Green Pool

[ladybug]

33ft above ground vinyl pool
25,800 gal
Sand Dollar SD60
Hayward Power Flo Matrix SP1510
Chlorine

Went on vacation and when I got back my water was clear but there was algae on bottom. Pool Company tested and had me add 3lb PH- and 3lb shock. 5 days later they had me add 3lb shock and add 5lbs baking soda and 2lb ph-. The water got very green and cloudy. Yesterday my readings as tested by pool company were

FAC 1.75
TC 2
CC 0.25
PH 7.5
T Alkalinity 39
Calcium Hardness 112
Cyanuric Acid 25
Saturation Index -0.5
Endure 0

They told me to add 16oz of Pool Life Algae Bomb and 10lbs of Baking soda. The pool looks like a green pond today. They told me to shock it again tonight with 2lbs of shock. It seems like baking soda makes it worse but I know nothing about pools. This is my second summer with it. I dont know if I am on the right track or not. Any help would be much appreciated!!

[PoolDoc]

You don't need calcium; your alkalinity is low, but that doesn't matter unless your pH is wandering around.

You need to be testing your OWN water!

If you leave the testing up to the pool dealer, you're going to end up giving him a gift: $$$'s for special chemicals to 'clean up' your algae. Stop it! Go get a cheap OTO / phenol red drops kit and a full dozen gallons of PLAIN 8% household bleach. Go home, test your pH, and then add 4 gallons of the bleach this evening, and each following evening, till the algae is ALL dead. If it hasn't turned brown or gray within 1 hour after adding the 2nd dose, increase the 3rd dose to 7 gallons. Once it's turned brown, add ANOTHER dose and then brush the pool.

You also should order a Taylor K2006 kit, but don't wait till you have it, to begin treating your pool!

Do not add any more algaecides or other chemicals till the algae is ALL gone. If you have a 2 speed pump, turn it on low, but run it 24/7. Check your pH in the evening just before adding more bleach. If it's between 7 and 8, it's fine for now.

. . . membership updated.

[ladybug]

Thanks so much. I added 5gal bleach friday night and shocked it last night. I had not got a reply yet so was not sure. It is cloudy blue today which makes me very happy. I will add bleach again tonight. I will order that kit for sure. I have a Stanley kit that measures Chlorine & Ph to use for now. What amount of bleach would I use to maintain a pool this size? The pool company has made quite a bit off me already this year. Thanks for the help. This forum is very helpful.

[PoolDoc]

Each gallon of 8% bleach contains about 0.7 lbs of chlorine gas equivalent. (8.5 lbs/gal x 0.08 = 0.68) Your PF (pool factor) is 5, so each gallon will be 0.7 x 5 or 3.5 ppm. Figure 3 ppm, since most 'gallons' are now 121 fl. oz instead of 128.

But, once you get your K2006, watch the Taylor vids (http://pool9.net/tk-guide/), then test the pool, then post your results. If your CYA is low (stabilizer) and you have access to a Sams Club, dichlor from Sams may be your best bet. But, we need test results.

(Can you check your pump ID? I can't find a SP1510. The Hayward Power Flo Matrix pumps seem to be SP159x series.)

[ladybug]

I ordered the test kit through this site. The pump says its a sp1510. No telling how old it is. I bought the pool used last year. I will keep my Chlorine level up and post the results when I get the kit in. It is still a cloudy blue today but blue is good. Thanks!!

[PoolDoc]

Can you send me a picture? ( poolforum@gmail.com ) I can't find any info about the "SP1510".

[ladybug]

I got my kit today. Looks like I got allot of reading to do before using it. I will post results when I figure it out.

[Watermom]

These testing demo videos may be helpful.

http://pool9.net/K2006-vid/

[BigDave]

Don't read the booklet that came with the K-2006. It's confusing and sometimes misleading. Use the videos and the box lid intsructions to test.

[ladybug]

I watched the video & used the lid. This is what I came up with. Hope I am right.
4 FC
1.2 CC
7.6 PH
90 TA

And CYA is 30

[PoolDoc]

Looks fine, mostly, for a vinyl pool!

The CC is a bit high, so keep dosing in the evening, to break the stuff down.

[ladybug]

Thanks so much for the help. How much bleach should I add every night? Its still very cloudy.

[PoolDoc]

Very cloudy gray / brown => 3 gallons of PLAIN 8% bleach

Very cloudy green => 6 gallons of PLAIN 8% bleach

[Watermom]

In your pool, each quart of 8.25% bleach will add about 0.8ppm of chlorine and each of the 121-oz jugs will add about 3ppm. Since your pool is still cloudy and you had a sizable CC reading, go ahead and keep your chlorine at shock level until you can meet three criteria:

1) You can go from sundown one evening to within an hour of sunrise the following morning without losing more than 1ppm of chlorine.
2) You have no more than 0.5ppm of CC
3) You water is clear.

If you look at the chart at this link:> http://pool9.net/cl-cya/, you can see that for a pool with a CYA of 30, the shock level is 15ppm. So, you test the pool and add however much bleach it takes to get back to 15. Use the figures I gave you above to help you figure out how much bleach you need to add.

Once you meet the three criteria, then you can let your chlorine drift down and keep it within the minimum/maximum range so you won't get algae again.

Keep your pump running 24/7 while you are working to clear the pool and backwash your filter as needed.

Hope this helps.