What Colour is Your Water?
Q. My pool is cloudy, green and the walls feel slimy. What is wrong with the water and how do I fix it?
A. Your pool water is out of balance which has allowed algae to form. How to fix:
- Empty the leaf basket in the skimmer, and the lint pot in the pump
- Backwash the filter
- Adjust the alkalinity to about 100ppm
- Adjust the pH factor to about 7.4
- Shock dose the pool with chlorine
- Brush the floor and walls
- Run the filter till the water clears
- Vacuum the silt that is now on the bottom of the pool to "waste"
- Maintain the free available chlorine between 2ppm and 4ppm
Q. Why is our pool water so cloudy?
A. Cloudy swimming pool water can result from one of several factors:
- the pH is too high
- the total alkalinity level is too high
- the stabiliser level is too high
- the chlorine level is too low
- the calcium hardness level is too high
- the level of total dissolved solids is too high
- there are high levels of metals (discoloured pool water)
- there is a lot of pool algae growth
- the filter needs cleaning or servicing
- There is a large quantity of microscopic particles in the pool water from outside sources
By testing and correcting the above, the cloudy pool water problem should disappear. Remedies:
- Inspect filtration system
- Adjust you pH and total alkalinity to proper levels, as well as the free available chlorine
- Maintain a consistent free chlorine level between 2ppm and 4ppm
Q. When we swim our eyes burn. What causes this?
A. If the swimmers complain about burning eyes and nose, or dry, irritated skin, there is most certainly a problem with the pool water chemistry.
By testing the swimming pool water and correcting these levels, the problem should disappear. Causes:
- the pH is too high or too low
- the total alkalinity level is too low
- the calcium hardness level is too high
Remedies:
- Super-chlorinate
- Adjust pH to proper 7.2 - 7.8 range
- Maintain proper levels of pH, total alkalinity, and free chlorine residual
Q. When we get out of the pool we stink of chlorine; is this normal?
A. No this isn’t normal. You will find that if you can smell chlorine than there isn’t enough in the pool or you pH levels are out of balance.
How to fix:
- Super-chlorinate
- Adjust pH to proper 7.2 - 7.8 range
- Maintain proper levels of pH, total alkalinity, and free chlorine residual