swimming pool care?

Posted by on . 5 comments.

i have a salt water pool & spa that is starting to turn green.
i just moved in and it seem like no one knows what i should use to start getting it cleaned up
PLEASE HELP !
THANKS DENNIS


Comments

  1. Fair_Dinkum says:
    September 12, 2009 at 7:32 am

    Hi Dennis,
    What a pain in the neck pool care is. It’s an on going thing and costs money. If you are sharing make sure you get everyone to chip in with the costs.

    First step is to clean the Chlorine Generator cell. To clean the cell it needs to soak in hydrochloric acid and water 1 part acid 10 part water. Read the instructions on how to clean your cell they do vary. If it’s not clean it will not make Chlorine and the pool goes green.

    Get a test kit and test the chlorine level and the ph levels.

    Even though it’s a salt water pool the Chlorine Generator cell makes Chlorine.
    The test kit should have the instructions in the container. If not, fill both sides of the test tubes with pool water to the line. The small test tube side place a Chlorine test tablet in there put the lid on and shake. Check the colour to see the level of Chlorine.

    Now test the ph on the big tube side. Place one drop from bottle 4 and swirl it around then 5 drops from the red bottle and swirl around. Check the colour to see if you need the add acid or soda ash.

    My guess is you need to add acid. If you know how many litres are in your pool you can work it out using the test kit.

    Or do what I do and that’s pour a couple a litres of acid in the pool. Run the pool filter for at least 6 hours then test it again. The other good idea to help kick start the Chlorine in the pool if its low, is the buy a container of liquid Chlorine and pour it in. Then the next day do another test.

    If a lot of people have been in the pool or there been a few hot days keep an eye on the levels. It doesn’t take long to go off.

    Don’t forget you can take a bottle of pool water to the pool shop and they will test it and tell you what you need.

    http://www.clearwater-usa.com/salt_chlor.asp
    http://phoenix.about.com/cs/wet/a/saltpool01.htm
    http://www.poolcenter.com/chlorine_generator.htm

  2. Kendra S says:
    September 12, 2009 at 7:32 am

    is it being chemically treated properly?

  3. Steve W says:
    September 12, 2009 at 7:32 am

    How green is it?

    My rule of thumb is that if you can’t see the bottom, it is best to drain it and start over. You may need to do some other work.

    If you can see the bottom, you MAY be able to save it.

    Some things to look include the FILTER. you didn’t say what kind of filter: is it a cartridge, sand or D.E.

    Look at the filter there should be label that tells you.

    If it is a cartridge filter take it apart and hose it down
    If it is sand, back wash it
    if it is DE back wash and re-load the pool skimmer with DE

    Other issues, is there blockage of flow? Is the pump running, or on a timer?
    Some people turn off the pump to save money while the house is empty

    Maybe the skimmers or pump pot is full of leaves, and no flow is happening. Check the return jets for water coming out. Look at the pressure gauge on the filter.

    Turn it back on, set it to run 24/7, at least in the short term

    I would contact a pool pro if any of this is confusing

    these are just some ideas…

    don’t forget to brush the algae off.

  4. Kong says:
    September 12, 2009 at 7:32 am

    If your pool is a below ground pool don’t even think about draining your pool until you get professional advice. Even if the pool is made of concrete it can float out of the ground several inches. Then your in for thousands of dollar for repairs.

  5. David W says:
    September 12, 2009 at 7:32 am

    As a new pool owner we need to start from the very beginning.

    How long do you run your filtration system for? Regardless of anything else if this is not running for a minimum of 8 hours a day your pool will not be getting chlorinated from the salt chlorinator.

    As mentioned previously is your salt cell clean? If you don’t know how to do this go to http://www.poolindustrysecrets.com and download the free ebook on pool care.

    Backwash the filter again this is covered in the free ebook.

    Whilst I could explain to you how to go about shocking the pool with chlorine and correcting pH space would probably suggest this is not that wise. In the short term as a new onwer you will need more support than anyone can provide on line. Find a local pool store. Take a 1/2 pint of water into them and get a water analysis. Provided they are familiar with your salt chlorinator you should be able to get the best support practical from them.

    HTH

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