Cloudy Water - I think

[Skillset]

Wanted to post some results.

Well, the pool is back to being crystal clear. I wasn't crazy, after all. You can now see the return jets the entire length of the pool.

Shocking was a bit interesting, though. For the first 2 nights, the Cl level dropped by 3 each night (to slightly below shock level of 20), which I was surprised, since I wasn't losing that much previously to shocking. So, each day I added bleach to get above shock level. By the 3rd night, the Cl held, and it also held the entire day (pool was covered and it was a cloudy day). I really couldn't test if the water was cured, though. SInce, right after that, we had a series of lousy, rainy, weather. So, it took about 10 days after that to get down to 10, where you can swim again. But, the results were great, as far as water clarty. So, something must have been in the water.

Now for the not great results. As predicted, my pool is pretty stained. Again, I notice it big time, although from the outside, it is not too noticable. But, it's never been this bad. Not very asthetic.

Marie - I'm closing on October 6, so I was going to just leave the stains, since I know when I open, I'll need to bring up the Cl levels high again, which risks stains. I could treat it with Metal Magic before closing, but why waste $16, is my thinking, unless you think it's better to close with a stain-free pool. Although, when it closes, I'm sure the winterizing chemicals may take the Cl up. Thoughts?

[mbar]

I would not add any Metal Magic now. I have already closed with stains, and they were gone by the time I opened in the spring I guess it's that the ph ususally goes down, and the clorine is gone too. I always add the sequestering agent before I add the chlorine in the spring. I do usually have to do a stain treatment at the beginning of the year after shocking upon opening. This year I am going to try to add a double dose of Metal Magic, and see what happens. I will keep you posted, and I hope you let me know how your pool is when you open next spring. We an all learn by sharing our experiences

[Skillset]

Just to confirm what you do in the spring: Upon opening, you shock. Wait until pool is back to normal Cl. Then add MM?

I was confused because you said: "I always add the sequestering agent BEFORE I add the chlorine" but then you said "I usually have to do a stain treatment at the beginning of the year AFTER shocking upon opening."

Ok - so I'll leave the pool to a light brown tint for the winter.

You know, I don't really think the MM works as it says it does. I think it sequesters the metals, not binds to them and then you can vacuum them up. Seems like the MM lasts for a few weeks then I'm back to staining. I did not have to fill the pool once this season, so I kind of doubt I'm getting a continous supply of metal in the water. At some point, the MM must get used up or dissipates causing the original metal to fall out. My theory.

Anyway, I think the best bet is to get my CYA down so I don't have to keep the Cl between 5 and 10. But, it just does not seem to want to go away. Maybe I'll do a partial drain next season and see if I have better luck with the stains at a lower Cl (and lower CYA).

[mbar]

I usually add the metal magic before shocking - but sometimes I get stains anyway. That's why I think I will add double the dose this year. The sequesterant does get broken down by the chlorine over time - that's why you have to add a maintanence dose every week, or every other week. I did add it this year and didn't have stains. One year I tried the cya very low - 30, and had more problems with stains than I did last year when I kept the cya at 50. This year I had my cya between 50 and 70, and had no returning stains after the initial ascorbic acid treatment in the spring. I have not had any stains taking the chlorine up to 25 So I am still trying to find the best way to control the stains. This was the best year ever. I did have my calcium level at 150, and I did use the Metal Magic more often - adding some everytime I added water or had rain. The only thing I can do is to try to kkeep the same chemistry next year and see if it works again, then I will know the things I tried do work. I have tried many different permutations of chemistry over the last 6 years, so if you have any questions you want to ask, just let me know and I will tell you if I tried it, and if it worked - If you do the same we can learn from each other, and will be better able to help anyone else that has a fiberglass pool. One thing that I did notice is that after I did the ascorbic acid treatment, and added more Metal Magic than I had to, the water got cloudy. After the water cleared (there was a lot of chalky substance on the floor of the pool) I didn't seem to get any staining even if the chlorine went high. So a question I have for you is did your water cloud at all? It is just a theory that I have that maybe the stuff falling out with the calcium carbonate gets rid of the metals I am not sure, but I will keep trying to figure out the best way to keep a stain free pool thanks for keeping me informed!

[Skillset]

Do you think having calcium higher helps?

Did you use the recommended maintenance dose of MM? I did not use any maintenance dose this season. But, since you have the CYA up higher, seems like the maintenance does help. So, I'll try that next season and see how it goes. Or, do you think the non-returning stains were a result of using acid at the beginning of the season? These FG pools are a bit of pain with staining - only drawback though.

Regarding the cloudiness - this was the only time I got it. It might have been coincidental with the use of MM (It started to cloud up about a week after), but the cloudiness was getting worse over the weeks, so maybe it wasn't the MM. But, as stated below, the high Cl returned the pool now to crystal clear. But, lots of stains.

Hey - you were going to see if you could get me the name of the stuff I could use to fill my small chip at the bottom (without emptying). Thankfully, it has not gotten any bigger, so I'm not at all worried at this point.

Anyway, I enjoyed the hot humid day yesterday in the pool. Counting down to closing on the 6th.