“I am at my wits end. I am hoping that you can help me out. I’ve been taking my water sample to a different pool store and I have dumped over $100 in Phosphate remover to try and get my pool to hold chlorine and get rid of the algae and nothing seems to work. The phosphates have come down some, but I can’t get completely rid of them.  I have a friend that brings her water here and she says that you guys are the best.” She said with a tone of exasperation.

“Tell your friend thanks for speaking so highly of us. I hope we can live up to the hype.” Harold started filling the sample tubes with water then reagents. By the time the reagents were dissolved there really was no need to run it though the machine, because after testing thousands of waters he knew what the results were by color. The tests were always nonetheless run through the machine and recorded into the store data base for future reference. He proceeded to type the customers information into the computer and run the test.

“It does show that there is zero chlorine in your pool, your PH is fine and your phosphate are a little high at 1300 parts per billion. How much chlorine have you been putting in and how often?” asked Harold.

“That’s exactly what I am talking about. This has been going on for over two weeks. I’ve put three treatments of phosphate remover in and I’ve been putting about two gallons of  chlorine in the pool nearly every day for the last week and about once every two days prior to that and the problem doesn’t go away. I just can’t seem to get the phosphates down low enough to have the chlorine stay in the water.” She responded, rather despondently.

“Well, in my opinion you are treating one of the potential causes rather then treating the problem itself. The phosphates are not eating the chlorine, it is actually the chlorine is spending itself oxidizing the algae. The problem is, you have 20,000 gallons of water in your pool. If everything is going great and you just need a weekly shock, two gallons is the perfect amount. You, however do not have a perfect situation. You have a mildly bad situation and you need to treat it as such. I would recommend that you put in 8 bags of shock and some Eliminator to completely wipe out the algae.” Suggested Harold.

“8 bags of shock? That sounds like a lot.” Exclaimed the customer. “Can I try less? What about the Phosphates? They are still high!”

“The problem is…” retorted Harold, “this is science, and if you do the math, less just isn’t going to give you a positive outcome. One molecule of chlorine will go and kill one algae cell, the problem is, if you don’t kill them all off, they multiple at and incredible rate. If you don’t kill them all off at one time, the money you’ve spent on half measures are a complete waste of time and money, because by the time you do your next application the algae has multiplied back to the same level you were at the day prior. It’s better to take care of the problem once and for all. As far as the phosphates go, reducing phosphates is a tool, not an end all solution to fixing a problem or preventing a new problem from occurring. There are other weapons we can use to prevent algae, rather then phosphate removers. The problem with phosphate removers are, phosphates are naturally reoccurring and you will be constantly chasing after that ‘White Whale’ with little success.”

With a look of surrender the customer agreed to take Harold’s advice. She bought her chemicals and promised to follow up with a report and another water test in three days. There is very little Harold hasn’t seen in his line of work and this was no exception. As expected he had to really sell the answer he was suggesting, because it was going against what the customer believed and was told at a different establishment. He was confident that his solution would work and she would be in a lot better frame of mind the next time he saw her.

The day was cold, but not cold enough to turn the slight moisture falling from the sky into snow. A man of about 50 walked through the sliding doors and removed his over sized hat and walked toward the front counter. “I need to speak to the water expert.” he exclaimed as he reached into his coat pocket to remove his water sample.

“I can help you.”  Said a voice reaching out over the counter. Harold Osborne II was an old hand in the pool and spa business. He had been in the business his whole life and had literally forgotten more then what most in the business would ever learn. Harold didn’t take any particular pride in this point. He understood that he gained this knowledge from a lifetime of retail sales and at the end of the day, he had become a solid retail sales associate in a niche market and that was about it.

“What kind of problems are you having Mr. Hamilton?”, asked Harold as he noticed the customers name on the test bottle.

“My spa was crystal clear and I adjusted my chemicals and it turned cloudy instantly.”

Harold led him back to the water test station and did the standard run up of chemical tests that every customer expects. The tests were not really needed, as Jeff had a good hunch what the problem was before running the tests.

The tests came back and everything was in the exact range they were supposed to be in. Harold asked, “Let me guess, did you add PH increaser to your hot tub right before it went cloudy?”

“Well, yes I did.” mentioned Mr. Hamilton.

“That’s just what I expected. The problem with the water is the PH was increased too quickly. Tap water from the faucet has a lot of calcium and other dissolved solids that are in the water. When you increase your PH too quickly, it takes the calcium out of this dissolved state and makes it a solid again and that’s what the haze is from.”

“What do I have to do to fix it? Is it time to drain the spa? I just drained it a few weeks ago.” Complained Mr. Hamilton.

“You shouldn’t have to drain the spa. Add about 10 ounces of Stain and Scale Remover and that should convert the calcium back into a liquid and by doing so, remove the haze from the water after a day or so. After doing this, it’s a good idea to follow up with the weekly maintenance dose of the Stain and Scale Remover. It’s a good product and will prevent you from having excessive build of calcium in your plumbing and on your heater.” Harold was starting to get in his preaching mode. This is what he was good at and often went on far too long, to the point of boring the customers with information beyond their general need.

Harold went and showed the customer the Stain and Scale Remover on the shelf and the customer left. Another problem solved. But, Harold knew that there would always be another case to solve.  Not many problems were too difficult for Harold, but he was looking forward to the challenge.

So whether it’s birthday or anniversary time, the recipient will be impressed with your thoughtfullness and will appreciate the gift that keeps on giving (until the bucket is empty).

And for Christmas? Add some alkalinity and pH controls and you’ve got shopping covered. Stop in today and we’ll help you complete that list.

- Max

1.     Low pH water will oxidize chlorine much quicker than pool water properly balanced.  The rate can be dramatic—twice as fast, or even more.  With low pH, it’s hard to keep any chlorine in the water.

2.     Low stabilizer.  Hey—it’s hot out there and the sun is bright.  Without proper stabilizer levels, you will burn through chlorine.   Stabilizer, also know as conditioner, is intrinsic to having clear water as it helps ‘hold’ chlorine in the water.  Without proper levels you are destined to have a green pool.  Low stabilizer=No chlorine?  Algae will bloom.

As the water temperature rises, your chlorine need will grow.  For every 10 degrees of water temperature rise, beginning with water temperature of about 70 degrees, you will need about 25% more chlorine in the water. Quite simply, chlorine gasses off at high rates as the water heats up.  Right now, most pools have water temperatures in the high 80’s or even into the low 90’s.  Pools with a water temperature of 90 degrees will need 50% more chlorine than when the water was just getting comfortable back in late April or early May.  Adjust accordingly.

These water test labs are the very latest technology available from Palintest, and they will help insure accurate results that will help us to help you keep your pool or spa water clean, clear and safe.  These new labs are costly, but we consider them an investment in your pool’s well being.  At Eastgate Pools, we are committed to being your pool or spa professional.  Try getting a state of the art water test at those big box stores where they don’t know pool water and they certainly don’t test it!

Water + Carbon Dioxide + Sunlight à Glucose (sugar = plant food) + Oxygen

Swimming pools have all three necessary ingredients readily available for plants to be able to create their own food, and therefore, live.  Water? Check (duh). Carbon Dioxide? Check (thank anything that breathes for that).  Sunlight? Check (hopefully!).  Plants, like all forms of algae, use those things to create glucose, for their food, and produce oxygen as a wonderful and necessary byproduct.  Now, if we remove one of the necessary elements needed for Photosynthesis to occur, algae cannot survive.  A new product that we have on the scene will do just that.  Our new Tri-Tech tabs, and other coordinating chemicals, contain Sodium Tetra-Borates.  Basically, as you use these chemicals, the Borates will build up in your water, ridding it of carbon dioxide.  Without the carbon dioxide, algae cannot thrive.  What’s the best way to quickly build up your Borate level, you ask?  Well, the best way to accomplish this is to use the Pro-Team Supreme!  While the initial dosage of 2 lbs. per 1,000 gallons is a little overwhelming, once you add it to your pool water, it will only come out through dilution or splash out.  Because Pro-Team Supreme is just straight-up Borates with no additional chemicals, it will immediately spike your level, leading to less of a need for chlorine and an algae-free summer!  This stuff is so good, even Disney World uses it to keep all of their pools algae free (without having to use as much of that harsh chlorine).  Stop into Eastgate Pools today to ask us more about this new product, and remember, science is all around you!