pool is green

[joverby]

The brand is HTH.

I have put in 1/2 gallon of bleach last night and this morning with 1 cup of muratic acid last night and this morning. No change in the green-ness. In fact it looks greener to me. How long before I will begin to see it clear up?


It has a skimmer.

[PoolDoc]

You've GOT to test chlorine levels, and report results. Go to Walmart and get some stabilizer (cyanuric acid) and an OTO / phenol red test kit. Do NOT buy any of their other pool chemicals -- they are a MESS. Instead, go to the detergent section and get a box of borax and at least 8 gallons of PLAIN 6% household bleach.

When you get back, add a gallon of bleach -- pump ON! -- and then test after an hour. If the chlorine is not above 3ppm (medium yellow), add another gallon. Meanwhile, put 2# of stabilizer in an old sock, and hang it in front of the return.

Keep dosing with chlorine till you see chlorine levels ABOVE 3 ppm. Depending on how slimy your pool is, it may take a lot.

One of the key rules of pool care is that it takes more, MUCH MORE money, time and chemicals to clean up a pool, than it does to maintain it.

[joverby]

This morning the test says the chlorine/bromine is 3 6 and the ph is 7.8. I have the 2# of stabilizer in a old sock by the skimmer. The pool is no longer green it is now cloudy.

[PoolDoc]

Unfortunately, the "cloudy" is likely to be with you quite awhile. It's very hard and slow to remove algae remnants from a small Intex pool, given their tiny filters.

I'm leaving town today, but if you are interested, and have a vacuum and a hose, and want to fool with it, you can ask someone to tell you how to settle it out, and then vacuum to waste with a siphon.

But, as long as your chlorine is OK -- ALL the time -- you can swim. You just have to be careful you don't lose track of someone UNDER the cloudy water.

Ben

[joverby]

Ben...THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!!!
Should I put a 3" chlorine tablets back in the skimmer or keep using the bleach/muratic acid?
I have only been using 1 chlorine tablet at a time. Should I use more than one at a time in the skimmer?

Jeremy

[Watermom]

Personally, I would just keep using bleach instead of the tabs.