Typical levels of disinfectant such as bleach are not compatible with pool algae. On a sunny day, algae perform photosynthesis and multiply rapidly, making your microscopic problem a pool-sized one in no time.
It’s easy to ignore a few dark spots by the steps, especially when the pool is being used a lot.
But if you ignore the algae for too long, you’ll end up spending a lot of time and money to get rid of them.
Before this slimy discomfort gets out of hand, remove the algae from the pool with a special deep cleaning procedure. Then make sure they never come back by using smart prevention measures.
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Can You Put Bleach In A Pool To Kill Algae
If you regularly use 6 quarts of bleach per 10,000 gallons of water, you may want to increase this to 8 quarts (2 gallons) every 10,000 gallons of water to kill algae.
Consider doubling the basic dosage if the pool water is excessively green and hazy. Just remember to stay out of the water until the chlorine levels are low enough to be safe.
Because bleach is quickly damaged by sunshine, add it to the pool at night. Pour it into the water while walking around the pool’s perimeter, then circulate it for six to eight hours.
The algae should be dead by morning, although the water may be hazy instead of green. This is because of the large number of dead algae particles suspended in it. To get rid of the cloudiness, you’ll probably want to circulate a clarifier in the water at this stage.
Types Of Algae in Swimming Pools
The exact shade of the water may not be so obvious, as well as being cloudy, so it can be difficult to know what type of algae is taken over by the pool.
To be sure what type of algae is in the pool, which will determine how to get rid of it, look more closely at the spots where the algae are starting to grow.
Green algae
The most common and easiest algae problem to remove is chlorophyll, which gets its color from chlorophyll. Green algae float in the water, making it cloudy and giving it a greenish tint. The slimy green algae also adhere to the walls and floor of the pool. Poor filtration and lack of proper disinfection encourage the growth of green algae.
Yellow algae
If you see something that looks like pollen or sand in a shady corner of your pool, you probably have yellow algae. It is also sometimes called brown or mustard algae. It is rare and not slimy like green algae. It is also resistant to chlorine, which makes it difficult to treat. Read Can You Swim In a Pool With Mustard Algae?
Black algae
Technically cyanobacteria, not algae, this nasty visitor makes its own food, so it grows and grows. Also, its roots are nailed to surfaces, making it difficult to remove black algae in the pool. It will grow back quickly if treatment is not aggressive enough to ensure that none of the roots are left hanging. Read Can You Swim In A Pool With Black Algae?
How Do I Remove Algae From My Pool Quickly?
The best method for cleaning the water is the same for all three types of algae with one exception.
1. Vacuum the pool manually
Automatic or robotic cleaners are not suitable for algae cleaning. Ideally, vacuum manually directly to the waste without going through the filter and avoid recirculating contaminated water. When manually vacuuming your pool, pay special attention to the algae areas.
2. Scrub the walls and floor of your pool
Scrubbing the algae from the walls allows the disinfectant to penetrate deeper into the remaining algae. It also removes the sediment that you cleaned so that it can be removed and filtered.
Using a stiff pool brush, brush the walls and floor of the pool. Pay special attention to the shaded corners and areas where the algae are usually strong. As you progress, the water will become cloudy, obstructing your view, start with these difficult spots.
3. Test and balance the water
Use test strips, digital equipment, or liquid equipment to test your alkalinity and pH. Balancing your water chemistry now ensures that your disinfectant is effective against algae. High pH or low alkalinity especially inhibits pool impact.
4. Shock hit your pool
Stronger types of algae require more aggressive treatment, so if the infection is severe, you will need more shocks, such as when the season starts.
Even if you don’t normally use chlorine shock, for this purpose, it is best to use calcium hypochlorite shock. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions to determine the specific dose for the size of your pool, and then multiply it by two, three, or four, depending on the type of algae you have.
Green algae: Shock x2
Yellow or dark green algae: Shock x3
Black algae: Shock x4
You never use stabilized chlorine for a pool shock. You will end up with too much cyan acid, which inhibits the disinfectant and can return algae, an even worse problem.
Remember to do the pool shock at dusk or at night. If you do a shock during the day, the sun will consume most of the chlorine before it has a chance to kill the algae. And place your cleaning equipment in the shallow end while you shock your pool so that your tools are also disinfected.
5. Filter out algae from the pool
When your shock treatment kills the algae, your water will turn cloudy blue (a blue-green). Run the filter continuously for a minimum of eight hours until the water is clear.
You can add a water clarifier to speed up the process. Make sure you need to fill the water level before you turn on the pump.
6. Taste the pool water again
You can use your usual testing methods or take a water sample to a local specialist for analysis. You need to make sure that the water chemistry is balanced and that your chlorine level returns to a normal state before you bathe again.
7. Clean the pool filter
Clean the filter thoroughly by submerging it in diluted muriatic acid or simply replacing it to prevent other algae blooms.
Final Thoughts
Keeping up with the basics will also go a long way in preventing algae. Here are some cleaning, disinfection, and other preventive measures.
- Keep the pool chemistry balanced. The pump should run for 8 to 12 hours a day.
- Before you allow pool equipment, floats, and toys into your pool, make sure you have cleaned them thoroughly. A bleach cleaner or a solution of one tablespoon of bleach to 5 gallons of water will not only clean them, but it will also disinfect them.
- Just as pool accessories can introduce algae, so can bathing suits, especially if they have been used in the sea. Be sure to wash, not just rinse, your swimsuit before wearing it in the pool.
- If the surface of your older concrete pool needs resurfacing, don’t wait. Cracked surfaces are perfect places to hide algae. They have shade and are almost impossible to clean.
