High PSI after cleaning pump basket

[TedZYZ]

I've been a long-time reader of the forum and have learned the basics of pool chemistry.. You guys are the greatest! My pool is really sparkling.

I'm embarrassed to say, though, I still have a pool guy servicing the pool, but I'm hoping to take over the job from him. I didn't get off to an auspicious start, however. While I'm pretty decent at the chemistry, this was my first foray into things hardware.

I noticed the pump strainer basket was full and decided to empty it out. I did all the required steps to clean the pump basket per the manual. Once the pump was back on, the filter PSI rose to around 33 or 34. It had been 29. This was the first worrisome sign.

The next sign was that the water level in the pot housing was about an inch lower than usual.

A third thing was that little air bubbles were going into the pool, finally disappearing after many hours.

My diagnosis: air in the system.

I tried opening/cleaning the pump pot a second time, this time checking the O-ring and lubing it with silicone lubrication. I turned the pump back on and the same thing -- PSI in the 30s, lower water in the pot and a small amount of tiny bubbles in the pool.

I should note that before turning the pump back on, each time, I opened the air relef valve on the filter and waited till water gushed out. Is it possible there was still air mixed in with the water and I just didn't see it? Some articles say to let the water become a steady stream of water before closing the valve again. I thought that's what I did but maybe I should have let the water gush out some more.

Can I try bleeding air again from the valve while the pump/filter is operating? Or is that something one does only after re-starting the pump?

As you can see, plenty of questions. The high PSI in particular concerns me. The pool guy will come in a few days and I'll leave him a note to fix things, but I'm wondering where I went wrong.

Thanks for reading,
Ted

- Pentair WhisperFlo pump
- Hayward DE filter

 

[kimkats]

One thing I would do is check the pump impeller. Make sure you turn the breaker to it OFF before you start. Some of the time you can just take the basket out and stick your finger in the hole to the impeller. Most of the time I end up taking the whole basket off so I can really clean the impeller out. To help you know what to do look at parts blow up of your pump. Have a cup or bowl near by to put the screws and such in. Don't lose the gasket that goes between the basket and pump.

Also look to make sure you have opened all of the valves you might have closed while working on the equipment. I forgot one time LOL

Kim

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ted,

Welcome to TFP... A great place to find the answers to all your pool maintenance questions...

You have a DE filter that is running close to 35 psi... even 29 seems to be on the high side to me... But, each pools is a little different.

When was to last time the filter was taken apart and cleaned?

The pressure gauge on the filter tells you how hard it is for the pump to push water through your filter.. The higher the pressure, the harder it is for the water to flow through the filter. As long as you have a good flow of water coming back into your pool, there is no major problem with having high filter pressure... it is NOT going to blow up...

You can open the air relief valve anytime the pump is running, to purge any air in the system... It should only need to be opened for a few seconds and should be closed as soon as you see a steady stream of water coming out...

There is nothing wrong with having a pool guy, if that works better for you.. The problem is that most pool guys only come once a week if you are lucky...

The main reason for a pressure increase is a dirty filter.. Could it be something else, sure it could, but I would eliminate the filter first..

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[tedxyz2]

Hi, this is the OP. My original login wasn't working

Ted,Welcome to TFP... A great place to find the answers to all your pool maintenance questions...

You have a DE filter that is running close to 35 psi... even 29 seems to be on the high side to me... But, each pools is a little different.

When was to last time the filter was taken apart and cleaned?

PG cleans filter every March/April and October. I thought that meant taking apart the filter, but best I can tell, he's only done that once. That was one or two years ago. The rest of the time, he appears to just backwash and add DE powder. He took over the contract from another PG and to be honest, I'm not sure how the original PG handled the filter.

I looked in the manual and it doesn't say how often the filter needs to be taken apart and manually cleaned. It just gives the instructions for those who want to do it, and it tells to backwash when the PSI rises a certain amount.

What is the standard thinking about how often to actually disassemble the filter and manually clean it? The filter seems very dirty to me since very little water appears to be returning to the pool.

BTW, the pump pot water level seems normal today, and as mentioned before, the bubbles streaming into the pool appear to have been a temporary phenomenon. The PSI hasn't come back down though from before I cleaned the filter basket. I'll look at the pump manual to see where any debris might be trapped, but it's looking more like a dirty filter problem, though I can't explain the sudden jump from before cleaning the pump basket to after.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ted,

I am not sure there is an official 'rule', but in my mind, DE filters should be opened and cleaned once a year..

When you backwash a DE filter only about 80% of the dirty DE actually gets backwashed. The rest remains in the filter.. The more you backwash, the more DE that remains.

I have two pools that have DE filters and I open and clean them once in the Spring, before pool season starts, and the once in the Fall, after the pool season is over. I never backwash anymore...

When you took the pump lid off, I'm sure water from the filter gushed out... I suspect it just moved some of the that old DE 'sludge' around in the filter causing your increase in pressure.

Even if your filter is not the cause of your problem, it makes sense to eliminate it by having it cleaned...

If at all possible, I would see if you can watch your pool guy do it. It is easy to do, but it is a lot better if you have watched it done in person first.

It appears that you forgot your initial user name... I suggest you use the name you used in post #1... TedZYZ... the next time you post... I'll follow up with our Amin and see what we need to do, if anything.

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[tedxyz2]

I am not sure there is an official 'rule', but in my mind, DE filters should be opened and cleaned once a year..

I'll leave a note then for PG to open and clean the filter. He may opt to wait till March or April as that is his normal time. Can the filter wait that long with the pressure in the 30's? The normal operating pressure is usually around 21 IIRC.

When you took the pump lid off, I'm sure water from the filter gushed out... I suspect it just moved some of the that old DE 'sludge' around in the filter causing your increase in pressure.

I've got till Friday, when the PG comes, to monitor the situation and see if the PSI goes down. But what you say makes sense. I allowed a lot of water to gush out, erring on the side of too much.

It appears that you forgot your initial user name... I suggest you use the name you used in post #1... TedZYZ... the next time you post... I'll follow up with our Amin and see what we need to do, if anything.

Ah, I see the problem now. I thought I had registered as TedXYZ. I'll try reverting to that next time I post.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ted,

If the pool guy does not want to open the filter now, he at least needs to backwash it as the minimum... A pressure of 21 sounds closer to normal..

Send us a pic of your equipment pad... If you have a multiport valve, you may be able turn it off to prevent the filter from draining back into your pool..

Did you see my PM about emailing our admin guy about your User name???

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[PoolGate]

It makes sense that your filter pressure would increase once you cleaned the pump basket. The basket must have been fairly full and constricting flow through the pump lowering the filter pressure. Sounds like all of the air is out now so that's good. My pump basket runs with 0 bubbles in fact it looks like it is empty while it is running quite an optical illusion!