High CYA, but only cloudy when pump running?

[chaserot]

So, I'm in the process of draining a good portion of my pool which has a CYA # of 100+. I'm using a sump pump and a garden hose, easy process.

But, a funny thing happened on the way to draining he pool. I was filtering the pool 18 hours a day thinking this could get rid of my cloudy pool, but when I turned the filter off and the water remained stagnant, the pool became clear. Visually, there doesn't look to be very much material on the bottom of the pool - a little bit of dirt is all.

But when the filter is truned on and the pool water mixes up, the pool becomes cloudy and visibility is only about 2ft.

$64k question, is this what should happen with a high CYA #? Seems strange ...

 

[techguy]

I would guess the "little" bit of stuff on the bottom get stirred up and makes your pool cloudy. You could try adding a little DE to your filter (a cup or 2, about 1 PSI increase) to see if you can't catch the last of the floaties in the pool. If this works, you will need to add DE to your filter each time you clean the filter and have floating debris. The water is getting clear when everything settles. You could vacuum to waste to get rid of the stuff on the bottom.

 

[chaserot]

What's the best way to vaccume to waste? As soon as I turn on the filter (with the vaccume hose in the skimmer hole inlet) the pool water re-mixes ...

 

[techguy]

Do you have a four-way valve? How you "vacuum to waste" varies based on your plumbing. One of the valve positions will put the output from the pump into the "waste" pipe which be be connected to your homes sewer. This may be a single valve or multiple valves you put into the correct configuration.

When vacuuming to waste, the water goes from the pool, to the pump to waste and no water is returned to the pool. You will need to add new water back into the pool to replace any water pumped to waste. This can be done automatically if you have this feature or it can be done using a hose..

 

[Bama Rambler]

Sounds like the water isn't being filtered. You either have a bad cartridge or it's not seated right in the housing. When was the last time you opened the tank and cleaned the filter?

With a cartridge filter there's usually no way to vacuum to waste.

The high CYA wouldn't cause clouding.

 

[chaserot]

Good idea. The filter cartridge is brand new, seems to installed right, and I'm pulling it and cleaning it daily.

The filter seems like it should be filtering more, it's just not happening - not sure why.

 

[yeggim]

Good idea. The filter cartridge is brand new, seems to installed right, and I'm pulling it and cleaning it daily.

The filter seems like it should be filtering more, it's just not happening - not sure why.

Are you pulling and cleaning the filter because it's dirty or is that just part of your routine. As a filter gets dirty, it filters finer and finer particles. To get the most out of your filter, wait till the pressure gauge reads 20% to 25% over clean pressure.

For example:
You clean your filter, put it back together and start it up. Note the pressure gauge reading. This is your clean pressure. Let's say it reads 15psi when clean. You would then wait until the gauge reads 18 psi to 19psi to clean. 18psi is a 20% increase over 15psi. 19psi would be a 25% increase.

If your water is cloudy and your pressure doesn't rise at all when the filter is left running, then it's time to look at your filter more closely for problems.