Proud new owner of an above-ground SWAMP

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Ok, so vacuuming is a no. The psi just will not stay down, and the basket keeps popping up. The filter is running steady at 21 psi now. I don't understand why it will not decrease - yesterday it was at 18, and the day before that it was at 15. 21 seems too high to me. I have backwashed several times - the longest being 3 minutes, which I just did. The sight glass does seem to be dirtier - it has SAND in it. Or, at least it did til I backwashed. Then there were just a few grains. I did a "rinse" cycle and then it was all gone. Started it back up again, and still running at 21 psi.

How can I get this number down and I guess the idea about getting the air out hasn't worked yet because the skimmer basket is still popping up. I need more ideas/instructions.
 
Keep your filter running on filter until it goes about 10 psi over normal and then backwash for a good long time.

If you have a little air in the system it's normal for the skimmer basket to float up when you stop the pump. My skimmer basket locks down to prevent that from happening.
 
Newbie with a swamp having pump/filter problems

My filter gauge was running at 15 psi the first day, then it was holding steady at 18. Today it jumped up to 20, then 21 and now 22 in spite of frequent backwashing. The water coming out when I backwash looks clear - I haven't yet seen anything that made me take notice. The spyglass sometimes gets some sand in it, or some leaf particles, but the backwashing and then rinsing help.

How can I get this gauge to go back down to normal? I have been backwashing for about a minute and a half, but when I started hitting 22, I went for 3 minutes.

Also - this may be causing the other issue - I tried vacuuming for the first time today, and it was a failure because I had no clue what I was doing. 1, I was vacuuming without the skimmer filter in place. 2, The vacuum hose came unattached at the head, letting air into the system. Now I can't leave my pump running for longer than 10 minutes without the skimmer basket popping up out of the skimmer. As it runs, the psi steadily climbs to 30. The basket also pops up after the pump is shut off. In the "getting started" section of this forum, I've had some recommendations on what to do, but none of them have worked.

http://www.troublefreepool.com/proud-new-owner-of-an-above-ground-swamp-t31992.html

Please help! I don't want to tell my husband I broke our pool.

Edited to add - it's a Hayward pump & filter and there are pics within that thread. Thank you!
 
Thanks guys. How long is "a good long time?" I did it 3 minutes last time. Are you suggesting 5 or 10? I don't know how long is too long! :)

And the basket is like a rocket! It pops up and flips over. I'm all like WTF mate? It definitely didn't do this until I decided to try vacuuming incorrectly. Feh.
 
You've no doubt got some air in the filter but given some run time it should clear itself out. I found no air bleed valve on the filter so I assume it's internal and automatic.

Once the pressure reaches +10 psi above normal you should see the water get very dirty when backwashing. Run it long enough that it gets clear again.
 
Re: Newbie with a swamp having pump/filter problems

A couple of things:

1) Keep everything in the same post. After reading this comment, I would recommend that you abandon this post and go back to following your original post. It's OK to add new problems to an old post as it makes it easier for people to follow, and all the history is in one place.
Topics merged. JasonLion

2) Take a deep breath- you can do this.

3) This sounds like a dumb question, but I cannot tell from the pictures- are you SURE that your pump and filter are hooked up correctly? the line from the skimmer should feed into the skimmer basket of your pump. The pump output should feed to the TOP input on your filter. The fitting right below that feeds the return line to the pool. From the pictures you posted, it looks like you have it right, but it also looks like there could be some misconnection there.

Do you know when was the last time the filter was broken down? Can you take the valve off of the top and look inside? Some of that scum that you are getting on top reminds me of the scum that comes up with a Baquacil conversion. (Baquacil is a chlorine substitute that is not compatible with chlorine) If you are adding Chlorine to a pool that has Baqua in it, that would make the scum form, gum up your filter, and explain the high chlorine demand you are experiencing. (all the gunk in the pool would explain that too!!) Your pool can be converted to run easily on Chlorine, it just takes A LOT of bleach in the beginning.

You might try disconnecting the hoses from the filter and throwing the open ends back in the pool to keep the water from draining. Loosen the clamp at the bottom of the multivalve, remove it and pull straight up on the multivalve. Then you can look at the sand inside. If it looks ok but just dirty, stick a garden hose into the sand bed about a foot (NOT all the way to the bottom) and flush the crud out of the sand. If you see a lot of white Goo on top, I would recommend replacing the sand. Cheap and easy to do, but requires a little (very little) instruction.


Can you post some pics of the connections of your pump and filter in the other thread to verify it's connected properly? Then we can go from there.

You also REALLY, REALLY, REALLY need to get a top notch test kit. It will save you a lot of frustration. Don't give up, with the help of the fine folks here, you can be swimming soon!
 

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I wasn't sure whether I should start a new thread to deal with this issue or continue in my old one. Since I'm new to this board, I wasn't sure what was recommended. :) Thanks for merging them back together.

I didn't connect the hoses - the landlord did. I am pretty sure they are connected correctly, but I will take a look after I get finished replying. I have no idea when the last time the filter was broken down, or if anyone prior to two years ago (when the pool was last open) was using Baquacil. I don't believe anyone was - I've read all the bottles of chemicals that were stored in the shed and the last user had a big tub of chlorine tablets. The landlord bought the first box of powdered bags of supershock.

I have tried to remove all the solids on the floor of the pool, but because it is murky, I can't be 100% sure. We bought a leaf net and hauled up a ton of stuff, and we aren't getting anything out anymore with that. However, when using the scrub brush, the water gets cloudier, and definitely with my failed attempt at using the vaccuum, I saw a dark cloud of...cloud. No big pieces. The only thing large I seem to be getting out of the pool anymore is fresh blown-down seed pods every morning. Not a lot though, and I skim them right off the top.
 
once again, we've all been there so we understand your problems; we'll keep working with you to clean it all up over time!
with your pump, your pictures show it is hooked up right, and since it was working initially I'm pretty sure the filter is hooked up
When your pool has this much debris, it is common for the filter to fill up quickly- that's just it doing its job!
The more stuff you can manually remove, the less to get in your filter- sounds like you have already used the leaf net as best you could...
with your pump on, if water is returning to the pool ANY, you won't tear up the pump- water flow means it is getting lubricated and cooled normally
It's only when you lose prime, and pump is running on air, that you can do major damage, or sticking something through that is big enough/hard enough to tear impellor; your baskets stop that from happening!
Vacuuming right now would speed the process, but the rest will work; it'll just take longer.
the suggestion for looking in your filter is probably a good idea- possibly you sucked up some larger leaves or debris from pool bottom, and it's not backwashing for some reason. but otherwise, you just have to keep working it, backwash when pressure climbs, filter as much as you can maintain it, make sure water is flowing back into the pool, maintain your Chlorine levels as best you can...
 
OKAY. Disconnect the hoses, got the clamp undone and took a look inside the tank. NASTY DIRTY BLACK water. There was no seeing any sand, so I have no idea of the quality of it. Never when I did any backwashing did water that looked like this come out. The water coming out when I backwash looks just like the pool water. I stuck my hand down into the depths of the dark and came up with a handful of sand. It looked clean, other than the mucous bombs that were in it. BLECH. They were round and there were two in the one scoop of sand. I dropped the sand back in and pulled up another. Same clean looking sand, with the snotballs. My husband is currently in the process of closing the tank and hooking the hoses back up to start a long backwash. However, we seriously have NEVER seen the water turn dirty when backwashing. Is there something else going on? I hate to waste all the water if it isn't going to make a difference, and if we should be looking at something else.
 
adoptolderkids said:
Yes, I checked, and the hoses are correct. My husband says actually, the landlord had them backward at first setup, but they quickly realized that the hoses were wrong and they switched them.
Click to expand...

Was water coming OUT of the skimmer at first before he switched them?
 
adoptolderkids said:
OKAY. Disconnect the hoses, got the clamp undone and took a look inside the tank. NASTY DIRTY BLACK water. There was no seeing any sand, so I have no idea of the quality of it. Never when I did any backwashing did water that looked like this come out. The water coming out when I backwash looks just like the pool water. I stuck my hand down into the depths of the dark and came up with a handful of sand. It looked clean, other than the mucous bombs that were in it. BLECH. They were round and there were two in the one scoop of sand. I dropped the sand back in and pulled up another. Same clean looking sand, with the snotballs. My husband is currently in the process of closing the tank and hooking the hoses back up to start a long backwash. However, we seriously have NEVER seen the water turn dirty when backwashing. Is there something else going on? I hate to waste all the water if it isn't going to make a difference, and if we should be looking at something else.
Click to expand...

Does anyone know if the Vari Flo valve being put on wrong could cause this? I just took mine apart today to replace the gasket and I noticed that it would be very easy to put it back in the wrong position if you didn't remember where it was when you took it off.
 
Was water coming OUT of the skimmer at first before he switched them?
Click to expand...

My hubby says he thinks so, but he wasn't paying a lot of attention because the landlord was acting like he knew what he was doing and other things were going on in the yard at the time.

He just backwashed for a good long while, and again, the water never shot out dirty - it just looks like normal pool water. Something isn't right if the dirty water is sitting inside and not coming out!
Does anyone know if the Vari Flo valve being put on wrong could cause this?
Click to expand...

My husband says he doesn't know what or where this is, but if someone tells him, he can tear it apart and see. We have a bit - he's grilling dinner right now, but after we eat he has time to devote to it if someone can give advice!
 
adoptolderkids said:
He just backwashed for a good long while, and again, the water never shot out dirty - it just looks like normal pool water. Something isn't right if the dirty water is sitting inside and not coming out!
Does anyone know if the Vari Flo valve being put on wrong could cause this?
Click to expand...

My husband says he doesn't know what or where this is, but if someone tells him, he can tear it apart and see. We have a bit - he's grilling dinner right now, but after we eat he has time to devote to it if someone can give advice!
Click to expand...

Look at the top of your filter where the handle is. That's the Vari Flo multi-port valve. There should be 6 screws which attach the top half to the bottom. Are there any notches, marks or anything that line up on both the top and bottom of those two pieces? My valve is a little older than yours and there are not any marks that I can see so I have to rely on remembering which way the valve was seated.

If it was seated out of position in the past it seems to me it could be doing something different than what you have the handle set to.
 
Well, we went and looked and there are no markings to match up, but we're thinking if that it was set to something else, then wouldn't one of the others start backwashing when selected? That isn't the case. "Backwash" does send water out the hose onto the grass and spin the stuff in the spyglass. The "close" option does stop the water, and the "rinse" option flushes out the spyglass.

We did discover - just now - that the landlord told my husband to set the handle to "recirculate" to clean the water. Is that correct? I've been setting it to "Filter" which makes sense to me! Just now the recirculate was giving us an 18 psi rating, but when I told my husband to switch it to filter, it popped back up to 21.
 
Recirculate bypasses the filter and is only useful if you are having a problem with the filter and need to avoid using it for a little while. The vast majority of your pump run time should be spend with the valve set to filter.
 

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