Fighting mustard algae, too

PoolDoc - Please excuse me for "barging in" on this thread, but I need help with mustard algae also. My initial contact was regarding your wonderful recipe for Intex above-ground pools. Although I found your guidelines well after I set up my little pool, I was able to catch up with the process and have been using dichlor and chlorine as you recommend. TROUBLE IS ... (!) ... For the last week or so I have been battling with mustard algae. I have sanitized, vacuumed, wiped walls & floor of pool, changed and bleached filters, etc. on a daily, if not 8 hour basis - all to no avail. In desperation, I finally "overdosed" my pool with dichlor and chlorine (60 ppm - what the heck?!?). Needless to say, the water cleared up and yesterday I did not see one dot of algae. This morning though, I saw a few "klans" here and there. At this point, I don't know what to do! Please let me know what you suggest. I'm tired of fighting, and if I just need to let the chlorine burn off and then drain the pool, so be it. I thank you in advance for your time and input!

Hi Southside;

We try to keep pools separate; it get's way too confusing when we get 2 sets of doses and test results going in a single thread. So, I'm moved your post here, from where it was in this thread: http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?16558 . Feel free to continue following that thread.

But, I can't answer your question, in any substantial way, without more info, so I'm going to cut and paste some snippets that apply to you. Meanwhile, start adding one complete 96oz jug of PLAIN 6% bleach in your pool, for each 5,000 gallons, EACH evening, till we have more info from you.

Ben

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+ It's much easier to answer your questions, when we have the details about your pool in one place. We often 'waste' the first few posts back and forth collecting information. So, please complete our new Pool Chart form -- it takes about 30 seconds, but will save much more than that.

Pool Chart Entry Form

+ Get a cheap OTO (yellow drops) / phenol test kit, or if available at YOUR Walmart (check availability), get the HTH 6-way DROPS test kit, which is compatible with the Taylor K2006. Test the pool as soon and you can, and post the results. If you get the 6-way kit, ALSO test the water you FILL the pool with, especially if it's a well, and post THOSE results as well. (The HTH is the best available kit you're likely to find locally, but it's not the K-2006. It can only provide rough measurements chlorine levels above 5 ppm, and it measures "TOTAL" hardness, rather than "CALCIUM" hardness, which is not ideal.)

+ Having a good test kit makes pool care easier for EVERYONE, but is an ESSENTIAL tool for pools with problems. A good test kit means a kit that can test chlorine from 0 - 25 ppm, pH, alkalinity, calcium hardness, and stabilizer with reasonable accuracy. Test strips (AKA 'guess-strips' ) do NOT meet this standard. Some pool store testing is accurate; most is not. The ONLY way you'll know whether your pool store is accurate or bogus, is by testing accurately your own self. On the other hand, pool store 'computer' dosing recommendations are NEVER trustworthy -- ignore them. They are designed to sell more chemicals than you need, and WILL cause many pool problems.

+ We recommend the Taylor K-2006 test kit, which meets the requirements above, for many reasons. The HTH 6-way drops kit is a great starter kit, and is compatible with the K2006 (it's made by Taylor). There are a few alternatives; for example Lamotte makes an FAS-DPD kit that's OK -- but it costs 3x as much. But, we're not aware of any test that is better, and since we are all familiar with the K-2006 (and can help you with it) we recommend it exclusively ( Test kit info page )

One caution for the 2012 season: Amazon does not stock the kits directly. So when buying at Amazon, Amato is our current preferred seller. However, they often don't list enough stock to last the whole day, so try order mid-morning. You should expect a delivered cost under $60 for the K2006A and under $95 for the K2006C. If you can't find that, wait a day.

+ Here are links to the kits we recommend (you can check local availability on the HTH kit, using the Walmart link):

HTH 6-Way Test Kit @ Walmart
Taylor K2006A (3/4 oz bottles) @ Amazon
Taylor K2006C (2 oz bottles) @ Amazon

Thanks for the quick reply, PoolDoc!

I have submitted a Pool Chart Form ... basically 12' x 36" Intex round with Intex 635 pump and type A filter. It's about 1800 gallons of water - so I'm double checking on the amount of plain bleach you want me to add this evening. I tested the chlorine using the FAS/DPD method and it has come down to 46.25 ppm (from yesterday's 57). pH 7.5 and TA 250. Based on those readings, how much plain bleach do you suggest I put into the mix? Thanks ;)

You're high enough.

What is your CH (calcium) reading? And, once your FC drops below 20 ppm, report your pH (again) and your TA levels. You probably need to add some acid.

Brush your pool. Meanwhile, brush your pool.

By the way, your registration will upgrade shortly -- it will upgrade one step further if you
1. 'like' PoolForum on FB
2. 'follow' PoolForum on Twitter
3. add a real phone number to your profile.

Depending on what sort of number you add, you can skip either #1 or #2, and still get the top upgrade. Just in case you wondered: I've never sold or given away personal info from here, or had it hacked either.

BTW, when I saw your real name, my first thought was, "surely not", but than that person wouldn't have an AG pool, I'm thinking. I guess you get tired of hearing that . . . ;)

LOL always get the real name thing! And hey, maybe the AG is for the servants!

CH is 180 -- it has finally been raining here, and I've been clearing storm debris from the pool almost hourly! Just don't want anything to add to the already mixed up mix! In reviewing my (personal) pool chart, I noticed that the pH had been a steady 7.8 until the recent rain. At what point do you suggest I treat with acid?

The chlorine is dropping approx 15ppm per day, so with that in mind I might be able to see 20ppm by Sunday or Monday. What levels are dangerous for swimming? I was wiping the sides and bottom of pool with large cotton towel, but how can I brush it if I cannot enter the water? I do have a nice clean mop I can use ... would that be okay?

Thanks for the upgrade info ... I don't do FB or Twitter, but I can add a phone number. Good to know you respect the privacy of your members and keep us safe from hackers! Since you were a link from Waterbear @ poolspaforum.com, I figured this was an okay place.

Thank you!

I finally this year, have found definitive evidence that chlorine levels of 50 ppm are NOT dangerous, even without stabilizer present: it turns out dermatologists have been using 50 - 100 ppm "bleach baths" (Google it!) for YEARS to treat eczema and other skin conditions, even in pediatric patients!

However, I can tell you that 50 ppm IS dangerous to swimsuits, unless you have very high stabilizer levels (> 200 ppm?).

In your pool, I don't see a stabilizer result, so I can only tell you that your chlorine levels aren't dangerous to YOU, but whether your swimsuit will be safe depends on the stabilizer level.

wOw..."bleach baths," who knew?

As far as the stabilizer goes, that's one thing I don't have the capability to measure! The pH comparator that came with my Taylor kit has CYA on the opposite side, but I have no instructions on how to test nor do I have the drops. Now I'm thinking I should obtain them? Do you know what supplies I would need?

Thanks for the registration upgrade, too ;)

Your options are all listed on the test kit info page --

http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthread.php?14994

Great page! Looks like it's the K-1721 for me; I will definitely purchase it for next year.

Unfortunately, I really think my pool is "toast" for the rest of the season. :( I'm stirring and wiping and filtering, and still have (slightly) cloudy water with dabs of algae here and there. It has significantly cleared up, but with all that chlorine in the mix I can hardly believe that any algae is hanging around. Chlorine only went down to 45ppm since yesterday. Maybe I have way too much stabilizer in the water? I'm just really tired and I miss floating in my pool and watching the clouds go by - lol

We'll see what happens by Monday or Tuesday. If things don't change, I'm going to make a tarp out of it! Thanks for all the help though, I really appreciate it.

It's just 1800 gallons -- drain it, wash it down, get a Unicel cartridge, and start over!

Well, "just 1800 gallons" kinda bothers me when we are under a watering ban! I could justify it this way, though: A balanced, sparkling clean pool saves many showers & baths! lol Must have slept good last night, because I have a renewed zeal to help my little pool. As I looked around for some kind of brush to use, I noticed the nice brushes on the vacuum head and voila! - I am brushing every hour right after I rinse and replace the sad little "Pleatco" cartridge. That's the program for now ... at least until I have a Unicel. (Which, I'm guessing is the Cadillac of filters? Here I thought I was using the best - dang!) ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by southside

Which, I'm guessing is the Cadillac of filters? Here I thought I was using the best - dang!

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Well, yes, it's VERY much like a Cadillac: the marketing is much better than the product! ;)

If you can't refill, that's fine -- I haven't been tracking weather US-wide, and was just assuming that the drought had broken throughout the east. After a terribly hot and dry July, we've had one of the wettest August's ever - and this morning, it was 60 degrees, which is NOT a temperature I've grown up associating with August in Chattanooga!

Still, you might call your water company, and see if a pool drain and refill is allowed . . . and you can always drain it slowly onto your grass or flowers!