I wasn't quite sure which topic to post this under but I work in commercial pools. And I have 18 of the Neptune Benson Flat Grate, Size: 18 Inch x 18 Inch, White.... Main drains that need to be replaced due to lost main drain certifications. They were installed in 2019, so they would have to be replaced after next year anyway. I guess my question is there any direct swap for the top grate? Notice in the picture that the screw is offset from the corner and almost every other Neptune Benson, the screw hole is in the corner. I'm aware of Neptune Benson buying out Lawson.. I'm just wondering if there's a solution here other than drain the pools and reinstall main drains from the get-go. This is for a city inspection purposes. And obviously this community wants the pools open and up to code ASAP since the pool's got shut down because of it.

Good morning! My electrician is stating that the waterfalls are not compatible with the Pentair automated system. On the Intellicenter 2 app on my phone is showing under "Lights" - lights for the lazy river which include all (8) of the MicroBrite lights in the lazy river, both GloBrites in the bubblers in the lazy river beach entry and the three CMP waterfalls on the pool wall. On the Intellicenter 2 app it's not showing options for colors (except white) or color shows for any of them.
Questions:
-Is there any other way besides turning on/off to change the lights on the CMP Natural Wonders Waterfalls?
-Should they be listed under "Lights" OR under "Features" separate?

We have a 36x18 vinyl liner inground that has two AquaGenies (skimmer/return in one) on one of the long sides and a normal 1.5” return on the other. We installed it four years ago. Last year, the normal return seemed to have a drop in the flow rate coming from it. With the other two returns open, it’s hard to even feel anything coming from it. If I partially close the valves to the other two returns, I can coax it into flowing, but even then it’s not steady: it spurts and squirts with a lot of bubbles. If I close the other two returns completely, it seems “normal”.

I am guessing I have a minor crack or break in the return plumbing. I bought a leak test kit, but before partially draining it to access the return, I wanted to see if there’s another possibility I haven’t thought of.

Not sure if this is the right thread but……second season using the TF Pro Kit and the smart stir LED light no longer working. Fresh batteries and magnet still sound great just no light which is beneficial those mornings when I need to leave before sunset. Any else have this problem? Any one able to successfully repair? TIA

How do you check to see if the water temp sensor is working that does to a Pentair Panel?

My MasterTemp 400 shows erratic temperatures on the board. It is controlled by my Pentair Panel. It goes through the startup of 128 r13 but never starts. It initially shows a temp of 78 and then jumps to 120 something and stays there.
I checked the Thermistor and it shows 9.5 ohms. I had a spare one that I installed and still the same results.
It was working fine a couple of days ago, but now no go.

Any ideas?

I have a 20' round above ground pool. I've used a sand filter + SWG for the past 8 years.

Backwashing and having to refill + add salt is kind of annoying, and with the addition of a Nautilus CC this season, I'd really like to make the pool as hands-free as possible in our short season (mid-may until mid september).

I was looking at getting the Hayward SwimClear 525 sqft filter but noticed the plumbing won't even match my current plumbing (2” x 2.5” vs 1.5") so made me take a step back.

Can I go TOO big with a cartridge filter?

An old 28k pool with a built in spa (no heater anymore). We are planing to replace concrete and coping around the pool and would like to eliminate the spa. Spa has 2 drains and 5 returns)
Can we just fill it up (cap the returns to spa)? Main pool has 3 returns

I've seen some older threads on this, but wanted to get some new comments and input on these tools.

We've had our pool for a year now and I am about to perform the first clean before we jump in this season. I initially started seeing things like the Cyclone Pool Filter Cleaner and the Cart Clean Pro, which is basically just a stand to place your filter on. They spin while you spray them and I guess it flings the crud out too. Definitely not paying that price when I can just use a broom handle, but then that led me to what attachment would be best? What's everyone's thoughts on these?

- High pressure nozzle - seems like a safe bet, but basically the same idea as using a regular garden hose?
- Aqua Comb looks pretty good except it looks like it's all ABS plastic. I like the idea of the combs getting in between the pleats, but it would be tedious work trying to get in between every single pleat.
- Filter Flosser made of aluminum so that's good. Not sure it can really get in between the pleats very well though.

Also, what is the safest thing to be soaking the filters in or spraying onto them before hosing them down? Would like to prolong the life of these filters as much as I can. I'm wondering how much buildup from oils and sunscreen would even in between the pleats. We don't have a spa/heater, so we are only swimming between May to September or so. The skimmer baskets have socks built into them to catch any large debris and we have no overhanging trees. It's actually pretty open and we just have two young crepe myrtles on the other side of the fence.

Once my Pool was pretty balanced and everything was going great I decided to Outsource the testing to my daughter and she keeps me updated, this past few weeks, it’s been much warmer here in Houston and she told me that the pool chlorine keeps dropping need tons of chlorine to the point where she was putting in a gallon a day yesterday I checked the pool myself it was at a 1 chlorine level. The pool had leaves so we cleaned it out should I try to slam it? If so, can you lead me to that instructions? I also have family coming in on Thursday so if I start today, would it be usable by Friday?
Also, we have not changed the filter. Is that something you recommend we do ourselves and if so, where can I find how to do that? Any other suggestions you can give would be wonderful and appreciated.

Hi all. Have a Hayward PowerFlow Matrix, manufactured 2020. At the end of last season, it seemed to be running louder than usual. Worked fine until end of season. Decided to do some checking (the mounting base was totally rusted - though I believe that's from skimmer water leaking and setting at the pump base - not a seal issue.

Anyway, I can't get the impeller off no how, and Im also not sure if there's too much resistance on it - doesn't seem to spin easily to me, and there is a slight scraping noise.

15sec video - Login to view embedded media
Do you guys think there is more of an issue here or just throw it back together and run it? No one locally services them it seems. Thanks.

Hey everyone -

My FC is at 8.0 and CYA is 40-50. Pool math app puts that at the top of the recommended range. Is this ok for swimming? My kids are getting anxious

My FC comes down very slowly after opening and shocking cuz I have the solar cover on all the time. I have turned the SWG off.

Thanks!

I need to pick up a Hayward OmniPL upgrade kit to replace my dying old Hayward ecommand 4 system. Any recommendations for a reputable online supplier? It’s not cheap so I want to make sure I get a new unit and don’t get taken and end up with a refurbished or used unit from a shady supplier.

The past 2 weeks my calcium test results have been abnormally high, jumped from ~460 to 550. I also had to retest due to color indicator not changing. This past weekend, we noticed blonde hair turning green. I took water samples to Leslie's for metal testing. Pool water was 1.2ppm, hose water was 0.6ppm. The tech told us that many people have had high copper recently due to rains, pollen and mosquito sprays. We have an autocover, but do light a mosquito incense candle next to pool when it's open. Pool is 5 months old. I've never added algaecide. I've added CYA, borates, and chlorine in the past, and muriatic acid regularly.

My question is: is this copper level concerning for a heater coil issue, or could it be an environmental cause?

I had a drain cover get broken at the end of the season last year. I removed it with the intention to replace it, but forgot. Now I’m trying get my pool cleat, but I thunk the drain line is mostly clogged and I am not getting the algae on the bottom of the pool to the filter to backwash out. So I cannot catch up enough on algae removal to make a noticeable difference in cleaning. And the algae is like 3 inches of a thick sludge.
Help!

My pool was uncovered yesterday and there are a bunch of leaves in the bottom of my pool. Is there any issue with using my robot in water of this temperature and emptying the basket fairly frequently? I don't have the time to vacuum manually.

I have an Aqua Products EVO 604 robot.

Greetings, All.

New owners of a home with existing pool. Just had the pool opened, and I will have plenty of newbie questions!

My pool is due for a renovation. The main issue is the infinity edge is leaking causing water to get behind the weir wall stone and behind the catch basin pebble finish. Everything on the “dry” side of the weir wall is delaminating. I had 3 highly recommended pool contractors come take a look and provide a quote. The first contractor came out in June, the 2nd contractor came out in early July, and the 3rd contractor came out last week. I have received no quotes and only “we are working on it”. Is it typical to wait months for a quote? I realize my renovation is more complex than usual, but months to quote seems excessive. I’m now considering doing the tile and stone repairs myself and hiring a plaster company to refinish the pebble. Is that crazy? I’ve done tile and stone repairs on the pool already. One of the pool contractors even complimented the work without knowing I did the repairs.

Hi guys. I just took over taking care of my pool and it's been going okay, but I don't think the suction is working well enough as the pool has looked a little cloudy and there is detritus at the bottom of the pool despite the chems looking good (Leslie's testing).

The pool is about 12,000 gallons. I run my Intelliflo at 1500 RPM for 8 hours, then at 2400 RPM for 2 hours. At 1500 RPM, the crawler doesn't move and there is zero water moving through the skimmer. At 2400, the movement is okay on both. Maybe I'm misremembering, but I think the water used to flow pretty well through the skimmer when it was on 1500 RPM. The filter is clean (I cleaned it only about 2 months ago) and the skimmer and pump baskets are clean. I got a drain king and flushed the pipes fairly quickly, but didn't see any obvious problems. I flushed the air out of the filter and I backwashed for a minute or two a few times. I also unscrewed the valve that diverts the water to the skimmer or crawler and it was clear inside.

Should the crawler and skimmer be moving pretty well at 1500 RPMs? Any ideas to get the water moving better besides raising the RPMs? Thanks very much!

Sold and shipped by Amazon. Is it fake? To me it's 100% not original. Doesn't add any pressure even while cleaning algae.

Pool is open and want to get the pool testing underway to get the balancing done. Are there any concerns with water temp affecting the results in the TFP kit?

Hi all,

I just finished the installation of a brand new Intelliph and I’m looking for a sanity check…

My rotor rotates CLOCKWISE and based on the instructions, the INLET is the right tube and the OUTLET is the left tube. Wouldn’t this setup be pulling water from the OUTLET side and feeding into the tank?

When I do a manual dispense, I see bubbles coming from the intake tube and entering the tank.

There is also an UP arrow on the right inlet and a DOWN arrow on the left inlet.

Can anyone confirm which way the rotor SHOULD be rotating?

And, is there a way to invert its rotation?

I’ve included pics, and here’s a link to a video:


Thank you!

I have a pool + spa ~15000 gallons combo with a variable speed 1HP pump and heater. The pool is able to either circulate pool only, spa only, or spa spillover into pool. Does anyone have any recommendations of a schedule to maximize efficiency of the pump and also the heater so the spa doesn't loose too much heat due to circulation? So far, it seems that I am getting a chlorine loss of about 1-1.5 ppm a day. In addition, does any one have any tips or guides of a good rpm for the pump for the pool and spa mode?

For the past at least 10 years I have used a 90 day algaecide in my pool in the North Fl summer months. This past winter because of health issues I lost my pool for the first time ... Green/black a mud pit. Anyway all fixed for the past month but Ive not had the sparkly water Ive had all my pool use days. 2 days ago I put in my 90 day algae prevention copper based and my pool is super sparkly again ... finally. So Ive read about potential issues with hair, equipment and God knows what else. I don't want to start an argument but I find it much easier to use the "liquid chlorine" method (more forgiving) for taking care of my pool.

WHY should I not use Copper in my pool? Looking for answers. IS it dangerous in some way to my and others health? Oh I have a cheap ... cheaper than an in-ground pool 16x32 Intex pool that I love and have loved for 4 years now. Way cheaper and easier to maintain than a $45,000 hole in the ground.

Where do you get good straps for attaching your solar cover to the pool cover reel. The ones you buy with the attachment (plastic) hardware disintegrate in the heat and sun of Arizona. Any suggestions as to where to buy some more durable strapping?

I have a Maytronics M600 that is now out of warranty. The unit will start forward, start backwards, and the impeller will go for a few second. At that time it shuts off and indicates with the Red LED on the front of the cleaner and ultimately the red ring on the power supply. Things I have looked at:

1. impeller is clear of any debris, and it moves freely in both directions
2. I have cleaned all intakes and debris basket
3. brushes and gears work in both directions
4. no moisture in the motor box
5. no burnt up ends, cables, or connections that can be seen in the motor box of the unit
6. tested the battery pack and got 29
7. looked at the internals of the anti-twist cable enclosure and none of the connections in the plug are damaged or corroded
8. tested continuity from the anti-twist device to the motor of the unit and it does

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Hello everyone,


This is the first time I am posting to this forum, though I have been reading it for a while now, and it's been eye-opening. I live in Las Vegas, and I am getting ready for the new pool season. I'll be draining my pool (water has been 3 years old) and refilling it. I’ve been using chlorine tablets all these years, which has led to a significant increase in CYA levels. Last summer, it was very difficult to keep my pool clean, and I assume the high CYA levels were the reason, as they required more and more chlorine to prevent algae (?)


From my understanding, after reading posts on this forum, I should switch to liquid chlorine. With the appropriate test kit, I plan to test the chlorine frequently and adjust the levels by only adding liquid chlorine. If I do this, is there still any reason to empty and refill my pool every three years? Or is this something pool companies/service recommend because they use chlorine tablets, and they know that CYA levels get out of control after three years, thus requiring a water replacement to start over?


Lastly, if I need to leave for some time during the summer, would it be okay to hire someone to add tablets just for that period? Or could this still be detrimental to my CYA levels? Asking that, becasue it’s difficult to find someone who can come every two days to check the chlorine and add liquid chlorine as frequently.


Thank you all for your help!


Regards,

Tasos

I noticed on the the Pentair Pool App, there is no longer an option for SWG percentage for spa mode. I verified that my IC40 no longer produces when in spa mode. I know previously you could choose up to 20% during spa operation. I sent the question to Pentair support, but they never answered the question. Any ideas on why they did that?

I replaced my flow sensor recently and cleaned the cell grids. I replaced the sensor because after a few minutes of running, i would get no flow. The board tested fine per the test instructions from jandy. Even after replacing the sensor, I still get no flow after a few minutes of running. This is with a clean DE filter and adequate flow to run suction side vacuum and spa spillover.

The pool is about 3 years old. I live in the CA high desert and have high calcium levels. Right now, 650ppm. I don't want to drain the pool every year and have read that higher calcium levels are OK so long as ph and alkalinity are well managed, and negative csi is sustained. I monitor water chemistry religiously and pool is always balanced.

The grids show some corrosion, but it doesn't seem excessive to me. The few minutes when the cell is running, i see bubbles from the returns as i normally would, so I believe it is working.

My questions:
1. Is it possible that the cell has failed and needs to be replaced? I don't imagine that a failing cell would cause no flow, and I assume it would throw error codes of some sort?
2. It also seems as if the pool builder wired the aquapure system to be always on. I have a current generation jandy VS pump with the PUMPIQ01 controller. I assume that the aquapure system should be wired to the pumps auxiliary. There are no relays in the aquapure electrical box.
3. The pool was built just three years ago. If it's supposed to be wired so that the aquapure system is completely off when the pump isn't running, I intend to reach out to the builder and ask that the problem be corrected.

Oddly, I'm able to sustain adequate chlorine levels with pump running 8 hours per day on high and the cell set to 50%, which makes me believe it is cycling between flow and no flow throughout the day. I haven't had hours to sit and watch the system as it runs as i work full time, have young kids, and am trying to wrap up a masters degree at the moment.

I appreciate any help that can be provided. I love this site and the TFP method has helped me have an algae free crystal clear pool since the day we first filled it. I'm just at my wits end with the generator. I'm tempted to throw in the towel and just use liquid chlorine at this point as it would be easier than spending hours fooling around with the generator that doesn't work dependably.

Help me TFP, you're my only hope... Other than paying a pool company way too much money to come figure this out for me! LOL

hi! the house came with an old concrete pool and these items in the photo -
heater, DE filter and 1HP pump.
i guess the pump was left running over the winter for a weekend without water and now it looks like its burned out and the pipes seem melted (photo below was taken 1.5 yrs ago when we paid for a pool survey). how that happened? i installed a wifi timer (this site helped me figure out the wiring!) and somehow it ended up engaging on its own or butt dialed, whatever it was i noticed 3 days later the pump was running after i winterized it.
I bought a

1. used 700sq ft cartridge filter Hayward C7030
2. new Pentair IC60 salt cell
3. new china 2hp pump (yes i know, but the price is crazy to not at least try)

The idea i have is to DIY the following:

1. remove the DE filter
2. Remove the multi-port valve
3. ramove the pump
4. install the cartridge filter
5. install the pump
6. install the salt cell

Question A:
the 2 white pipes coming out of the heater, i assume the right one is the return to the pool pipe? is that where i need to put the salt cell? is hot water going through the cell ok?
i read somewhere:

1. the chlorinated water coming out of the salt cell shouldnt go into the heater, get heated up then go into the pool - is that true? "needs to be placed "after" the heater? fyi the heater will not be on much, i assume a total of 14-30 days a year in the summer
2. the salt cell should be on a higher than the pump level

Question B:
the filter - should it have a bypass valve? for when i want to "back wash" or vaccuum the pool gunk? any advice on what valve to get?
Question C:
is removing the pump and filter and attaching new pipes, joints, gluing - is that easy to do with youtubing advice? i realize i need a cutter for the pipes, glue and primer and some planning skills.

Question D:
looking at the old photo - is there a pipe config you suggest given i am redoing most of it?
(misc status - the pool is a mess tiles are falling off, a couple of large water line cracks, plaster chipping, old lights were removed filled and painted on looks scary, and now theres a leak that lost 2 ft of water and stopped half way (i emptied the water to just below the return jets and over the winter it dropped 2ft! and stopped).

When I start getting lowered output in my returns, and a small bubble appears in the basket closest to the pump:
So I know that the less output in my returns can be clogged filters??
The bubble in the basket means air is not getting purged out(routinely there is no bubble in the basket, so probably an incomplete seal??
When I open the cartridge barrel, under these circumstances, my cartridge holder seems to always be tilting off its normal position.
Why does it do this? Am I doing something wrong? Incoming water pressure too high??
I have already confirmed the barrel itself is sitting level.
Please help.