Removing Dead Algae from the pool-SOS

I need everyone's expertise. My son's graduation party is in one week and if I want to stay married the pool needs to be crystal clear. I have a 24' round pool with a vinyl liner. When I opened the pool this year it was that ugly green we all dread. I have added 4 bottles of CL (not bleach) and have continued to add granular. The water is now the proper shade of blue, but extremely cloudy. I cannot seem to get the CL level to register. I opened the pool 3 days ago and it has been this cloudy blue for the last two. After reading other posts I plan to get into the water and vacumn to waste as soon as I am done here, but what do I add to clear up the water. Is it really only a matter of adding 5.25% bleach to the pool?
Thanks in advance to everyone for taking the time to assist!

Without test results, I can only guess at your issue. That said, My guess is that you simply need to take your Cl level to shock value and run your pump and filter 24/7. Your CYA level determines the shock value so I can't recommend how much Cl to put in your pool.....but probably more than you have to this point.

Post test results for, at least, Total Chlorine, pH, Alk, and CYA and we'll get you going.

As long as your water is in balance you could add a flocking agent to settle everything to the bottom of the pool, typically these work over night and are great for getting a pool close to presentable in a fast period of time.

Follow Dave's advice and post some good test numbers. Chances are, part of your cloudiness is dead algae that your filter will get, if you have some patience. However, if you can't hold a chlorine residual that tells me that you still have something eating away at it, which could also be causing your cloudiness problems. I would be hesitant to add anything to your pool except chlorine until we have good test numbers to use to advise you.

Janet

thanks to everyone for their response.

Since my last post I have added 7 gallons of chlorine and about 16 ounces of PH plus.

here are the readings

PH 6.6

CYA 20-25

Free CL .5

Alk 50


CL .5

Guy at pool shop thought problem was high phosphates from all of the rain in our area. He tested it and it showed a reading of 500, said phosphates eat CL. I have no idea whether that is true or not. Sold me a bottle of "Phosfree".

I will not do anything else until I hear from you experts. The pool water is much cleared today. I can actually see the bottom :)

Thanks again for taking the time to help an amatuer. Only 6 days until graduation.

Good holiday weekend to you!!,

Forget the phosphates, Go to the grocery store today and get some "20 mule team borax" to get your pH up into an acceptable range. (7.2 - 7.6)This is an important step and you should not delay it. You'll probably need two, maybe three, boxes...we need to know the size of your pool (gallons).

Secondly, buy quite a few large jugs of Clorox. You can't get too many 'cause you'll need them later. Post the size of your pool and someone will help you with the correct dosage.

You'll need some CYA very soon but post your gallons before we recommend how much.

You don't need to run, but you should "briskly" go get that borax and put it in the pool (into the skimmer, pump running)

Post your gallons before adding it. :)

Dave S.

Happy Memorial Day and thanks for the quick response!

The pool is 24 ' round and 4 feet deep.

I have a large supply of the PH plus, so I added a significant amount after your post.

Thanks again for taking the time to help.

Dave B

Hi, Dave,

Good work getting that in there. 6.6pH is a corrosive condition....not good for anything in or around your pool. (which contains 13,000 gallons)

If you don't have a test kit, you should make it a priorty to get one. Testing for Cl, pH, Alk, and CYA will all be important. I saw a 5-way HTH brand at Lowe's that'll do what you want. Ben's (sold here) is the very best and will pay you back year after year.

I'm not positive, but I think "pH plus" is the same as borax. Somewhere around 16 oz. should start to move the pH. If you have a test kit, you should see a difference in a few hours. Testing around dusk would work.

On a similar subject, you may need to adjust your alkalinity a little but let's wait for the next Ph reading first.

Now, since you're out there at dusk testing with your new kit anyway :D, put in 3 gallons (not jugs) of 6% Clorox. Don't skimp. this is gonna' clear up your water....not the pH adjustment. That'll bring your Cl up to 15ppm and start to get rid of any remaing organics you may have in the pool. Check again, just before you go to bed and bring it back up to 15ppm. Use the bleachcalc to tell you how much to add.

Lastly, no hurry, but your CYA is a little low. I would add 1lb (into the skimmer, don't backwash) and that will, in a few days, bring your CYA up around 30. You may want to go a little higher later and you'll have some left over if you get the 3lb bottle at Lowe's.

Dave, the key to getting really perfect water is that test kit. It's really easy to offer advice if we know your current chemistry. Plus, there's just no telling how great your reward will be from your wife when she sees that beautiful water!!:D :D

Dave S. Very funny post! Things look slightly better than they did 4 hours ago, but I am off to get some borax and chlorox. For as much PH as I put in there is hardly any blip on the test.

Thanks again for taking the time to post and for also giving me a few laughs. Just curious, do you add the chlorox through the skimmer? It seems like I have seen suggestions for both methods.

A high phosphate level is definitely going to be the cause of high chlorine demand. You are just gonna go right through that bleach like it is water. Also the best thing once you get the ph balanced is to use a 10 dollar bottle of floc, add that to the water, let everything settle out and your pool will by crystal clear over night. No need to waste the money on the bleach yet.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by duraleigh

I'm not positive, but I think "pH plus" is the same as borax. Somewhere around 16 oz. should start to move the pH. If you have a test kit, you should see a difference in a few hours. Testing around dusk would work.

On a similar subject, you may need to adjust your alkalinity a little but let's wait for the next Ph reading first.

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pH plus is Soda Ash. It will raise TA along with pH but like you said the TA might need adjustment anyway so that is not a priority at this point. Getting the pH up is!

Ssawyan,
I would NOT worry about phosphates right now. The reason for the high chlorine demand is the organics and algae in the water. IMHO, the only time to try a phosphate remover is when you have a reoccuring algae problem in an otherwise ok pool AND you have high phospahte levels. My pool has 1000ppm phosphates and I have yet to have an algae bloom.

Sometimes it takes a lot of chlorine, expecially if your CYA levels are much lower then when you closed your pool. If they are then it means that the CYA has been biodegraded by bacteria when the pool was closed and that there are a lot of organics (ammonia and urea) that need to be burned off. If this is the case just keep putting in chlorine until it is holding. Your chlorine will be used up quickly until it can burn them off. If this is not the case then you are just dealing with the algae and things will go a bit faster but you still need to keep getting the chlorine in there and running the pump/filter 24/7.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gregugadawg

As long as your water is in balance you could add a flocking agent to settle everything to the bottom of the pool, typically these work over night and are great for getting a pool close to presentable in a fast period of time.

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Hi! I am also trying to clear up my pool. It was green when I opened it and I have managed to "kill" the algea.

But it is very cloudy.

What is the difference between a Flocculant and a Clarifier?

I did pour in some clarifier. But perhaps I should get some flocculant also ??

Thanks, Tim

Flocculant is supposed to make everything fall to the bottom of the pool so you can vacuum to waste.

Clarifier makes small particles larger so your filter can catch them better.

Most people on the forum do not recommend regular use of either of them. If you want more info, you can use the search feature to find threads that specifically address both products.

Thanks for the info.....

Tim