UnknownStain - Fiberglass Pool

[Skillset]

I opened my pool 12 days ago. Water balance looked pretty good. CYA held all winter at 55. Shocked the pool to about 15 and have not added bleach at all since opening and Cl is still staying at about 10. But, I noticed my pool is pretty stained - no longer just some spots. The stains are light though, only visible after the sun goes down, but there's a ton of them covering large areas.

I bought some of the Proteam Metal Magic product over the winter and wanted to use it tonight, but the label calls for the Ph being at least 7.5. So, I dumped some soda ash in to raise the Ph (it is currently 7.2) and was going to use tomorrow. Now, I'm not so sure if I should after re-reading some of your prior posts where you've indicated that the Ph should be low before using a sequester.

I'm not that worried because I know I can always throw a pound of ascorbic acid which will take care of the stains. But, maybe the Metal Magic will work without the acid and keep the stains away.

But, do you recommend using the Metal Magic at 7.5 (as the label recommends) or lower?

[mbar]

Go ahead and put the proteam metal magic in - it probably says to use it at a ph of 7.5 because it is very acidic itself, and will bring your ph down on it's own. I usually say that you should put your ph at 7.2 with sequestering agent because you want the water to be acidic to lift the stains. Since you have the metal magic I would try it first. If it doesn't lift the stain, then you can do the ascorbic acid - but give it a couple of days first, and if it doesn't bring the ph down to 7.0 or 7.2, then add a little muriatic acid, and keep the filter running 24/7. Good luck, and let me know how it goes.

[Skillset]

Ok - wanted to get back with my results. I put the Proteam Metal Magic in Sunday night and was travelling until today. Pump ran 24/7 since Sunday with the pool covered with the solar cover.

Tonight, when I uncovered, all stains were gone. I really could not believe it. Marie - you were right on the Ph. It lowered it to 6.8 - my pool has never been that low. Lowered the TA only by 10 - so I'm at 100. Threw about 2 lbs of borax in and will test again tomorrow.

Thanks again for all your help - pool is immaculate once again.

Oh - one more question. I was reading that the magic eraser works great. All my grout below the water line is sparkling white, and above the waterline is pretty grungy. I suspect the chlorine keeps it white below the waterline. Here's an idea for the lazy: Instead of using the eraser, I wonder if I could "overfill the pool" to above the groutline, then shock to see if the grout would come clean. Then drain back to normal water level. THoughts?

[mbar]

I am so happy that your pool is clear of stains!!! Yes, you can raise the water level, and keep the chlorine level high - it will clean the grout, but it will take a while. I love to hear the results of what works and doesn't work. This year I opened my pool to an emerald pond, with strings of green algae My husband wanted to drain and refill, but I knew it could be cleaned up becaue of the information I got reading this forum. That was last Friday evening. I checked ph, and for the first time on opening, my ph was above 8. It is usually below 7. You just never know what a pool will do So I added proteam metal magic - and lots and lots, and lots of bleach. By Sunday the pool was blue - but extremely cloudy. I don't know if it was just dead algae - I think the proteam may have made it cloudy too - it is supposed to turn metals into salts so they can be filtered out (I am not sure that I believe it yet) but there were very small particals that when I vacuumed seemed to go right through the filter. I used some floccuant, and let the water settle overnight. I vacuumed to waste, which made me have to add more (well) water, and I continued to keep my chorine level above 20 with a very low cya. I now have crystal clear water, and no stains - which with such a high level of chlorine for so long was amazing. I did however keep my ph at about 7, with my alkalinity at 100. I wish I would have taken a picture to post what the pool looked like when I opened and how it looked as the bleach cleaned it up. It is hard to believe sometimes, but pictures speak a thousand words. I tested three times a day bringing the level up to 20 each time. Even though I had no combined chlorine showing after three days- the chlorine was being used up overnight, so I continued to keep the level at 20 until it was not going down overnight, which turned out to be 3 days more. And just as a note, I closed my pool the same way as I have the last 4 years, and the last three I opened to almost clear water with a lot of dirt on the bottom. This year we had a lot of rain, my pool actually overflowed, and then a lot of hot sunny days before opening. My guess it that the cover was wet, grew algae and it seeped into the pool and took off - it really ran away with itself So, as I said, you never know exactly what your pool will do, and it is good to share info, so we can help each other.