There is nothing more frustrating or discouraging than when the family heads out to your swim spa or pool only to discover that the water has turned green. While this may mean that your swim is going to be delayed for a bit, it doesn’t mean that there is no solution to the problem.

Of course the best solution is prevention. This is mostly taken care of with the right maintenance, but there are times when proper maintenance is not performed, resulting in green water. This doesn’t mean that you have to drain your pool, but you do have some work ahead of you.

First, you want to start with some manual labour, which involves skimming the pool to get rid of any large debris that has gotten into your pool. If there is a lot of debris that has accumulated at the bottom, you will want to use a large leaf net skimmer. It may begin to get difficult to see what is on the bottom as you disturb the water. If necessary, give the water a chance to settle periodically, so you can see what you are doing.

It might be tempting to run for the pool vacuum, but don’t do this as these large items could end up clogging your filter. For the smaller debris, you can use your hand skimmer following the removal of the big debris. You also want to ensure that your filter system is clean and working properly as it has a big task ahead of it to help restore your water.

You are now going to have to rely on some pool chemicals to assist you. You want to be sure that the PH and alkaline levels are where they should be. Then, you want to shock your pool. There are several pool chemicals on the market designed just for this. Most of them are chlorine based. This is what is going to kill off the algae and the bacteria. How much you will need depends on how green the water has become, as well as what the manufacturer of the pool-shocking product suggests. When it begins to do its job, you will see the water turn to a light green to a cloudy white colour, then back to a clear state.

You will need to run your filter consistently until you reach this stage, as well as back wash a couple of times during this restoration process.

If these procedures aren’t giving you results, there may be problems with your filter, which you will have to investigate further.

Once the water has become clear, you may need to skim the bottom once again for any left over debris.