Safe Swimming in cloudy pool

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EquestrianNancy

EquestrianNancy

0
Jun 1, 2017
28
Chapin, SC
Pool Size
17700
Surface
Vinyl
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Autopilot Digital PPC1 (RC-35)
I am having visitors tomorrow and want to use the pool. We have been fighting algae over the summer and various issues have slowed our SLAM process along with being guilty of inconsistent sampling and bleach additions. I have been working on the pool this week, vacuum, brushing, and adjusting levels and the pool looks good in the shallow end but still cloudy in the deep end with a tint of green. Our CYA was very low but I have socks in the pool as we speak. Current levels are:
FC 8.5 ppm
CC = 0.5 ppm
pH = 7.4
ALK = 60 ppm
CYA = 30ish - 40 (I hate this test and never know where to hold it and how hard I should look for the black dot)

It is a saltwater pool and we may have added a bag too much so the pool pilot is reading the salt at 3700 and I'm running the generator on a 24 hour boost.

Is the pool safe to swim in under these conditions? I had so wanted it to be clear, but I assume the remaining algae is still suspended. Still better than a lake or pond... Unfortunately we will be leaving town on Friday so it will have to survive as it is until I can return and try to SLAM on a consistent schedule.

Thanks for any advice!
 
You can safely swim in a pool as long as the FC is above the minimum and at or below SLAM level based on your CYA. You must also be able to see the bottom in the deep end of the pool.
 
A short clip from this article,

Two young boys aged 12 and 13 drowned in a swimming pool at a youth camp due to extremely cloudy water. The boys went down a slide that dropped into the 13 ft deep end of the pool where they struggled and drowned. They were not reported missing until the children were loaded onto a bus and they didn’t show up. The lifeguards and counselors began searching the facility and the two were finally found by a lifeguard with goggles who felt one of them on the pool bottom. Over 30 people were interviewed during the investigation stated that the water visibility was poor and that they could not see past 3 ft under the water’s surface.
Click to expand...

Before approving cannonballs, can you please post a photo? Unless you can clearly make out the drain in the deep end it’s a no-go.
 
Thank you for the explanation on the deep end visibility. I would much rather be safe and I think it was good that we ran out of time to swim yesterday. I continued testing and adding chlorine overnight and the visibility is much better today. I still need to vacuum due to last nights rain, but otherwise it has vastly improved. I've attached a photo, prior to vacuuming. Thanks again, I'm glad that I asked so that I learned about the importance of visibility!

IMG-5553.jpg

- - - Updated - - -

Thank you! I will look into using DE. It has cleared overnight so I think we just needed another day to SLAM. But we might need to experiment in the future.

Winnie-the-Pool said:
Visibility is very important for safety, could you clearly see if someone were in trouble in the deep end?

I see you have a sand filter, you could try to Add DE to a Sand Filter to help speed up/improve your filter performance. It will help remove the smaller particles more quickly.
Click to expand...
 
I've never quite understood the need to be able to see the bottom of the pool at the deep end, although I think this thread may have cleared it up a bit for me (no pun intended). Is the importance of seeing the bottom of the deep end, specifically the detail of the floor drain, so that you can be sure to clearly see anyone who might be in the pool? Previously I thought this might be a general rule to determine how well your pool water is maintained, but it would vary according to your pool depth. In my case, the deep end is 9 feet, which is deeper than many newer pools, so previously sometimes when I had been negligent in my maintenance, I had to stare a bit to see the drain at that depth. From reading this thread, I assume that the depth doesn't matter--you need to be able to see the bottom regardless for safety's sake. Am I right?
 

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rowiac said:
I've never quite understood the need to be able to see the bottom of the pool at the deep end, although I think this thread may have cleared it up a bit for me (no pun intended). Is the importance of seeing the bottom of the deep end, specifically the detail of the floor drain, so that you can be sure to clearly see anyone who might be in the pool? Previously I thought this might be a general rule to determine how well your pool water is maintained, but it would vary according to your pool depth. In my case, the deep end is 9 feet, which is deeper than many newer pools, so previously sometimes when I had been negligent in my maintenance, I had to stare a bit to see the drain at that depth. From reading this thread, I assume that the depth doesn't matter--you need to be able to see the bottom regardless for safety's sake. Am I right?
Click to expand...

While we want you to be able to clearly see the bottom of your pool so you can say you’ve got awesomely clear TFP water, no one would deny that, the true name of the game is safety. Drowning doesn’t look like someone splashing about like the movies make it seem. You must be able to CLEARLY see every inch of your pool so you can ensure the safety of all swimmers at all times. Most drowning people sink not splash.
 
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