Shock your pool water weekly to remove contaminants and clear up cloudy water. Add a preventative dose of an algaecide to your pool every week after shocking. Algaecides not only kill algae—they can prevent its growth as well.
It Should Not Be Done Together
This is because when you mix chlorine and algaecide together, it renders both of them useless. Hence, you should first shock the pool and wait for the chlorine levels to fall below 5 PPM. Only then should you introduce algaecide to get the best results.
Complete a shock treatment. Allow your pool's chlorine levels to return to normal – usually after at least 24 hours. Balance the pool water to the algaecide manufacturer's recommendations. Before using algaecide, chlorine levels should drop to below five ppm.
“We recommend shocking the pool water by adding a high dose of chlorine powder or liquid, brushing the pool surfaces then adding an algaecide,” Sergiou says. “Algae grows in layers and needs to be brushed to be suspended in the water to be eliminated. Follow with a clarifier and run the pool filter overnight to clear.”
If your pool water is still green, wait 24 hours and then redo the steps from Day 1. In the morning, add Oxidizer to your pool water. In the evening, add your liquid algaecide; we recommend concentrated 40% Algaecide.
Add a dose of algaecide, bring your chlorine level high by shocking, and run the filter continuously until the problem clears. The next day you should vacuum up the dead algae and backwash your filter. Algae thrives in hot weather and in pools with low or no chlorine.
Once you're done vacuuming, brushing, and shocking your pool, wait for your chlorine levels to fall below 5 ppm. Then add a dose of algaecide. Brush your pool to loosen any last bits of algae you can't see.
It's important to know that using pool shock and algaecide together can create bad chemical reactions if you don't take the necessary precautions. Your chlorine levels won't return to normal right after you shock your pool anyway, so we recommend waiting at least 24 hours to add algaecide.
Algaecide should be added after every shock treatment.
24 hours after the first application of algaecide, the next thing you should do is vacuum your pool to remove the dead algae. However, if the algae are still visible in the water, you can re-apply an algaecide in the pool, following the manufacturer's instructions for our product.
You can expect a heavy rain to introduce lots of organic matter and algae spores to your pool. The main time to deal with the mess is after the storm has passed. However, it's not a bad idea to pretreat your pool water. Adding some algicide to your pool water will help you get out ahead of the algae.
Use a pool brush to vigorously scrub any pool surfaces covered in algae, including the walls, floors and steps. Apply a green algaecide according to the directions on the label. Let the water circulate for 24 hours, then brush the pool surfaces again. Vacuum or backwash to remove any remaining dead algae.
Shock Your Pool
We recommend using a calcium hypochlorite shock to treat your algae problems. However, green, yellow, and black algae will each require their own level of shock in order to be completely killed and removed from your water.
Algae create a chlorine demand in the water for itself, consuming chlorine that should be working on other contaminants. As it expels carbon dioxide, the pH level of pool water can rise. Algae are kind of like weeds in your garden.
To eliminate and prevent green algae in a swimming pool, start by adding an extra dose of chlorine to your pool to shock the algae and stop the bloom. Let the chlorine work overnight, then test the pH levels of the pool in the morning to see if the pH is back to normal.
Algae will remain in your pool after shock if you've had insufficient chlorine and an overabundance of metal elements in the pool water.
If your pool is green and cloudy, it's likely an algae problem. Algae can persist in a pool even after shocking. A green pool – especially one that turned green overnight or after rain, can also be from a pool pump that isn't properly circulating water or an issue with your filtering system.
Polymer Pool Algaecide - This type of algaecide needs to be renewed every two weeks to remain effective as algae preventative in your pool. Couple that with its high cost makes it a high-ticket item as far as maintenance goes.
Green or cloudy water will quickly clog a filter, therefore you may have to backwash your filter twice daily until the pool clears. Run the backwash cycle for 60 – 90 seconds. The more you run your pool, and the more you backwash the filter, the faster the pool will clear up.
If you already have visible algae growth, you'll need to get rid of your algae problem before you treat your cloudy pool water. Unfortunately, algaecide won't solve the problem. It's better as a preventative measure, not a treatment. To remove algae, you'll need to skim, brush, and vacuum your pool.
If the pH becomes too high (over 7.8), it prevents the chlorine from doing its job. If you're not checking the pH and it has risen too much, you could be adding the right amount of chlorine, but it can't work correctly, and algae will begin to grow.
Using baking soda in your pool is one of the easiest but most efficient ways to get your backyard ready for summer. This pool idea is loved by experts who recommend using this homemade remedy to increase the alkalinity and pH level of your pool – and treat black algal growth on your swimming pool wall.
Barley straw is a natural way to fight algae. On contact with water, the straw starts to break down, and as it does so it releases peroxides into the water which combat algae. Available in mini bales, or as a concentrated extract of barley straw liquid, it's a natural way of chemically fighting algae.