Ph is ideal, alkalinity is a little high

[Mftek1]

Hello pool forumers! my name is Mike! I'm new to this forum and would like to say hello to everyone!

I'm a new pool owner here and need a little help.

My pool is about 20,000 gallons
And I'm finally making some positive impact lol

Ph is 7.6
Chlorine is 3.0
Alkalinity is 130

I know 130 is a little high, and I would like to drop it some. Hopefully to 100....
I've been trying and so far so luck...

Any tips or help you guys could recommend?

P.s. my pool water is also cloudy... It looks like a sky blue type. I can see the bottom in the shallow but not the deep.

Thanks guys!!!

[Watermom]

Hi, Mike and welcome to the forum!

What kind of test kit do you have? Do you have a CYA reading to report? That is something we need to know to be able to help you. Have you had algae?

Tell us what kind of pool you have, what size of pump and what type and size of filter. Also, report what all you have put into your pool meaning actual ingredients and not just product names or 'shock.'

Then, somebody here can try and help you get the cloudy water cleared up.

Glad you found us!

[Mftek1]

Took a sample to my local pool supply place.
The following is the results they gave me.

FC 3.0
Tc 3.0
Ch 250
Cya 40
Ta 100
Ph 7.6
Copper 0
Iron 0
Tds 1000
Pho 300

This is everything I have done so far.
Pool was green at the start.

I added 4 gallons of chlorine, 2 lbs shock, and algaecide.
Filter 24/7.
Vacuum, clean filters. Etc.
ph was at 7.8 alkalinity was 140 so I used muriatic acid about 1 gallon to drop both.
I then used 2 boxes of borax 20 mule to raise the ph.
I have added 5 lbs of stabalizer since my chlorine kept going away

According to the pool place all my numbers are good except the phosphate one is high.
But my question is, why is my pool still so cloudy??
Hope this is enough information to get some good help :)

Sand filter, and my pool is about 15-20,000 gallons.

[Watermom]

Thanks for giving a lot of information. But, I do have some more questions for you.

What kind of algaecide did you use? A lot of those can make a mess of the water. What kind of chlorine did you add and what are the ingredients of the shock that you added? Is the water still green? What size is your pump and filter? Is this an inground or AG pool? Vinyl or gunite?

Do yourself a favor and order a good test kit instead of having to rely on the pool store. (Often their testing is not very accurate.) We recommend the Taylor K-2006 or 2006C that you can get through the test kit link in my signature below.

Welcome to the Pool Forum!

[PoolDoc]

1. Don't worry about Alk or CH now.

2. Keep your pH in the 7.2 - 7.4 range, for now.

3. Don't worry about phosphates less they are over 1,000 ppb (1 ppm)

4. Don't use ANY algaecide -- even if you have it -- unless it's polyquat. Polyquat is also a very effective clarifier, so if you want to use an algaecide, that's one more reason why polyquat should be your only choice. www.poolsolutions.com/polyquat.html

5. Check your sand. If the previous owner used Baquacil or similar products, it may be gummed up and need to be changed. Or, if the pump is oversized, a lot of the sand may have been lost during backwashing.