Fiber Optic Lighting (in-ground) System Replacement

[newblinkguy182]

Hello all. First off i'd like to say I'm relieved to see a forum with such useful information, and I'm also happy to be part of the community here

I live in the US (Wisconsin) and recently took on a property management position, the property has an in-ground liner pool (approx. 33,000 gal rectangle) in the back of our clubhouse outside. After getting my pool/spa certification I was taking a tour of the property with the previous maintenance guy, he told me the box outside the pool fence was actually a fiber-optic light system for the pool (the box is about 6 feet from the edge of the pool). He had also mentioned that one of the kids living here must have taken off the lens and ripped out the endglow cable.

Unfortunately I am not sure of the make/model of the system itself, and this is the first in-ground that I've seen with fiber-optics so i'm not sure where to start when it comes to fixing or replacing it.

The black endglow/fiber-optic cable is still in the basement of the clubhouse, and after inspecting the underside of the box I did notice two large tubes in the ground that looked like they lead to the pool, one tube had two small endglow cables coming out, and the other was empty, I assume this went to the lens.

I did find the design blueprints of the pool and they show one hole in the deep end that is marked fiber-optic, all other holes are returns or drains.

I am sorry for the long post but I hope giving as much info as possible will help someone with the same problem and help to get this fixed. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Is it at all possible to use the same system with a new lens? Do I have to drain the pool to install or replace the system?

Any ideas or theories are more than welcome, and thanks again

- Cory

[newblinkguy182]

It may be possible to get a filter cleaner solution and add it while backwashing, as the previous poster suggested.

I also would suggest replacing the sand but bleaching will have nearly the same effect. Sand used in filters should be replaced every year, however if they haven't used it in a while it may still be good sand and need a good backwash.

Worst case scenario is you have to refill your pool with more clean water and add new sand, I would try it before just to see what the results are, learning experiences are fun if they are at your leisure :P

[newblinkguy182]

Anything that can decay (organic) will release ammonia in water, which is toxic at high levels, at low levels fish wont even survive. Algae consumes ammonia and thrives, eventually ammonia turns into nitrates, which are then turned into phosphates depending on how many living organisms are in the water. Hope it helps your understanding a bit :P

Is it possible that dead worms in a pool will cause ammonia to go up? Of course, and it may be the number one reason. As for a solution: Drain it half way, add a gallon or two of shock once it is full and filtering, then see if you get a chlorine reading, add more shock until you do. You may need to drain and fill repeatedly to get a reading. It may also help to know the PH, and Cyanuric Acid levels and test procedures you use.

[PoolDoc]

It's not anything I know about, and it's the 4th. Waterbear or Waste might have some ideas, but I don't expect to see them much this week.

This is mostly a forum for residential pool owners. There are a few folks in the pool trade here (like me) but they focus on residential pools. You may want to post at poolspaforum.com -- they have a lot of builders and such there.

[newblinkguy182]

Thanks for the fast reply! I wasn't sure if it was something most builders or residential users would know about, and since both residential and commercial pools can use fiber-optic lighting I thought it was kind of a long shot since its not really a common problem, but it doesn't hurt to ask. Thanks so much for the poolspaforum.com recommendation, I will check that out and post there. I'll still be active here since I have more experience in residential pools also, hopefully I find a solution incase someone here needs the info, might be good to have for future reference. Either way i'll keep checking back

[newblinkguy182]

Just posting back to inform everyone that the system I have is a Fiberstars model 2008 illuminator box, the lens and lens housing will need replacing most likely but it seems to be hard to match the specific model parts. By the way... according to the manufacturer: All fiber optic systems are never sold to homeowners and most pool builders/contractors know nothing about them, however, they are extremely simple to get the hang of and very easy to install a single endglow system (google is your friend).

I also wanted to add that I noticed someone posted in the electrical section of the forum about using their fiberstars system with a cracked rotating glass piece (which the bulb shines through). I just wanted to say that YES they can still use the light, the glass will still rotate under the light and they will generally get the same effect but the color disc can easily be replaced if they order the part directly from the fiberstars website. If you are able to pass that information along I am sure they would appreciate it. I would post myself but I don't seem to have permission to do so, I don't mind... but I do hope this helps. Now that I have some experience (I also have all the model diagrams and install manuals with part listings) I will be able to help others since this seems to be a common lighting system. I am more than happy to email/send/direct anyone to the pdf files that have model information and install instructions. It's actually something people should research more even if they don't normally deal with these systems because they are becoming more and more common. Thanks again

[PoolDoc]

We would benefit from help . . . on equipment questions . . . from people with specific experience, or with a pool biz back ground. But, I haven't figured out how to get guys, like yourself, to stick to what they know. The reason is, they usually don't know that a bunch for what "they know" isn't actually true.

For example, you wrote

Sand used in filters should be replaced every year

which is not true, and is a topic covered again and again. If we allow such things to stand, it will result in hundreds of homeowners wasting money fixing things that aren't broken.

Likewise you wrote

(1) Anything that can decay (organic) will release ammonia in water, (2) which is toxic at high levels, at low levels fish wont even survive. (3) Algae consumes ammonia and thrives, (4) eventually ammonia turns into nitrates,

which contains 4 incorrect or misleading statements:

#1. Decay may lead to ammonia (some forms of bacterial metabolysis do) butd it's simply not true that all (or even most) decay produces ammonia. What's more, the results of bacterial decay are relevant in operating pools, since the bacteria are dead.
#2. Not relevant in the least, for pools. Those levels of ammonia will only result when someone ADDS aqua ammonia. (Another topic, not often relevant these days.)
#3. Not true at all in pools, and I'm not sure algae EVER 'consume' (metabolize) ammonia. Nitrates are a necessary nutrient, but that's not the same thing.
#4. Ammonia can be biodegraded into nitrates, but again, that will NOT happen in operating pools, and in any case, it's only one of several possible pathways.

It's precisely this sort of thing which makes it so hard for us to let "professionals" into the forum: they "know" things that aren't so, and we end up working MORE, not less if we let them post. It's very, very hard for pool pros to accept that, at least with respect to pool chemistry, they need to come here to LEARN, and not to teach.

It makes no sense to think that a couple of websites developed by an obscure pool service guy, and expanded and extended, not by people in the pool business, but by pool owners -- that THOSE websites are where pool guys should go to learn about pool chemistry.

So it's reasonable for pool guys to think they know better than the folks here. Reasonable -- but wrong. And unfortunately, that reasonable conclusion leads to collisions that I've never found a way to avoid.

A few guys READ here a lot, before they start posting. And some of them have become very important resources here. But, that's rare.

Best wishes.