How to Remove Dead Algae from Pool Bottom?

There are a lot of reasons why algae blooms in the pool bottom but those scattered greens are one enough reason why it would be a no-no to swim on it let alone dip your feet in it. Before you lash out on unstable weather conditions, you must know that dead algae in the pool bottom are due to various reasons like lack of water circulation, clogged filters and of course, irregular cleaning. Cleaning it once won’t do the deal so how do you remove dead algae from pool bottom really? Here’s how. 

What you will need?

To remove dead algae from the pool bottom, of course you will need the basic pool maintenance tools like a filtration pump, pool brush that is compatible with the pool flooring, pool net, pool vacuum and chlorine. But since it is more complex than just cleaning it once a month, you will need more and these are the following: 

• Pool net
  
• Pool brush
  
• Chlorine
  
• Pool pH tester
  
• Pool pump and filtration system (you will need these more than once so make sure you have a heavy duty one)
  
• Gloves and glasses/goggles (with all of the chlorine, oxidizer and clarifier at bay, you will need to protect yourself from chemicals too)
  
• Pool oxidizer/algaecide and clarifier
  
• Pool vacuum
  
• New pool filters (if necessary)

Step by step instructions

There are nine steps featured here but they are not as hard and tedious as the number would suggest. Pictures and video guides are here to give you visuals of how you will do it and enough description that you can do yourself. 

step 1

Check your pool’s pH balance:

pools with high pH levels are good breeding grounds for algae. To make sure that you remove all the dead algae from the pool bottom, you need to perform pool test. If it is 8.2 and above, you have to reach the neutral point to stop algae blooming once and for all after the dead algae is removed.

step 2

Turn on the pump/pool filtration system:

The second step is to run the water pump for the next 24 hours. This will help in prohibiting stagnation while you net out floating dead algae that were disturbed while the water pump was on. 

step 3

Add pool oxidizer/algaecide and pool clarifier:

Before brushing the pool flooring, take the startup by killing all the sprout-out algae making them a whole bunch of algae to clean off. If you get a clear pool in the morning, you drain all the water and move on to the next step. 

step 4

Brush the pool:

The brush you should use depends on the type of material the pool has. Scrub the pool bottom, wash with water and then drain. Do so with enough pressure so that you won’t scrub too hard and scratch the pool flooring. 

step 5

Start the pool vacuum:

Scrubbing the pool floor could take out so much so removing dead algae from the pool bottom needs more pressure from a pool vacuum. There’s a robotic vacuum but better results come using manual vacuums as you could control the suction power, hence, helpful in removing more loose algae from the pool bottom or those hidden in pool ladders. 

step 6

Brush and vacuum again:

The work does not stop here. If you want the most thorough dead algae removal, you have to repeat the brushing step and then vacuum again.

step 7

Clean the clogged filters:

Remember the you already run the filtration system and also did the vacuuming twice. Chances are, some dead algae are suspended in the already clogged pool filter. After cleaning them up, it must be best to just replace them altogether and clean them every two months.

step 8

Balance the pool chemistry once and for all:

By the time you get to this process, 90% of the dead algae are already gone. After testing up the pool chemistry, add the right amount of chlorine and test it up again until it reaches the neutral level. Maintain this pH level so that no algae will bloom again. Here’s a video guide you can check for this one. 

step 9

Run the pump/filtration system for the next 18 to 24 hours:

The chlorine needs to circulate in the whole pool area and you can do that by running the pump/filtration system for one whole day. The chlorine infiltrating the newly changed filters and pipes will also lessen algae buildup so you won’t have problems removing deal algae from the pool bottom for a considerable period of time.

Conclusion

Removing dead algae from the pool bottom can be avoided permanently as long as you follow strict maintenance procedures. Checking the pool’s pH balance after many uses is one small thing that could go a long way to prevent this from happening. Adding chlorine when pH levels go off is also an easy procedure. The point is, you should not allow your pool to go this dead algae road but if it does happen inevitably, just follow these steps and you are good to go for another pool fun. 

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