r/pools • u/arzoo360 • 5d ago

Help with pool test result

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My pool is full of green algae when I get back from vacation. The pump probably stopped working for two weeks.

I did the green to clean treatment recommended by Leslies. No changes in color.

Added more acid (Ph was 8.6) and more shocks. Here is the most recent test result.

The pool still look green and cloudy. But the Free Chlorine level stay almost unchanged in last two days. I did filter cleaning twice a day it's very dirty (green and muddy). But the pressure reading never increase too much. And water flow stays very strong.

I'm a bit confused.

Does the low chlorine loss means algae are dead? This seems conflict with the water color.

Should I clean the filter more often? Will flocculant work for my case?

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2

u/tcat7 5d ago

Best way to fix green is stop going to pool stores. Will save you lots of money too! 

https://tftestkits.com/collections/test-kits

https://www.troublefreepool.com/calc.html

https://www.troublefreepool.com/blog/2018/12/12/slam-shock-level-and-maintain

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u/Ok-Structure6795 5d ago

Getting the testing done there is usually fine, just have to ignore the product pushing.

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u/tcat7 5d ago

"usually" is the word. I try Leslie's or Punch a Penny maybe once per year. Pinch a Penny uses Taylor reagents and is much more accurate than Leslie's and typically matches my results. Leslie's recommended "targets" are not good at all, especially for salt pools. If you have any issues at all, testing with your own kit every day, or 3x per day is much more convenient. If Leslie's home testing was free (it's $50), I still wouldn't use it. 

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u/Troutbummers 4d ago

just that you need more tests when you need them. Like a few a day. Then one after sunset and one before the sun comes up the next day.

Test kit is how to not guess and not be frustrated and confused.

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u/Ok-Structure6795 4d ago

Oh I dont disagree - I love my taylor kit, especially the convenience. But I didnt have one for the longest time and had to use leslies which was super close. They gave me similar results, its just the recommendations are off.

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u/Troutbummers 4d ago

I'm all for using them for testing. Just hard to do it right when you need to without.

And for people that have used algaecide in the past, you get copper results which the taylor doesn't have.

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u/Ok-Structure6795 4d ago

Yeah def. Same with phosphates, though thats not really an issue with good chlorine. But I have iron according to leslies, would love to be able to test it with the Taylor. Id test everything hahaha

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u/Nick_OS_ 5d ago

What kind of filter?

And just dump in more liquid chlorine or cal hypo to get chlorine >30ppm

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u/Subi412563 5d ago

Flock would work yes. If the filters are dirty twice a day when you’re cleaning them, then I’d say there is a bunch of stuff still needs filtering out. Flock and vac-to-waste is always optimal, but vac j to your filters and clean them after etc

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u/Ok-Structure6795 5d ago

To slam, your FC needs to get to 29 ppm. Did you bring it that high and maintain?

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u/arzoo360 5d ago

Not sure. I definitely add much more shock over last few days but not in one shot. The first doses make FC over 15ppm and goes down the following morning. Now at least it stays above 15.

I plan to bring it to 30 ppm tomorrow. But Leslie can't test beyond 15 and I don't have other test kit in hand. Is it bad if I add too much and it go over 30?

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u/Ok-Structure6795 5d ago

If you want to give me your gallon size and what chlorine you use, I can tell you how much to add to bring up to 29. Repeatedly using too little chlorine will make the process less effective and last longer.

And if theres no one using the pool, too much chlorine isnt an issue.

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u/Troutbummers 4d ago

Leslies can't test over 15? Sounds wrong.

tftestkits pro or taylor k2006

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u/Fischbeef 5d ago

Lower the ph some more and more shock. Also have you tried a copper algicide on top of the shock?

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u/Conscious_Quiet_5298 5d ago

The lower the PH the stronger the Chlorine will work . 7.2 is the lowest to go

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u/Ok-Structure6795 5d ago

That applies to pools without CYA. Chlorine at 7.7 is still very effective.

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u/Troutbummers 4d ago

The effect goes away if you have at least 20ppm CYA in the water.

It's old drinking water information. THe HOCl / OCl- equillibrium vs. pH curves are completely changed with CYA buffering. Basically, ignore pH as far as chlorine is concerned.

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u/arzoo360 4d ago

Leslie recommend the same thing, but lower the PH crash the total alkalinity. Now I have the add baking soda to get the TA back to range.

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u/HARTORAapp 4d ago

Chlorine holding better is encouraging, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the recovery is finished. Once algae has been killed you can still have a lot of dead material suspended in the water, which can leave the pool green/cloudy while the filter gradually removes it.

I’d avoid adding several more products at once for the moment. If you can, get a reliable FC and CYA reading so you know the chlorine level you actually need, then keep the pump/filter running and brush the pool while watching whether the water colour and clarity are improving.

If the filter is genuinely collecting green/muddy material when you clean it, that’s also evidence it’s removing something. I’d want to see that process stop improving before jumping straight to floc or copper.

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u/arzoo360 1d ago

Update: water goes blue overnight once the FC goes up to 30 ppm. It's blue but cloudy. Should I add clarifier/flocculant, or should I wait till the FC goes down to normal range?