By Kevin Vlietstra
The author recently received an email that was worth sharing from a homeowner. I was watching The Universe 2007 on TV last night. I wasn’t paying much attention because I was doing other things at the time. I then heard the narrator mention that life began on Earth with bacteria growing in water pools. The narrator mentioned cyanobacteria – a blue green algae. My ears perked. I thought OMG, this is what’s growing on my swimming pool. My swimming pool is filled with creepy crawlies. “Life is forming in the swimming pool of my home.”
This observation is correct. Cyanobacteria, which are technically bacteria but are photosynthetic microorganisms, are microscopic photosynthetic organisms. The cyanobacteria are commonly called “blue green algae” but can also be yellow, brown or purple. Most people refer to cyanobacteria as “pool alga.”
High concentrations of nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphate, can promote a population explosion, resulting in algal blooms, especially during warm weather. High concentrations of nutrients such as phosphate and nitrogen can cause an algal bloom, particularly during warm weather. 3Not just visually, but the pH level can rise as the algae consume the carbon dioxide which helps to keep them under control. The pool floor can also become slippery and dangerous.
How to prevent algae growth
It is easy to prevent the growth of large amounts of algae in any swimming pool. Addition of a sanitizer can help to neutralize microorganisms and keep the number of algae down. It is important to vacuum or sweep frequently in order to avoid accumulation of visible alga on surfaces. Addition of another oxidizer, at a higher concentration than the daily oxidizer added (typically chlorine), will reduce algae counts. A non-chlorinating shock will not remove the algae but it can squelch all other contaminants.
The versatile chemical chlorine prevents and solves many problems. Too much of anything can have negative effects. As chlorine is a bleaching agent, it will cause some colour degradation on surfaces when added in excess or repeatedly. This can lead to other problems, like elevated levels of cyanuric acids (CYA), when using stabilized chlor compounds. The same problems can occur with chlorine products that do not contain stabilizers. For example, excessive TDS (total dissolved solids) may be present when using sodium or calcium hypochlorite.
Algaecides are best added as the final addition to the pool water. This will help to prevent algae growth. Algaecides are not likely to prevent algae from creating unsightly pool water by themselves. However, when used in conjunction with an oxidizer as a preventative, they can help reduce the amount needed of oxidizer to keep water clean. It is important to know all of the options available for algaecide, both to maintain the pool and to destroy large amounts of algae.
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