Pool cloudiness problem. HELP
I have a 30 ft AG pool, 20k gal.
hayward 1.5 hp pump with a 250 lb 18 inch sand filter
I have owned the pool for 4 summers and the past 2 have been using a modified BBB method( using shock and tablets instead of bleach). This year has been tough. It has been cloudy for 3 weeks and I can't seem to get it clear. It has been blue, but just cloudy. I had to add cya, baking soda, and some muratic acid too, but I can't seem to keep the chlorine level up. I ordered a taylor 2006 test kit that just arrived today. Before then i had been using a cheap test kit that wasn't very nearly as accurate and didnt measure cya, but it had managed to always work until late in the summer just before i closed it, it would get cloudy. From reading other posts on here, i think i should be keeping my chlorine levels up to 15 ppm for about a week and hopefully it will clear up, but i really dont know. The past 48 hours I have added 15 gallons of 8.25% bleach and have managed to get the chlorine up.
PLEASE HELP
FC = 10.6
CC = .8
Ph = 7.2
Alk = 160
CYA = 34
Calcium hardness = 70
THANKS!!!!
Re: Pool cloudiness problem. HELP
Do the DE test on your filter:
http://pool9.net/de-test/
Given your numbers, etc. I'm guessing you've blown the sand out of the filter. If that turns out to be correct, after you open the filter and add more sand, you'll need to put a valve between the pump and the filter, so you can throttle the flow back some.
Re: Pool cloudiness problem. HELP
You emailed me indicating you intended to change your sand. That is probably NOT needed; all the pool books notwithstanding, we have seen NO evidence that sand 'wears out'.
Instead, simply (a) make sure the filter is FULL of sand, to the correct level, and that (b) the flow is throttled back. You can test this by checking the backwash. If sand is coming out, the flow it too high. (There will be a little sand on the FIRST backwash, and that is normal.)
One point to check though: there is some bad or fake filter sand out there. Buy LABELED pool filter sand (but not Quikrete pool sand). Before you add, grab a sample from inside the filter and compare it to the bagged sand. If the sand in your filter is coarse compared to the filter sand, replace it to within 1 -2" of the laterals. But if they are both the same, just add more as needed.
