Cloudy Swimming Pool
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Cloudy Swimming Pool
I would welcome some advice. My pool is cloudy, and I have read up on solutions, but can't seem to find one. The Ph reading is now good, (about 7.4) and I have shocked the pool twice now, and given it a good old dose of anti-algae/flocculent, but problem not yet solved.
I am running the filtration for about 12 hours a day, and just hoping it will clear, eventually!
It's a 8mx4m oval Desjoyeaux pool, about 50m3, below ground.
Anyone got any ideas?
I am running the filtration for about 12 hours a day, and just hoping it will clear, eventually!
It's a 8mx4m oval Desjoyeaux pool, about 50m3, below ground.
Anyone got any ideas?
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You are doing all the right things. Floculant is normally the best cure for cloudy water as it sticks tiny particles together so you can filter them out or vacuum them up. If it is working you normally end up with dirty scum at the bottom of the pool. Often combined products don't focus enough on the floculant.
Another cause of cloudy water can be total alkalinity - have you checked it.
Another cause of cloudy water can be total alkalinity - have you checked it.
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Thanks for the advice. Yes I have. It may be a tad low, so keeping my eye on it.Allan wrote:
Another cause of cloudy water can be total alkalinity - have you checked it.
No progress so far!!!
Have added more chlorine today, so am looking for an improvement. I am concerned about adding more floculent, as I may have OD'd before.
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Update.
The filtration system is a unit which is attached to the end of the pool. It uses a "poche", (Brand new, I have changed it) and the pump is working very well. So think all is well in that regard.
Took a sample of water to Desyoyeaux today and they determined that all was OK except the free chlorine, which was absent.
As I shocked the pool twice, this was disappointing, but they put this down to me buying cheap chlorine from Intermarche.
Have changed the poche again, to a very fine filter, and added their chlorine, and have to wait a few days to see what happens.
I will advise. Thanks for the interest and help.
The filtration system is a unit which is attached to the end of the pool. It uses a "poche", (Brand new, I have changed it) and the pump is working very well. So think all is well in that regard.
Took a sample of water to Desyoyeaux today and they determined that all was OK except the free chlorine, which was absent.
As I shocked the pool twice, this was disappointing, but they put this down to me buying cheap chlorine from Intermarche.
Have changed the poche again, to a very fine filter, and added their chlorine, and have to wait a few days to see what happens.
I will advise. Thanks for the interest and help.
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The whole point of shocking the pool is that the chlorine doesn't stay in it and should have little effect on free chlorine. A shock is a rapid disinfection and free chlorine shouldn't have a bearing on cloudiness. I can't seriously believe the. Comment about 'cheap' chemicals. Most pool chemicals are just generic compounds and are usually hideously overpriced.
Try aerating the pool - let some water out and refill it, point the hose up in the air and let the water fall into the pool
Try aerating the pool - let some water out and refill it, point the hose up in the air and let the water fall into the pool
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What colour is the cloudiness? If it green then you have live algae. If it is white then the chlore choc has done its job and killed the algae.
If it dead algae in suspension add a solution of flocculant directly to the water with a watering can run the pump for an hour or so to mix it then leave it without pumping foor 24 hours. You should then find a loose deposit at the bottom that you can gently siphon out, preferably to waste and not through the filter.
Bon chance.
Russell.
If it dead algae in suspension add a solution of flocculant directly to the water with a watering can run the pump for an hour or so to mix it then leave it without pumping foor 24 hours. You should then find a loose deposit at the bottom that you can gently siphon out, preferably to waste and not through the filter.
Bon chance.
Russell.
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It isn't green, just cloudy. Just can’t see the bottom of the pool. I have been running the filter continuously now, with more chlorine, since yesterday around Midday, with no sign of improvement. I have redirected the water coming out of the filter to the surface, creating a lot of turbulence/bubbles, but although I feel I am adding some oxygen to the pool, it is again, with little improvement.
I think that the next stage is, as suggested, more flocculent, but I am not confident.
Having said all that, it is all good experience, and I am very appreciative of the help and advice.
Next step maybe to upload some photos, so you guys can see what it is I am dealing with.
I think that the next stage is, as suggested, more flocculent, but I am not confident.
Having said all that, it is all good experience, and I am very appreciative of the help and advice.
Next step maybe to upload some photos, so you guys can see what it is I am dealing with.
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I suspect that is your problem, if the bag filter isn't fine enough the dead algae will pass through it, get mixed up and you are back to square one! If it is fine enough to catch the algae it will most mikely get clogged. If you don't have a sand filter you really need to figure out some means of sucking the deposit at the bottom out into a drain.
Russell.
Russell.
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I guess we all make mistakes when we don't fully understand what we are doing.
This morning the water was clear, and so I rigged up the vacuum, hoping that the outflow pipe (which directs water from the filter bag back into the pool) would not disturb the bottom too much. After a couple of minutes the pool was cloudy again - the circulation system worked too well and all the debris was floating around again.
Apparently, so I have learned, after the event, you are not supposed to use flocculent in a Desjoyeaux pool as the system has no facility to vacuum to waste and all that.
Apparently it's all about letting the filtration system do its work.
Thanks for all the help again. At least I am gaining experience, although we never had these problems when my wife had the job of maintaining the pool!
This morning the water was clear, and so I rigged up the vacuum, hoping that the outflow pipe (which directs water from the filter bag back into the pool) would not disturb the bottom too much. After a couple of minutes the pool was cloudy again - the circulation system worked too well and all the debris was floating around again.
Apparently, so I have learned, after the event, you are not supposed to use flocculent in a Desjoyeaux pool as the system has no facility to vacuum to waste and all that.
Apparently it's all about letting the filtration system do its work.
Thanks for all the help again. At least I am gaining experience, although we never had these problems when my wife had the job of maintaining the pool!
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That's nonsense. If you need floculent you need it! How else can you get rid of dead algae?Albert wrote: Apparently, so I have learned, after the event, you are not supposed to use flocculent in a Desjoyeaux pool as the system has no facility to vacuum to waste and all that.
Can you rig up some sort of connection to fit a hose into the filter outlet to pump the sucked up muck into a drain (or to water the garden)?
Russell.
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I agree with Russell; whoever told you that doesn't know anything about swimming pools! Floculant simply binds together the microscopic particles so they are more easily filtered ( whether with a vacuum hose or normal filtration ).Albert wrote: Apparently, so I have learned, after the event, you are not supposed to use flocculent in a Desjoyeaux pool as the system has no facility to vacuum to waste and all that.
Apparently it's all about letting the filtration system do its work.
Desjoyeaux actually sell floculant http://www.laboutiquedesjoyaux.fr/produ ... scine.html
Vacuuming to waste is a side issue, it is simply a way of bypassing your filter to get rid of particularly dirty water.
What seems to be the issue in your case is that your filter isn't working, so you are vacuuming up the dirty deposit and instead of staying in your filter it is being put straight back into the pool. Accorning to Desjoyaux, they have filters from 6 microns to 30 microns. A six micron filter should easily cope with algae treated with floculant.
It clearly isn't so I would replace it.
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Update:
The 6 micron bag is holding its own, and slowly, very slowly, the water is beginning to clear. I would use Flocculent again, if only I had a way of removing the algae. However the Desjoyeaux system does not allow for this.
Thanks for all the help. I feel I am winning, but as I said, it's very slow.
The 6 micron bag is holding its own, and slowly, very slowly, the water is beginning to clear. I would use Flocculent again, if only I had a way of removing the algae. However the Desjoyeaux system does not allow for this.
Thanks for all the help. I feel I am winning, but as I said, it's very slow.
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This still makes no sense at all.
Think of it this way, the flocculant makes the tiny particles in your water stick together into bigger particles. These bigger particles should be more easily trapped by your filter.
If you turn the pump off, these bigger particles tend to sink to the bottom of the pool. If you then vacuum your pool then the debris from the bottom is sucked through your filter.
If your filter is working then using flocculant should trap these particles in the filter, it ultimately doesn't matter if you get them there by vacuuming or by normal circulation.
It is hard to conclude anything other than your filter doesn't work.
Think of it this way, the flocculant makes the tiny particles in your water stick together into bigger particles. These bigger particles should be more easily trapped by your filter.
If you turn the pump off, these bigger particles tend to sink to the bottom of the pool. If you then vacuum your pool then the debris from the bottom is sucked through your filter.
If your filter is working then using flocculant should trap these particles in the filter, it ultimately doesn't matter if you get them there by vacuuming or by normal circulation.
It is hard to conclude anything other than your filter doesn't work.
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Maybe not as it stands but it must be possible to arrange something. When you pump through the filter the water must be returned to the pool. I'm sure, with a bit of ingenuity, you could divert this return stream.Albert wrote:Update:
I would use Flocculent again, if only I had a way of removing the algae. However the Desjoyeaux system does not allow for this.
Algae particles can be as small as 1 micron so, unless they are clumped, the filter won't catch them.
Russell.
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Bit of a mixed result. The Flocculent did its job. However it takes the smallest movement to disturb the algae resting on the bottom of the pool, so before you know it, quite a lot is rising in the water, and making it look cloudy again.
The "experiment" was successful, (in that the water taken up via hoovering was expelled out of the pool) but I was not left with sparkling clear water.
So, system back in place, chlore choc added, and let the pump go for 48 hours continuous. I have a 6 micron bag, but fear I have 1-5 micron algae.
If you add more flocculent, (i.e., more than is recommended, or considered necessary under normal circumstances) will the algae particles combine to produce bigger "clumps" (i.e. 7 microns or more)??
Just a thought.
All is not lost, by any means, but this is no quick fix.
Pictures at www.myhrshop.co.uk/pool.doc
The "experiment" was successful, (in that the water taken up via hoovering was expelled out of the pool) but I was not left with sparkling clear water.
So, system back in place, chlore choc added, and let the pump go for 48 hours continuous. I have a 6 micron bag, but fear I have 1-5 micron algae.
If you add more flocculent, (i.e., more than is recommended, or considered necessary under normal circumstances) will the algae particles combine to produce bigger "clumps" (i.e. 7 microns or more)??
Just a thought.
All is not lost, by any means, but this is no quick fix.
Pictures at www.myhrshop.co.uk/pool.doc
- russell
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The flocculent should continue to work so you could try leaving it to settle a bit longer. I had the same problem once and had to be very gentle with the hoovering.Albert wrote:Bit of a mixed result. The Flocculent did its job. However it takes the smallest movement to disturb the algae resting on the bottom of the pool, so before you know it, quite a lot is rising in the water, and making it look cloudy again.
Russell.
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Latest development. My neighbour dropped into Desjoyeaux today and discussed the problem. He sold him (for me) some tablets - 13 Euros. What they are supposed to do is to line the filter bag so that algae cannot penetrate and go back into the water after filtration. All I have to do is to make sure that the bag is cleaned regularly, and keep doing this until the water is clear.
Sounds logical, and should work.
www.myhrshop.co.uk/pool2.doc
Sounds logical, and should work.
www.myhrshop.co.uk/pool2.doc