Floating slime/ algae following treatment

[Jeannab1]

Our pool was not covered during the winter. It was green and we added yellow out, then 2 pounds of pool life turboshock. The next day, at the advice of the local pool store, we added pool Life back to blue, following the instructions on the box. Almost immediately, the clumps were forming, but they did not sink to the bottom, they are floating on top, which means I cannot vacuum to waste. What should I do now to get this to sink to the bottom? Thank you!

[PoolDoc]

I'll upgrade your membership, and move this thread into the Algae section shortly.

But, I looked at the timing. You got up first thing this morning, looked at your pool, found a huge mess, and started searching on the Internet as a last resort!

For most people and most pools, the methods we teach here are very, very effective at helping them operate their pools more successfully. Unfortunately, we're not nearly as successful at helping people clean up the monster messes they've made,with the help of the local pool store. And, I'm guessing we can't give you what you want: a quick fix.

Yellow Out is ammonium chloride or ammonium sulfate (either one) and when you add it to your pool you will ALWAYS create the very thing pool stores tell you MUST 'shock' to remove: combined chlorine. There's a reason for that; chloramines are not terribly TOXIC to people (swimmers!), but they are ALL terribly IRRITATING. Still, if you are lucky, and follow the directions carefully, you may create monochloramine -- a very effective algaecide -- instead one other other compounds (dichloramine or nitrogen trichloride) where are only irritants. Since it sounds like the algae died, it sounds like you did in fact create some monochloramine.

TBC

[PoolDoc]

OK. Had some errands to run.

So first steps:

1. Get a cheap OTO/phenol red test kit (yellow + red drops) and test BOTH pH and chlorine. Report the results. If the chlorine is above 3.0, report the COLOR the OTO turns (dark yellow, orange, brown).
2. If the phenol red turns a weird color not on the tester, then you do NOT know what the pH is. Just to be safe: add 1 box of PLAIN 20 Mule Team Borax per 10,000 gallons . . . SLOWLY to the SKIMMER, with the pump RUNNING and the water CIRCULATING. high pH won't damage your pool; low pH will. Also, high pH is better when you've got a bunch of chloramines in the pool.
3. Unless the OTO turns dark orange or brown, add 1 gallon of PLAIN 8% bleach for each 10,000 gallons of water.
4. Get a set of pool store test results that include pH, calcium, alkalinity, and especially CYA
5. Describe your pool: gallons, pool type, pump & filter type
6. Report all this info.
7. Meanwhile, once you've added bleach and borax -- if you do -- you can TRY turning the pump off at night and seeing if the 'floc' or whatever the pool store sold you will settle overnight. If you are lucky, it will
8. Prepare yourself for the long haul. Cleaning up messes like this is rarely quick and easy, especially on above-ground pools.

BUT if you have an IN-GROUND pool, do NOT even THINK about draining and refilling unless you KNOW you can do so safely. People FREQUENTLY DESTROY their pools by doing so!

Good luck!