Total Mess - Vacuum Suggestions

[Steveromo]

I hope I can be laughing about this soon but not laughing now. When removing the cover I lost grip and all the debris that collected on top fell into the pool. (I usually pull to to the deck and shop vac it before lifting but it slipped thru my hands!) It looked like the smoke monster for from "Lost" as it slowly turned my clear water to a greenish mess! It is filled with tiny leaf particles that are too small to skim with a net. I am in for LOTS of vacuuming. Anyone ever have to clean a mess like this? What do you suggest?

[FormerBromineUser]

You may not be laughing now... But your phrasing sure tickled me into a giggle! Never had that issue, but my thought is to let it settle and vacuum ever so slowly.

[swimdaddy]

I don't cover my pool, I find it doesn't save me any work in the spring. If you chlorine levels are up, everything should settle to the bottom and your water clear up, then vacuum to waste. Easy peasy. Love the "Lost" reference. Smoke monster. Awesome.

[Steveromo]

Correct, it did clear up the next day and the debris settled into clumps on the bottom. Still lots of vacuuming! 5 passes so far and it's 80% clear. I've posted before asking for vacuum tips cause I sometimes lose suction halfway thru and don't realize it. It seems more productive with this kind of problem to "dab" the vacuum brush over each clump instead of brushing along the floor which seems to scatter the debris instead of sucking it up. Always looking for vacuum tips from the experts! Thanks for the replies!

[FormerBromineUser]

Go slowly. With time, you will get to "feel" when the vacuum head starts to lose suction. Then you can clean the filter and start again.

[FormerBromineUser]

You're losing suction because the filter is dirty.

[swimdaddy]

I divide my pool into quarters and clean out the leaf basket, pump basket and backwash IF NECESSARY. With a cartridge filter, it will be necessary, but with my sand filter, I try not to backwash too often. In the case of a sand filter, of flow is good and you don't have an algae problem, don't backwash.