Green Hair????

[readytoscream]

Thanks. I actually let my girls go swimming today. No green hair.....thank goodness. One of them complained about the water stingy their eyes. Should this be another concern and if so what is the problem?

[waterbear]

You really should NOT let them go swimming until you get this pool straightened out. There have been a lot of good suggestions but you are not really following in them. I am trying to take you through them step by step but you need to post the test results in between so we know what is going on and what you need to do next to get this pool balanced and SAFE to swim in!
You have added the metal sequesterant. Now you need to get the water retested for metals to see if it worked. Did you follow the directions on the bottle in terms of what your chlorine and pH needed to be before you added it? If not it might not have worked. Have you looked for the Aquachem 6 way test kit that uses liquid reagents at Walmart or Kmart? You will need it or a better kit. The Aquachem is the best cheap kit you can get for under $20.
You are going to need to be testing this water and getting accurate results for more than just chlorine and pH before this pool will be swimmable!

Sorry if I am coming on strong but you need to start doing things right or we really won't be able to help you at all.

[readytoscream]

I'll take the sample in the morning to another town's pool store and get the results posted soon as I get back home. Sorry!!!! I really have learned alot from you all. I thought I was doing good!!!!

[waterbear]

I'll take the sample in the morning to another town's pool store and get the results posted soon as I get back home. Sorry!!!! I really have learned alot from you all. I thought I was doing good!!!!

You are doing good but there are seveal things going on in your pool and they need to be addresed one at a time and in proper order. Until they are I would not let your kids or anyone else swim in the pool. It just isn't safe! If the pool is still green or cloudy it DEFINITELY is not safe! Get the water tested and find yourself a decent test kit. the aquachem 6 way is the best you are going to find for cheap. If you can get an Taylor Technologies K-2006 you can test everything yourself except for the copper. It is not a cheap kit and will cost in the neigborhood of $70. Taylor also makes a stand alone copper test kit for around $20 but if you can find a pool store that can test for copper and iron separately, or just the copper, you really don't need to spend the money on it since we hope to get the copper problem under control and hopefully it won't come back with proper maintenance (which means adding the maintenance doses of Keetrol or another seqeuaterant as recommended on the bottle AND NEVER ADDING A COPPER ALGECIDE AGAIN. There are other and better ways to deal with algae, which should not come back if you care for the pool properly anyway)

[readytoscream]

Okay, took the water to a different store and here are the results,
Free chl........1.4 was 0
Toal chl........1.4 was 0
Ph...............7.0 was 6.8
Cal Hard.......125 was 30
total alk.......45 was 43
Cya.............18 was 29
copper.........1.7 was1.3
Iron.............0 (last test did not tell which was which one was copper and Iron)

I found out the Keetrol does not get rid of metals, just ties them up. They suggested Baquacil Metal Control. One bottle treats 10K gallons of water. I went ahead and bought 2. This is supposed to get rid of the metals. The directions say to broadcast it over the water and doesn't say anything about the rest of the chem levels. I haven't put it in yet. I also bought a floater for the chl. I have on hand 20 mule team borax, baking soda, bleach, and chlorine tabs. Where do I go from here? Won't do anything until I hear from you. Sorry if I've been trying to fix the problem in a hurry. The water is crystal clear.

[waterbear]

Okay, took the water to a different store and here are the results,
Free chl........1.4 was 0
Toal chl........1.4 was 0
Ph...............7.0 was 6.8
Cal Hard.......125 was 30
total alk.......45 was 43
Cya.............18 was 29
copper.........1.7 was1.3
Iron.............0 (last test did not tell which was which one was copper and Iron)

I found out the Keetrol does not get rid of metals, just ties them up. They suggested Baquacil Metal Control. One bottle treats 10K gallons of water. I went ahead and bought 2. This is supposed to get rid of the metals. The directions say to broadcast it over the water and doesn't say anything about the rest of the chem levels. I haven't put it in yet. I also bought a floater for the chl. I have on hand 20 mule team borax, baking soda, bleach, and chlorine tabs. Where do I go from here? Won't do anything until I hear from you. Sorry if I've been trying to fix the problem in a hurry. The water is crystal clear.

First, about the Keetrol and the Baquacil metal control....they both work exactly the same way...Neither one gets rid of the metals. They both just tie them up so they do not react with anything. You have been 'pool stored!" If your pool is 24 ft and has about 4 feet of water it is just under 14000 gal so we will go with that number. If I am not mistaken i1qt. of Keetrol Plus treats 24000 gal for up to 2 ppm metals. Is that what you used? How much of it did you put in. If you put in the whole quart bottle you should be fine and can return the Baquacil metal control. If you did not put in Keetrol Plus then please post the dosage intructions for the one you put in and how much you used so we can see if it is enough or if you need to add some more of the Metal Control. That should tie up the metals. This pool store did much better testing but you still need your own test kit. Have you looked for the aquachem kit I suggested?

Next step is to get your total alk up. Dont start on this until you have run the filter for 24 hours after adding the proper amount of Keetrol or metal control! Total Alk (TA) is raised with baking soda. Yu will need two four pound boxes of it for a total of 8 pounds. predissolve about half a box at a time in a bucket of pool water and put it in the pool. brush the pool to distribute it and mix it and then repeat until you have put in all 8 pounds. At this point put a chlorine tab in the floater and open the floater up about half way and put it in the pool. You now have to be patient and wait 48 hours and then bring the water back to the pool store that did the last test (return the unopened Baqucil metal control when you do) for a restest. If the TA is ok (It should be) we can then work on your pH and chlorine levels......you WILL be swimming soon! Post your new test results when you get them and we will take it from there!

Your calcium hardness is perfect for a vinyl pool. DO NOT let any of the pool stores try and sell you calcium....you don't need it...and they will try!
Just smile sweetly and say you already have some at home
Ditto for any other chems they might say you need. Just say that you are well stocked right now but you will buy from them when you need more.

I suspect your green water was from the copper and not from algae. What color is the water now? You said it was crystal clear but does it have any color to it? If it doesn't and you have put in the correct amount of metal seqesterant for 14000 gal and have run the filter for 24 hours then go ahead with the baking soda.

[readytoscream]

Waterbear,

I did put in the whole qt. of keetrol on Tues. The dosage instruction for this was the same as the metal control, it did not say anything about the other chems. Just said to pour it in away from the filter. Knowing I put it in, I cannot understand why the copper is higher. Do I still need to add some metal control?
I am still looking for the aquachem test kit. I'll have to find it, I cannot afford the Taylor Kit. Husband is going to stroke out when he finds out how much I've spent already LOL
The water hasn't been green for awhile now....At least 3 wks. Not even a tinted color.
Mikki