Newbie with ?'s (mustard algae) (Deb)

[debs_pool]

Carl,

Thank you for your response. I'll go dump some bleach in my pool! : ) And I'll do the vacuum to waste task! I have been vacuuming my pool after brushing. I will work on this tonight and tomorrow and repost some numbers on Monday. Thanks again.

P.S. I'm not sure I exactly understand this FC. Am I trying to raise my Cl # to 20 ppm? Thanks.

[Madty]

It will be hard to get FC, TC, CC from the Wal Mart testers. I got my Ben's test yesterday- AWESOME. I've had mustard algea this week as well. I put in Yellow Out and boy did it eat my chlorine. I brush daily and it continued to return in the same spots. It's been about 4 days and it looks as though it's all gone. Don't think you needed to change filter sand. Bleach, bleach, bleach. Mine was at 22.5 FC 0 cc, today 16 FC, 0 cc. You must keep it high for a couple of days. Keep brushing daily. It will work. I've went through about 20 jugs of bleach this week!

[debs_pool]

Madty,

Thanks for your response. Can anyone tell me is it okay to swim while I'm working on this? I have people asking if they can come swim.

Thanks for everyone's help.

And, yes, it will be GREAT when I get a REAL test kit!

[CarlD]

No, I cannot recommend it. The algae will consume your chlorine leaving you with none to protect against the important stuff--water-borne diseases from viruses and bactera.

[Simmons99]

I wouldn't swim with the chlorine at shock levels

[debs_pool]

Thanks again in advance. I have more ?'s.

I brushed the walls on my pool last night and put in bleach. I'm not sure if I've put in too much now or not.
(I run my pump 24/7)

Also, I vacuumed to waste and had to add a bunch of water. Do I need to vacuum to waster EVERY time until this clears up? It looks like it's better - just a few places on the walls ...

Here are my Guess Strips and then my Wal-Mart test kit readings from this AM and this afternoon:

AM: (before church)
Test (Guess) Strips:

Br - (is this cl?) 10
FC - 10 (no higher number on container)
Tot Alk - between 125 - 150
pH: 7.4
CYA (not available on test strip)

Wal Mart Kit - AM

TC 10 + (the water was orange and didn't match anything) What does that mean?
FC - (can't test with Wal-Mart kit)
Tot Alk - 190 ppm
pH: 7.2
CYA 80 ppm

Here are my afternoon readings (about 2pm CST)

Guess Strip:
Br(cl?) 5-10 (closer to 10)
FC: 10
pH: 7.4
Tot Alk: 125

Wal-Mart Kit

Cl: 10+ (still orange color - didn't match anything)
FC: (no test on kit)
Tot Alk: 160 ppm
pH: 7.3
CYA: 60 ppm

Do I need to take another reading today after the sun's off my pool?

I'm wondering HOW MUCH BLEACH do I need to put in the pool tonight? (After I brush the walls of course!)

The shallow end is pretty clear. I can see the main drain on the deep end, but the water is not as clear as the shallow end.

Will I need to vacuum to waste again in the morning?

Please forgive me for asking so many questions, (I have more but they probably belong in other threads) but I really want to learn. Maybe Ben's kit will arrive this week!

And I hope nobody comes and gets in my pool when I am not at home! That has happened to me before!

I know I need to have some patience too. Thanks for being patient with me!

[Madty]

I only vacuumed to waste once. I have kept my chlorine around 20, CYA 30. I do brush daily. I barely had any today. I used to come back a couple of hours after I swept. Use bleach calc to determine shock amount. Keep at it- mine took about a week. We did swim at 20 pm. Some irritated eyes but that's about it. I'm waiting till it gets down to 5 from now on!