Multiport Valve

[whitneymrichter]

Need helping figuring out my equipment. We just bought a new house with a pool and after all my research can't seem to figure out how my system works. It is pretty old (house was built in the late 60's which I am pretty sure was when the pool was built as well) and currently has a sand filter.

I have everything working pretty well but cannot seem to figure out where the multiport valve is in order to set the system to backwash or waste. The only valve on it at all looks like this:

I will try to get actual pictures of the filter system included as well but for now this is all i have. This is a bad picture of it but the handle says "flow" with an arrow which is why I thought maybe this was the right valve. The brand on the valve is Ortega which so far hasn't helped with my research.

I have turned it both ways however and it does not appear to change the way the filter runs.

Like I said before everything seems to be running fine, I would just like to know that I could set my pool to backwash or waste if needed!

Thank you and I am sorry if this is not enough information to get an answer. Again I will try to get pictures up later tonight or tomorrow.

 

[jblizzle]

That is a 3-way valve and generally has nothing to do with backwashing.

We need actual pictures of your setup and more details in your signature.

If you have a cartridge filter, then you would not have a backwash option and probably not have a waste option.

 

[Richard320]

If you have a cartridge filter, there will be no valve.
If you have a sand filter, you'll probably have a multiport valve

If you have a DE filter, you might have a multiport or you might have a push pull backwash valve

or you might be stuck with what I have, which is a lever below the filter in the worst location that pulls one way to filter and the other to backwash. The waste pipe is also on the base of the filter, which works out nicely so I can blast the grids clean while they are in place and it all runs out the bottom by gravity. Sorry, no pic.

Anyway... you might enjoy looking through the Visual Encyclopedia to help identify pool stuff the prior owner left behind.