Algae, What Kind?

Thanks again to this great wonderful site. I have an issue with algae-due to my hectic days and well, er laziness- but what kind I do not know. It is dusty and brown/orangish looking while sitting on the bottom, but when I brush it, it clouds up green? Is is dead algae? Is it yellow mustard algae? Or both? Maybe I'm just colorblind? The water looks pretty clear until I brush, then I can definitley see that it is not clear. Earlier I had a sparkling picture perfect pool. Confused as all get out. I basically just want to kill it with out killing the pool and it's about time to take it down, since it's a blow up ring pool. 3600K. CYA is only around 20 (and our bathing suits show it too) and that is a guesstimate. Lots of run-ons, sorry. Ph bounces a bit, but that is because I have high alkalinity. I add muriatic when necessary, but I keep hitting it with bleach and I know that messes with the PH. I use dropper tests, doesn't show CC. And quite frankly, I did better with the dip sticks than I do with this dropper test (ack I know, I'm just telling the truth).
Thanks again, Bree :)

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Originally Posted by Bree1978

CYA is only around 20 (and our bathing suits show it too) and that is a guesstimate.

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Hi, Bree,

What do you mean by "and our bathing suits show it too"? Are you testing your CYA at 20, and if so, how? Most of the tube/reagent tests don't measure below 30. Also, what do you use for your chlorine source?

If you'll give us a set of test results, done by drop testing instead of strips, for free chlorine, combined chlorine and/or total chlorine, pH, alk, and CYA, it will help us get a better idea of what's going on in your pool and how to fix it.

Brown/tan deposits that settle on the bottom of the pool could be some sort of algae, if you've not kept your chlorine up or if you've let your CYA get out of hand, but also could be dirt/pollen/dust. Is it growing on the sides of the pool, or just the bottom? Is it collecting in seams, or is it spread out in patches? When you brush it up, does it settle back down in the same places or different places? Is there a slimy feel to the liner? Have you shocked the pool lately, if so how high and using what chlorine source? Have you had any green algae recently?

Also, if you can swim down and pinch some of it, it will help if you can tell us if it's gritty or slimy feeling.

Janet

Okay to clarify I AM using a drop kit, I like using the dips because that shows me CC and because I did better with those in my pool. Hey I paid 200.00 for a pool, and need a better filter, so the Taylor is not even a consideration for my budget at this point.

The bathing suits are bleached out. I was under the impression that low CYA and higher bleach meant bleached suits. Sorry if I was incorrect, I did read it here in a post.
The stuff is collecting in the folds ripples and what have you, and it is green when brushed up and on paper filter, but a light dusting on all surfaces....Im guess it is pollen now that you said that, w/ green algae perhaps? Just on bottom. no patches- whole bottom.

PH 7.8
CYA approximately 20 again, I am using drops and I have a real difficult time reading that, it may be lower it just gets barely cloudy almost non existant.
I have used just bleach (after adding some tabs and shock earlier in season to add some CYA) and have shocked it twice to 20 in the past three weeks staying there for two days then letting it float down and shocking again (because I kept getting the stuff back (again best guess according to the drops and what to add on the bleach calculator). I don't have distilled water YES I SHOULD, again, i used the calculator. It is now at a level of 6, so my kids can swim these last few hot days in NW Ohio, I don't let them swim but for a little bit and make them shower. And yes, I had green algae, still the poofy stuff I think , five weeks ago after I went on a three day vacation with no one to look after pool.

I cant pinch it, but I will tomorrow after it settles. I hope this helps. Sorry if I have been confusing. I have read, read, and read some more on this forum, and have refrained from asking questions, absoultely trying my best not to sound stupid.

Thank you,
Sabrina

Ok, that helps a little. First off, don't be afraid to ask questions--you may think you sound stupid, but you really don't--and it's a LOT better to ask than it is to throw stuff at the pool hoping for a miracle and THEN come ask! :) Everybody here has been in your shoes at one time or another, and we all learn the hard way. So...

Yes, you're right, low CYA coupled with high chlorine can and will bleach suits--I didn't get that your chlorine had been high when I read your first post. It sounds to me like you shocked the pool and partially killed off the algae, but didn't complete the job before you let the chlorine drift back down. When you let it yo-yo up and down, you're fighting a losing battle. You have to shock it and hold it there until 1)the pool clears up, 2) your CC goes to zero, and 3) you don't lose any chlorine when measuring at sundown and again at sunup. After all 3 conditions are met, THEN you can let it drift back down to your normal ranges, continuing to filter 24/7 and brushing the pool daily. Just a warning, though, you may be more comfortable with the strips, but they are usually very inaccurate and only give you a ballpark at best of what your real chem levels are, so they're pretty useless when trying to clear up an algae bloom. You'd be WAY better off to use your drop kit!

Hope this helps...

Janet