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HOME: ARTICLES: CHEMISTRY: How to clean up a green swimming pool.
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My swimming pool has turned green, how do I clean it up?
If you're not checking your pool chemistry regularly, it is easy for your swimming pool to spin out of control. Many times, algae growth can spread in a pool over the course of only 24 hours. This article will explain the process of caring for your green pool, killing the algae, and clearing your pool up again.
When caring for a green pool the first step involved is checking the chemistry. If you don't own a swimming pool test kit, see our article: How do I test my swimming pool chemistry?.
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More times than not, a green pool symbolizes a pool with no free chlorine. If your swimming pool tests with normal levels of free chlorine available (approx 3ppm), your problem is most likely not chlorine related. You'll also need to test the pH, as it directly ffects the effectiveness of chlorine. A lower pH will render lower yet more effective free chlorine levels and a higher pH will yield a less effective, higher free chlorine reading.
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After testing your chemistry, use this information to make two calculations. First, determine how much chlorine it will take to raise the free chlorine levels to 30ppm (parts per million). Second, adjust the pH down to 7.2 (only if the pH is high). If your pH is 7.2 or below, count on adjusting the pH later.
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Start the chlorination process by adding enough chlorine to shock the pool with 30ppm of chlorine. We personally recommend Calcium Hpochlorite due to it's high chlorine (60%+) concentration. After making the initial shock, keep the free chlorine levels close to 15ppm until the pool begins to turn blue again.
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When the pool water has turned from green to blue and free chlorine still exists, the shocking process is complete and cleanup can begin.
If the water isn't clear and debris continues to float in the water, a chemical involved process called, Floc should be performed. We'll cover this in another article.
Once the pool is clear and dead algae lays on the pool floor, the algae may be vacuumed out "to waste". Be sure to either use a vacuum-to-waste pump, or set your backwash valve to "waste" before vacuuuming.
Lessons to be learned:
If you've had a pool turn green on you before, you realize that it's a long, stressful, expensive process. Here are a few tips to help prevent future algae breakouts.
- Stay on top of your pool by testing your chemistry regularly!
- Keep free chlorine levels between (3-5ppm) and combined chlorine levels at 0 ppm.
- Regulate your pH between 7.4-7.6 on a regular basis.
- Use algaecide products for your swimming pool to prevent future growth.
- Purchase a phosphate test kit and keep phosphate levels low.
- Learn about "saturation index" and begin keeping your water balance between (-.2 and -.3).
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