cloudyness coming from return in the pool. Still too cloudy to see clearly;

6. Day four in am: no real change but perhaps slightly lighter still. Added 6 more lbs of shock and an algaecide. Can see about 10" down now. Can notice "cloudy" water returning after backwashing.

7. Day five - mid day: wife calls and says pool is cloudy blue white. Back washed only once. Continued to replace the DE with 3 lbs of DE after the backwash and noticed significant jets of cloudiness being returned.

Color is obviously going in the right direction, but am I using too much DE? What is causing the cloudiness? Dead Algae? DE leaking into the pool? If it is just the dead Alage, and from what I read, I cannot use FLOC with DE filters, how do I get rid of the dead Algae.... I still cannot see the bottom of the pool so vacuuming is pointless at this time.

Any help is appreciated!

I am just going,

poolcrazy

[Guest]

Forgot to add: just prior to adding the 6lbs of shock, the water numbers were:

pH: 8.2
Hardness: 300ppm
C: 1-2
Alk: 100ppm
CYA: 50

These were determined by the hth test kit from a hardware store. I am sure they are not the most accurate.

Thanks.

[Guest]

now is the perfect time to use flocculant or alum. the ph needs to be high, which you already have. with flocculant, you would set your multiport valve to recirculate, add the floc to the pool surface, then run your pump for 2 hours. then you would shut it off for 12 to 24 hours, then vac to waste. alum works in a similar way, but will cost you more money.

after clearing the pool, take your filter apart and inspect the grids before adding more d.e. if you have a tear you will just cloud the pool again by adding d.e.

[Guest]

Two things jump out in your post.

First the pH is too high. You want to bring that down toward 7.2-7.6. Chlorine is more effective at lower ph's.

The second thing is the white flowing back into the pool. Sounds like a problem in the filter. If you know how to take the filter apart you could clean it out and check the grids for holes or rips.

Once you can measure the volume of water in your pool then you can determine how much chlorine to add to get the FC (free chlorine) to the proper level to kill any algae.

[Guest]

OK... vacuumed to waste... added 5 more pounds of shock, and more algicide and here are the numbers:

Hardness 200
FC 0 (Yep... ZERO)
pH 7
TA 80
CYa .... does not register....


and water is still cloudy... now more of a green



HELP!!!!!!

[Denali]

1. What type of algaecide are you using?
2. CYA doesn't register? Does that mean it is reading 0?
3. Vacuumed to waste. Do you have a multi valve that allows you to bypass the filter?
4. What type of shock are you using?

Sorry for questions instead of answers but trying to narrow down what is going on with your pool.

OK... vacuumed to waste... added 5 more pounds of shock, and more algicide and here are the numbers:

Hardness 200
FC 0 (Yep... ZERO)
pH 7
TA 80
CYa .... does not register....


and water is still cloudy... now more of a green



HELP!!!!!!

[Guest]

No worries about the questions. I just want to get this clear by next weekend. My wife is having (her) baby shower here at our new home. I would like to have the water clear by then. So if you need to ask q's, then let them fly!

1. Algicide: round number one I used HTH algicide; this time around I used No Mor Problems Algicide. Both as per instructions;

2. I guess it is zero. The zero reading on the HTH 5test strip is orange... test strip repeatedly shows bright yellow;

3. Yes, I bypassed the filter;

4. I have used the HTH super shock and the "Intheswim" super shock... the most powerful shock yet @ 73% Calcium Hypochlorite. All of the shock was Calcium Hypochlorite.

[Denali]

I would avoid the HTH algicide. I've never used it but I've never heard anyone say anything good about it. No Mor Problems is more a preventative although I do like United Chemical products.

Test strips are not known for their accuracy. I would get the water tested at a pool store to see if you're really at 0 CYA. Better yet is get a test kit that will measure that.

If CYA is at 0 you'll have a tough time clearing the pool. Chlorine will be gone before it clears the pool. You'll want the CYA level at about 40 but first be sure your reading of 0 is accurate.

I like to use liquid chlorine or bleach as the means to shock and sanitize my pool. It works and it's cheaper.

Have you taken the filter apart to see if the filter grids are intact? Your original post lead me to believe you were getting cloudy water coming back through the return lines.

Last thing for now. By the numbers you list, I get 60K gallons as the volume of your pool. Does that look about right? That is a huge pool if it is. A 36 sq. ft. filter is way undersized for a pool that size. It will do the job but you'll be backwashing often and adding a lot of DE.

Sounds like a lot of stuff but start with confirming/adjusting CYA level. Check the filter grids for rips or holes.

No worries about the questions. I just want to get this clear by next weekend. My wife is having (her) baby shower here at our new home. I would like to have the water clear by then. So if you need to ask q's, then let them fly!

1. Algicide: round number one I used HTH algicide; this time around I used No Mor Problems Algicide. Both as per instructions;

2. I guess it is zero. The zero reading on the HTH 5test strip is orange... test strip repeatedly shows bright yellow;

3. Yes, I bypassed the filter;

4. I have used the HTH super shock and the "Intheswim" super shock... the most powerful shock yet @ 73% Calcium Hypochlorite. All of the shock was Calcium Hypochlorite.

[Guest]

CYA through the liquid test is less than 30... but I cannot tell how much more below.

I will take a sample of the water to the pool store tomorrow and post numbers.

as far as the grid goes... it was fine on start up... at least according to the pool guy who looked at it. I was getting cloudy returns, but I was also adding 3-4lbs of DE each backwash...

I have done many calculations on the pool volume... I come up with 40-48K gallons.

The former owner used the filter and pump for 13+ years and showed me pictures of it being crystal clear... so it must work.

[Guest]

Oh, and according to the liquid tests here are the other numbers:

TC: 5-10 (This test does not test for FC)
alk: 110
ph: 7.5
hardness: 240

[Guest]

seems to me that with the exception of the cloudiness and the CYA being low, the other numbers are normal....

[Denali]

The numbers do look good. Not knowing the FC makes it tough to know if chlorine is needed. Once you've had it tested and know FC, you'll know how to adjust the chlorine.

As I mentioned about the filter, it will work but will require longer run times and more backwashing.

Next time you backwash, add your DE and watch the return lines. If you are seeing cloudy water coming out, there is a problem in the filter. On that filter there is an air relief strainer that is often a problem. By this I mean it can allow DE to pass through the filter and into the pool.

If your FC is the same as the TC then the algae should be dead and it's just a matter of vacuuming and filtering the water.

[muss08]

Okay, first you HAVE to keep your pool at shock level to get it to clear. With the amount of shock you are using and FC is still reading 0 this usually means the chlorine is being used up very quickly due to alot of organic debris and the fact your CYA is less than 0. The other thing is you need to get a very reliable test kit such as the Taylor K 2006. It is a FAS-DPD tesk kit that tests everything you need and test FC up to 50ppm and down to .2ppm. Cant be beat. If your depths are correct I too come up with about 60,000 gallons which is enormous. Lets guesstimate and say your CYA is 15 at the moment. Your shock level is 11. You can either keep going with the cal hypo shock (but be warned that cal hypo is also going to raise your calcium hardness) or move to regular unscented 6% bleach or a 12 chlorinating liquid. 7.6lbs of cal hypo will get a clean pool of your size to shock level while 10 1/2 gallons of regular bleach will too. You need to shoot for this 11ppm until you get your CYA readings back. Pools in your situation usually go from green/brown to milky blue then begins to clear. The milky blue means there is alot of dead algae as opposed to live algae (green). Keep up the shocking in the morning, aternoon, and definitely at sundown. Once the sun is down you wont lose chlorine to UV rays and the chlorine can really do tis job