How to clean an above ground pool after 2 seasons of non use

[PoolDoc]

. . . what he said, as long as the water is clear enough so that somebody doesn't disappear on the bottom.

[12ofus]

Well, I'm back and so is the algae. Apparently, it never really left. We had the numbers good, the color a cloudy blue-not green- and we got in to vacuum one more good time to be sure there was no more debris. There was actually more leaves than we thought there would be, but the water didn't freak out and go green again. The chlorine color was nearly clear when we finished vacuuming, backwashing, and stirring up the water real good to get anything left over for the filter to get overnight. We added three more gallons of bleach before going to bed and dreamed of the beautiful pool we would have in the morning (hopefully). A few of the kids got back in a little while ago to check for debris and the water is green. Not cloudy green- green. There are these nasty little critters floating around and a vile-looking green scum on the inside of swimsuits. I have seen enough episodes of "Monsters Inside Me" to be more than a little concerned. We are so depressed. We have spent a small fortune on bleach. Could our filter need new sand? I'm thinking of draining it to about 1/3 its level and bleaching the devil out of it and starting over. It's a matter of principle, now. I want this pool clean!

[PoolDoc]

Unfortunately, when you get to the stage of piles of algae, it takes HUGE amounts of chlorine to kill everything. That's why physically removing as much as you can is so important.

I think I've mentioned in this thread (I know I have in others this season) that you can't filter live algae. You can kill it, and then filter it. Or you can sometimes remove it, vacuuming to waste. But while it's still alive, your filter can't do much for you.

It's too bad no one is doing bulk chlorine sales to homeowners in this area (NW Georgia). There is a bleach manufacturer in Ranger, GA, not that far from you. But when did business with them, I was buying 4,000 gallons at a time. That's a bit more than you'd want -- even if it WOULD clean your pool right up!

Sorry!

[12ofus]

Will it do any harm to drain it down and super bleach it? Maybe 20 gallons or more? I figured that by draining it quite a bit, a more concentrated bleach level will be getting to the algae because it won't be so diluted. I don't want to eat holes in the liner, though! I'm keeping the chlorine in the bright yellow/orange, and we have 3 tablets in the basket at a time. This is our first "real" pool that didn't come from Walmart and all this is rather new to us. I need to hear from an expert what they would do? Preferable someone who is not independently wealthy☺

[PoolDoc]

If you drain it almost all down, you really shouldn't have to 'super-bleach' it. Just get in and out with ladders, so you don't flop the walls over, drain what you can, and then brush and bleach till it's dead. Once it's dead, begin refilling -- but chlorinate as you go.

[12ofus]

Got my work cut out for me tomorrow! Thanks for the help. We'll see what happens.