Hey guys
Our in-ground pool was pretty green and to get it back to swimming shape we added chlorine.
This seemed to do little so I added a benzalkonium based algaecide from Bunnings.
It lightened a bit but is still too green to swim in. And the algaecide in the water smells toxic as hell. Google also says benzalkonium can neutralize chlorine? which isn't what I need.
Any tips to help me out of this mess or should I just call in a professional?
Cheers
First brush the wall and floor of the pool, and let the algae settle to the bottom of the pool. If you see any algae at the bottom of the pool, i would clean them to the waste. Then, get the pool balanced, especially PH. Then shock the pool. You would want to run the pump longer than usual while you are shocking the pool. At least like 24 hours on the first day of shocking if pool is green.
And the algaecide in the water smells toxic as hell.
If you had let go of the pool and just added chlorine to shock the pool, the toxic smells could be comming from the combined chlorine (chloramine). You would need to keep testing the pool and get rid of the combined chlorine.
THis is good advice. If you still have residual cloudiness a dose of clarifier may help the particles to coagulate and fall. I run a copper/silver ioniser on my pool which means I only use about 1/3 or the chlorine I would otherwise have to.
@knasty: can you tell me a bit more about the ioniser you are using and your pool volume?
Pool is about 40,000L . I bought an https://www.aquavic.com.au/ almost 10 years ago. Seem to be a few 'natural' options around now.
@knasty: Thanks knasty. How much did it cost you and did you self install? Any reason why it hasn't totally eliminated your chlorine use?
@nudy: Was around 500 a long time ago. Self install. Copper and silver help to prevent algae and bacteria but in the end body oils, sunscreens etc need a bit of help to break down. I don't know all the science but it worked for me. There are other options out there using ozone etc which may or may not be better.
You need to add a sh!t tonne of chlorine to knock it on the head.
Is it a salt or chlorine pool?
I'd call it a hybrid lol. Its saltwater but for simplicity it's basically just chlorine.
So is the chlorinator stuffed?
That's not simple. It's simple if the chlorinator works, if it doesn't you get a green mess like you have currently. Not sure why people make things hard for themselves.
Sounds like you have enough algecide & chlorine in now, so is just a case of filtering the dead algae out.
If the pool is milky/light green/cloudy, it means the algaecide & chlorine has done its job of killing the algae, and now the chlorine is bleaching the dead algae cells. So, now you can backflush, then put in a litre of clarifier and keep the pump on for another 24 hours.
Take a water sample to your local pool shop for a free water test
and a photo
.
Just take a water sample in adn get it tested
Get it under control
then be a tight arse and do nothing gain till it turns green again
or be smart, get rid of the money pit pool
I'll just point you to google "trouble free pool".
It's a USA site but relevant to Aussie pools too.
You need a Free Chlorine test kit and add chlorine daily to bring it to AND keep it at shock level.
Once the tests indicates that free chlorine levels have stopped falling since the last time you've added more, it means the chlorine has ran out of algae to burn and it's time to start cleaning the dead stuff out.
Good luck
It's pretty easy to get rid of algae..just takes persistence and time.
First thing you need to do is check your salt level is sufficient to make the chlorinator generate chlorine.
Assuming that's OK, then crank up the chlorine generation to the max level. And to give it a boost, tip a few litres of liquid chlorine into the pool too.
Ensure your filter is clean, so if it's a cartridge filter, take out the cartridge and give it a blast with a pressure cleaner, or at least the garden hose on the hardest squirt.
If it's a sand type filter (the big barrel kind) then backwash for 2 or 3 minutes.
From there, it's just time.
@Navanod66 has good tips but let me repeat it anyway. Go and check out troublefreepool. Yes it's US-centric but plenty of Aussies on the site & all the tips are relevant to Aussie pools too. Basically just keep the chlorine at shock levels until it's clear.
Might take 2 days or 2 weeks but keeping the filter clean and the chlorine level up will sort it out.
Ignore advice from pools shops and elsewhere about any other kind of algaecide.. Just chlorine is enough.
Haha this reminds me of the days before I converted pool to garden. After adding chlorine you just need to run the pump and backflush cycles until water turns clear. Helps if you manually scrub off the green stuff off the walls. It's kind of satisfying seeing the gunk scrubbed off and flushed away.
As above take a water sample to your local pool place along with a photo. Take pictures of your pumps/filters and make sure you know the pool size in litres. They will likely sell you a few bottles of stuff that will clear it right up.
Then when you are done with all that rip out the chlorine system and replace it with a Naked Freshwater system and never worry about that again. Almost zero work needed to maintain your pool.
@Third_Gear: Interested to hear about your experiences with Naked Freshwater including cost and volume of your pool. Has it totally eliminated use of chlorine for you?
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. Is there truth to the notion that benzalkonium based algaecides will deactivate your chlorine for a period of time?
Do you have a chlorinator? Is it working? It's a lot easier to keep a pool nice, than it is to let it go, then try to bring it back.