Pool opening

[GolfTop]

Will be opening pool within the next few weeks.

Had trouble past two summers with yellow algae.

This summer, I will use Ben's fancy test kit (on order) and know the drill for using bleach, borax, muriatic acid, etc. and watching water balance carefully.

My question: Any tips to avoid a repeat of last two summers? Should I use Polyquat when I open and/or periodically through the summer or just trust the process of keeping everything in balance.

[CarlD]

Start by taking a snapshot of the water with Ben's test kit. Then correct from there. You'll probably want to shock your pool up to the max for your stabilizer levels, and keep it there while you clean out the winter junk (leaves, pollen, bugs, etc) and get your water clear. Once it's clean and will hold a chlorine level (CC=0 usually), you can add polyquat. It won't hurt and it can help. See my other post in this forum.

I suspect you are keeping your FC level too low for your stabilizer level, and therefore you are getting blooms. Are you using bleach or powders/tablets for chlorination? Di-chlor powder and Tri-chlor tabs add stabilizer and can take you FAR higher than you realize. If your stabilizer level (CYA) is 100, you simply cannot keep your pool clean with a chlorine level of 3 or 4ppm (for example). I don't know when Ben is going to post the "Best Guess" table again for suggested FC levels for given stabilizer levels--he may already have done so. You need to follow that to keep algae from growing.

Also be aware that chlorine is more effective at the lower end of the suggested pH level than at the upper end. I prefer to keep pH between 7.3 and 7.6 for that reason. 7.7 to 8.0 will make your chlorine less effective. However, higher levels may reduce eye irritation, if it's a problem.

Everything is a balancing act between the choices for what you need.

[GolfTop]

Yes, my Chlorine levels did get low, but I was checking them each day, sometimes twice. Maybe should have checked thrice. Anyway, I will try to be more vigilant this summer.

I'm hoping Ben's test kit will be a great help since I was relying on pool store numbers for combined chlorine readings.

Thanks for your help.

By the way, after a few weeks of using tri-chlor pucks last summer, I began using bleach, but it was too late. My CYA level had reached 100 or so and at that time I had stumbled on the great poolsolutions site and realized the significance of that high number.

Say a prayer for me as well. That algae nearly drove me nuts last summer. My pool guy wants to continually dump copper-based stuff in there. The first summer I had the pool, I relied on his expertise. He said sanitize with the aforementioned pucks and when the algae came, he went bananas pouring in copper stuff.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll be able to keep it algae free, thanks to this site.

[CarlD]

Get rid of your pool guy. The copper exposure has warped his brain! The copper will create green stains and green hair. There's no quick-fix to algae--you must get and keep your FC level high enough to kill it ALL! At a CYA of 100, I believe the level is 20ppm, but if you don't have a vinyl pool, higher is fine--25 or even 30, until it's clear. At CYA of 100, I believe you must keep your daily FC around 8-10--not sure.

[GolfTop]

I saved this "Best Guess" from last summer.

Stabilizer . . . . . . Min. FC . . . . Max FC . . . 'Shock' FC
=> 0 ppm . . . . . . . 1 ppm . . . . . 3 ppm . . . . 10 ppm
=> 10 - 20 ppm . . . . 2 ppm . . . . . 5 ppm . . . . 12 ppm
=> 30 - 50 ppm . . . . 3 ppm . . . . . 6 ppm . . . . 15 ppm
=> 60 - 90 ppm . . . . 5 ppm . . . . . 10 ppm . . .. 20 ppm
=> 100 - 200 ppm . . . 8 ppm . . . . . 15 ppm . . .. 25 ppm

[GolfTop]

I have a solar cover that I left in the pool last summer when I was treating with high levels of chlorine.

Is it relatively safe to use that again or could it be a source of the yellow dunge algae fever, along with last season's swimswuits, etc.?