Sand Filter media

[profector]

Hi all,

Pool's been looking good all summer, then one day a couple of weeks ago it started getting a little cloudy and it's just gone downhill since. Had a massive algae outbreak that took too much effort to get under control. And even after that I can't get the water to clear up. The water test says all is okay. Alk drops a little tiny bit now and then but a couple lbs every few weeks fixes that up. The pool shop asked how old the sand is, but I didn't know I'm guessing more than three since I bought the house bout three summers ago. I haven't changed it and I doubt the previous owner did in their last couple of years.

I don't know for sure the sand is the problem but the pool store is hinting at it. Since I don't know it's age I can't eliminate it. The filter is Triton II tr140, it's huge and tucked away in a corner so it's going to hard to work on. If anyone has any other ideas before I start I'm open.

 

[kadavis]

- - - Updated - - -

You might try using DE in the filter first. There's a description in the How to section of Pool School - Add DE to a Sand Filter this site

 

[pooldv]

We don't recommend changing sand. It doesn't go bad unless it gets glued together by pool store chems. You can deep clean it, Deep Cleaning a Sand Filter But, normally cloudy water is a water chemistry problem and not a filter problem. DE might help or raising FC halfway between target and shock for your CYA might help also, [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA].

 

[Rollercoastr]

My only regret from adding DE is that I bought a big box of it. For a sand filter owner, that's a lifetime supply. I added it to the pool in the final stages of a SLAM. The water is crystal-clear even at night. It's still in there - I never saw enough pressure increase to warrant a backflush, so I likely would've benefited from introducing it earlier to help clear dead algae faster.

If I had the chance to do over again, I'd find a friend of neighbor with a DE filter and just ask for a few cups from their supply.

 

[Geebot]

My only regret from adding DE is that I bought a big box of it. For a sand filter owner, that's a lifetime supply. I added it to the pool in the final stages of a SLAM. The water is crystal-clear even at night. It's still in there - I never saw enough pressure increase to warrant a backflush, so I likely would've benefited from introducing it earlier to help clear dead algae faster.

If I had the chance to do over again, I'd find a friend of neighbor with a DE filter and just ask for a few cups from their supply.

If you have an herb garden then DE will help keep insects from chomping on the leaves. Just scatter it around the plants.

 

[Piolin]

If you have an herb garden then DE will help keep insects from chomping on the leaves. Just scatter it around the plants.

The garden DE is not heat treated, so is NO Bueno for swimming pool... ?

 

[Piolin]

The garden DE is not heat treated, so is NO Bueno for swimming pool... ?

But the pool DE should not be spread in the garden, it's carcinogen if inhaled...

 

[Rollercoastr]

dang. I did some reading on DE in gardens and was pretty excited about that as an option. Most articles don't mention heat treatment.

I might buy some garden DE for outside use though - sounds like pretty useful stuff.

 

[profector]

DE for the pool should be here tomorrow. Let's hope that does the trick. From what I've read I add a little to a skimmer till the filter pressure goes up by one psi.
Vacuuming seems to just stir up the cloudiness more. Its almost like there's no filter there. If the pressure didn't go up when the pump goes on id think it was stuck in recirculate.The good news ...my wife's suggested fix is to get a robotic vacuum.


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[profector]

Just an update for anyone that might be interested. Pools nearly perfect now there is still more than normal sentiment settling at the bottom but nothing anyone other than me would notice

The DE was doing its job but I could tell it was going to take several day to get it clear. After bout 24 hours with DE in the filter I added a clarifier. The next day it looked much better but still no where near perfect so I added a little more. 72 hours later it looks almost back to normal. Water still test perfect with home kit and pool store test.


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[pabeader]

How did the deep clean go? Was there a lot of stuff in there?