Polaris 360 Filter Screen Constantly Clogged

[chrispete]

Hi all, first post. New owner of a (not new) pool.

I have a Polaris 360 (named Jacques per my daughter) and the filter screen at the pressure regulator always clogs up within a day or two of cleaning it. Most of the debris is basically chopped up versions of what I find in my filter baskets. After reading the manuals I'm beginning to wonder if the booster is plumbed in on the skimmer/drain lines coming to the filter instead of the return side like it's supposed to be. Unfortunately the junction is underground and (of course) goes underground between the inbound and outbound plumbing so there's no obvious clue as to what it's connected to. Is it worth my while to dig it up (dirt, no concrete) and get the plumbing right or should I just slap a high-flow secondary filter on the booster inbound line?

Next question I think I answered from reading here but... I currently have both a screen filter at the pressure regulator and an in-line filter on the 360 itself. It seems like they are redundant and getting rid of the pressure regulator screen would buy me some time between cleanings.

Thanks!

Chris

 

[Jason_Strobel]

Can you take a picture of your pump pad for us to see your plumbing?

 

[duraleigh]

Welcome to the forum
Why do you think you have so much debris? At first blush, it sounds to me like you may have a very dirty (algae laden) pool that is simply too much for your equipment to handle.

What does your water look like?

 

[chrispete]

Clear water and no algae. Some small leaves make their way in every day but only about 1/4 of the collection bag is used on the Polaris per day to keep them all off of the bottom.

Welcome to the forum
Why do you think you have so much debris? At first blush, it sounds to me like you may have a very dirty (algae laden) pool that is simply too much for your equipment to handle.

What does your water look like?

 

[chrispete]

Can you take a picture of your pump pad for us to see your plumbing?

You'll notice that there's water on the pad. There was previously a tiny bit of water coming from a joint (pending repair) but the Polaris lines were leaking a bit as well (new issue it seems). This was immediately after catching that the cleaner had slowed to a crawl and then cleaning the regulator filter. All the DE gunk everywhere is from changing out the multi-port valve recently, not a leak.

Now that I'm looking at the pictures, it really appears that it may be connected to the skimmer/drain side...

 

[chrispete]

Welcome to the forum
Why do you think you have so much debris? At first blush, it sounds to me like you may have a very dirty (algae laden) pool that is simply too much for your equipment to handle.

What does your water look like?

Posted a reply but it doesn't appear to have taken. The water's clear and there's no algae; the main pump runs five hours a day and the booster runs for two - booster (re)wired since previous owner to only be capable of running when main pump is on. (I know it's one of those "is the computer plugged in?" type questions that has to be asked.) I do get some leaves in the pool from the neighbors' trees but the collection net on the Polaris only gets about 1/4 full per day cleaning them off the bottom and the skimmer baskets only get about 1/2 full per day. I clean them both out every day. Basket at the pump gets about 1/2 full every couple of weeks between cleanouts.

 

[djsgptx]

Have had the same situation countless times in the past 25 years! Sounds like the DE filter needs to be back-washed.

At least a couple of times a year, it's a good idea to disassemble the tank and wash the filter grids. Use a water hose to remove all the gunk and caked-up DE. (1st perform backwash, then disassemble to wash grids). Then add new DE.

This is a common occurrence.
Keep an eye on the tank pressure, and keep the small skimmer basket next to the pump clean.

At least you realized the Polaris' screen filter was clogged before paying a hundred bucks to have a service tech tell you to rinse out that little filter!