Help after Eaton fire

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PVia

New member
Jun 30, 2018
4
CA
Hi all, my house is a mile from the nearest burn area in Altadena, CA. The house is fine but the pool is filled with heavy debris such as branches and leaves, and ever since January 7 the water has been black with ash, not being able to see the bottom at all. I've been running the filter 8 hrs a day.

Today is the first time I'm able to see the bottom and boy...there's a lot of stuff down there. And the pool is now turning green. And the Mosquito Vector Control people want to see a photo of a clean pool. My insurance company has been very slow in getting an adjuster out.

My questions are:
1. Should I use liquid chlorine to SLAM it to take care of the green?
2. Do you recommend draining the pool and chlorine washing? People are worried about the toxins that were carried by the 100 mph winds that accompanied the fire.
3. I'll replace the filter grids but are there other things that should be done?

Every pool company (and the city) have differing opinions on what needs to be done. It's very confusing...

Thanks in advance...
Paul

18,000 gal salt water pool
Pentair DE100
Pool installed in Fall 2017
 
I feel for you. I wasn't necessarily affected by the fires but I was hit hard by the wind storm. My pool was much as you describe yours, but I was able to get to work on it within a few days. Here's a post that may help you out. You've got a monster of a filter that should do a pretty good job of clearing the water after you get rid of most of the solids...

California Wildfire Pool

So I live in Altadena CA. You may have heard of a “little” wildfire we had last week, and it’s still going. Only saw it briefly, but my pool looks something like the water in the Creature from the Black Lagoon. I’m assuming it’s got a ton of ash, debris, toxic materials and God knows what else...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
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PVia said:
People are worried about the toxins that were carried by the 100 mph winds that accompanied the fire.
Click to expand...
In my opinion, California gets carried away with hysteria about chemicals causing all kinds of harm where there is very little evidence of actual harm.

Lots of claims and speculation with basically zero evidence.

They put the California Prop 65 Label on pretty much everything until it loses all meaning.

Explain exactly what you think is in the water and what harm it can do.
1741486005857.png


abc7.com

Pool cleaners in high demand after wildfires contaminate swimming pools in burn zones with toxins

One local pool cleaner said he's already drained 43 pools and has 65 more to go.
abc7.com abc7.com
 
The same "Officials" who let the entire city burn to the ground are now going to tell you how dangerous your pool is.

If they were competent in the first place, the entire city would not be destroyed.

smmirror.com

Here’s What Palisades Residents Need to Know About Swimming Pools After the Wildfire Damage - SM Mirror

Guidance for Palisades residents on how to properly manage their swimming pools has been issued In the aftermath of the...
smmirror.com smmirror.com

cd11.lacity.gov

Managing Swimming Pools in Fire Impacted Areas | Council District 11

Guidance For Managing Swimming Pools in Fire Impacted Areas in the PalisadesRead the full LASAN release here. Residents should not use their swimming pool until it is cleaned properly in accordance withguidance from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. Debris removal stepsshall be...
cd11.lacity.gov cd11.lacity.gov

www.instagram.com

Altadena Town Council on Instagram: "Pool Sampling – Help Us Understand Wildfire Water Contamination! The Eaton and Palisades Fires left hundreds of swimming pools contaminated with fire debris, ash, and potentially hazardous pollutants. Rainfall run

36 likes, 3 comments - altadenatowncouncilofficial on February 26, 2025: "Pool Sampling – Help Us Understand Wildfire Water Contamination! The Eaton and Palisades Fires left hundreds of swimming pools contaminated with fire debris, ash, and potentially hazardous pollutants. Rainfall runoff has...
www.instagram.com www.instagram.com

Smoke And Ash Force New Pool Safety Protocols After Eaton Fire – Pasadena Now

Daily Newsmagazine and City Guide to Pasadena, California featuring local news, breaking news, events, weather, sports news, schools news, shopping, restaurants and more from Pasadena Now
pasadenanow.com pasadenanow.com


1741486699442.png
 
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PVia said:
Hi all, my house is a mile from the nearest burn area in Altadena, CA. The house is fine but the pool is filled with heavy debris such as branches and leaves, and ever since January 7 the water has been black with ash, not being able to see the bottom at all. I've been running the filter 8 hrs a day.

Today is the first time I'm able to see the bottom and boy...there's a lot of stuff down there. And the pool is now turning green. And the Mosquito Vector Control people want to see a photo of a clean pool. My insurance company has been very slow in getting an adjuster out.

My questions are:
1. Should I use liquid chlorine to SLAM it to take care of the green?
2. Do you recommend draining the pool and chlorine washing? People are worried about the toxins that were carried by the 100 mph winds that accompanied the fire.
3. I'll replace the filter grids but are there other things that should be done?

Every pool company (and the city) have differing opinions on what needs to be done. It's very confusing...

Thanks in advance...
Paul

18,000 gal salt water pool
Pentair DE100
Pool installed in Fall 2017
Click to expand...
If you do drain - it is best to use a submersible pump rather than your pool pump. Put in an area where you suck mainly water or try to clear a spot in the deeper end when the water level lowers.

Also, LC is always best to quickly raise chlorine levels. So that can be added now if you there is delay in going the drain solution or decide not to drain at all but try to clean up by first removing the debris.
 
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There’s no need to do a “chlorine wash” as that is mostly useless. If, and that’s a a big IF, you are able to drain the pool (what’s it going to cost you in a water bill? Will you get fined for excess usage?), then simply drain it, power wash the surfaces gently with an electric pressure washer (low pressure), and then refill. Make sure you add a trichlor puck floater once there’s enough water to safely do so and bring the whole pool up to SLAM level. Get at least 30 ppm CYA in the water. I would also suggest completely tearing down the filter and washing it all out. The cartridges should be fine since they don’t do any filtering, the DE does. If they’re discolored or seem dirty after you remove the DE, then soak them in a big trash bag filled with water and cascade dishwashing powder.
 
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