Hi Everyone. So, the pool guy is gone and we're on our own. We're learning the chemicals just fine, but we are very confused about what we have in terms of equipment.
We have a DE filter on the right (Leslies/Haywood Crystal Clear II DE-LE-42054), and we know the little pump in the front is for the Polaris sweep. We have no idea what the DE separation tank does which is the fire hydrant looking thing. We've also tried to figure out the path of the water, but get lost.
We can see that the water comes in from the pipe behind the rusty timer box. (There is also a back wash device there so the water can't back flow into the pool.) It goes up the clear tube and....? Directly into the DE filter, or into the DE separation tank? The white pipe on the left that goes off the page goes into the ground to....?? But there is a shut off valve on that pipe that is currently closed.
One of the other reasons I'm posting this is because in the year we've had the pool, we've never back washed the filter. The pool guy never back washed the filter either. We are seeing that this should be done periodically and are uncertain where the water comes out and if we need a hose or not. The youtube videos we've watched so far seem to skip over the part about where the water comes out.
I saw the pool guy today (he still services the neighbor's pool) and when I tried to ask him about the filter and back washing, he was less than helpful and not as friendly as when I was a paying customer. Basically, he said he hates DE filters and he cleans them thoroughly once a year and that's it. There is no need to backwash because you have to add DE and there's no way to know exactly how much you need or how much is in there. And what happens is you mess up the filter. The only way to do it right is to clean it. And then he warned me to be careful about what I do.
So, can you help give me an idea of our setup and some general ideas about DE filters. I have looked at some DE filter threads and they seem like a total pain! Our friend has a cartridge filter which seems so much easier to care for. Maybe we should switch down the road. Thoughts?
Thanks,
Tracy
P.S. I have more photos if you need better angles.
We have a DE filter on the right (Leslies/Haywood Crystal Clear II DE-LE-42054), and we know the little pump in the front is for the Polaris sweep. We have no idea what the DE separation tank does which is the fire hydrant looking thing. We've also tried to figure out the path of the water, but get lost.
We can see that the water comes in from the pipe behind the rusty timer box. (There is also a back wash device there so the water can't back flow into the pool.) It goes up the clear tube and....? Directly into the DE filter, or into the DE separation tank? The white pipe on the left that goes off the page goes into the ground to....?? But there is a shut off valve on that pipe that is currently closed.
One of the other reasons I'm posting this is because in the year we've had the pool, we've never back washed the filter. The pool guy never back washed the filter either. We are seeing that this should be done periodically and are uncertain where the water comes out and if we need a hose or not. The youtube videos we've watched so far seem to skip over the part about where the water comes out.
I saw the pool guy today (he still services the neighbor's pool) and when I tried to ask him about the filter and back washing, he was less than helpful and not as friendly as when I was a paying customer. Basically, he said he hates DE filters and he cleans them thoroughly once a year and that's it. There is no need to backwash because you have to add DE and there's no way to know exactly how much you need or how much is in there. And what happens is you mess up the filter. The only way to do it right is to clean it. And then he warned me to be careful about what I do.
So, can you help give me an idea of our setup and some general ideas about DE filters. I have looked at some DE filter threads and they seem like a total pain! Our friend has a cartridge filter which seems so much easier to care for. Maybe we should switch down the road. Thoughts?
Thanks,
Tracy
P.S. I have more photos if you need better angles.