Pool Opening Nightmare!

[basset_hounds]

First, let me say I am aware that we have done pretty much everything WRONG! To keep it simple, we had alot going on last year when we closed the thing.

Bought the pool mid-summer last summer. Had no issues keeping it clean, and the water sparkling. Closed the pool... about two days later the cover came un-done and fell into the pool. Well, not INTO the pool, just floated around in the middle all winter. And...that it where it stayed all winter (I know, I know).

Took the cover off this spring to green water. Used an In-The-Swim opening kit. Lost all the green and now have cloudy water that is not clearning up.

Now.... Before putting the open kit in, I did not vacuum the pool. My theory was, how the heck can I vacuum it if I can't even begin to see the bottom???

Anyways... here I am a week and 1 day later. Water is still cloudy as heck. Pool is still not vaccumed (which I know is still not helping..but again, I can't begin to see the bottom of the pool).

All chemical levels are good.... I've used clarifier, I've used Floc... I'm to the point where I just want to drain and refill. So, my question is, when I do so, how is the best way to get all the crap off the bottom of the pool, since I won't be able to vacuum it without water?

Next year the cover WILL be staying on it over the winter.

[Rk805]

This is an interesting one as I had the same problem this year. We bought a house pool included last year - the pool hadn't been opened in the prior 2 years so the cover was dry-rotted and fell apart when we opened it. Struggled all last year with cleaning so I drained it this year. Here's what I did to clean mine (albeit it is still dirty but the debris on ths bottom is gone):

1) Drain the pool - pump it out or do it the old fashioned way via down to about 1 foot of water.

2) Get in the pool with a leaf net and dredge the leaves from the bottom of the pool. Something with a plastic scoop blade on the front will do nicely.

3) Scrub the walls if necessary.

4) Refill the pool.

After the pool is refilled you'll need to rebalance all your chemicals and vacuum it up.

[Mandysmom]

We have had a green pool before and never emptied it. I also had a coffee colored pool when switching from Bacquacil (spelling) back to chlorine. I don't know about your area, but we have a great pool store right in town that tests the water and can tell us exactly what to do to clear it up. It's still early in the season and I hate to see you put all that water down the drain. We have problems here with oak leaves and even though we cover it, we still end up with them on the bottom of the pool slimy and gross. Emptying the pool would work I guess, but I would really get professional advice before doing it.

[Mandysmom]

Oh, I also meant to say that even if the pool stays covered and no tears in the cover occur, it's still a project getting the cover off without dumping the accumulated muck that is on top into the pool. We usually fill our pool right to the tip top and fold the cover in half while pulling it off. This isn't easy since we have a round 24' pool. The water under the cover can be crystal clear and if you aren't careful when taking the cover off you can still get into trouble.