Frustrated with Pool, it just won't clear up

[l8nite4me]

Hello everyone and thx in advance for all the help I know I will receive.

I got a late start on opening the pool this year due to work and travel. All in all i have been at this for about 2 weeks now.

I have a 15,000 gallon above ground vinyl pool with a sand filter. Here are my numbers as of this morning.

Temp: 82
TDS: 900
CYA151
TC: 10
FC: 10
pH: 7.4
TA: 97
TH: 108

When I first opened the pool and filled it was a clear beautiful emerald green color, while I was out of town my wife went to the local Leslie's for advice.

They had her add UV Shield, Alkalinity Up, pH Down and 4 1lb bags of magic super shock.

She performed the steps as indicated and waited 2 days to take a sample back. At this point they gave her 4 more bags of magic super shock and a 5lb bucket of Alum. Told her to disperse the shock over the entire surface of the pool wait 4 hours then brush the sides and bottom and broadcast the alum over the pool. Let the filter run for 4 hours then turn it off and let the alum settle for the next 24. Then brush the sides and bottom and vacuum to waste.

Now after all this my pool is a beautiful teal green/blue and cloudy. Not real cloudy, I can see the bottom from about 10' away.

It resembles this pic I found in another thread.

http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?t=7546

Any advice would be greatly appreciated and if you need more information please do not hesitate to ask.

[JohnT]

With CYA that high, you need to keep your chlorine around 20-25ppm. The biggest mistake most people make when dealing with algae is waiting too long between tests and chlorine additions. When you add chlorine, test it again in four hours, then again every eight hours. The chlorine will be consumed rapidly, and most of it will be gone if you wait longer. When the chlorine drops to zero, the algae starts growing again, and you are back where you started

[l8nite4me]

My test kit only goes to 5 for chlorine, how do I test for results above that number?

Thx in advance

[ccostan]

My test kit only goes to 5 for chlorine, how do I test for results above that number?

Thx in advance

You can use parts Distilled water to get higher results.

1/5 Pool water + 4/5 Distilled water should allow you to go up to 25 in your testing.

CARLO.

[l8nite4me]

You can use parts Distilled water to get higher results.

1/5 Pool water + 4/5 Distilled water should allow you to go up to 25 in your testing.

CARLO.

You have totally blown my mind on that statement. Are you saying I add 1/5 pool water and 4/5's distilled water to my test kit then add the drops for chlorine testing?

Then what, multiply the read out by, I would assume 5 based on the ratio?

It's been alot of years since college chemistry and math. :)

Thx in advance

[ccostan]

You have totally blown my mind on that statement. Are you saying I add 1/5 pool water and 4/5's distilled water to my test kit then add the drops for chlorine testing?

Then what, multiply the read out by, I would assume 5 based on the ratio?

It's been alot of years since college chemistry and math. :)

Thx in advance

Yep. :D I referenced this thread for sanity as well. http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/printthread.php?t=7496

Carlo.

[dawndenise]

My test kit only goes to 5 for chlorine, how do I test for results above that number?

Because you have to test for a much higher level of chlorine, you may want to invest in a FAS-DPD test that can go much higher reliably. I think it will measure up to 50 - not that you'd be going quite that high... While the dilution/shot glass method will work, I never felt all that convinced that my results were correct, so I was quite glad when I received my kit that included the FAS-DPD for chlorine.

It's possible to buy just the FAS-DPD test for chlorine without buying an entire kit. Look for CarlD's reply #6 in this thread:

http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?t=7505

[l8nite4me]

Alright, just went home to check the status of the pool. It is about 80% clear now and more blue than green, so I am assuming things are getting in control.

I adjusted the Chlorine up to about 22ppm and will test again in 8 hours and adjust again if needed.

I will keep you posted on the results.

Thanks everyone for all the help, I know my family will appreciate tremendously.

[duraleigh]

The dilution method for testing chlorine above 5ppm with an OTO test is wildly innaccurate. 1 to 1 dilution might get you in the ballpark but a 4 or 5 to 1 test I would trust like a used car salesman.

The FAS/DPD method is really the only RELIABLE way to test much above 10ppm. You would probably get closer by waiting 'til Cl goes to 5 or below and calculating what you need to bring it up to a desired level.