Fixing Cloudy Pool Water

One of the most commonly occurring pool problems is cloudy water. A large number of pool owners battle this issue, which doesn’t necessarily pose a health risk to swimmers but can look unsightly.
 
Cloudy water can be caused by a chemical or mineral imbalance, or by a large number of fine particles such as dirt suspended in the water. Luckily, there are two main solutions to help you with this problem. Floc and Water Clarifier, a specially designed polymer agent that will help eliminate floating particles that are causing the issue. 

This is how each solution works:

Aluminium Sulphate (Floc)

This solution works by trapping the floating particles. When administered to your pool water, the aluminium forms a gel-like precipitate that bridges or sticks together.

The alum precipitate then forms small bundles (called flocs) that trap suspended particles. This is called flocculation, and it leads to a large amount of sediment forming on the bottom of the pool made up of both the dirt (suspended particles) and the gel-like alum precipitate. The sediment can then be easily vacuumed out.

Polymers (Water Polish)

Similar to the aluminium sulphate, the polymers attach to the floating particles making the water cloudy; their long molecular structure attracts smaller particles due to a charged nature. They then clump together to form one particle, which drops to the bottom of the pool. These larger particles can, therefore, be removed from the water by filtration or by vacuuming.

If the purpose is to clarify slightly cloudy or hazy water, it is better to use a water clarifier than floc, as it is faster and less of a hassle to use. If the water is really dirty - if you can only see down into the water an inch or two - then a one-time dose of floc may be better than multiple doses of a water clarifier.

Head into Donemans to check out these two treatments options.