New sand pump, sand in pool?

[00V8]

We purchased a 16'x48" Intex ultra frame pool and installed it using the supplied filter, as expected the results were dismal. The cartridge filter didn't have enough circulation to properly clean the pool so there was about 20 minutes a day skimming the pool and vacuuming.

With some research online we decided to go with a larger sand filter pump to circulate more water. We chose an intex 2150gph pump.

I installed the pump yesterday by following the included instructions using 20/40 pool filter sand then backwashed for about 5-6 minutes followed by 1-2 minute rinse cycle. Then we found about 2-3 ounces of sand in the pool.

I shut the pump down, disassembled the sand filter looking for a cracked lateral but found nothing. I washed everything, took all the laterals apart, cleaned the hub, then reinstalled the filter and backwashed for another 8 minutes with another 2 minutes of rinse.

STILL small amounts of sand going into the pool.

Intex customer service is a joke. The rep could only say to "rinse more, rinse more". So we did but now we need to let the pool refill.

At this point I'm just letting it run to try to see if the sand eventually stops coming.


Does anyone have any ideas for me?

 

[Texas Splash]

Sorry about those troubles 00V8, and welcome to TFP! Sorry for the delay in responding. I figured I give you a quick reply in hopes that it helps to this thread for some more visibility. Your filter is a new upgrade, so you would think a lot of things I'm going to say would be eliminated from the equation, but at the risk of saying something you already know, I'll just go through my mental laundry list of possibilities for sand making is into the pool:
- Damaged laterals and/or stand-pipe
- Damage multiport valve and/or gasket
- Incorrect sand (use only #2 silica sand for pools)
- Adding too much sand

I know you tried some of these already, just thinking out loud here. If I think of something else I re-visit and update. But I wanted your post to have some more visibility.

 

[00V8]

Thanks for the reply and the welcome! I did use pool filter sand, it shows 20/40 gradation which appears to be within the needed specs. I see nothing wrong with the valve. The laterals and stand pipe look good and I did disassemble them to inspect. Sand was right in the middle of the marked area, I'm at a loss. However the pool is much cleaner with the sand pump, well minus the beachy feel in the bottom! Haha

 

[Richard320]

Is the sand all very fine, or is it a mix of sizes?

If it's all small, it could be that the sand wasn't graded very well and you have a lot of small stuff that can slip through the laterals. If so, eventually it will stop. You can make it easier on yourself if you rubber band a hole-less sock over the return to catch it before it hits the floor.

You might find the pictures here enlightening: My findings on how not all sand is created equal

 

[PrivatePilot]

Is the sand all very fine, or is it a mix of sizes?

If it's all small, it could be that the sand wasn't graded very well and you have a lot of small stuff that can slip through the laterals.

That was my initial thought as well - poor quality sand.

Letting the filter run for a day or so until it's ejected all the "too fine" stuff onto the floor of the pool and then quickly vacuuming to waste will also promptly solve the issue.