Lime Green Water That Is Clear and Not Slimy

by Jennifer

We had opened our pool with a local company and they did the usual, hooked up filter & added 2 bottles of shock. Once the pool finally (2 days later) became clear we noticed that there was a pile of leaves left on the bottom. We proceeded to remove them and with the first scoop our water became green. We shocked it again and added algaecide. We noticed it was getting greener so we took for a water test. Our alkalinity was low and also our calcium and we had iron and copper. They told us to add calcium, alkalinity and metal magic. We followed all the steps and our pool is still green I went today and got another water test the results are as follows: FAC:.5 TAC:.5 CH:250 CYA:40 TA:100 pH:7 BASE:4 COPPER:.3 IRON:0 TDS:600 Pho:100 We have a above ground 21 round that holds 10,000G.

I understand that the chlorine is low but I was told not to add any shock, etc until after I got the metals low. I added my 2nd bottle of metal free today. Do think there is anything else I could be adding/doing? We have also backwashed many times & vacuumed before we added the metal magic the first go around. The problem started about 1 week ago and the chemical process started this past Sunday. Help! -Jennifer

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Thanks for the question Jennifer and for the readings. It makes life much easier. First thing is to define our terms. Shock means to maintain the FC at 12 - 13ppm until the algae is dead. Shock is NOT a product you buy, it's a process you do. You buy chlorine to shock the pool.

Next is to get a good metal sequestrant. This is normally not a one shot deal. A metal sequestrant does not remove metal from pool water. It holds it in solution until it can get filtered. Then you backwash the metal out. Because metal sequestrants break down over time and get filtered and backwashed out, you will need to add a bottle once per week. I believe the sequestrant you used contains citric acid. This is not the best product, in my opinion. These kinds of products, including ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) actually eat up chlorine. Your best bet is to use Jack's Magic based on 1-Hydroxyethylidene-1, 1- diphosphonic Acid, a.k.a. HEDP. This can be found on Amazon and possibly some WalMarts.

Your readings are pretty good for super chlorination. DO NOT add anything to raise the pH or TA. They're perfect right now. First thing is to be absolutely sure your filter is perfectly working. You cannot clean dirty water with a non-working or bad filter.

Next is to only use liquid chlorine. You can use bleach if it's less expensive but you'll add just a bit more. Bleach and chlorine are exactly the same ingredient, sodium hypochlorite. Bleach is just a little weaker strength.

Next is to vacuum the pool then backwash. Add 1.5 gallons of chlorine, sweep everything very well, then filter for 8 - 10 hours. Retest the FC. If it doesn't hold at 10 - 12ppm you'll need to dose your pool with enough chlorine to maintain that level. Backwash again and sweep. You want to keep the algae in suspension in order to be filtered out.

Important to remember: Shocking is a process, not an event. The trick is to get AND keep the chlorine above 12 - 13ppm for a period of time. You'll need to manually dose the pool with chlorine to keep it at 12 - 13ppm ppm. Make the adjustment at night, then retest in the morning. Be sure to have the pump running 24/7 and backwash once per day. You can go up to 15ppm, but no higher. Anything after that and you're wasting money and chemicals. You'll know this is working because the pool will go from green to a white/grey cloudy and the chlorine will begin to hold better. First you may lose most, then 2/3, then 1/2, and so on. Once you only lose 1 - 2ppm of chlorine 8 - 10 hours after the last application you know the algae is dead. Now it's just a matter of filtering and backwashing once per day. Broadcast the chlorine around the perimeter of the pool and brush well. This will loosen up any algae adhering to the walls and bottom.

Shocking a pool isn't adding a bag of chlorine to a pool and expecting it to clear up the pool. Shocking a pool means to kill/eliminate the algae and organic matter. This is done by dosing the pool with enough chlorine to reach a high enough FC level and keeping it at this level to allow the chlorine to kill the algae and organics in the pool.

If you feel your situation is more complex than this, I do phone and/or SKYPE consultations. It makes things go much faster and many people have found it extremely beneficial, saving them time and money in the long run. All your questions will be answered. I have nothing to sell you so you know I'm not bias. If you purchase a personal phone consult you'll get all 3 eBooks for free.

Pool Consultation

Clear Blue Pool eBook

How To Clear Up A Green Pool eBook

Swimming Pool Resources

Hope this helps and have a great Summer.

Robert