Hello, I'm having some issues with an Intex 2650 GPH Sand Filter / SWG combo that I recently installed. I'm not sure if I'm posting this in the right section or not.
I have a 24' x 48" Summer Escapes above ground pool. It had been working very well for us, with the kids using it just about every day throughout the summer. A week or so ago the pump that came with it stopped working, and the pool quickly became a green swamp. The pump is mounted to the bottom of the strainer basket that comes with the pool. I decided that it would be the perfect time to switch to a sand filter and I wanted to give the salt water a try. So I ordered the Intex sand filter / swg combo unit. To hook it up I had to leave the old pump on the skimmer, I couldn't figure out any other way to mate the two together. I pulled the impeller out of the old pump first. It seemed that I wasn't getting enough flow through the skimmer/motor, so I cut a hole in the pool and used the intake that came with the new filter. That seemed to fix the flow problem.
Fast forward to the last couple of days as I have been trying to follow the directions to turn my swamp clear again and a new problem came up.
I have been using a smaller vacuum head attached to the the vac hose which is fitted into the intake in the pool from the filter. The problem is that when I start to vacuum the bottom to get rid of this algae problem I can run the vac for about 4-5min then the pump seems to loose suction. There will be nothing coming out of the return line and the pressure gauge on the sand filter will have jumped 4-5psi. I shut the pump down, wait a few seconds, turn it on then it will start moving water again. I have tried backwashing the filter a couple times but it does not seem to effect how long I am able to run the vacuum. When I do backwash it, I get clear water running out in about 30 seconds or less.
Am I doing something wrong or is it normal to have to backwash it that often? What do I need to do to be able to run the vacuum for longer. It seems at this point that I am fighting a loosing battle against the algae because I can't run the vac over the whole pool.
Here are my latest test results. They are off of a test strip, I am going to order the real test kits soon.
TH: 500
TC: between the 5 and 10 blocks
FC: between the 5 and 10 blocks.
PH: 7.8
TA: 180
CYA: 30-50
My water is currently green, when I sweep the bottom I get a nice darker green cloud come up.
I have been putting bleach in to keep the chlorine levels up but I'm thinking I might be wasting it since I can't vac the pool out properly.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Matt
I have a 24' x 48" Summer Escapes above ground pool. It had been working very well for us, with the kids using it just about every day throughout the summer. A week or so ago the pump that came with it stopped working, and the pool quickly became a green swamp. The pump is mounted to the bottom of the strainer basket that comes with the pool. I decided that it would be the perfect time to switch to a sand filter and I wanted to give the salt water a try. So I ordered the Intex sand filter / swg combo unit. To hook it up I had to leave the old pump on the skimmer, I couldn't figure out any other way to mate the two together. I pulled the impeller out of the old pump first. It seemed that I wasn't getting enough flow through the skimmer/motor, so I cut a hole in the pool and used the intake that came with the new filter. That seemed to fix the flow problem.
Fast forward to the last couple of days as I have been trying to follow the directions to turn my swamp clear again and a new problem came up.
I have been using a smaller vacuum head attached to the the vac hose which is fitted into the intake in the pool from the filter. The problem is that when I start to vacuum the bottom to get rid of this algae problem I can run the vac for about 4-5min then the pump seems to loose suction. There will be nothing coming out of the return line and the pressure gauge on the sand filter will have jumped 4-5psi. I shut the pump down, wait a few seconds, turn it on then it will start moving water again. I have tried backwashing the filter a couple times but it does not seem to effect how long I am able to run the vacuum. When I do backwash it, I get clear water running out in about 30 seconds or less.
Am I doing something wrong or is it normal to have to backwash it that often? What do I need to do to be able to run the vacuum for longer. It seems at this point that I am fighting a loosing battle against the algae because I can't run the vac over the whole pool.
Here are my latest test results. They are off of a test strip, I am going to order the real test kits soon.
TH: 500
TC: between the 5 and 10 blocks
FC: between the 5 and 10 blocks.
PH: 7.8
TA: 180
CYA: 30-50
My water is currently green, when I sweep the bottom I get a nice darker green cloud come up.
I have been putting bleach in to keep the chlorine levels up but I'm thinking I might be wasting it since I can't vac the pool out properly.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Matt