Just need to make sure....

[pettinej]

Hi,
This is my 3rd year with the new pool and opening it this year was a suprise. It was deep green and very black at the bottom. After three days here are my numbers.

FC = 7.5
CC = 2.5
ph = 7.2
alk = 90
cal = 80
cya = 0
temp = Very cold under 60 still.

It is a cloudy white color. It seems to be getting better every day. I have vacuummed and scrubbed. I think I am ok but I am wondering if I should bump up the bleach.....

Thanks for the great site and help.....

[Watermom]

I'd probably shock it up to about 10 or 12 if it were my pool.

[pettinej]

Thanks for the tip.

My new numbers are

FC = 16
CC = 0
ph = 6.8
alk = 90
cal = 80
cya = 0
temp = Very cold under 60 still.

Not sure why the ph went down so far..... I tested it 3 times to be sure.
Seems like it is getting better.

Is the best advice to fix my ph and keep FC above 10 until it is completely clear?

[Watermom]

Yes. You need to get the ph above 7.0 asap. Any reading below that is acidic and can damage your pool. And, keep hitting it with bleach. Good luck.

[pettinej]

Ok I got the PH up to 7.2 and I have been keeping the FC above 15. It is at 22 this morning. I am still cloudy and I am wondring if I should use a clarifier. The water is still cold so we won't be swimming any time soon but I want to get my water clear.

Thanks again for the help.

[Watermom]

Give it some time. I know you are anxious, but sometimes the best thing you can do is to have what we call P.O.P. -- pool owner patience. Keep at it. Keep your pump running. I would not suggest adding a clarifier at this time. Sometimes getting in too big of a hurry to add extra stuff just causes extra problems. Especially since your water is cold and you won't be swimming for awhile anyways. It'll clear.

[pettinej]

New numbers

FC = 30
CC = 0
ph = 6.8
alk = 90
cal = 80
cya = 15
temp = 62

The weather here in NY is starting to break. Should be 82 today. I checked the pool this morning and my numbers are listed above. For some reason the PH is down again. I am headed to the store to bring it back up asap. It has been 8 days since I opened the pool and wife and kids are starting to get on my case. Any reason why my PH keeps going down? I have not put anything but bleach and baking soda in my pool in the last 6 days. Pool is still cloudy, pump running 24/7.

[pettinej]

FC = 17
CC = 0
ph = 7.2
alk = 140
cal = 50
cya = ~10
temp = 70

I can see the bottom of the shallow end but I still can not see the drain in the deep end. I guess it is getting there but man is it taking a long time. Is my Alk to high now?

[Watermom]

Your alk is a little high, but not enough at this time to worry about. Right now, just focus on getting your water clear. How many times a day are you testing and hitting it with bleach? The key to clearing water is to sustain the high cl reading and not let it yo-yo up and down. Glad it is getting better. Hang in there. It'll clear. Keep your pump running 24/7 while you are trying to clear it.

[pettinej]

I try to test it twice a day. I now understand that I want to keep it at a certain level and not yo-yo. I have a cartridge filter and I have been running 24/7. My filter pressure was a bit high (15 psi) I have cleaned it and it was back to 7psi. Today it is a 11 but if I understand correctly I should not clean it to often because if it is a little dirty it will help filter the finer particles. Is this correct? Thanks for the help.

[Watermom]

Yes. A little dirty will help filter better, but keep an eye on the pressure. Does it look any better this morning? How is the chlorine holding? Over the weekend, if you are home, you can even test in the afternoon as well as morning and evening if it is convenient.

[CarlD]

Pettinej:

Just to bolster your confidence: You are doing the right thing the right way and it IS working--it just takes time and P.O.P.P. ("....patience AND PERSISTENCE")

Watermom is guiding you perfectly (as always, Lisa :D ) which is why the rest of us haven't commented.

Be patient--You'll be THRILLED with the end result--and, with Lisa's guidance, it will STAY clear and will be easy to keep that way all summer long.

[pettinej]

Thanks for the confidence. I guess my FC is not holding well because when I tested today (3pm) it was down to 7.5. I brought it back up and I plan to watch it close as I can.

I have been reading on this site for some time now and I love it. It has never failed me. For some reason when I opened it this year it is the worst that my pool ever looked. (black lagoon) I still can not see the drain in the deep end yet I can see the bottom in the shallow end.

My plan for now is to keep a close eye on FC (keep it above 12), pump running 24/7, vac to waste and not let the pressure get above 12. If it does I will clean the filter.

[brent.roberts]

Is there any debris in the deep end, like a dead elephant, or maybe just a lot of leaves ??

A lot of leaves that don't get scooped or vacuumed out will prolong this process because you will have to oxodize them all away with the chlorine.

[b2001]

I also started with a dark green/black lagoon this year. As Brent stated, I knew there was a lot of debis on the bottom.

If there is a lot of debris, it won't help to start vacuuming, the filter, as well as the leaf pot basket and skimmer basket will clog in five minutes or less. I used a Polaris 65 for several days to scoop or sweep the debris from the bottom. I then started vacuuming - that took another few days. I couldn't see the bottom during this entire effort.

Part of my issue was that my ph was also low - I got it up to the proper level at about the same time as I got 99% of the crap out and pretty much overnight my pool cleared up.

Not getting as much as that stuff out as possible will indeed prolong the process and you'll end up with a lot of belach bottles in your backyard.

[pettinej]

I don't think that there is any junk at the bottom of the deep end. I don't have any trees and I covered the pool for the winter. The water is clean but just not clear enough to see the bottom at the deep end. Also when I vacuum I mostly do it to waste so I don't clog my filter. I have had it covered with the solar cover the last two days and keeping my FC above 12 while checking at least 3 times a day. I will report sometime tomorrow on how it looks.

Thanks for all the help.

[pettinej]

Hi and thanks to all.

My pool is finally clear and we have been swimming so I have not had time to post. Here are my latest numbers.

FC = 11
CC = 0
ph = 7.2
alk = 160
cal = 50
cya = ~10
temp = 80

I would like to now get my ph up to 7.4 and lower my alk. I have baking soda for the ph but what is the best way for the alk?

I also have a couple of questions about cya. When I measure should I do it outside in sunlight? Should the dot completely disappear? This is the only measurement I am not to sure about.

Thanks again.

[Watermom]

To raise ph, you use Borax, not baking soda. However, hold off on the Borax for now since you want to lower your alk. See the following link for information about lowering alk.

http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?t=191

Re: cya --- yes outside, yes dot should disappear. It is definitely the hardest of all the tests to read. Hope this helps.