green water that won't go away

[kinneydd]

I have been trying for apx. two weeks to get the green out of my pool. I have been reading this forum since Saturday and I have started with the liquid bleach to get rid of the algae on Sunday. My pool water hasn't changed, with four days of having the chlorine level up to 12ppm. I have also been vaccuming the pool everyday.
Here are my pools numbers:
Chlorine 12 ppm
Alkalinity 110 ppm
PH 7.6
Copper/Iron 1.0 ppm
CYA 30 ppm
My pool is a 24' above ground vinyl pool, apx 14,000 gallons.
It has been very easy to keep the clorine level up. So it is not dropping too low before I add more bleach each evening. (I add two gallons every night). Does anyone have any suggestions on what else I should be doing.
I looking forward to any advice you can give me, I'm begining to think that the pool will never be clean for the summer.

[ScottS]

According to Ben's best guess chart with your CYA level of 30 you should be shocking at 15ppm not 12ppm. Not a huge difference but it could be the breaking point for you.

Also how are you testing? Are you using a drop test drop kit for CL and pH? The reason I ask is because it would be good to know if you had any CC.

[waterbear]

You have 1 ppm copper in your pool! (or is it iron?) Either one can cause the water to color with high levels of chlorine. Is the water clear or cloudy? If it is clear and colored and your metal level is that high then use a sequesterant to see if that uncolors your water. Copper will cause a greenish tint to the water and iron will be yellow to brownish. (If you liner is blue then yellow water from iron will look greenish. Do you know how the metals got in your water in the first place? Do you use well water? (Iron is a big problem with some well water). Did you overdose on copper based algaecide (about .3 to .6 ppm copper is enough to be an effective algaecide). Shocking your pool when the metal level is that high is not a good idea. If the water is cloudy and colored then it's most likely algae.

[kinneydd]

It is copper, and yes we did overdose with algaecide before I started reading this forum, won't do that again. But I also have iron which I think is from topping it off with our tap water which is public water however it is very hard.
The water is looking brownish green, and cloudy, we can only see about 1-2 ft. down. I do have a blue liner.
I was going to get some sequesterant today and add it just in case that was part of the problem. I did not know it wasn't a good idea to shock with cooper in the water until late last night. Although I'm still not sure why, is it because it will causing staining?
Yes, I am using a drop kit for the cl and ph, I don't know how to test for CC.
I will start adding another gallon of bleach today to try and get the CL up to 15ppm.
Thanks, I will post again once I have added the sequesterant. How long will it take to notice a difference in the water if the metals are causing the green/brown water?

[waterbear]

Do NOT shock the pool until you treat the metals! High chlorine levels will cause the metals in the water to oxidize and color the water! It can also cause staining. This is probably part of your green/brown water. Since it is cloudy there probably is some algae growing also. First treat the metals with a sequesterant according to the label directions! Adust your pool to the pH and CL levels the equesterant recommends before using it for best results. When the water no longer tests postive for metals then treat the algae. You mentioned that your water is very hard. What is the calcium hardness. Very high levels can sometimes cause cloudy water under certain conditions.

[kinneydd]

Thanks for the advise!! I added the sequesterant yesterday. The water looks better, first improvment that I have seen for weeks. However it is still green. I can see apx 2-3 ft. down. I will be testing the water later today and see if there is still any metals in the water and if so adding more sequesterant, is it ok to add two days in a row? If I do not have any metals left then I will continue to shock to a level of 15ppm. I will post the pools number later today. Thanks!!

[ScottS]

I am happy to see that you are seeing some improvement.

Waterbear is 'da man

[mbar]

You can can add sequeserant as often as you have to to keep the metals in suspension. You won't hurt anything by putting too much sequesterant in you water, but not enough will leave some metals free to fall out of suspension and land on the surface of your pool. You will have to maintain enough sequesterant in your water on a continueing basis if you have metals in your water. You can add your fill water through your filter, and don't shock when you first add water new water, untill you let it circulate enough to bind with the sequesterant.

[kinneydd]

Just tested the water here are the numbers:
Chlorine 6.0 ppm
Alkalinity 130ppm
PH 6.8, a little low but thats ok while I'm trying to get rid of algae, right?
Calcium 200
Copper 0
Iron 0
CYA 130
The pool still looks green, however like I said in my previous post, it looks better than it did.
I'm surprised that the coper and iron are zero already, does that seem right?
Should I start shocking the pool again?
How much bleach should I use? 14,00 gallons.
Thanks!!

[mbar]

You do have to get your ph up - anything under 7.0 is corosive, and can ruin your liner. I would add a little borax to get it to at least 7 to 7.2. The chlorine will be just as strong there. You can also aerate your water so it will lower the alk and raise the ph. You are testing no metals because all of the metals are binded with the sequestering agent. You can now shock the pool. You have to be consistant, if you let the chlorine level yo yo, it will take much longer to clear the pool. Get the ph up that is the priority.