Bleach solution for scrubbing pool.

[y_not]

Due to some health problems and total lack of energy and motivation, I haven't felt like taking my AGP Intex down for the winter.
Well, I'm finally feeling mostly well enough to take care of it now.

The problem is, she's gotten a little green. Poor girl.
It's nothing major, just the beginning of a bloom with greenish water. I thought I'd be OK since the water temps have been staying under 60, in fact probably dropping into the upper 40's some nights. Plus I had residual FC at my CYA min. But leaves got in the pool and it was just too much work to pull them off the bottom with my horrid net. I gave up with the ones on the top after a while.

Just to be clear, it's not that it got green because I don't know how to keep it from doing that. Quite the opposite.
Thanks to this FABUUU forum!!

Just felt bleeehhhhh so I let it sit.
Before that it was so clear it looked empty at night.

Honestly I'd just leave it up and see what happens to it over the winter, but it developed a late leak that I'm sure is from a small rock or 2 that I missed when I prepped the dirt. So I have to find the leak, patch it and fix the ground.

So my question is...
After I get it drained, I want to scrub it down before I dry it and store it.
What dilution of bleach should I use?
It's 8.25% bleach.

I have looked all over on here and only find the concept, but not the mix.
I did find one where jblizzle said to do a 2:1 dilute, I believe swampwoman said a cup in a 5gal bucket.
Just don't want to hurt the liner or the PVC ring, other than that I don't care. Bleach is a wonderful bacterial killer at most any strength, clear down to about 0.2ppm in clean water. But I'm not sure that'd really be enough for cleaning up algae slime.

What do you all think, what's worked for you fine folks?

 

[poolsupplysales]

After the pool is drained wash the pool using a garden hose and spray nozle. If there is any thing left on the liner that should not be there you can pour liquid chlorine on it and brush it with your pool brush then rinse with water. The chlorine can be used right out of the one gallon container

 

[jblizzle]

I said 2:1? That seems overly strong to me now ... although I still am not sure what is appropriate. If we worry about ensuring we pour the bleach slowly in front of a return to ensure it is mixed well, then putting full strength on the liner for more than a few seconds seems like a bad idea.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

I said 2:1? That seems overly strong to me now ... although I still am not sure what is appropriate. If we worry about ensuring we pour the bleach slowly in front of a return to ensure it is mixed well, then putting full strength on the liner for more than a few seconds seems like a bad idea.

My impression is that the reason for this is that we want even distribution and the bleach (per another conversation in another thread) is heavier than water and can settle down on top of the liner until disturbed. This would potentially result in bleaching but I get the feeling this isn't a short contact issue but hours of dormant no circulation bleach contact.

In any case even at 2:1 dilution you are talking sky high FC - thousands of PPM from what I recall (15K?). Whatever is used - washing it back off fairly quickly is going to be required.

 

[zea3]

An inflatable ring pool is going to be tough to clean. It is a really heavy pool and the opening at the top is a smaller diameter than the bottom of the pool. When empty it collapses in on itself, so you will have to shift the pool around quite a bit to get to the inside wall of the pool. Personally I think you would be better off to kill all the algae then drain it and put it away. As it is you will need to use a shop vac to get all the water out after it finishes draining.

 

[y_not]

I said 2:1? That seems overly strong to me now ... although I still am not sure what is appropriate. If we worry about ensuring we pour the bleach slowly in front of a return to ensure it is mixed well, then putting full strength on the liner for more than a few seconds seems like a bad idea.

My bad, I thought it was you. It was actually zea3. That's what I get for posting things in the wee hours of the morning because I can't sleep.
solar-cover-and-algae-t37067.html#p302706

 

[y_not]

An inflatable ring pool is going to be tough to clean. It is a really heavy pool and the opening at the top is a smaller diameter than the bottom of the pool. When empty it collapses in on itself, so you will have to shift the pool around quite a bit to get to the inside wall of the pool. Personally I think you would be better off to kill all the algae then drain it and put it away. As it is you will need to use a shop vac to get all the water out after it finishes draining.

I was actually thinking this already, as to whether it'd be easier to clean the algae out of it before draining.
My only problem is those leaves on the bottom?? How do I get those up, it's nigh impossible to grab them with my dumb Intex flat net.
It pretty much involves disturbing them by passing it over the top, then quickly reversing direction to grab what floats up. Because of the flat, non sock type design of the net I can only get a few. So it's really time consuming. Like hours!!
It's silly.

I'd get in and do it, but NOOOOO way. That water is ICE cold. Brrrrr
I don't know anyone else with a pool that has a better net I could borrow.
You think a big wide shop broom would work to get them all to one spot? I might try that, but any other ideas?

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

With the "flat" skimmer net I have I learned that if I hold it at 30-45 degrees relative to the bottom and push into a pile of leaves I can get a bunch in and then slowly raise it up.

Of course you could just jump on the internet and or run to the pool store and get a leaf gulper or a leaf rake...

Sent via Tapatalk...

 

[SebringDon]

Get a real leaf rake with a bag. One of the best purchases I ever made. I rarely use my flat skimmer net anymore. With the leaf rake I shake it down and get all the leaves in one cycle before emptying, instead of that silly "catch and toss" dance. I can also go to the bottom and get the ones that won't float without losing what I've already caught. Get a fairly loose weave unless you have a lot of silt, it's faster to move through the water. Skimming leaves now generally consists of a rather brisk walk around the pool instead of an exercise in battling fluid dynamics. About all I use the skimmer net for anymore is tossing the dog's ball.

 

[duraleigh]

My pool's address for the months of Oct, Nov, is Leaf City, NC. Realistically, I would say I remove at least a pickup truck load (rounded and packed) each year.

The leaf net sebringdon suggests is a requirement for me. My 20' pole and "Red Devil" net cost over $100 bucks, maybe $150, but if you have to remove a lot of leaves, there really is no substitute.

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

My pool's address for the months of Oct, Nov, is Leaf City, NC. Realistically, I would say I remove at least a pickup truck load (rounded and packed) each year.

The leaf net sebringdon suggests is a requirement for me. My 20' pole and "Red Devil" net cost over $100 bucks, maybe $150, but if you have to remove a lot of leaves, there really is no substitute.

Link? Sounds useful. I have a 16' pole that is "ok" but even with flat skimmer when extended it feels flimsy.

Sent via Tapatalk...

 

[SebringDon]

My pool's address for the months of Oct, Nov, is Leaf City, NC. Realistically, I would say I remove at least a pickup truck load (rounded and packed) each year.

The leaf net sebringdon suggests is a requirement for me. My 20' pole and "Red Devil" net cost over $100 bucks, maybe $150, but if you have to remove a lot of leaves, there really is no substitute.

Link? Sounds useful. I have a 16' pole that is "ok" but even with flat skimmer when extended it feels flimsy.

Sent via Tapatalk...

I got this one from Wal-Mart for $17, except mine is blue: http://www.walmart.com/ip/20956058?adid ... la&veh=sem

 

[y_not]

My plan was to tackle this tomorrow, but we just got blasted with snow this evening. 1st snow of the winter, I hope it's the last. HAHA
I may just have to go out there tomorrow and do it in the snow anyway.
It's funny how color changes when your reference points change. When your main reference of black or white changes in density and saturation.
As the pool now looks brown against the white snow. SO TRIPPY!!

 

[UnderWaterVanya]

The human eye tells the brain about things partly by signaling rates. The retina wears out gets tired and reports at lower rates when over saturated. This is part of the explanation.

And it IS cool to observe!

Sent via Tapatalk...

 

[y_not]

With the "flat" skimmer net I have I learned that if I hold it at 30-45 degrees relative to the bottom and push into a pile of leaves I can get a bunch in and then slowly raise it up.

Of course you could just jump on the internet and or run to the pool store and get a leaf gulper or a leaf rake...

Your tips with the flat skimmer worked beautifully UWV. Thanks
Wasn't about to wait on freight for a fancy do leaf thingy. *Yes I know what it's called.
Time is of the essence here, winter has hit smack dab! I gotta get this thing cleared & down.
So the leaves are all cleared out now, in spite of the snow and 35deg weather. That's daytime temp BTW.

 

[y_not]

So I started shocking this bad boy. Yeah I know how, yeah, done it before. Mostly to get my water pretty cause I wasn't happy with it and for the heck of it. Practice!

BTW, I'm going with a 10ppm shock, since Chem Geek's original CYA chart by Ben Powell shows 8.3ppm for 20ppm CYA. With the revised chart showing 10ppm FC. I ignore Poolcalc on shock values, it's a lying liar!
Note: I may have close to 25ppm CYA still, not sure how much dilution has occurred from drainage due to a small leak and rainwater. So I'm hedging my bet and shooting for 11ppm FC, which is in between 20-30ppm CYA.

Oh, and my pH was already conveniently at 7.4, so I didn't touch it. YAAYY!!

So here's the funny bit....
Almost 1/2 the CL was consumed in the 1st 30min - CC=0.
Brought it back up to 11.
About 30min later FC was only down by 2.5ppm - CC=0.5.
Brought it back up to 11.
An hour and 1/2 later, reading 11ppm FC.
About 2hrs later, still 11ppm FC - CC:0.5.

Why is FC holding for 3hrs 40min when the water is still green? It has lightened up a lot since before I started.
Is it because the water temp is around 40deg (air temp 24deg) and it's nighttime? Maybe it needs to oxidize in the sunlight? One or both situations? It's stinking ICE COLD when I stick my hand in it.

This is so weird, it's green, that means there's live algae. But it's not creating a chlorine demand? WHAT??
Assuming it's completely clear and green, which I can't accurately verify till daytime.
Yeah, I know that means there's copper in the water, but there's not. Unless it comes in on rain, snow, or aspen tree leaves.
I have never added a single product that has copper, not a soul is allowed in wearing copper jewelry for that matter. Nor did I get an oxidation of metals when I last shocked at much higher FC levels and warmer temps.

PS. I'm assuming I leave this post in this thread, not starting a new thread. Even though it's really not related to the original subject of this thread, other than by association of an end goal.
Correct? If not. Mods, split it if you think that's best.

Thanks.

 

[y_not]

The water is now clear, it seemed a little green this morning @ 8:30am.
But it was hard to tell for sure, as there was a thin sheet of ice over 3/4 of it.
Sun isn't exactly out, it's in and out. Most of the day just partly shielded by clouds.

It held CL overnight, and CC=0.

So can the shock process only finish all the way once the sun's UV rays hit the pool? IE. UV is required to finish oxidizing and killing off live algae?

 

[chem geek]

UV is not required to kill off algae. Chlorine alone will kill off algae. What UV does is create more powerful oxidizers from chlorine it breaks down, but they are not needed to kill algae, though they do help to more fully oxidize some organic compounds. You pretty much should be able to kill off algae and clear a pool without sunlight.

 

[y_not]

What would make the pool remain green but hold CL for hours and hours?

 

[chem geek]

Are you talking about something that looks like from Day 3 to Day 4 in this link? You only have a noticeable drop in chlorine when there is a lot to oxidize and that happens in the early stages, but later on the organics that are left are slower-to-oxidize or don't get oxidized by chlorine at all and must get filtered out.

I also assume you are absolutely positive that there aren't metals in the water (and remember that iron which can be yellow will look green against a blue vinyl liner background). If you suspect metals, lower the pH and if it lightens up then that makes it more likely.