WaterNet Online

I've been opening my in ground pool (24,000 gal, latex liner) for the past several years without much difficulty simply by following the instructions and adding the chemicals as recommended by the company that built the pool 20 years ago. This year I thought I would be "clever" by attempting to get a jump start on the opening; and at the same time attempt to save some money. I purchased 20 gallons of Chlorox bleach on sale from Costco and poured it into the deep end about 2 weeks before I actually opened the pool thinking this would kill the algae bloom after a relatively warm winter. It has been 2 1/2 weeks now and I still have VERY cloudy water. It took extraordinary effort to balance the water chemistry and to obtain a measurable chlorine level but everything except copper and phosphate are now normal. I continue to work with my local dealer. At present copper measures 0.87 ppm (normal 0.0 to 0.3) and the phosphate level appears to be greater than 1000 ppb per a colorimetric scale (normal 0.0 - 125 p

Without question, changing the water is your best option. Measure the phosphate level in the new water and treat the pool with phos remover if you need to. I have not heard of the brand you mentioned, but Phos-Free and Zero-Phos work fine.

After adding the phos remover, you must backflush or clean the filter regularly (like once or twice per day) otherwise the phosphates will reappear.

Where did all the copper come from? If from and ionizer, get rid of it. Stop using chlorox and get a decent chlorination system on the pool.

Thanks for the advice. I don't have an ionizer. My home has well water which I use to top off the pool as needed. Maybe I should check the well.

Rob Darling