Treating a green pool with Ipswich Pool and Spa Centre

The team at Ipswich Pool and Spa Centre have 35 years experience treating swimming pools and spas that have turned green. From a slight green tinge through to pools that have been left for months and have turned black, our guys can usually have your pool back up and running within a week.

What causes a pool to go green?

Air-borne algae is the main cause of swimming pools going green; it floats in the air and then when there is heavy rain fall, it is washed into the pool. That is why it is important to get your water balanced after large amounts of rain, because if the water has only just turned green then it will only take a day to fix.

The algae also settles on surfaces such as leaves so if you have a lot of overhanging plants and trees that constantly drop debris (especially eucalyptus leaves) into your swimming pool then your pool may be more susceptible to going green. If this is the case, then we recommend our monthly maintenance service to help you keep on top of your pool’s health.

The process of treating a green pool can involve the following steps:

Step 1: We will visit your premises and assess the situation so that we can give you a price estimate. The longer you leave your green pool, the higher this estimate is likely to be.

Step 2: We will start by scooping out as much of the sediment as we can – leaves and plant material that have sunk to the bottom. This can be difficult because usually we cannot see the bottom of the pool.

Step 3: We will then hit your pool with chlorine, acid and algaecides.

Step 4: We will then run the pool for 24 hours before coming back the next day to see how it is going. If we can see the bottom of the pool we will scoop out any remaining debris.

Step 5: We will keep coming back and checking the water quality and scooping out more leaves and gunk until the pool water is crystal clear. We will then do the water balance and set the timer.

Treating a green pool can be a very complex and expensive process if it is left too long – our quotes for treating green (or even black!) pools are based on how many visits we have to make as well as the quantity of chemicals required to fix the problem, so the sooner you call us, the cheaper it will be. The time frame for fixing a green pool can be anywhere from 2 days to a week, depending on how bad the problem is, but we can usually have a serviceman out for an assessment within 24 hours.