Above Ground-Liner Stains

[hatsoff389]

Ok, I picked up the test kit, algaecide, iron out, and vitamin c. I can't test the vitamin c on the stains because it is pouring here right now and dark. I did do a test. Remember, these reading are now 12 hours after adding the sparkle conquest with the filter running.

Cya-30ppm
Ph 7.2
Cl/br-0
Alkalinity-120
Hardness-80

The pool is an 18 round with a Hayward sand filter.
I have not put algaecide in the pool yet since opening and I do not know what frog,Ionizer, floatron or skimmer pill is.

One thing I think I should mention. I purchased a winterizing kit from in the swim and used it before closing the pool. If I recall, it was a bottle of algaecide. They also gave me this plastic bottle with holes in it to and I put chlorine tabs inside the bottle. This bottle sat in the pool the entire winter.

Thanks,

Ryan

[PoolDoc]

Unfortunately, these stains are not coming out. The stains almost look a grayish color.

One thing I did notice was one of the pool rails has rusted, and there were a few specs of rust on the bottom of the pool I vacuumed up. The stains are not near where these rust specs were though.

OK. Gray stains + rust specks.

Easy stuff first: put a pinch of the Iron Out directly on the rust specks. You'll have to get into the water to do this and will probably need to put some Iron Out in a baggie, so you can open it underwater, and get a pinch out. Try NOT to stir the water, because you want the Iron Out to sit on the specks for awhile, and not be carried away by currents in the water. (So, do this with the pool pump off)

Not so easy: put a pinch of Iron Out on a gray stained area, and put a couple of Vitamin C tabs on another area. Wait till they are gone, and then see if it changes the stain at all. I doubt that it will. In the absence of added silver, copper or zinc in your pool, gray (to black) stains are probably fungus staining THROUGH your liner from underneath. Here are the best pictures I could find, all from Tara Liners:

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Tara sells a "Stain Barrier" product to prevent this, and has more info on their page for pool owners.

That's not going to help you much, though. Fungal staining migrates THROUGH the liner material, from underneath, so you can't remove it, since it's IN the liner. Very high chlorine will often lighten the stains -- but you have to get high enough where you risk 'lightening' the WHOLE liner. If you have any chlorine tabs, you can test by breaking a tab, and putting a small piece ON the liner for an hour or so. Do NOT leave it there; doing this is not good for the liner because of the low pH, and again, may lighten the liner itself, from the very high chlorine under the tab. (If you have some granular cal hypo, or a cal hypo brickette, that would be safer choice for testing.)

[hatsoff389]

Thanks a ton Ben. I will try what you said. I am thinking the stains could be coming from underneath the liner like you said because these stains are ONLY on the bottom of the liner. There is not one stain on the walls of the pool liner.

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I put some vitamin c tabs on one stain. Lets see what happens. Also, I should note, the stains in the picture you sent me are much darker then the stains I have.

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If I can't get these stains out, can I just rebalance the pool water and use the pool? Is it safe to swim with these stains?

[PoolDoc]

If I can't get these stains out, can I just rebalance the pool water and use the pool? Is it safe to swim with these stains?

Yes.