#green pool algae

After a long, hard winter, you would love to be able to hop in your pool with no problems. Unfortunately, opening a pool is rarely as easy as taking the cover off.

Although we recommend not covering your pool for the winter (at least for Texas pool owners), instead having it serviced regularly by a professional during the off season, if you did use a pool cover, it’s not the end of the world. Usually the worst case scenario is a green, algae-filled pool when you lift the cover. A covered pool during warm temperatures creates the perfect environment for algae growth.

Last week, we explained all the steps necessary for opening your pool after a long winter, including:

Cleaning the Pool

Filling Water to Correct Level

Chemical Testing

Instead of going over How to Open Your Swimming Pool, which we already covered, we are going to teach you how to clean a dirty, algae-ridden pool. The key is to have consistently good filtration, chemistry, and circulation. 

How to Remove Green Algae from Your Pool:

It takes about 4-5 days and some materials: pool skimmer, pool brush (steel brush for concrete), pool vacuum, pH test strips, pool shock, and algaecide.

Although there are many different kinds of algae, by far the most common kind is green algae. Therefore, we will focus on green algae, although these steps will likely get rid of your pink and yellow algae as well. If you have black algae, you may need to find an algaecide specifically formulated for this type of algae. 

Here is a good how-to from swimuniversity.com for How to Kill Black Algae in Your Swimming Pool.

If your algae is pink, yellow, blue, or black, read this article about the differences between the individual algaes.

The first thing you should do is a general skimming and cleaning in and around the pool. Use your skimmer to get rid of any debris floating in the water.

Vacuum your pool directly out, using its “waste” setting. Do NOT use the regular “filter” setting. Yes, this will waste a lot of water, but is the only way to prevent the algae from reentering your pool through the returns in the pool wall.

Use your pool brush to brush the walls, steps, and ladders in your pool. This will make it easier for your pool shock and algaecide to take effect.

This is when you should use your pH test strips to test if the water has a pH range between 7.2 - 7.8. You want the pH level to be in this range so that the algaecide and pool shock will work most effectively.

Once all the conditions are right, you can now use your algaecide. We recommend using the algaecide before the shock treatment. 

Once the algeacide has finished working (about 36 hours), vacuum your pool one more time.

After vacuuming up the dead algae, you are ready to Shock! But, for best results wait until the sun has gone down. Read our blog for How to Shock Your Swimming Pool.

After vacuuming, brushing, and shocking your swimming pool, run your filtration system for at least 24 hours before shocking your pool again (if necessary) or cleaning your pool filter. 

After shocking your pool, you will want to get rid of all the collected algae in your filter. Otherwise, the algae may return, so don’t put this off. Read our blog for How to Clean Your Cartridge Pool Filter.

Watch SwimUniversity’s video for a recap of How to Get Rid of Pool Algae:

You may also be interested in:

2015 Pool Design Trends

Top 3 Swimming Pool Myths

Your Pool Needs Some Love Too: 5 Maintenance Tips

To keep your pool from turning green in the first place, we recommend professional weekly pool cleaning. We also do one-time pool cleanings as well as filter cleaning. We will do a full system inspection, ensuring the most efficient and longest life possible out of your system.

For your convenience, Texan Blue Pool Service offers three pool cleaning maintenance plans. Our packages are: The Signature, The Platinum, and The Partial.

Whatever your pool and filtration system, Texan Blue Pool Service is the trusted choice for repairs, installations, service, or maintenance of any pool you may have. We stay up-to-date on all the newest technologies and industry trends.