What Causes Algae In A Swimming Pool
Algae growth in swimming pools can be caused by a number of reasons.
Climate
When the climate is warm, humid and sunny algae spores can rapidly grow in your swimming pool water. When spring and summer arrive your pool is in danger of an algal bloom.
Does rain cause algae in pool?
Yes. Wind and rain carry algae spores into the pool. Algae spores are commonly found everywhere in nature and will be blown by the wind into your pool.
Poor Water Circulation
Algae grows in stagnant water. Algae is less likely to grow on flowing water. Run the pool pump frequently enough to circulate the pool water three times or four times a day. I recommend setting the timer to run for 2 hours, three or four times daily. This will prevent the water settling enough for algae spores to grow in the pool.
Lack of Chlorine
An adequate level of chlorine will prevent algae from breeding in the water. If the chlorine level drops, for whatever reason, algae are given an opportunity to grow and take over the pool. Once algae have started to grow in the pool the normal level of chlorine will not be sufficient to prevent the algae from living in the water.
Poor Water Chemistry
Unbalanced water chemistry will reduce the effectiveness of your sanitation chemicals which give algae the opportunity to grow.
Read an article on Pool Water Chemistry
Poor Filtration
Dirty or worn out pool filters dont effectively clean the water giving algae the opportunity to grow in the pool.
Does covering a pool prevent algae?
Shock The Pool Water Again
It may take several days and multiple treatments, depending on the severity of the algae bloom, for the algae to die and the filter to clear up the pool water.
Add the shock to the pool in the evening so it wont be affected by the sun and will have maximum effectiveness.
Run the filter until your pool water becomes clear. You may want to run it overnight. You will need to clean the filter during this process as it will become clogged with dead algae. Depending on your filter system, either backwash the filter or remove the filter cartridge and hose out the debris.
If your pool water is still cloudy the next day you can add a pool water clarifier chemical which helps to combine the small suspended particles in the water into larger particles that the filter can remove.
Once you pool water is clear again you can get back to a normal free chlorine level by returning to your routine maintenance and/or salt water chlorinator setting.
Test the water again and adjust your water chemistry if necessary.
Read an article on How to Clear Green Pool Water
How Much Algae Is There
When it comes to treating algae, less is not more. If you dont have a good idea of how much algae is in your pool and you haphazardly treat it, it may not do much good. To properly use an algaecide, you must first determine how much algae exists in your pool, and then follow the direction on the package. In other words, treat the algae fully, based on the amount, to truly get rid of it.;
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What Is Pool Algae
Algae is a live plant organism you can find in your swimming pool. Pool algae can be various colors and cause the pool water to appear green, teal, yellow, brown, red, or even black.
You might also notice a cloudy look to your pool water, which is another tell-tale sign that you have an algae problem. Algae is sometimes free-floating and other times sticks to your pool walls or in cracks and crevices. Though it spreads rapidly, fortunately, it can be treated and prevented fairly easily with proper swimming pool maintenance.
Help My Pool Is Green
It’s a hot summer day and the sun is brightperfect weather for taking a dip in your pool. You venture out to the backyard to check out the pool you haven’t used since last summer. Lo and behold, it’s green!
You take a closer look and see green, yellow, even black algae growing in your pool. You know it can’t be safe to swim in that infested waterplus it’s just gross and slimy. How on earth did this happen?
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Is Algae In The Pool Dangerous
No, algae will not harm you. However, if there is algae in the pool there will be bacteria, viruses and other contaminants which will harm you. Never swim in a pool with green water as it may cause health problems.
If you have algae you will most likely have water bugs that feed on algae. Larger water bugs that feed on the herbivorous water bugs will live in your pool. And these ones bite people.
Please read our article on How to Get Rid of Water Bugs in a Pool
Shocking The Swimming Pool To Kill Brown Algae
Brown algae are one of the most challenging to eliminate. While they are somewhat chlorine-resistant, high sanitizer concentrations do kill them. Here is how to use a shock treatment to clean brown algae in your pool before using a clarifier.
- Bucket
To clean a green pool fast, follow the directions on the pool shock product and bring the chlorine level up to at least 10 ppm to kill the algae.
Prepare the treatment by diluting it in a large bucket and turn on the pool pump. Pour the shock into the water around the edge of the pool and let the pump filter the water for six hours.
Take out the filter afterward and give it a good pool filter cleaning to eliminate algae particles trapped in it.
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How Yellow Algae Is Specifically Treated
When you find yellow algae in your pool, its first important that you are able to determine that the algae is yellow as opposed to green. Green algae can be either blue-green or yellow-green in appearance. With yellow algae, the color can be yellow-green or even brown. The main issue with treating yellow algae is that its able to resist a certain amount of chlorine and can be hidden on filters and pool toys.
When attempting to get rid of the yellow algae in your pool, its important that you treat any items within the pool alongside the actual pool water. Make sure that you scrub every inch of the pool surface before shocking the water. Its recommended that you add three pounds of chlorine for every 10,000 gallons of water. This treatment will likely need to be repeated up to five times in order to get rid of all algae in the pool.
Why & How Does Algae Grow In My Pool
Algae spores are constantly making their way into your pool either through environmental elements like wind and rain, through swimsuits, or objects that were recently in the ocean and through people dragging them in.
Once the spores reach the water, ideal environments then cause them to bloom and reproduce.
Several factors, some unavoidable, contribute to the overgrowth of algae:
- Low chlorine levels
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How To Remove Black Algae In Saltwater Pool
From above, you learned about black algae, what causes it to grow, and how harmful it is. Now, its time to kill the virus. But removing the black algae is not a piece of cake. You have to burn a lot of wood and straw to kill them.;
Here is the step-by-step guide you can follow & apply to remove the black algae from your saltwater pool.;
Test And Balance The Water
Make sure the chemical balance of your pool water is at its optimal level. This way, youll know precisely how much pool shock to use. Use either a liquid test kit or test strips. Dont worry about calcium hardnessfocus on pH, alkalinity, and sanitizer.
Heres where the levels should be:
- alkalinity: 100 ppm to 150 ppm
- pH: 7.4 to 7.6
- chlorine: 1 ppm to 3 ppm
How to Raise pH in Pool
If you find out the pH level of your pool is low, there are a couple of things you can do to raise it:
- Add Soda ASH: Soda ash or sodium bicarbonate have lots of alkalinity, easily dissolve in water, and dont leave much of a trace. Adding either of them will decrease acidity and raise pH levels of your pool water.
- Aerate The Water: This can be done by pointing water jets towards the pool surface, by turning on water features, or adding aeration pipes. However, doing this is a lengthy process, and can take days.
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How To Use Flocculant To Remove Algae
Flocculant, or floc, is a chemical and mechanical process that works fast. It clears severely cloudy pool water by clumping small particles together and dropping them to the bottom of the pool to be vacuumed out. For getting rid of little green algae quickly, I recommend using floc with the following steps.
How To Remove Algae On The Bottom Of Your Pool
In some cases, you may find dead algae on the bottom of your pool. The steps here arent all that different from whats outlined above.
If you have an excessive amount of algae, you should also shock your pool with a chlorine shock treatment. For detailed instructions, check out our guide on how to shock your swimming pool.
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How To Identify Treat And Remove Algae In Your Swimming Pool
During the months of July and August, algae can be a very big problem for swimming pool owners. With the higher temperatures during these months, as well as inconsistency in a pool’s sanitizer levels, algae can rear its ugly head.
Algae is a single-celled plant form. It uses the process of to manufacture its own food. It comes in a very wide variety of colors and forms, making it adaptable to almost any condition.
Due to algae’s microscopic size, it takes literally millions of these plants to accumulate to be noticed by the naked eye! By that time it may be too late and very costly to correct.;
As we tell all our customers: The best way to eliminate algae is through prevention!
This article will discuss the different types of algae and how to deal with each.
Pump Hard & Brush Some More
With so much wall debris now floating in the water, you should run the pump for the next 24 hours.
This allows the filter time to work its magic, and plenty of time for the water to fully cycle a few times. On average it takes 8 hours to cycle a pool, so running it extra will give it multiple filter exposure.
Then, repeat the brushing process for a thorough wall cleaning.
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Use Flocculant To Clear Up The Algae
Youve disarmed the;enemy , but its presence still lingers.
The best way to clear out the rest of the pool algae is to use a pool flocculant.
Flocculants are normally used to clear up cloudy white swimming pools. They work by clumping particles together and sinking them to the bottom of your pool making it easier for you to clean up and filter out.
Use 1 2; treatments of pool flocculant depending on the severity of the pool algae. After adding it to your pool, give the flocculant some time to settle in.
Once you see the algae sinking to the bottom, its time to finish the job.;
Preventing Algae From The Hot Tub
How fast you deal with algae on your hot tub depends on how you prevent them from being there. A few tips to bear in mind is to make sure that filters are cleaned and replaced regularly. Alkalinity levels must be kept between 80 and 120 ppm, while pH levels must be between 7.4 and 7.6. Check on the sanitizer levels that your water needs depending on whether you are using chlorine or bromine for the tub. Of course, do not forget to cover the hot tub when you are not using it.
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Which Method Is Best
We would choose Method #1: Getting Rid Of Pool Algae By Shocking every day of the week. By using this method, you’re keeping it simple by focusing on chlorine and acid, while using your filtration system to bring it back to life. It tends to be a bit of a work-in-progress and can take 1, 2 or even 3 weeks, depending on the state of your pool, but it’s definitely the easiest.
We also personally like to recommend keeping an algaecide on-hand year round for monthly dosage. If your pool is clear and balanced, an algaecide will do its part in keeping any green, black or mustard algae bay during a chlorine or pH fluctuation.
Do you have any questions about this topic or the featured products? No worries, we’re here to help! Head over to our Contact Us page and drop our friendly team of pool pro’s a line.;
Happy swimming 🙂
Please note: This blog is a rough indication of advice for an average sized pool and average dosing recommendations. Mr Pool Man always recommends getting your water tested by a pool professional before adding any type of chemicals for your own safety, or giving us a call on 1300 511 901 or contacting us if you are unsure. Mr Pool Man does not take any responsibility for incorrect dosages or harm caused by adding chemicals. Please practice common sense to add chemicals safely to your pool.
Do you have any questions about this topic or the featured products? No worries, we’re here to help! Drop us a question down below and we’ll get back to you ASAP.
Safety And Health Risks
If youve ever touched algae, you probably knew right away thanks to its characteristic sliminess. Algae can cover surfacesthe pool itself as well as pool ladders and deckswith a slimy, slippery coating, creating a potential recipe for disaster.
Algae growth also turns water in swimming pools opaque, making it difficult to see whats happening beneath the surface. If someone is in distress or begins drowning, the cloudy water could prevent people nearby from realizing whats happening in time to offer assistance.
Time is of the essence when it comes to saving drowning victims, so any barrier to a quick rescue is unacceptable.
While the algae themselves are unlikely to cause illness, there are some exceptions. The conditions that permit pool algae to gain a foothold also allow bacteria to flourish, including the infamous E. coli.
Add in the fact that these bacteria use algae as a food source, and you have a rapidly multiplying health hazard on your hands. To curb the bacteria, youll have to stop the algae in its tracks.
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Keep The Water Moving
Run the filter either immediately or after a few hours of shocking the pool. You must ensure that the water is moving. Leave the filter running for 24-48 hours, so the water and the chemicals can reach every part of the pool.
A word of warning: give your pool some time before diving in again. You must never enter a pool that is being or has recently been treated as there might be a lot of residual algaecide and chlorine in there.
Make sure to wash the pool completely and thoroughly before stepping inside again.
