There is nothing worse than a dirty pool than perhaps a stained pool. Identifying pool stains and what they mean is important. There are different approaches towards cleaning certain types of stains. Figuring out what is causing the stain is often possible by looking at the color of the stain. Various maintenance issues have a tendency to create a certain colored stain in the pool. Identifying what those colors indicate can help you locate the source of the problem.

If you have a stubborn stain in your pool, it can be aggravating, to say the least. Stains in your pool can be difficult to remove. Before you attempt to clean a problem stain, first ask yourself a question, ‘how well do you know your pool stains‘? Use our Stain Comparison Chart and key below to identify which type of pool stain you have. Once you’ve identified which type of pool stain you’re dealing with, follow our instruction guide for pool stain removal tips. We also recommend the best products for removing even the most tenacious stains.

Types of Pool Stains & What They Mean

Green Brown Stains

This type of pool stain is typically caused by decaying organic matter such as leaves and debris. Allowing leaf debris to accumulate at the bottom of the pool can cause an unsightly greenish-brown stain.

Stain Removal

To remove an organic stain quickly, sprinkle granular chlorine shock directly on them. On vinyl-liner pools, you’ll want to pre-dissolve the shock first in a five-gallon bucket of water before pouring it on and brushing it in.

Red Blue Stains

Berries cause reddish-blue stains. If you have berry trees in your backyard, this could very well be the culprit of red-blue stains in your pool. As the berries decay, the juice and skin of the berry can cause a stain that looks almost purple in color.

Again, you’ll want to take the same approach as removing organic stains. Brushing the liner with shock is your best option here and should remove the stain quickly.

Blue Green Black Stains

Blue-ish Green-ish Black stains on the bottom of your pool could very well be berries too. However if there aren’t any berry trees in close proximity, high levels of copper could be the cause. If you have copper piping as part of your pool equipment setup, corrosion could cause stains that are of a blue-green black composition.

Mineral Based Algaecides

The leaching effect of copper intrusion has been known to cause stains that can be difficult to remove. Heavy doses of copper-based mineral algaecides have also been shown to produce similar stains. There are products such as Stain Free, A+ Stain Remover, and Jack’s Magic Blue Stuff that do an admirable job of removing stains on vinyl liners.

Green Brown Red Stains

Pool stains that are greenish brownish red usually indicate the presence of iron in the pool. As iron rusts, it has a tendency to leave a rusty greenish brown-red stain. This is true in all types of pools.

Leaching Metal Stains in the Pool

Metal leaching can occur that produces a stain from the pool coping, decking material, and a variety of other sources. Marble, granite, and flagstone all contain the mineral Iron and can leach into your swimming pool after a heavy rainstorm. Stains of this nature also occur without proper waterproofing.

Brown Black Purple Stains

This type of stain may look like a big bruise on the bottom of your pool. Stains that are brownish, black purple tend to be the cause of high levels of manganese. This can actually come from the local water supply, especially if the source is well water. Superchlorination is the best way to handle the problem as it oxidizes the manganese to a rust like substance that can be vacuumed off the pool floor. The next step should be cleaning out the pool filter as manganese can cling to surfaces.

Testing for Organic Stains & Metal Stains in Pools

You can easily detect and remove organic stains with a little elbow grease and the right supplies. The typical field test pool contractors use for determining what type of stain they’re dealing with is to simply rub some chlorine on the stain to see if it dissipates. Metal doesn’t react to chlorine. This is why components such as pool ladders are made of metal. If the stain doesn’t react to the stain, then it’s probably metallic in nature.

One way to test if it’s a metal pool stain that you’re dealing with is to apply some ascorbic acid to the stain. If the stain is removed or at least reacts (lightens) in the presence of rubbing with Vitamin C powder, you have a pretty good indication that it’s a metal stain.

Hydration Stains in Pools With a Plaster Interior

These stains tend to look like metal staining but are present in plaster pools. Since these types of stains can be difficult to remove there are some things you need to know first. Plaster hydration stains occur when the pool plasterer plasters the pool while the form isn’t completely dry or moisture or humidity is present. If you’re certain that the stain isn’t metallic (stain doesn’t react to ascorbic acid) then acid washing the pool interior is the best option for removing hydration stains.

Removing Organic Pool Stains

Once you’ve determined that it is actually an organic stain that you’re dealing with, chlorine is going to be your best friend here. Honestly, if you had the right amount of chlorine to begin with, you probably wouldn’t even have an organic pool stain. Superchlorination of the water is your best option for dealing with organic stains. Shocking the pool is going to help remove stains caused by leaf debris and decaying organic material. The go-to solution for many pool contractors is to use Cal Hypo (Calcium Hypochlorite Shock).

Best Products for Cleaning Organic Pool Stains

Every pool professionals old-standby for removing organic pool stains is Cal-Hypo. The powerful shock treatment is great for removing stains and for a quick chlorine boost to help balance your pool chemistry. Just one pound treats a 16,500 gallons of pool water

$48.99 on Amazon

Jandy Pro Series Stain Remover is expertly designed to remove a variety of different pool stains quickly and effectively. Simply attach the applicator to a pool pole and then attach the supply hose to a bottle of muriatic acid (for metal stains) or chlorine (for organic pool stains). Safely concentrates chemicals over pool stains and is a favorite tool among homeowners and pool professionals alike.

$82.64 on Amazon

How to Remove Organic Pool Stains

• The process here is to test and balance your pool chemistry. Your ideal comfort zone for alkalinity is going to be in the range of 100ppm to 150ppm with 125ppm being the sweet spot.
• The next step would be to shock the pool. For smaller stains a regular dose of Cal Hypo should do the trick. For larger pools or larger stains you’re going to want to up the dose. The typical regimen is 3 pounds per 10,000 gallons.
• The third step in the process is brushing the pool to physically remove the stain. On vinyl liners you’ll want to be careful here making sure not to tear the liner while attempting to clean it.
• Next, run your pump overnight and allow the water to circulate throughout the swimming pool. Make sure to do this for at least 8 hours.
• Brush again in the morning. Repeat the entire process until satisfied with the results.

Removing Metal Pool Stains

The process of removing metal stains is a bit different than removing organic stains, however, using the correct products will greatly assist you in getting rid of metallic pool stains. There are a number of products on the market as we mentioned previously that can assist you in removing metal pool stains. Consequently, finding the right product to use all has to do with first identifying which type of pool stain you actually have.

Best Pool Cleaning Products for Removing Metal Pool Stains

For the removal of metal pool stains, we recommend using Pool Stain Treat, a sequestrate and chelator that is typically used for preventing stains in pool startups. It’s compatible with Baquacil and Soft Swim and works 40-60 days on most pool surfaces. The high strength stain remover works on any kind of swimming pool.

$21.50 on Amazon

Pool Mate Metal Out helps prevent stains in your pool due to iron, calcium, manganese, copper and other types of minerals and metals that may be present. A great all purpose sequestrant, the product also helps to protect pool walls from rust as well as removing stains and scale. Just one quart treats a 10,000 gallon pool.

$24.83 on Amazon

Cleaning a pool stain is only half the problem. Keeping them from coming back is the real issue. Recurring pool stains can be a real nuisance. Moreover, people are less concerned with cleaning a stain and more concerned about why it occurred to begin with. Ideally, people want to keep mineral and metal stains from coming back.

Top Editor Picks for Metal Pool Stain Removal

Metal-Free by Natural Chemistry

CuLator 4.0 Powerpak

There are a number of products that pool service professionals use for tackling metal pool stains. Some tried and true products the pros use are Metal-Free by Natural Chemistry, and CuLator 4.0 Powerpak.

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