Got a Pool Problem? Start Here.

What's going on with your pool?

Why "Just the Water Tester"?

“Just the Water Tester” started as a comment that was supposed to minimize what I do. It's a sore spot for me, in all honesty. We all want our lives to matter, right?

But after years behind a water-testing counter, I realized something: testing the water is rarely just testing the water.

People walk in with green pools, cloudy pools, equipment problems, algae that won't go away, chemicals that don't make sense and sometimes absolutely no idea where to start.

And somehow, over all these years, I've become the person who helps figure out what's actually going on and what to do next.

So, yep. I'm Just the Water Tester.

Got a pool problem? Let's figure it out

Something isn't working. What is it?

What does your water look like?

Your Water is green...let's narrow it down.

Green AND cloudy? Before we treat the algae, let’s check a few things.

If you can have your water professionally tested, start there.

If you can't, let's figure out what we're working with.

Good! Let's get the water ready to treat...

Before we attack the algae, let's make sure the water is where I want it.

pH: 7.2–7.6
Total Alkalinity: 80–120 ppm

If either one is out of range, adjust it first. Let the pool circulate for about 2 hours after making your adjustments before moving on to the algae treatment.

Already in range? You're ready for the next step.

Next, What kind of Filter do you have?

Sand filter — let's check it before we treat the algae

Your filter is going to have a lot of work to do while we're clearing this pool, so let's make sure it's ready.

How old is the sand in your filter?

And take a look at your return jets. Do you have good, strong water flow coming back into the pool?

What kind of pool do you have?

One more thing to check if you have an aboveground or semi-inground....

Do you have a large set of removable steps or a ladder system sitting inside the pool?

Yep — We Need to Check Behind Those Steps

Algae loves to hide behind and underneath large above-ground pool steps where circulation isn't great.

Before treating the pool:

Push or move the steps away from the wall as much as you safely can. Brush behind them, underneath them, and around the area where they normally sit.

Don't put them right back against the wall yet. We want the treatment and circulating water to reach that area too.

Okay. Now let’s attack the algae.

Your water is balanced, we've checked your filtration and we've looked for places algae may be hiding. Now we're ready to treat it.

Before adding anything: know your pool's approximate gallons and follow the product label for the correct amount for your pool. Never mix pool chemicals together.

How hands-on do you want to be?

I normally give pool owners two ways to tackle a green pool. One method is more forgiving. The other can work very well, but you have to follow the steps carefully — including slowly vacuuming the entire pool to waste.

Pick the one that sounds more like you.

(I want something that's easier to follow, even if it takes a little more time and cleanup)

(I'm comfortable following the steps exactly and slowly vacuuming the entire pool floor to waste)

Okay — this is the method I’d start with.

This is usually the route I recommend when you want a little more room for error. We’re going to kill the algae, keep it stirred up so the filter can catch it, and physically remove what we can.

Before starting: Your pH should be 7.2–7.6 and total alkalinity 80–120 ppm. Know your pool gallons and use each product according to its label. Never mix pool chemicals together.

Step 1: Treat the algae

Add Super Algaebomb 60 by Poolife according to the label for your pool size, along with the appropriate chlorine/shock treatment for your pool and current water readings.

Step 2: Brush EVERYTHING

Brush the walls, floor, steps, corners and anywhere algae may be hiding. If you have large removable above-ground steps, make sure you’ve moved them away from the wall and cleaned behind them.

Step 3: Let the pool work overnight

Keep the pool circulating overnight so the treatment can work and the filter can start removing what you’ve killed.

Step 4: The next day

Vacuum the pool thoroughly. Vacuum to waste is recommended. Then clean your filter as appropriate. If you have a sand filter, backwash and rinse it.

Step 5: Don’t assume you’re finished

Look at the pool and test the water again. Depending on the remaining algae and your chlorine reading, additional chlorine treatment may be needed. Brush again and continue filtering. Add Shock again that night. And clean the pool up the next day.

Step 6: Retest

Once the algae is gone and the water is clearing, retest the water. Now we can correct anything that changed during treatment and get the pool back to normal maintenance.

Still green? Don’t just keep dumping stuff in it.

If you followed these steps and the pool isn’t improving, something else may be going on — circulation, filtration, hidden algae, water balance or even something that looks like algae but isn’t.

That’s when we go back to the clues.

Want the Faster, More Precise Route?

Shock + floc can work beautifully on a green pool, but this is not the method to wing. 😂

The floc will gather suspended material and drop it to the bottom of the pool. Then you have to remove that material by slowly vacuuming it to WASTE.

Before choosing this method, make sure your system can vacuum to WASTE. If it can't—or you aren't sure—go back and choose the more forgiving method.

Step 1: Get Your Water Level Up

Before you start, fill the pool as high as you safely can while still being able to operate the pump normally.

You're going to lose quite a bit of water when you vacuum to waste later, so starting high helps.

Step 2: Make Sure the Water Is Balanced

Before treatment, I want:

pH: 7.2–7.6
Total Alkalinity: 80–120 ppm

If you need to adjust either one, make the corrections and allow the pool to circulate for about 2 hours before moving on.

Step 3: Shock It Hard

For this method, I use Poolife TurboShock.

For an actively green pool, my treatment is:

3 bags per 10,000 gallons of pool water.

That's roughly triple the typical weekly amount I use as the starting point for this cleanup method.

Important: This dosage is specific to Poolife TurboShock and this treatment method. Don't substitute another shock at the same bag-for-bag amount—products have different strengths and dosing instructions.

Step 4: Add Powdered Flocculant

Add the powdered flocculant at:

1 package per 10,000 gallons

Follow the product's handling and application directions.

Step 5: Brush It

Brush the walls and pool surfaces thoroughly.

We're trying to get the algae off the surfaces and into the water so the treatment can work on it.

Step 6: Run the Pump for ONE Hour

After everything has been added and you've brushed:

Run the pool pump for 1 hour.

We're circulating the treatment through the pool.

Step 7: Shut It DOWN

After one hour:

Turn the pool pump completely OFF.

Before walking away, check your equipment carefully.

Make absolutely sure water isn't leaking out of the backwash/waste port.

We're about to leave this pool sitting still, and we definitely don't want to come back to a pool that's lost a bunch of water.

Step 8: Leave It Alone for 48 Hours

And I mean leave it alone. 😂

No pump.

No swimming.

No stirring everything back up.

48 hours.

Some flocculant labels may give a shorter settling period. For this specific method, I use 48 hours because I want everything to have plenty of time to settle onto the floor.

When you come back, don't panic about what the bottom looks like.

That's what we wanted.

The floc has gathered the suspended material so we can physically remove it from the pool.

NOW COMES THE PART YOU CAN NOT RUSH...VACUUM TO WASTE

If everything went according to plan, the stuff that was making your water green/cloudy should now be settled on the bottom.

Now we have to get it OUT of the pool without stirring it all back up.

You Need to Manually Vacuum

For this step, you'll need a regular manual vacuum setup:

• Vacuum head

• Telescopic pole

• Vacuum hose

• Connection through your skimmer

Do not use your automatic pool cleaner for this.

If You Have a Sand Filter

Set your multiport valve to:

WASTE or PUMP TO WASTE

This sends the dirty water out of the pool instead of through the sand and back into the pool.

Important: Always turn the pump OFF before changing the position of a multiport valve.

Then start vacuuming.

And I Mean S-L-O-W 😂

This is probably the most important part.

Vacuum the floor extremely slowly.

If you move that vacuum head too quickly, you'll stir everything that just spent 48 hours settling right back into the water.

Then you're basically starting over.

Take your time.

Done correctly, you may only lose around a foot of water while vacuuming the pool.

What If My Water Gets Too Low?

Watch the water level while you're vacuuming.

If the water falls below the point where your skimmer can keep the pump supplied with water:

STOP.

Turn the pump off.

Refill the pool high enough for the skimmer to work properly again.

Then pick up where you left off.

Never let the pump continue running without adequate water.

What If I Have a Cartridge Filter?

This can be a little trickier because cartridge systems aren't all plumbed with a waste option.

If your cartridge-filter system has a dedicated waste line, the setup may allow you to remove/bypass the cartridge and discharge the vacuumed water through that waste line, depending on how your equipment is plumbed.

If you don't have a waste line—or aren't 100% sure how yours is set up—don't start changing things or vacuum the floc through your cartridge.

Message me with a picture of your equipment pad and I'll help you figure out what you've got.

You Made It. 😂 Now Let’s Get Your Pool Back to Normal.

1. Get the Filter Running Normally Again

For a sand filter, turn the pump OFF before moving the multiport valve from WASTE back to its normal operating position.

Make sure everything is running normally and you have good flow returning to the pool.

2. Retest the Water

You just removed and replaced a significant amount of pool water, so your chemistry may have changed.

Test the water again before deciding what it needs.

At minimum, I want to know your:

Free chlorine
Total chlorine
pH
Total alkalinity
Stabilizer/CYA

3. Look at the Pool

Ask yourself:

Is the water clear?

Is there any algae still attached to the walls or floor?

Do I have good circulation?

Is my chlorine holding now?

If everything looks good, we're no longer treating a green pool.

🎉 We're back to maintaining a pool.

But What If It's STILL Green?

Don't automatically repeat everything.

If you've balanced the water, treated the algae, brushed, filtered and vacuumed—and the pool still isn't improving—we need to figure out what we missed.

There could be a filtration or circulation problem, algae hiding somewhere, an issue with the water chemistry, metals, or something that looks like algae but isn't.

Still Green? Something Isn’t Adding Up.

At this point, I wouldn’t just keep throwing chemicals at the pool.

If you followed the treatment correctly and the pool is still green, it's time to stop and figure out what we're missing.

First — Retest the Water

I want a fresh water test. What the water looked like before treatment isn't enough anymore because you've just done a major treatment and possibly replaced some water.

We need to see what the water is telling us right now.

There Are Three Things I’m Looking For

1. Could this be metals instead of algae?

Green water isn't always algae. Metals in the water can cause discoloration, especially after chlorine is added.

This is also why I want to know everything you've put in the pool this season. Certain products can introduce metals or other ingredients that become important clues

2. Is the equipment actually doing its job?

Go back to the basics.

Is the pump running correctly?

Do you have strong water flow coming back through the returns?

Is the filter operating properly?

Is the filter being cleaned/backwashed when needed?

You can treat water correctly and still struggle to clear the pool if you don't have proper circulation and filtration.

3. Was the treatment aggressive and consistent enough?

This one matters.

An algae treatment isn't something I want stretched out over several days because life got busy.

If the treatment calls for steps to happen back-to-back, do them back-to-back.

Giving algae time to recover between half-treatments can put you right back where you started.

If We Still Can't Find It…

At this point, I want to troubleshoot the pool with you rather than keep guessing.

Bring in a fresh water sample and tell me exactly what you've already done. Pictures of the pool and equipment can help too.

If we still can't determine what's happening, it may be time for a service call or professional pool cleaning.

WHAT'S OFF?

Your Chlorine Won’t Stay Up? Let’s Find Out Why.

Adding more chlorine isn't always the answer. If your chlorine keeps disappearing, something is usually causing it.

If you can get a complete water test, that's where I'd start.

If you can't, let's check the biggest things I would look at first.

First: What Are Your pH and Stabilizer Levels?

pH matters, and I want your water properly balanced before we start chasing a chlorine problem.

Stabilizer (CYA) is especially important. Without enough stabilizer, sunlight can burn through chlorine very quickly.

Before we assume you need more chlorine, let's make sure these numbers make sense.

Okay — Let’s Look at Your Numbers.

Before we blame the chlorine, check these two numbers:

pH: 7.2–7.6
Stabilizer (CYA): 30–50 ppm

Are BOTH of yours in these ranges?

Fix This First — Then We’ll Chase the Chlorine

If your pH or stabilizer is outside the range we're looking for, let's correct that before assuming you have a bigger chlorine problem.

Our targets:
pH: 7.2–7.6
Stabilizer (CYA): 30–50 ppm

Adjust what is out of range based on your pool size and current test results. Don't guess at the amount — different pools need different doses.

Once you've corrected the water and given it time to circulate, retest it.

When both numbers are where they need to be, come back here and we'll keep troubleshooting why your chlorine isn't holding.

Okay. Your Numbers Look Good. So Where Is the Chlorine Going?

Now we know your pH and stabilizer aren't the obvious problem.

Next I want to look for something in the pool that's using up the chlorine faster than you can maintain it.

First — Let's Check Your Filtration

Let's check your sand filter.

How old is the sand in your filter?

HOW IS YOUR WATER FLOW?

Look at the return jets where the water comes back into your pool. Does the flow feel strong and normal?

Your Filter Sand May Be Part of the Problem

If your filter sand is 5 years old or older, I normally recommend changing it. At this point, I don't want you fighting a chlorine problem while an aging filter is making the job harder.

(If you don't know when the sand was last changed, that's a clue by itself. If you inherited the pool or can't remember the last change, I'd inspect the filter/flow and seriously consider replacing the sand before spending a lot more money chasing water problems)

Can't change the sand right now? We can still work on getting the pool under control, but understand that you may need a more aggressive chlorine treatment now and potentially higher sanitizer demand until the filtration issue is corrected.

Okay…Something Is Still Using Up Your Chlorine

Your water balance looks good and your circulation seems to be doing its job. So now I want to look for something hiding in the pool that's consuming your chlorine.

First question: What kind of pool do you have?

Do You Have Large Steps Inside the Pool?

Here's something people don't always think about: algae can hide behind and underneath large above-ground pool steps where circulation isn't great.

You may not even see it, but if it's growing back there, it can keep using up your chlorine.

We’ve Ruled Out the Obvious Stuff. Now Let’s Deal With the Chlorine Demand.

At this point, we've checked your pH and stabilizer, looked at filtration and circulation, and checked for hidden algae where appropriate.

If your chlorine still disappears, there's likely something in the water creating a high chlorine demand.

This is where I would normally move to a heavier shock treatment — but the amount depends on your pool size, current chlorine reading and the exact shock you're using.

Here’s How I’d Heavy Shock It

For this method, I'm using Poolife TurboShock. Don't substitute another shock at the same bag-for-bag amount because shock products come in different strengths.

Night 1: 3 bags of Poolife TurboShock per 10,000 gallons.

Night 2: 2 bags per 10,000 gallons.

Night 3: 2 bags per 10,000 gallons.

The point here is to treat it three nights in a row, not shock it once, wait several days, then try again.

Don't swim during this treatment; test first and wait until free chlorine is back in the normal swimming range before anyone gets back in. Poolife specifies waiting until free available chlorine returns to 1–4 ppm before swimming

Keep the Pool Running

Run the pump and filter 24 hours a day during these three days.

We want constant circulation and filtration while we're trying to burn through whatever is creating that chlorine demand.

Clean the Filter Every Day

If you have a sand filter: backwash and rinse each day during the three-day treatment.

Your filter is catching everything we're trying to get out of the water, so don't forget about it while you're concentrating on the chemicals.

After Night 3 — STOP and Retest

Don't automatically add more shock on Day 4.

Retest the water.

I want to see whether your chlorine is finally holding and what happened to the rest of your water balance.

If the chlorine STILL won't hold after we've checked your pH, stabilizer, filtration, circulation, hidden algae and completed three consecutive nights of treatment, it's time to troubleshoot again instead of blindly adding more chlorine.

Your pH is High...Don't lower it yet

Before I tell you to add pH Minus, I need one more number:

What is your total alkalinity?

I look at pH and total alkalinity together, because those two numbers help me decide whether I actually want to adjust the water.

Write your text here...

Write your text here...

Contact

The Family Spa & Pool Place

732 East Stone Drive

Kingsport, TN 37660

Phone & Email

familyspas@aol.com

(423) 765-1330

© 2025. All rights reserved.