Message Boards

I know. End of July and we haven't been in the pool yet. We've had a horrid time with algae this year. DH did everything that he's done in the past, but it just wasn't working.

On a trip to the "big" town shopping with my sister-in-law, I took a water sample to a pool place we've bought stuff from but had never used for testing water samples. (They came highly recommended.) I didn't tell DH until I got home with a two page list of instructions. We have mustard algae a direct result of those two old gorgeous oaks that dump leaves in the pool in the fall. sigh We've been concerned about them falling in the pool. Now may be the time to take them out...

We didn't have all the recommended chemicals, so he took a water sample the following Monday and talked to the pool chemist. He worked hard for a week. I took another sample and told her that the water was still green. Brought home another chemical.

DH has been pulling the filters and washing them - DAILY. That's a big job with those paper filters - one the size of a washing machine tub. But that's what was here when we bought the house in 2004.

Anyway...FINALLY this past week the water turned blue and WE CAN SEE THE BOTTOM OF THE POOL!! Hurray! However, there's still algae growing on the walls from the surface of the water down about 12 inches - in some areas. DH is gone this weekend. So I've been brushing the walls and decided the brush is too soft. I bought a hard bristle hand scrub brush (gunite pool - no vinyl liner), laid down on the pool surround and brushed. Abracadabra!

So early this morning before adding more chlorine, I donned the swimsuit and grabbed the brushes, jumped in, and scrubbed the shallow end of the pool. After church I went shopping for a long handled hard bristle brush for the deep end. Got things ready for DH when he returns home Monday.

I know - this is long. I'm just SO ready to get in the pool. A few BFFs are coming this evening, but we won't be getting in the pool because of the high amount of chlorine we've been using to fight this stuff. But we will eat...drink some wine...or whip up a blender full of margaritas.

The end is in site though!

That's a different version of a "scrub dip", but it sounds like you are on the right track to getting cleared up and enjoying it. Do you have a cover to protect leaves from getting in?

We had a very similar problem with our pool last year. We never could get it clear and must have spent a small fortune trying. Finally we drew it down to about 1/3 full. Added a chemical that neutralizes the water- it removes all the chemical that you've added to the water. Then we refilled it and started over.Our pool people really didn't recommend this but we were at our wits end. I was this close to doing away with the pool.......

Have you considered covering your pool in the fall and winter? We do and I reccommend it. We did not last year, but we will this year. All the leaves and debris stay out, and when you uncover it it is clear and ready to add your chemicals and begin a new season.

I would cover it. DH will not. We've done either/or since buying in 2004. (We fell in love with the house and property - unfortunately the pool came with it. I tried to talk DH into filling it in when we bought the property...I knew that it would be a money pit. He hasn't been in it in two years now.

We have two big oak trees "up the hill" but most leaves and catkins dump in the pool. Last fall I offered to help DH cover the pool, but he used his executive veto. Since I work out of the home 40 hours a week while DH is retired and spends a considerable amount of time in front of the computer, I went on strike over the winter, spring, and early summer - about the outside work (except my planting beds). I did not dip one dipper net full of leaves over the winter. Well...neither did he. We had a royal mess.

So...guess I'll work and come home about dark-thirty this winter and dip.

Honestly. I am ready to drain it, knock a couple of holes in the bottom, and fill it in. It is a literal money pit. And it really, REALLY needs drained and painted. $ $ $ $ $

This message has been edited. Last edited by: KeepYouInStitches,

In all fairness to the man in the house - several people have had trouble getting their pools up and running this year.

Back on him - most didn't fiddle around until mid-July to try to get it right though. I just felt that he needed to take a water sample to a pool place within a couple of weeks of green water and algae growing on the walls to be tested instead of guessing and pouring in costly chemicals with no results.

Sorry. I'm through now.

If you ever get a chance, you can ask DH what I do to get on his nerves.

Depending upon his frame of mind ,Everything I do gets on DH's nerves' and sometimes I do it deliberately when I'm peeved with him

KYIS, I hear you loud and clear about your DH! I think all of us can relate - for example, let me tell you about our automatic irrigation system that needs fixing - no, don't let me!

Sounds like for now you have the situation under control but I do have one question? Why doesn't your DH want to cover it during the seasons when it is not in use? Don't understand that one???

We had an in-ground pool and spa at a house we lived in a few houses back. Our kids enjoyed it, as did dh and I. We had a solar cover which made it possible, in our SoCal climate, to use it pretty much year round and kept leaves, etc, out of it. That and the auto pool sweep kept it pretty clean. I don't recall ever sweeping or scrubbing it manually.

I wouldn't mind having a lap pool now since swimming is such a good all around exercise.

Is hiring a pool service an option? Sounds like that and a good cover for your off seasons would alleviate a lot of stress and aggravation.

Glad you're close to having yours up and available for use. Pool parties are always fun!

The reason he is anti-pool cover - we tried air pillows under the cover and it's a pain to get them situated and keep them where he wants them. Water still collects on top and has to be pumped/siphoned off (which I always do). Then the uncovering. For the first 2-3 years, I had it uncovered before he knew what I was doing...I have a "system." He came to help just as I was almost finished about the 2nd year...something hung up and before I could tell him 'don't jerk it' - he did and ripped the cover.

Neighbors dogs walked on the second cover and clawed a hole in it when it was 2 yrs old.

List goes on and on.

Pool store manager suggested a screen - water runs through - leaves stay on top and can be blown off with a leaf blower. And leave the pump running. That's another thing. He likes to winterize the pump and turn it off even when we have a mild winter - which is most of them. (But the pump has run 24/7 for two months now - no savings there.)

After this horrid year...I'll let you know what he does this fall.

We are rural and it would just flat cost more than we are willing (and probably able) to pay for pool service. But yes, I think we need to drag the cover back out.

Still had an enjoyable time with my BFFs.

I feel your pain! We had the yellow mustard algae a couple of years ago and it is a major annoyance. DH was out of town much of the time since we added the pool so I had to become the resident expert.

We had timers added to pur pool and Polaris pumps. In the winter I have the pool pump run from dusk to early morning in case of frost or a freeze. It is rare for us to have a heavy freeze and I use the Polaris as needed. During the warm weather months I switch the pool pump to running from early morning to early evening and the Polaris about 3 hours per day.

It seems to reduce the wear and tear on everything and a slight electric savings.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Charming,

We have the timers and can even set the pump to kick on when the temperature drops to a specified degree. Eight years and DH is still experimenting.

And Nessie (our Polaris ) isn't "sweeping" correctly. DH will have to take care of that when he gets home sometime today.

But - we'll get there!

(I've decided I need to start back doing as I did through 1st DHs illness and following his death - do as much as I can myself and now without stepping on DHs toes. That can be tricky!)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: KeepYouInStitches,

quote:

Originally posted by KeepYouInStitches:
We have the timers and can even set the pump to kick on when the temperature drops to a specified degree. Eight years and DH is still experimenting.

And Nessie (our Polaris ) isn't "sweeping" correctly. DH will have to take care of that when he gets home sometime today.

But - we'll get there!

(I've decided I need to start back doing as I did through 1st DHs illness and following his death - do as much as I can myself and now without stepping on DHs toes. That can be tricky!)

Yep they are tricky beasts, and also the Polaris.

I didn't know about the thermostat - I'll have to check into that - it could really save on our electric.

THERMOSTAT! That's the word I couldn't think of. LOL

We are having pool woes too and last week my husband was ready to have the thing filled in.

Our problem is that the concrete apron around the pool is cracked up pretty bad,crumbly in spots.
Expensive repair and would involve removing a lot of wooden decking adjoining the concrete.
There is a metal coping strip between the concrete and the vinyl liner that would come into play and if it would have to be removed the liner would fall out of place.....on and on.

Our pool was here in 1986 when we bought the house. We have replaced the liner several times as well as the pump once or twice....bought a new diving board, various tarps and pool covers, vacuums, robot cleaners and then there are the chemicals!.....and the electricity...ours runs from May to end of September nonstop.

We decided to just continue with it until the next major expense comes up. Then we will make z decision to fill or rebuild.

It is beautiful to look at and pure bliss in the hot summertime.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: jeepdarla,

Bummer darla.
We have aggregate surround with a round nose "brick" around the pool. In 2010 we had two really good snows. As they melted then refroze overnight, the swelling ice did some damage. I think there's a "rubberized" coating we can paint on it. That will have to wait for temps under 100 degrees though. (We can swim whether the surround is perfect - once the pool is clear.)

Oh, and we have no liner - gunite pool. THANK GOODNESS! One less expense.

I am so sorry that some of you are having a problem with your pools. We have a small concrete pool with a salt filter. The salt part of it no longer works, it needs a new cartridge so we run it bypassing that and use a couple of chlorine tablets a week in place of that function. Our pool is inside of the lanai so that may be why we never do anything except run the filter a few hours a day. The temp. right now is 80 degrees and I like the water a lot colder. We take our water sample to the pool store about every 2 weeks to be sure we are okay with the water.I love the pool and we do change a part, the filter cartridge, every year. That would be the part that gets rinsed out every week. Running a pool year round makes that part of the filter harder to get clean after awhile.I may be naming the wrong part but it is important to keep that rinsed clean as that is is the part that will remove any bacteria from the water and that gets clogged up.

The "best" pool place is 45 miles away and we don't go that direction very often so have to rely on home testing kits.

I generally don't get in the pool until June - I want the water warm enough to bathe in. LOL

Husband got back from his fishing trip and stopped at the office before he went home. I told him what I'd done with the pool. Yesterday evening he said he was taking 24 hours off to do nothing so was going to shock the pool again. Then when the chlorine level was fit for human dunking, he would get in and finish the job. I suggested leaving the old filters (rinsing daily) until we got the pool completely clean, then put in the new filters.

Looking good!

Yes, I also would leave the old one in place until the water is looking better. The scrubbing of walls and floor dislodges the yuck into the filter I would brush and then rinse the old filter, run over night and do that once more before replacing the filter with the new one.