Hi, (and sorry for the REALLY long post but I'm unsure what background information is important, so I'm giving it all...or most of it anyway)
I've been reading everything on this website and must say that it is VERY affirming for me. I've had this gut feeling that too many chemicals were being recommended (to address the wrong things) by my local dealer AND by the contractor who comes occasionally to fix broken equipment. The pool's pH has always tended to run a bit high (7.6-7.8) and I've always said that it seems to "want" to be there and I don't think we should be fighting it. Until I found your site, my husband wasn't convinced that I was right and kept following the dealers recommendations to lower it. In addition, the dealer consistently reads our pH at 8.0, but I think they're over-reading the color or perhaps they're lighting is making it appear darker than what I see in natural light. Anyway...
A few weeks ago, our booster pump (for the Polaris) broke and it may have been a coincidence but after a couple of days (while waiting for the guy to replace the pump) the water became very cloudy. Online research recommended a clarifier, which we used, but it didn't help. At the time, my own testing indicated that all of the chemicals were at the right levels. (Of note: I have been using Taylor drop-testing for pH and TA but I get a weird color for chlorine testing, orange instead of the pinkish hues on the chart, so I would test chlorine with a strip - and stablizer, cuz I didn't have this test in my kit. I am now going to go out and buy a more extensive kit!) Dealer testing indicated: FC=3.0, pH=8.0, TA=150, CH=395, Stabilizer=100. We added Muriatic Acid and shocked the pool with liquid chlorine. The pool remained cloudy and we noticed that there was this silty brownish stuff settling on the steps and bottom of the pool. When brushed, it would plume up before settling back down. We thought it was just sandy silt perhaps mixed with pollen. When the pool guy came to replace the pump, he shocked it with liquid chlorine, added muriatic acid, AND used more clarifier. He never mentioned algae. The cloudiness cleared a little, over the next 3 days, but never totally cleared. We finally thought of algae because the filter, which we clean religously, now contained a TON of green silt. After thoroughly cleaning the filter, the pool actually did almost clear, but it was still a bit cloudy and the algae has started up again. Based on online research, I'm guessing that it is mustard algae and, based on dealer recommendation yesterday, we added 3 capfuls of Suncast Stop Yellow (99% sodium bromide), 2 gallons of chlorine, and muriatic acid. Dealer test results (yesterday) were: FC=5, pH=8, TA=100, CH=395, Stablizer=100. Today, the pool is still quite cloudy, though I'm not seeing the mustard algae signs. I tested the pH and it's reading off the charts! I feel like I'm on a rollercoaster ride here. How do I get this back under control??