Please Help / Advise

[meajma]

Greetings all,

I used to read alot here in the past, and then I think that I got lazy and let a few things slip. Also, after reading a few posts, I think that I too may be a victim of zero CYA at pool opening and so I'm now dealing with cloudiness ect..

I purchased Ben's 232 kit a few years ago, I'm not sure how valid my testing is because of the age of the kit.. My powder has become almost solid and dark, although it still seems to work/react according to the instructions.

First, a few details..

I have an IG 16x32 vinyl liner pool. It has basically been fed BORAX for PH control and Tri-Chlor 3" pucks for sanitizer, with the typical cal-hypo shock treatments when needed. This has been going on for ~4-5 years now, since we bought the pool. It's located in MA. For winterization, I drain ~2" below the jets and then fill the lines with pool anti-freeze.

When I pulled the cover off (~1 week ago), I had noticable green color.. not horrifying, but there nonetheless.. I started by shocking of course and scrubbing the liner. I also added a box of borax and a couple of those clarifier balls (pink #2) to help clear it up. Pump has been running 24/7.

Now it's ~1 week later and it's looking alot better.. although still a bit cloudy in the deep end. I've vac'd and backwashed quite a bit.

Yesterday, I checked some levels before vacuuming..

PH is ~7.4
FC is ~2.5
CC is ~6

I had checked my CYA somewhere just after opening.. it was 0, ie, full tube with the black dot being easily visible. SO, I've been using my feeder with pucks to hopefully get that back up.

After vacuuming yesterday, it looks pretty good, but a little cloudy at the deep end as mentioned. I backwashed and then added another box of Borax and two bags of HTH shock.. I didn't have any bleach and it was getting late.

So, I would simply appreciate any advise as to what to do short term and long term. Short term to get it up for this season.. and perhaps a better operating scheme to run it more optimally from this point on.

As mentioned, I have let a few things slip.. It seemed so easy using the BORAX and the pucks, but now after returing to this site.. it seems as though there's a little more to it than this.. even though the goal is to let it be fun and not a lot of work.. ;-)

So, thanks in advance for all of your help.. AND.. sorry if this is too much to ask.. Please feel free to ask for any other details.

I'm waiting for Ben's 234 test kit to arrive. So again, please be advised that my test results are coming from a 232 that's a few years old.

Thanks again,

Mark in MA

[JohnT]

Your combined chlorine reading is the key issue. You need to get it below 0.5 by shocking the pool.

[meajma]

Forgot to mention that I have a Jacuzzi sand filter.. pretty large, but not sure of the exact size and type. Same with the pump, not sure of the size although it's single speed, on or off. Both purchased with the Pool from a long term reputable dealer in RI.. Lakeside Pools.

[meajma]

Your combined chlorine reading is the key issue. You need to get it below 0.5 by shocking the pool.

Thanks, I'll take another reading tonight and then shock again.

So, is that getting rid of the CC.. ie, is it getting filtered out somehow.. or does it turn into something else..?

It's pretty fascinating reading some of these posts.. ie, algae eating and pooping stuff.. (I hate when that happens).. and so I'm assuming that I also have a lot of dead algae.. and what is making it cloudy..? dead algae.? I know that's a broad question with many possibilities.. although is it something obvious in this case..?

[DavidD]

First, I think your CC level of 6 is suspect. I would definitely test it again.
Secondly, you should get your FC level higher than 2.5, say around 10 ppm, and hold it there for a couple of days (CC is the "poop" you mentioned previously, or also known as used up FC. Shocking will inturn get rid of it.). This will require shocking and I'd use plain ultra bleach. I'm not sure how many gallons it will take since you didn't say how many gallons your pool is. You will have to add it several times a day, brushing and vacuuming to waste at least once a day. You could also use Cal Hypo to shock but since you didn't post CH (calcium hardness) numbers it is not at the top of my recommendations since your CH level may be high from last years shocking.

Since your CYA is 0, I see nothing wrong with using the "pucks" after you get rid of the algae but keep a close eye on PH as they tend to lower it rather quickly. Don't use them now and empty your feader if you have one while using the bleach. You should also post your ALK numbers as well. Hold off putting any other chemicals/clarifiers in the water until this problem is resolved.

[meajma]

Thanks for your advise David.

I did shock it with a couple of bags last night after taking my readings.. so I'd imagine that my FC has gone up considerably. I'll check both again when I get off work.

I was curious about my ALK and so I think it tested around 120 or thereabouts. I'm not sure of the CH as I have not yet tested for that.

I'm working until 7PM today and also tomorrow, so I may not be able to do much for now, but after that I'll have a few days to focus all my attention on it. I'm running the pump 24/7 in the mean time.

Thanks again, it's much appreciated.

[DavidD]

ALK seems fine and unless your CH is way high (450 or above?) it should also be fine. The main point is that you should keep your FC up until the algae is gone. You can go ahead and get started by shocking again tonight if needed. Any idea how many gallons you have?

[meajma]

being a 16x32 with a 3' shallow end and an 8' deep end, I'd guestimate ~24000 gallons.. does that sound close..? I'm pretty sure it's somewhere in that ballpark.

[meajma]

I'll test my CH tonight as well and then post it.

Does it being too high result in cloudiness etc.. ?

[DavidD]

24k gallons could be right but I'd guess around 22k. Either way, one gallon of 6% bleach should raise your FC by ~2.5ppm. High CH can cause scaling but sometimes shocking with cal-hypo with high CH will cause cloudiness, however I'll bet your issues all stem from the algae.