I bought a home last year and now need to learn about how to maintain the pool so I'm very happy to have found this forum. Thanks in advance to all the experts here who's patience I might test a bit at times.
We have a DE filter that I suspect will need to be replaced soon because the top half of the fiberglass housing is de-laminating to the point that I can clearly see the fiberglass fibers (all the gelcoat is fully gone). I suspect this is due to prolonged exposure to sun without being cleaned and either waxed or somehow shielded from the sun. Regardless, there's a steel clamp around the waist of the fiberglass shell which secures the upper and lower half of the filter. The steel band is tensioned and secured by a plastic turnbuckle fitted to a shank. The plastic turnbuckle is actually molded over a brass nut which tensions the shank and steel band. The plastic turnbuckle enables easy tightening and loosening of the steel waist band without need of tools. At least that's the way things are supposed to work but somebody apparently over-torqued it and stripped the plastic turnbuckle loose from the brass nut within.
I see evidence of minor water leakage from the joint between the halves so I suspect the former knucklehead living here tried to tighten the seal by over torquing the turnbuckle. I had to cut the plastic turnbuckle away to expose the brass nut so I could use a wrench to lighten tension and remove the steel band. Once that was off I figured the top half would be easy to lift off so I could inspect things inside. Not so it is on there as if being help in place permanently.
So so at this point I have a few questions that I hope folks here can assist with:
1) How do I get the lid off or should I just replace the entire shooting match? (I was hoping to salvage it for another year or so, but I'm guessing the thing hasn't been opened or cleaned properly since long before I took possession so it's anyone's guess if it's even serviceable at this point. I do know it ran well and filtered the water very nicely last year (we moved in last August so it did work until winterization in September but the pool service company couldn't get the filter open then to clean and inspect internals).
2) if the verdict is to replace, what size sand filter is recommended (I'm considering switching to sand when the time comes). If I switch to sand, do I need to go with a new pump too (the existing pump seems fine and looks to be about 5 years old).
Thanks much for for your feedback!
We have a DE filter that I suspect will need to be replaced soon because the top half of the fiberglass housing is de-laminating to the point that I can clearly see the fiberglass fibers (all the gelcoat is fully gone). I suspect this is due to prolonged exposure to sun without being cleaned and either waxed or somehow shielded from the sun. Regardless, there's a steel clamp around the waist of the fiberglass shell which secures the upper and lower half of the filter. The steel band is tensioned and secured by a plastic turnbuckle fitted to a shank. The plastic turnbuckle is actually molded over a brass nut which tensions the shank and steel band. The plastic turnbuckle enables easy tightening and loosening of the steel waist band without need of tools. At least that's the way things are supposed to work but somebody apparently over-torqued it and stripped the plastic turnbuckle loose from the brass nut within.
I see evidence of minor water leakage from the joint between the halves so I suspect the former knucklehead living here tried to tighten the seal by over torquing the turnbuckle. I had to cut the plastic turnbuckle away to expose the brass nut so I could use a wrench to lighten tension and remove the steel band. Once that was off I figured the top half would be easy to lift off so I could inspect things inside. Not so it is on there as if being help in place permanently.
So so at this point I have a few questions that I hope folks here can assist with:
1) How do I get the lid off or should I just replace the entire shooting match? (I was hoping to salvage it for another year or so, but I'm guessing the thing hasn't been opened or cleaned properly since long before I took possession so it's anyone's guess if it's even serviceable at this point. I do know it ran well and filtered the water very nicely last year (we moved in last August so it did work until winterization in September but the pool service company couldn't get the filter open then to clean and inspect internals).
2) if the verdict is to replace, what size sand filter is recommended (I'm considering switching to sand when the time comes). If I switch to sand, do I need to go with a new pump too (the existing pump seems fine and looks to be about 5 years old).
Thanks much for for your feedback!
