My Pool Water is Cloudy!
You are planning a 'Lime' tomorrow and your pool water is cloudy. Family and friends are coming in their numbers because, YOU have the pool and the sun "HOTT!" Don't stand up and scratch your head. You have three options.
1. Call a reputable swimming pool maintenance company such as Veldon A Limited that possesses the Certified Pool & Spa Operator (CPO®) Certification.
2. Call a 'run off the mill/ fly by night' pool man who may make a lucky guess. Or,
3.Try to figure it out yourself.
For those of you who chose number 3, take a closer look at what may cause cloudy pool water and how to treat with it.
The Environment. It may be after heavy rains and the surface 'run off' entered the pool. Leaves and insects may get trapped in the pump and skimmer baskets preventing the filtration system from working efficiently.
The Fix
Remove all foreign particles from the pool water by scrubbing, vacuuming and netting. Also, empty all pump and skimmer baskets of debris.
Water Chemistry is Unbalanced. Your alkalinity, pH and chlorine levels may be too high or too low. Imbalanced chlorine and pH may usually cause cloudy water. When the pH level is not balanced it causes the free chlorine to be ineffective. When free chlorine is too low, it forms chloramine and is unable to kill bacteria, algae and other living organisms causing water to be cloudy. Also, high levels of Total Alkalinity can cause calcium scaling resulting in cloudy water.
The Fix
Test your water chemistry by investing in a reputable test kit such as Pool Style 5-way Test Kit or the more advance Taylor Test Kits K-2005/K-2006 both sold at Veldon A Limited and calculate the volume of your pool using the Pentair Pool Volume Calculator. For beginners I would recommend the Pool Style Test Kit as all instructions are listed, easy to follow and it is very affordable. For the more advanced user, the Taylor test kit will do the job by giving you a more in-depth view of the pool water chemistry such as testing for calcium hardness, bromine and Cyanuric Acid (CYA). These tests are also necessary to conduct because for instance, when CYA is too high or low, it prevents the chlorine from sanitizing the pool water thus resulting in pool water cloudiness.
Poor Filtration and Circulation- I have had clients in the past tell me that they only turn on the pump when they are using the pool or, turn on the pump for short periods of time such as one hour per day . Larger pools hold more water and would take longer to turnover the body of water through the filtration system.
The Fix
Proper filtration requires the pump and filter system to be turned on long enough for there to be a complete water turnover. The length of time depends on the pool gallon age, and the equipment used.
The filter should be clean and in good working condition. Back wash sand filters until the water runs clear. Cartridge filters should be washed regularly and should be replaced when torn.
Because there are many different factors which affect the clarity of pool water, it is important to develop a schedule for regular maintenance of the pool and or spa. Weekly chemical balancing, vacuuming, brushing. netting and equipment checks will ensure continued crystal clear inviting water.
