Metal in Pool Water, How to Treat and Eliminate Metal

WEBSITE: www.swimmingpoo...
Metal ions in your pool water, Copper, iron or manganese to name a few can cause your water to be discolored and cause staining on your pools surface. Besides draining your pool and refilling it there is a process you can follow to remove the metal ions from the water.
WHY THIS FAILS TO WORK:
NOT ENOUGH Metal Sequestration agent was added. If your pool is 20,000 and the bottle says the initial dose is one bottle for 10,000 add TWO bottles.
YOU ARE using a cheap Metal Out product. Use only products with Phosphonic Acid like Super Stain Out or Jack's Magic
SOME STAINS are permanent and can only be taken out with an Acid Wash
RUST STAINS from a metal object falling into the pool can only be removed trough an Acid Wash or by using a dry acid spot treatment.
SOME STAINS are organic in nature and will not come out without an Acid Wash.
SOME STAINS are actually very aggressive algae and only a Tri-Chlor Tablet or Tri-chlor granular will get those off
POOL MUST run long enough for the sequestration agent and CuLator to work.
FILTER must be clean to insure proper circulation.
CULATOR is a product that removes metal from the water and is not a stain remover. Metals cause staining so it is a stain preventer and metal eliminator
Other related videos:
Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Removing Stains in Your Pool: • Ascorbic Acid Treatmen...
Removing a Rust Stain in your pool with Vitamin C - Ascorbic Acid Treatment: • Removing a Rust Stain ...
How to Diagnose and Test Swimming Pool Stains: • How to Diagnose and Te...
Jack's Magic Stain IDentification Kit: Testing a Metal Stain: • Jack's Magic Stain IDe...
How To Test and Adjust Calcium Hardness in a Pool: • How To Test and Adjust...
How to Acid Wash Your Pool: • Acid Wash, How to Acid...
The first step it to test your water to see if metal ions are present. Most fill water has been purified to eliminate metal ions but there may be enough trace amounts entering your pool, especially if you are filling it or refilling it after it has been drained. Well water is a common source of metal ions.
Metal ions can actually cause your water to change color.
Copper- Green tint
Iron -- Brown Tint
Manganese -- a dark color such as Purple
Sometimes you will also notice your hair or nails turning green after swimming. If you find that your pool does have metal ions in it the video walks you through the steps. Here are some points to also be aware of:
METAL SEQUESTRANT AGENTS
When you use a metal sequestrant agent it will lower your chlorine level as the chlorine bonds to the sequestrant. I would start with a 3.0 ppm level and try to keep it near 1.0 -1.5 during the process. Many people think that the Metal Out agent causes algae and it does in a way by lowering the chlorine level. You also want to keep your pH level low -- around 7.2-7.6 for the sequestration agent to be more effective. If you need to add a little chlorine, add more of the agent also. Note that If the stains reappear you will have to start the process over again from square one.It is not a failure of the sequestration or CuLator but a failure to keep the water chemistry in balance.
You must also note that the sequestrant agent will NOT remove the metal ions from the pool. All it will do is keep it from activating and staining the pool. Once the sequestrant agent wears off the metal ions will reactivate and cause staining. That is why you will need to use the CuLator product.
CULATOR:
This is the only product on the market that actually will remove the metal ions from the water. CuLator takes conventional chelating groups and binds them to a novel, unique, insoluble, non-toxic polymer backbone. This allows for the permanent removal of the metal from the water. he chemistry to produce these insoluble chelating polymers was developed over 23 years.
Conventional sequestering agents surround the metal ions and slow down the oxidation and precipitation of the metal oxides onto the pool surface. These agents break down over time. Many of these agents are phosphate-based. CuLator® is the world's only true metal eliminator. Developed for the Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund Program, these polymers are the only compounds that are insoluble in water, rapidly bind metal ions, and are non-toxic.
You also want to use CuLator when you start up a new pool or after you drain and acid wash your pool.
I ran this 20,000 gallon pool 10 hours a day so that it would have good circulation and allow the CuLator to work effectively. For best results leave it in for a month.
The bag did have a slight blue tint to it. I could see it very well but I am not sure if it is as visible in the video. If you have more questions about the product you can check out their website or call the company directly: 877-900-1213.
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[@SPL]

Yes - I can tend to drone on and on - at least my wife tells me so - I try to edit myself down to the bare essentials but the chopper worked out good in this one ;)

[@WhyYouAskingMe]

Alright, I gave my pool its vitamins. When it gets older I'll switch to Centrum Silver.

[@SPL]

I use the product when I see a metal problem. It seemed to work well - in the pool with the dance floor - when I retested the metal was gone. I actually added the sequestering agent three weeks prior to putting in the CuLator so that I would get a good clean metal reading after using the product. In independent tests the D.E. will trap some metal particles to a point, but not a significant amount. Working on getting a demo electronic testing device for metal as they are the most accurate.

[@FixItWithMe]

Can u just use Culator to remove the stains from the wall?? Or do u have to use the Hasa stain out sequestering agent with it to remove the stain??

[@errollobrien5765]

Very interesting video. One thing I've encountered with the pools I take care of is that once you add sequestrant to the water, the sequestrant prevents iron from reacting with many of the tests available. I haven't tried it with strips, but I have used Hanna and Lamotte kits. In both cases, the tests showed zero for iron in a pool I had removed severe iron staining from with citric acid. Tests before removing the stains suggested 0.1ppm iron and after stain removal and addition of sequestrant all tests said zero. Several weeks later, the iron stains started to come back. The iron wasn't gone, but it was bound to the sequestrant. As the sequestrant wore off, the iron precipitated out again onto the liner. Have you ever had a similar experience? Is it possible that this is happening in the video? Did the iron ever come back in this pool?

[@SPL]

Yes. There is no way to filter the metal out of the pool itself. Studies show that a slight amount come out in a DE filter but nothing measurable. The CuLator will be the best chance of getting the metal out permanently. I say best bet because the results can be mixed. It does trap the metal in most cases but can also fail in some cases too. It needs to be used in conjunction with sequestering agents to work effectively - something the manufacturer doesn't stress enough. The metal needs to be suspended in the water and the Culator needs 30 days to work in some cases - so the maintenance dose of the sequestering agent needs to be added. I think it is worth a shot in your case since the stains have come off - the metal just has no where to go. The pool with the dance floor is metal free from my tests. It took about three bottles of sequestering agent and one CuLator in the pump basket. Ultra 4.0 - funny if you look at the Amazon.com review there are 8 five star and 7 one star reviews with nothing in the middle... but that is the nature of the product and shows how hard it is to remove metals once they are in the water.

[@Roccoguitarband]

I am having an issue with my white pool stairs. I have an inground vinyl pool. The pool store has sold me all sorts of fixes but it he yellow tint always comes back after a few days! I did have 2700 in phosphates but they said no metals in the water. Vitamin C works immediately but it comes back. What could the issue be? They have said everything from its algae to it the phosphates to oh well you’ll just have to keep using the vitamin c since it works 🙄. I have not had the issue before so something is off .

[@SPL]

Sounds like metal may be coming in from the fill water. If vitamin C worked maybe try a full ascorbic acid treatment. Get 2-3 lbs. of ascorbic acid powder from Amazon.

[@Sharkie1717]

Very informative, thank you 🙏

[@patkrohmer6496]

Hey...one more question... Have you ever tried the Periodic Products ( ascorbic and citric acid metal stain removers and Sequesterant )? We purchased them for future use but the process is a little different.

[@SPL]

Yes. They are similar to Jack's Magic and work well.

[@mvm3897]

So what is the difference between the HASA product and Mikes? I guess I am a bit confused of the order. I have a metal stain and as far as I can tell the procedure is as follows. Step1: PH and Alkalinity balanced Step2: Chlorine 1.0 - 0 Step3: Add ascorbic acid at a rate of alb per/10,000 gallons Step4: Add metal sequestering agent about 1 hour after Ascorbic acid. Step5: use the CuLator product. Step6: Leave chlorine at 1.0-0 for a few weeks and the slowly raise the chlorine to normal level while minting PH and Alkalinity. Bur which of the sequestering product should I use? The HASA or Mikes magic stuff. I also have a fiber glass pool if that makes a difference. Thanks for all the great info BTW. I am finally starting to under stand my pool.

[@SPL]

Jack's Magic is a better Metal Sequestering Agent and the HASA is good at both metal and organic stains. I would go with the Magic Stuff if you can order it. You are correct in your procedure. Maybe wait til Winter so pool doesn't turn green.

[@mvm3897]

Swimming Pool Tips, Reviews & How To -MrDgvb1 So just live with the yellow stain until winter?

[@SPL]

mvm3897 At least until the weather in your area cools off a bit. September or October. Letting your chlorine zero out in August is probably not advisable...

[@WalkingbytheSpiritAlways]

Hi. I have been trying to remove iron off of the pool walls and a rock wall that is above the water line for three feet all alongside one side of the pool. I have used Metal Free after the Stain Free to get it off the walls, and Goof Off Rust remover to clean the stacked stone. Unfortunately I had a relay go bad and for four days the pool was stagnant. The pool repair man told me to shock it with six bags of shock even though the Metal Free says not to shock for at least a week (It had only been put in the day before the electrical problem). So I ended up with horribly dark tea/coffee colored water. So now I have put in Metal Out Plus, and I am putting paper towels in the skimmer basket and getting a lot of iron out of the water, but the water is going from brown to green because of algae growing in Hot Lanta. Do you have any idea how to control the algae when I am not supposed to turn on the salt generator? I just got a new Zeolite filter material in my filter before all this. The water tests keep saying .2 for iron and .2 for copper. Thanks to you, I didn't know they made test strips for iron and copper, so thank you. Hope you have been well since you made this video seven years ago.

[@dpeagles]

Did you get your problem resolved?

[@HoboCabbage]

I cant find this at any of the commercial / retail pool supply places near me. I first saw this at a NESPA show and i was intrigued. So i have 2 questions for you. 1 do you use this product a lot, and is it as effective as they claim? and 2. .. ive been told that even DE filters cannot filter metal particles. But ive seen some pools backwash out a rusty red orange color, which leads me to believe ions have been trapped and oxidized on the grids. what are your thoughts on DE filtering some metal?

[@chadwight1666]

I have metal in my water from old heater pipes. I just painted the gunite pool two years ago but this metal is almost adding a film over it. Its much worse on the floor by my return lines. I was told the best way to eliminate the metal in the water is to drain it. Is this true? how to I get the film or stains off once it is drained.

[@SPL]

+Chad Wight Depends on how bad the staining is. If your going to drain it the only way to remove the stains is with an acid wash. Two year old paint - acid could affect it - did you use a primer 1st when you painted?

[@chadwight1666]

Yes I did use a primer. The stain comes right off with Vit. C tablets but the stain is so wide spread I couldn't remove it like that. I saw a video of running the pool water through a 5 gallon bucket full of cotton that would help filter the water. I know its a reach but I think its worth trying? maybe? It's drained halfway now and if I rub my hand over wall it comes right off. It will not come off with a brush though, doesn't matter style of brush. I love to show a pic but don't think I can on here.

[@SPL]

+Chad Wight Try this treatment. Relatively inexpensive and should do the trick if the vitamin C tablet worked. Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Removing Stains in Your Pool: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b5zKqnSJfc6cd9k

[@dylan833-k2i]

I had no idea they put that into the sequestrant for pools. I do have water treatment for a living and we use the HEDP also in our blends we make. We use it as a threshold inhibitor for Calcium Carbonate scale. We feed it combined with PBTC as 8-14 ppm active Phosphonate. I am curious if this works with pool RX or a copper ionizer of the liquid form (copper sulfate pentahydrate).

[@SPL]

It will remove the copper from the PoolRX unit and any other copper source.

[@mvm3897]

Your channel has been my life line to all my pool concerns. I've been fighting an iron stain on my fiberglass pool for a while now. I've been able to remove the stain before following the instructions with the stain remover but as soon as I start to bring my chlorine back up the stain returns and often times worse. Should I remove the stain 1st then remove the metals from the water or remove the metals from the water then treat the stain or can I do them at the same time? Thanks for the info you out out.

[@SPL]

Would say to use some sequestering agent and the Culator 4.0 first to get rid of the metals. Then after 2-3 weeks do the ascorbic acid treatment to remove any staining that is left.

[@mvm3897]

@@SPL Thank you again for the info and reply

[@Keep-on-ok]

Can I filter well water prior to filling the pool and remove the metals? I have treated the bottom of my pool with Stain Free and followed up with Metal Free. I have a CuLator in the skimmer basket. Getting ready to treat the pool a second time with Stain Free. Thank you!

[@SPL]

Look at the Culator FillFast Pre-Filters

[@allysonschlein4574]

I have iron in my pool water. Using these products now. But what do you think causes the iron in your pool water? Thanks

[@SPL]

Could be from the fill water or maybe dirt that gets in the pool.

[@sebastianramos4396]

I have a copper issue. It’s turned the water green. I have added citric acid and sequestering agent. My PH is 7.6. Copper is 0.5. Will the sequestering agent with citric acid make the water clear again? How long should I wait before taking more action? I have a CuLater 1.5 in the skimmer as well and the filter is set to recirculate.

[@SPL]

You will need a culator 4.0 in your case. It should start to clear once chlorine levels drop below 3.0 ppm

[@sebastianramos4396]

@@SPL thank you! I had a cu later 1.5 in the pool. For the last 4 days it’s lighter but not clear. In your experience how long before you see clear water?

[@patkrohmer6496]

Ok...we are coast to coast here thanks to KZbin! Your clients are in great hands with you!

[@inventergirl8627]

I have an above ground pool 18x 48 about 6,100 gallons. The water is cloudy. I went to get the water check and was told it has copper 0.9ppm. So I was told to add stain free by Natural Chemistry which I did about 10 days ago. Well, I saw a green color around my skimmer and the filter sock, and the filter was green. I was able to easily clean it all. At the pool store they said it the green color is algae. So I shock the pool a few days ago, but I still see green in the filter sock. Today my husband place a PoolRX, he did not know about the copper in the pool. Know I do not know what to do because PoolRX is also copper, but doesn't stain. I was not aware you should not place an PoolRX when the water has copper. Until I saw your video. What do you recommend? I think the green is copper not algae. Please help.

[@SPL]

Culator 4.0 and a metal sequestering agent. That should remove the copper. Remove the PoolRx also.

[@inventergirl8627]

I appreciate you provided a response. The pool supplie stores do not help. I live in Pflugerville tx, we have hard water and it is a problem. If you can please recommend a free copper algaecide, shock product and also what chlorine tablets to use. I been using clorox blue tablets but I have the feeling there is copper in them. I was also advised to buy a filter for my hose but there are so many. I appreciate you help. Thanks

[@bestmb7401]

Hi, Very interesting video. I have a very particular and challenging problem in my pool. I do not have stains at all. It is a salt water pool with an ORP controlled chlorinator. When chlorine level drops the ORP drops with it and the chlorinator kicks in to generate chlorine. Then the ORP should go up until it reaches the setpoint. In my pool it worked perfectly until the following problem stated showing up: The ORP goes DOWN instead of up once chlorine is generated. After verifying it is not a problem with the controller I started looking for problems in the water. I found I have 0.3 ppm of Al+3. I also noted that on the same time as the ORP goes down, the Al+3 level drops down. I suspect that the ORP problem is related to the Al+3 and would like to get rid of it. I suspect that there is a cycle of Al3+ +3cl- 3AlCl and the equilibrium point depends on concentration of free Cl-. Will culater metal eliminator will also eliminate Aluminium (Al in not mentioned on the package as one of the metal it removes)? Will it work in salt water swimming pool? Do I need to use culater in conjunction with sequestering agents also in my case? Do you have any advice on how to solve my problem? Thank you in advance.

[@SPL]

I suggest contacting CuLator directly as they have a pool water expert on staff who can answer that question for you. He is well versed in metal treatment and will help you with your particular issue.

[@patkrohmer6496]

We have used Jack's Magic iron cobalt etching and blue stuff. Now thanks to your KZbin, we are going to add the missing link, the CULAtor and keep the stains away. Our question is with all these products, we need to keep the chlorine down while the products work and we can get algae during the process. What is the best way to prevent or handle algae without ruining the whole process?

[@SPL]

Just keep the chlorine low during this period and then after a couple of weeks you can gradually raise it up to 3.0 ppm. No shocking or rapid chlorine increases. 1.0 ppm is fine.

[@carlosledee644]

You must continue to use sequestering agent until the metals are fully gone correct?

[@SPL]

Yes. Keep adding it.

[@nicoleyoder1428]

So all last year I topped my pool off with well water through the skimmer with no issues for the whole summer. We did start to see some staining but cured that with stain free from natural chemistry. This year I decided to be pro-active and use a "metal trap" filter to remove iron and the cu-later pouch as well. I also treated with metal free - two caps while topping off. So long story short, I was trying to fight the iron I know we have in our well water. Anyway, previous weeks we have had lots of rain and levels were gradually dropping for PH and Alkalinity so I decided to add some soda ash to bring it back to life. Levels were slightly higher 7.8 and 120 and it was that same day I needed to top off the pool with the the metal trap filter. Within 35 minutes...my pool turned green (clear - can see the bottom of the pool). My first thought was the metal trap filter caused some kind of reaction but the more I think about it...the PH and Alkalinity were also probably increased by my well water then with the iron (that was already in the pool) I caused it to turn green. We initially shocked it and used algicide but it did nothing. When i added vitamin C (StainFree)...it turned about 75% back to blue. We use bromine so I am keeping the levels on the lower side while treating this issue. I want to use the stainfree again and follow it with Metal Free. Do you have any thoughts on what happened, what I should do, and what I need to do for general maintenance for the iron issue. (which by the way, the cu later pouch did pull the iron color match on the edge of the pouch. I am using the 1.0. Does the 4.0 remove more? Thanks again for all you have posted...it is awesome!!!

[@culator1]

+Nicole Yoder When your water turns colors you need to add more acid or sequestering agent until it is clear...then the CuLator will pick up the metal ions. I always recommend the Ultra 4.0 CuLator because you never know exactly how much metal is in the water.

[@dpeagles]

Don't use algaecide. It contains metal.

[@alo300wsmsako7]

have you seen clear view mineral magnet it claims it also removes metals from pool water. Let me know what you think

[@SPL]

It's probably similar to the Jack's Magic Product - it is a metal sequestering agent.

[@Ivan32304]

We have rust stains in the shallow end of our salt water pool. Can I just squeeze a lemon and baking soda mix in a sock and scrub it off? I know lemon and baking soda works fantastic on rust stains, but I don't know how that could affect the salt water pool chemistry. I don't want to rub off the marcite finish.

[@SPL]

Try a vitamin C tablet in a small area and see if that works. But the baking soda might work also. I have better luck with vitamin C. Removing a Rust Stain in your pool with Vitamin C - Ascorbic Acid Treatment: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3bTo4OnbL6lmrc Ascorbic Acid Treatment for Removing Stains in Your Pool: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b5zKqnSJfc6cd9k

[@Ivan32304]

Swimming Pool Tips, Reviews & How To -MrDgvb1 I have lemon, and I have baking soda and I know neither kicks butt separately if used alone, but together they work magic on rust outside the pool. I am just not sure of any surprise interaction with the salt. Did you have better luck with vitamin C because you didn't try the Lemon & Baking soda together?

[@watamatawata8326]

I just use 'Metal Out'.

[@GayWorldOrder]

The Police Chopper at 4:01 was a nice break from the monotony of your lesson. ;)

[@patkrohmer6496]

We find the Chlorine is virtually eliminated with these metal remover products and the algae appears within days.Perhaps the Florida weather contributes to that. Our pool company associates told us ok to put a chlorine tab in the floating chlorinator but that is so gradual. Is that how you would maintain any chlorine in this process? Thanks!

[@SPL]

That makes some sense but keep an eye on he levels and maybe add some liquid chlorine to bring it up to at least 1 ppm to prevent algae. You basically just want to keep thr sequestering agents working so the Culator can pull the metal ions out of the water.

[@missyardoin5456]

I have a fiberglass pool and well water every time I shock the pool it turns green so I can keep chlorine in it any help

[@SPL]

They sell filters that you can use when you fill the pool that filter out metal. Same company as this CuLator.com

[@jasonborrelli3633]

Can copper effect chlorine levels? Pool store told me cooper eats chlorine. Hence low chlorine reading even though I have been shocking and correct Cya level 72 (SWG pool)

[@SPL]

It shouldn't. Maybe you have an issue with phosphates?

[@patkrohmer6496]

Thank you. That is exactly what Tommy the Pool Guy is planning! We feel like the CuLator is the key. We are doing everything we are supposed to do but are hoping for more longevity of a stain free pool with the CULAtor removing the metal. He too drones on and on so hope all goes well! BTW, in what state are you? We did love your video:)PS... After a successful process, how long after the Culator changes color, do you replace and continue with Sequesterants and new CuLator? Forever?

[@SPL]

Pasadena Ca. area. Sounds like your pool guy has a handle on it. You shouldn't need to add more sequestering agents once the metal is removed. Usually one large Culator pouch is good for an average size pool.