Waterway Cartridge Filter Review.. Now with pics...

Jimrahbe · Jul 20, 2024

Some of you may have read my threats to replace the two DE filters I have at a couple of rent house.. Well, one of them finally went bad. The ring would no longer seal the filter when fully closed, so I took that as an opportunity to replace it with a Waterway filter from PolyTec pools.

Crystal Water Cartridge

It is a cartridge filter, so what can go wrong??

The filter itself was perfect and I would recommend it as a less costly filter than the Pentair units. Only time will tell on its longevity.

The problem for me was integrating it into my plumbing.. The original filter was DE.. Like all cartridge filters, the In and Out ports are 180 out..

I guess my point is... it took me way way longer to install it than I thought it would. If this were a new pool, it would have been easy, but trying to connect my old plumbing into the new filter was just a pain in the rear..

The installation instructions were clear, except for one thing.. The bleed air hose has to go into a specific spot and I did not see that when I initially took the filter apart.. I figured it out, but really should have been made clear in the instructions.

The Filter came ready to install and there was no need to take it apart.. But, it was too heavy for me to lift by myself, and I was worried that there was some packing material inside. So I moved it to the pad, one piece at a time.

I saw something that I may try when cleaning this new Waterway filter and my other two filters.. I have always used "Pool Lube" to lubricate the large O-Ring between the top and bottom halves of the filter.. But, the O-Ring that came with the filter had a very thin coating... more like a spray on coating. When I apply Pool Lube, it almost always makes the O-Ring slightly longer in length, just making it harder to install.. I'm going to try a spray on lube that is Pool/O-Ring compatible and see how well it works.. I did nothing to the O-Ring that came with the Waterway filter, and it sealed up just fine.

The Waterway filter came with a 60 lb. gauge which I will replace later with a 30 lb. gauge. The stock gauge is inside a plastic ring, that has the typical Clean/Dirty markers.. I 'assume' that I can just use a stock gauge, but have yet to really look at it.

Thanks,

Jim R.

PoolStored · Jul 20, 2024

Jimrahbe said:
I guess my point is... it took me way way longer to install it than I thought it would. If this were a new pool, it would have been easy, but trying to connect my old plumbing into the new filter was just a pain in the rear..

We want before and after pics...

:nopic:

Jimrahbe · Jul 20, 2024

@PoolStored,

I can't argue that pictures would have been better. But... I didn't start out with a plan to review the filter.

It is a little late now... :mrgreen:

Thanks,

Jim R.

proavia · Jul 20, 2024

Jimrahbe said:
@PoolStored,

I can't argue that pictures would have been better. But... I didn't start out with a plan to review the filter.

It is a little late now...

Thanks,

Jim R.

Ok, take it all out and start fresh.
Pics this time!

Or just post a pic of the old filter and plumbing (if you have one).
And a pic of the new install.

Newdude · Jul 20, 2024

1 down 1 to go. Whatever pluming PITA got you in the short term was worth it for the long term. :goodjob:

Jimrahbe · Jul 21, 2024

See pics below..

This is the smaller 325 Sq. Ft. 4-Cartridge filter..

I expect that I will only clean it once a year, twice a year at worst.

The Drain plug is in a location where a human can remove it, unlike my Pentair filter.

My 30 lb. gauge was too big to fit.. Most likely going to just cut the plastic shroud off.

At 1200 or 1300 RPM, the 60 lb. gauge does not move at all.

Thanks,

Jim R.

tcat · Jan 13, 2025

Jimrahbe said:
See pics below..

This is the smaller 325 Sq. Ft. 4-Cartridge filter..

I expect that I will only clean it once a year, twice a year at worst.

The Drain plug is in a location where a human can remove it, unlike my Pentair filter.

My 30 lb. gauge was too big to fit.. Most likely going to just cut the plastic shroud off.

At 1200 or 1300 RPM, the 60 lb. gauge does not move at all.

Thanks,

Jim R.

View attachment 598102
View attachment 598103 View attachment 598104 View attachment 598105 View attachment 598106

I know this is an old thread, but I'm about to buy the Waterway 325. Just curious why you have a valve after the pump. I plan on a 3-way for waste, but after the pump seems a bit odd. What size pool is this on, and how's it doing?
There's a good deal on Walmart that comes from In The Swim, my plan.

Jimrahbe · Jan 13, 2025

Tcat,

The pool is at a rent house and I estimate that it is a 12 to 14K pool... Not big, but has a deep end.

If you don't have a valve between the pump and the filter, then when you open the pump lid, the water will drain out of the filter and the pump.

The valve can be a simple check valve, a 2-way valve, or a 3 way valve, which can also be used to dump water to waste,

The 325 Waterway filter that I installed has been working perfectly since about July... (Whenever I installed it..) It comes with a 60 lb. gauge, like most filters.. I plan to replace it with a 30 lb. gauge, but have been pretty lazy...

Anyway, the pump usually runs at about 1200 rpm, and so far the gauge has always shown zero... The gauge works at higher rpms, but I don't usually ramp up the pump just to see the gauge move.

I'll follow up in June or July of 2025 with how it looks after a year.

As a side note, I was afraid that there was packing of some kind inside the filter, so I opened it.. No real need to do that.. Just install it and turn it on. Make sure you double check which port is the in and out...

Thanks,

Jim R.

tcat · Mar 28, 2025

Jimrahbe said:
Tcat,

The pool is at a rent house and I estimate that it is a 12 to 14K pool... Not big, but has a deep end.

If you don't have a valve between the pump and the filter, then when you open the pump lid, the water will drain out of the filter and the pump.

The valve can be a simple check valve, a 2-way valve, or a 3 way valve, which can also be used to dump water to waste,

The 325 Waterway filter that I installed has been working perfectly since about July... (Whenever I installed it..) It comes with a 60 lb. gauge, like most filters.. I plan to replace it with a 30 lb. gauge, but have been pretty lazy... Anyway, the pump usually runs at about 1200 rpm, and so far the gauge has always shown zero... The gauge works at higher rpms, but I don't usually ramp up the pump just to see the gauge move.

I'll follow up in June or July of 2025 with how it looks after a year.

As a side note, I was afraid that there was packing of some kind inside the filter, so I opened it.. No real need to do that.. Just install it and turn it on. Make sure you double check which port is the in and out...

Thanks,

Jim R.

I have yet to buy the filter. I was going to keep my DE for another year, but since I'm redoing plumbing, might as well convert now. Decided the 425 is worth getting over the 325. The Waterway is $400 less than a smaller Pentair, worth the risk IMO. Just checking to see how these are working out for you.

Do you happen to have the outlet port location from ground? Pentair is 8". I'll likely buy from Amazon. Thanks!