Has anyone succeeded at shocking a green pool without using the pump to circulate?

[PoolDoc]

Just to add to what WaterMom said, you can do it.

BUT, without circulation, you want to take some care to avoid having added chemicals pool in one spot. So, use bleach to chlorinate OR pre-dissolve other forms of chlorine in warm water. Use muriatic acid, rather than dry acid (sodium bisulfate). Use a jet from a water hose to stir up any possible hot spots.

By the way, if you have sludge OR if you had stabilizer, but it's now gone . . . it may take a LOT of chlorine, possibly well over 100ppm, to clean up.

[etbrown4]

If I used Flock, after shocking the pool -with or without adding algecide, would that possibly cause the dead algae to fall to the bottom?

[Watermom]

We don't usually suggest adding flocs. And, even if it did fall to the floor, you wouldn't be able to get it out of the pool without your equipment hooked up.

[PoolDoc]

*If* you kill it,
*And* you have no circulation,
*Then* it will tend to settle out over a few days time.

What is the goal here? Are you wanting to get a head start on summer? Avoid having the slime 'eat' your stabilizer? Those are possible, though it may already be too late for the second.

Or, do you want your pool to look nicer, even though your pump is not running? That is pretty iffy. Floc -- alum -- might help, or you might make a mess. Poly aluminum chloride, in a number of the liquid flocs, is easier to work with (ie, less likely to make a huge mess), but it's no slam dunk.

It's your pool, so you can do as you like. If you do decide to use floc, follow the directions VERY carefully. And make very sure the algae is DEAD first. Nothing flocs live algae.

[etbrown4]

The goal is to have pool water clear enough to dye test 4-5 vertical cracks in the top 24" of the pool. I've drained the Present water level down 30".

Right now the water is somewhat green - I'd say a mild case, but upon filling up the pool, adding to what's in there now, I don;t think I'll be able to see through the water well enough to do the dye tests.

So, if I could find a way to shock the water in the pool now, and get it mostly clear - then my hope was to have clear enough water, upon filling, to do the dye tests.

If dead algae does drop to the bottom, if left alone, I don't know. That's where I thought the Flock might help. However, if the water is likely to still be murky then I still won't be able to see through it.

[PoolDoc]

If you kill the algae, FIRST, and then fill slowly, using a bucket or trashcan to avoid circulation, you can probably get the water clear enough.

However, I don't see how you'll be able to avoid stirring up what's on the bottom, when you are in the pool leak testing.

But, you STILL don't want to use floc -- it produces a fluffy bottom mess that has to be VERY carefully vacuumed up. It would be substantially more likely to be 'stirred up' than if the algae will settle on its own.

[etbrown4]

Is it ok just to add a pound of shock per 10,000 gals, or must you do algecide too. It seems as if many pros do it one way and many do it another.

This particular pool water is what I would call light green in color, and I've seen some far worse! I.E. you can barely see the bottom.