Good numbers, no slime, but still VERY CLOUDY???

[RandiBGood]

For the most part, I've had good numbers since I got rid of the swamp. I have had up to 2.5 CC and my pH has been a little low, needing as many as 6 drops of base demand to get 7.6 but that is all better it seems. Today is the lowest my FC has been in 2 weeks and I haven't added any bleach in 2 days.

FC 5
CC .5
pH 7.2 (did just add some Borax to get it on up to hopefully 7.6)
Alk 60

My problem is that the water is still a light greenish cloud. We did get a new pump, Pentair 1.5hp at the end of last season. I'm wondering if it is pushing too much for my Hayward s220 sand filter and this cloud is just broken up dead algae. Any suggestions or more info needed just let me know.

Thanks in advance for any help!-Randi

[Watermom]

A few questions:
-- Do you have a CYA reading?
-- Exactly what all have you put in the pool?
-- What is the source of your fill water?

Go ahead and update your signature with the info about your new pump and anything else that has changed. You can do so by clicking on the tab in my signature.

[RandiBGood]

CYA is 30 or less.
Fill water test results:

FC 1
CC .5
pH 8 or greater

The only things added have been 8.25% plain bleach and 4 lbs. baking soda back on 6/3/14 and 1 box of Borax.

Thanks Watermom

[Watermom]

Is your fill water from a well or city water?

[RandiBGood]

Fill water is city water. I only tested it for FC, CC and pH. Do I need to check anything else on the fill? Also, I maybe should have mentioned, over the winter (we did not winterize properly) and got a crack in the volute housing of the pump. I have used some epoxy on it, but it still leaks some and we have to add water regularly. Which seems like it would raise my pH or at least keep it high. Keeping my pH in range is the only thing that has been an issue. I have gotten my Alk up to 60 and it has been holding steady. Isn't it supposed to help my pH hold? I did want to add my results from this afternoon:

FC 1
CC <.5
pH 7.0 or less 5 drops of base demand to get 7.4
Alk 60

The only thing I have added since posting my last results is 1/2 box of Borax. I am going to be putting in 1 gal 10% tonite.

I don't understand how my pH dropped from 7.4 to 7.0 overnite when I added the Borax yesterday before starting this post?

I love using the BBB method and it has worked so well for the last summer & a half, I just don't understand what I'm doing wrong? Unless it is the pump vs. filter size issue.

Any help or suggestions are very welcome. Thanks for your response Watermom!

[Watermom]

Since you state that the water is still greenish, I don't think you have killed all of the algae. One gallon of the 10% liquid chlorine is only going to add about 4ppm of chlorine. I think you need to shock the pool. Take a look at the chart at this link that explains the relationship between CYA and needed chlorine. http://pool9.net/cl-cya/

Go ahead and add 3 of those gallons of 10%. That should add about 12ppm. An hour or so after adding it this evening, test your chlorine and make note of the FC and CC readings. Then, in the morning within an hour of sunrise, test again. We are looking for overnight chlorine loss. If you lose more than 1ppm or have a CC reading greater than 0.5ppm, then you know you are still fighting something in the water and would need to continue to keep your chlorine at shock level. Continue to do so until you can pass the overnight test. Then, keep the chlorine high for one additional day for added insurance. At that point, you can let the chlorine drift down but keep it within the range noted in the chart linked above.

Your CYA is too low. After you get this cleared up, you should work on raising it to around 50ppm.

With pH bouncing around, you would probably be wise to bump your alk up some. Aim for about 80-100ppm. You'll probably need around 10lbs of baking soda but don't add it all at once. Do it in 2-3 lb doses. Then after a few hours, add a little more. You can add it slowly through the skimmer while the pump is running. Also keep adding Borax as needed to keep your pH up. It is fine to add the Borax and baking soda one right after the other.

Keep your pump running 24/7 while you are working to clear this up.

Let us know tomorrow what the results of the overnight test are.