Pump Running 24/7 with D.E. Filter - Ok or Problem?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
S

Scoop

LifeTime Supporter
Jul 13, 2012
217
Dallas, TX
My pool is running good, no issues known, water & tests all ok.

Is it ok to run the main recirculation pump continuously 24/7 with a D.E. Filter? Someone told me once that a D.E. Filter shouldn't have the pump running more than 48 hours continuously as it will "super-pack" the D.E. onto the Grids.

Currently, I run my pump about 14-15 hours/day on a timer. Over the years, I've run the pump 8 hrs/day, 10 hrs/day, all without issues.

I think, with a 15k pool, it takes about 8 hrs to get 1 complete recirculation water turnover but that's only a rough estimate based on what a pool guy told me years ago.

I rarely run the pump overnight or more than 24 hrs continuously unless there's an unusual issue occurring, treatment of water, etc.

I read the SLAM procedure and it says that the pump should be running 24/7 until the SLAM results are good. I haven't had to SLAM the pool but was curious after reading that in the procedure and what someone told me about D.E. Filters and pumps running 24/7 .
 
Sounds like BS to me. The DE is all packed against the screens within seconds of startup and the pressure doesn't get any higher unless the grids get packed with debris they're straining out - which is what they're supposed to do anyway. That's what filters do.

Running 24 hours won't harm anything but your wallet. And you might as well forget that whole turnover malarkey as well. The only way that would work was if you were drawing all the water out of the pool and sending the filtered water tyop a separate pool. The clean mixes with the dirty so you never get 100% filtration no matter how many hours you run it. I manage just fine on a mere 3 hours a day. Pool School - Determine Pump Run Time
 
I use the TFP method and run my 38,000 gal pool 5 hours per day with no problem and it gets HOT here. My chems remain balanced per TFP recommendations and I can still see the phillips head screws clearly that attach my drain cover at my 10' deep end. Winter time I cut it down to 4 hours. According to flow rate specs for my pump with a 12' head height, it should turn my water over ( I should say send all the water through the pump) in 4 hours.
 
gary300

Thanks. Hot here too (Dallas) :). From reading the thread, I'm sure my pump is running longer than necessary. I've been looking into a Flow Meter lately as I've never installed one on my pool lines and it seems like it would be a nice data point to have available for troubleshooting or calculating pump flows.

I've been looking at the FlowVis meter lately and reading threads at this forum about other members that have them installed, gathering information for now to see if I'll get this meter.

Richard320

Thanks for the info. 3 hours pump running time, that's amazing. I'd never have figured a pool in the summer would be able to remain clean with that short of a pump running time. I learn something new every time I visit this forum :).

isriam

Thanks for the gpm/flow info. My Pool Pump is unfortunately the only equip component that I have no info (the template and pump is many years old, unreadable, and I didn't record that info years ago). It would be interesting to know the gpm output at a time when my pool is running good.


I have an unrelated question about adding normal Bleach (for routine dosing, not SLAM or shocking) and the pump recirculation.

I usually add my Bleach dose around 5pm in the summer as that's when my pool is completely shaded by a tree nearby. I recall that I extended my pump running time to about 9-10pm (my current pump timer is on at 8am, off at 10pm) so that it would have a few hours of running after adding Bleach.

Assuming the pool is balanced (all readings good, water clear) is it necessary for the pump to remain running for a period of time after adding routine Bleach doses?
 
Assuming the pool is balanced (all readings good, water clear) is it necessary for the pump to remain running for a period of time after adding routine Bleach doses?
Click to expand...
We usually say 30 minutes between chemical additions and after adding anything. You can shorten that by brushing all around the pool to set up cross currents.
 
10-4. Thanks for the info.

34p1761.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply