brown algae??

Hello! I am a fairly new pool owner of an Inground 28,000 gallon vinyl lined pool. We recently opened it, shocked with liquid chlorine and are getting our chemical levels stable.
My chlorine is at 4ppm (usally used up in a day)
my ph is at 7.2
my alkalinity is at 120
my cya is at 20

i have vacuumed almost all of the debri from the bottom of the pool and keep getting what looks like piles of dirt or algae in small spots. it is like dust when i vaccuum over it, then comes back the next day. I thought i read something about chocolate bars? last year, but can't seem to find it now. When i vacuum it up, i am putting the system on waste. What can I do to get rid of this? This weekend i put a bottle of poly algacide in the pool, but it hasnt disappeared.

Thanks for any help!
Susan

I had this problem too and at first i thought it was sand from my filter. Turns out it was just dead algae that never seems to get vacuumed up like you've stated. To get rid of it I found this water clarifier stuff

http://www.aqua-pool-warehouse.com/p...clarifiers.asp

Not that exact brand, but it gives you a desription of what it does. You can find something similar at any pool store.

"Coagulates the tiny particles of dirt, oil, and other debris in your pool water and enhances your filter's efficiency."

This fixed my problem within a week and I usually try to add some every week to keep the pool looking spotless. Hope this helps :)

Thanks for the suggestion. I will try it and see what happens.

Susan,

Running your filter and some vacuuming to clean your pool and using bleach for chlorination should keep your pool sparkling all Summer. Up your run time on your filter and keep a closer eye on managing your water (posting a set of test results would be VERY helpful) rather than chasing your issue with other additives.

You are consuming a little extra bleach. (possibly from organics or just the sun....can't tell without test results) Try bringing your CYA to 30-40 and adding your bleach in the evening when practical....you'll get better efficiency.

here are my most current readings:

cya: just under the 30 mark
chlorine: 6
ph: 7.2
alk: 140

i added clarifier to the water a few nights ago. the brown stuff on the bottom seemed to get larger in size. i put the filter to waste and tried to vacuum it all up. I also put a sock on the skimmer basket. This morning there were still some brown spots on the bottom, just like dust when i go over it. i am wondering if when i am vacuuming it is stirring it up into the water? and then settling back down when i am done. I filter the pool 24 hours a day. Should i normally be doing less? The water is very clear, just the spots on the bottom now.

thanks again for your time/suggestions!

Just a quick update for anyone else who has seen this problem-

My pool looks great!! I vacuumed a day or two after adding the clarifyer and put it to waste. It has not come back since!! Thank you for helping!

I went through this same thing over the weekend.

Thought it was algae that kept growing in the same spots

Turns out I have a lot of small divots in the liner, on the bottom of the pool. I am thinking they formed over the winter.

Dirt was collecting in them as the water circulated around. With a little more dirt being added each day, it looked like algae growth

Finally just kept vacuuming this past weekend until I got rid of it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by haze_1956

I went through this same thing over the weekend.

Thought it was algae that kept growing in the same spots

Turns out I have a lot of small divots in the liner, on the bottom of the pool. I am thinking they formed over the winter.

Dirt was collecting in them as the water circulated around. With a little more dirt being added each day, it looked like algae growth

Finally just kept vacuuming this past weekend until I got rid of it.

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I get the same thing, especially when no one is in the pool. I've come to realize it is dirt when my yard or the neighbors yard is being mowed or when it is real windy I get a lot of debris that settles in the divots of the liner. As long as they don't "multiply" I can live with it:) They vacuum or stir right up.

this is good to know. I keep getting a line right where the shallow end starts sloping towards the deep end. I just put in the aquabot and it sucks it up.
- betty