Controlling Pool Algae- Tapping the CFF Knowledge Base

Our 24-ish foot above ground was greener and had larva swimming.
I ran a poolife "back to blue" kit. and it cleared everything up - vacuum to waste and everythign was fine.
Except algae kept coming back
2oz of algaecide every week and it's clear as can be. haven't had to do anything at all to it for a couple months now except throw in a couple chlorine pucks a week.

I'm sure there are less invasive ways to do it, but it works just fine for my wife this way.
 
I had a pool for almost 20 years and know exactly how to get this taken care of. Call a backhoe and get rid of the d*%n thing LOL!

When I left the ex-wife, I think I was as happy to be rid of the pool as I was to be rid of her.
 
Pink_Vapor said:
Not much different looking, I backwashed the filter and it was clear water coming out :confused:.
I expected pea soup.
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Don’t pay attention to the water coming out of the pool. Watch your pressure gauge. If you’ve had your pool for a while you should know where your pressure gauge should be. Backwash if until your pressure is at its normal level.


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Bkaye said:
Don’t pay attention to the water coming out of the pool. Watch your pressure gauge. If you’ve had your pool for a while you should know where your pressure gauge should be. Backwash if until your pressure is at its normal level.
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This is the pool's 3rd season, the pressure was normal, I was still hoping to see pea soup, or at least brown soup.
 
Railsplitter said:
I had a pool for almost 20 years and know exactly how to get this taken care of. Call a backhoe and get rid of the d*%n thing LOL!

When I left the ex-wife, I think I was as happy to be rid of the pool as I was to be rid of her.
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The past two seasons were almost maintenance free, other than fall leaves, and less than $80 for the year in chemicals. Me bride, three sons, their 3 wives and the grandkids love it. So I'm gonna fix it.
 
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If it were mine, I shock the hell out of it again, wait another day or two, brush the sides (forget that cleaner gadget) and then vacuum to waste.
 
Now get all that dead algae vacuumed up on waste, don't put it through the filter.

Also, you had the perfect opportunity to bass fish in your backyard, now you ruined it.
 
I’d give it 8 or 9 bags of shock this time. You won’t be able to swim in it for a few years but that’ll be better than pea soup. ;)
 
And don’t turn off that filter/main pump for at least another week!!!!!!
 
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Jeppo said:
And don’t turn off that filter/main pump for at least another week!!!!!!
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This thing of only running a filter for half a day is new to me. The wife's family has run a pool/spa business for close to 30 years. When they open the pools up in the spring the pumps/filters run 24/7 until they cover them in late fall. Sometimes they let them run in the winter as well.
 
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hp468 said:
This thing of only running a filter for half a day is new to me. The wife's family has run a pool/spa business for close to 30 years. When they open the pools up in the spring the pumps/filters run 24/7 until they cover them in late fall. Sometimes they let them run in the winter as well.
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I believe it depends on some blend of filter capacity, gpm of the pump, pool chemistry and ambient temperature. In my case (monster filter and enough pump hp to power a Tesla), 12 hours is more than enough in summer. I back it down significantly in winter.
 
hp468 said:
Now get all that dead algae vacuumed up on waste, don't put it through the filter.
Also, you had the perfect opportunity to bass fish in your backyard, now you ruined it.
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We're on the Haw river, and have a pond. My wife won't step on lake/pond/river beds. She needs her pool.
 
Agree with above, throw that robot thing away. I have a 35,000 gal pool and the polaris robot that came with it went to the dump after 2 uses.

Throw in some coagulant (pool clarifier), a lot of shock, and scrub that thing down, sides and bottom. Backwash filter every few hours and allow it to settle overnight while pump and filter are running. Next day, vacuum anything that has settled on the bottom to WASTE.

Shock it every other day until clear. Vacuum to WASTE as needed. In 3 days you should be good to go.

I always vacuum to waste if i can (water level depending), and top off level after. If water level is low then i'll vacuum to filter and immediately backwash after i'm done. Then top off level.
 
Regardless of the pool water the cement around it looks like it was poured yesterday. That’s clean.
 
So you have not added any algaecide? This a 3-4 day problem fix. Any longer and you risk growing black algae and then you really will have a problem. Get your chemicals right, shock, and add a quality algaecide. Then flocculent (turn pump off to settle) and sweep or vacuum to waste. Watch your pressure in the filter but let it build up and stay a bit high as the particulates you are filtering are very small. This helps trap the small particulates. Once you get rid of this back wash the heck out of it to waste. Shocking alone will not fix this. As others stated get your cyanic acid down.
 
How about call a pool professional to do it for you? I showed this picture to my wife and said this is why I will never own a pool. Just like why I will never have another fish tank.
 
I spent a fortune trying to change pool water with samples sent to two different companies to test. Every year the same issue. Weeks and weeks of small changes and no swimming. I decided I would use a flocculant from work and dosed the surface by mixing it in a bucket then dispersing it to the surface. 36 hours later every bit of the algae would precipitate to the bottom and be vacuumed to waste. I would brush the sides right before adding it.

iIt worked so well that every season after that I started with the same method. Using a flocculent also means more backwashes and you have to complete start over balancing chemicals. That never bothered me because I threw hundred dollar bills away in pool chemicals testing and following pool supplier methods.
 
Once you do get it clear..... be sure to brush/scrub and add algaecide once a month or so..... Also, add shock every 4-6 weeks. Always vacuum to waste, which I see you already are.

On your steps/seating area I see what appears to be the brown or mustard algae. It looks like dust or powder....... that stuff can be a bear to get rid of, but if you stay on top of it you should be able to clear it up within a week or so.
 
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It looks just a bit better this morn. I added almost 2” 3 days ago, and yesterday’s rain added almost 4”. The pump got a thorough backwash this morn.
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The alkalinity and PH dropped, I just added Baking Soda and Borax.

Thanks to y’all I now know I need to keep an eye on the CYA, it’s in the normal range since I replaced the auto-chlorinator’s o-ring. Prior to that it’s been low. I’ll try the flocculant tonight.
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Just out of curiosity, can you supply these:
Pump HP
Distance from pump to pool exhaust port
Size of pipe

Didn’t you mention the pump is variable speed? Is there a way to make it run “wide open” at least until the pool is clear?
 
Jeppo said:
Just out of curiosity, can you supply these:
Pump HP
Distance from pump to pool exhaust port
Size of pipe

Didn’t you mention the pump is variable speed? Is there a way to make it run “wide open” at least until the pool is clear?
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2.2hp, 12’, 2”, I think, I don’t see a duty cycle.
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With the amount of shock you’ve dumped in and the amount of time you’ve been waiting, I have a suspicion. Either the pump isn’t actually running 24 hours per day and/or it’s running less than wide open. I think you’re not getting sufficient circulation and filtration of the water. Running that pump at low rpm won’t help much. You need that water to really circulate. Have you checked the schedule in that display under the pump cover?

Here’s the manual,
https://www.pentair.com/content/dam...rflovs-variable-speed-pump-manual-english.pdf
 
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Good point......the VS pumps usually have some type of default settings where they run at lower speeds after a certain amount of time. They are such a waste of money........ Just my pinyun.......pool pumps should be run "wide open" until they have turned the water over.
 
Assuming the installer didn’t bother to change the default settings, and assuming @Pink_Vapor hasn't either, we’re running the pump/filter ONLY 14 hours per day and 10 of those hours at only 40% of capacity. IMHO, that’s a big part of the reason it’s taken more than a week to clear up the water. That sucka’s gotta RUN!

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Jeppo said:
With the amount of shock you’ve dumped in and the amount of time you’ve been waiting, I have a suspicion. Either the pump isn’t actually running 24 hours per day and/or it’s running less than wide open. I think you’re not getting sufficient circulation and filtration of the water. Running that pump at low rpm won’t help much. You need that water to really circulate. Have you checked the schedule in that display under the pump cover?

Here’s the manual,
https://www.pentair.com/content/dam...rflovs-variable-speed-pump-manual-english.pdf
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I programmed it to run at 3,000rpm 24/7 last Monday, post 54. It was on the 14hour schedule before.
 
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I brushed it down, added flocculent, ran it on recirculate for a couple hours, shut the pump off and let it set overnight. It’s still just as cloudy :(. The robot’s cleaning the floor and walls now.
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I never ran the pump after adding floc. For it to cling together I let it fall from surface to bottom to cling together. And I never used a pool suppliers watered down version. Mine came from an industrial supply at work. I hope it gets better.
 
heh yeah. when i could see the robot I thought "almost there"
this house came with an above ground, ~25ft round.
Wife wanted it, I didn't. She swore up and down she'd do all the work.
so after I got it nice and clear blue, and she let it get green, and then i got it clear blue again, and then she neglected it all winter, it had some pretty big critters swimming in it this spring.
I told her if she couldn't keep it clear I was going to introduce it to buckshot.
So then, of course, I did all the work getting it clear again... so I'm familiar with this stage of cleanup.

But hey, as some internet documentaries have taught us, there are certain benefits to being the pool boy...
 
it may be a ‘watered down’ flocculant, it called for 8oz for 10K gal, I added 16 to 11.5K.
It’s been super low maintenance for the last 3 seasons. This year I fought metal staining, the pool surfaces were yellow/brown, then this. This year’s been a learning experience.
 
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