Remove DE Filter Manifold without Cracking It

[NewHomeowner]

Hi all. I had broken the top manifold on my Hayward DE filter last year. My pump has been running for over a week and the pool is still cloudy (opened up to algae bloom). I noticed that whenever I replaced the DE, the filter pressure would increase more than the 25% within an hour or so, but have been putting off opening up the actual DE filter instead of backwashing since it was such a pain to reassemble last year.

Anyway, can anyone suggest a way to remove the manifold cover off of the DE filter grids. I'm sure its stuck at where the manifold cover meets the standpipe with o-ring, but I can't for the life of me remove it. If I try knocking it with a rubber mallet, i'm afraid I'll crack it again like I did last year. (The crack was where its likely stuck now, where manfold meets standpipe)

Alternatively, would it be good enough to simply hose the filter grids off while its still connected? There does seem to be a massive DE build-up in the very center of the grid, which I attribute to be part of the reason my filter clogs so quickly. If I'm able to remove it, I'm dreading aligning the grids and putting everything back together. Took me hours last year (did upside down approach).

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[Richard320]

I know your fear well. My filter is upside down from yours, so the top piece lifts off easy, but getting those grids out of the manifold is certainly sweat-inducing. Just short of terror, really. No matter how gentle, they still creak and pop coming out.

I don't always remove my grids. I've just gone in with a pencil stream on the hose nozzle and blasted the stuff off. My filter has an internal backwash valve at the bottom, so it drains out nicely. Yours will probably make a mess. After I've knocked the stuff loose, I reassemble and then backwash again until the hose is cleaned out.

Hope this helps.

 

[jtaves85mcss]

The manifold and pipe arrangement on mine is exactly the same, although my filter is smaller. It is a pain to remove as the thing weighs a lot with any amount of DE in it. I suspect yours is harder to remove due to the extra height and getting access to due to physical positioning of the filter and the heat pump or A/C unit next to it.

To remove mine I have to be directly above it and use a slight rocking/twisting motion while lifting straight up on the handles. If you remove the grids, make sure you inspect and lube the o-ring on the standpipe and spread a small amount of lube around the manifold connection.

In your shoes, I would remove the bottom drain plug from the filter housing which should be on the left side of the unit and use a hose stream as Richard said. With that plug removed, at least the water wont be pouring out over the bottom shell on to your feet while cleaning.

 

[NewHomeowner]

Thank you both. I ended up doing exactly as Richard suggested, as I wasn't able to remove the stubborn thing. I hosed off as much as I could. You were both also right in that it sure made a mess. About 90 cubic ft worth of dirty water ahot out of the drain plug all along the side of the house in a giant puddle. It'll eventually drain away but the DE will stay. I do have a separation tank so did backwash the heck out of it after loosening what I could. I put back prob 2/3 amount of DE required and it seems to be running fine now. For the future, I've got to figure out whether I can attach a threaded hose to the drain plug so that I can direct the waste. Suspect this may be an issue due to the water pressure from the draining tank. Regardless, thanks for the suggestions! It really helped!

Now onto attacking the dark stains left over from the algae bloom that must've occurred when the weather warmed up early this spring. Thanks all!

 

[JamesW]

Grab the section that covers the standpipe and lift there while gently rotating back and forth a degree or two. As the manifold lifts off of the standpipe, push the individual grids out of the manifold. Before reinstalling, lube the pipe and oring with silicone lube.

The flexible air relief tube is missing its fabric cover. Also, I think the grids are in wrong. It's hard to tell but they look like they're not in the correct alignment.

 

[NewHomeowner]

Thanks James. I had already removed the fabric cover and worm gear clamp prior to the photo. You may be right about the alignment of the grids. I had removed them last year and had a heck of a time getting them back together. I aligned them using the bottom grid channel guide (starting with the shortest element closest to standpipe) and it the manifold was able to fit on top of the grids with all connections in place, so figured I couldn't be that far off. I'll have a look again at the end of the season when I have yet another spare manifold in case I screw up and crack it again!