Polaris 360

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acadianarose

acadianarose

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Aug 15, 2012
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Lafayette, Louisiana
We installed the Polaris 360 this weekend. However, I am not sure if it is running the way it should. We have 3 returns and a rainfall. We reduced the flow to two of the jets and installed the Polaris on the other.

The Polaris itself is working fine. The potential issue is that when the Polaris is running in the pool, the pressure on the filter gauge is up to about 18 or 19 psi (up about 10 psi) and not much is drawn into the skimmer.

Is this normal? Our intention is to have the cleaner in the pool when no one is swimming and for it to clean during the normal cycling of the pool.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Linda
 
boomer133 said:
I was having problems getting our 360 running properly and found this video. It sounds like your getting too much pressure and it's backing up into your system. Did you check your RPMs? they need to be between 28-32

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7OlwXHEHCw
Click to expand...

Yes, we did check the RPM. It took everything we had to get it up to 28-30 but it still creates a lot of pressure on the filter. Can't figure out why.
 
I just joined the forum a few days ago just to try to help out. That is actually my video ;)

I posted an answer in the YouTube comments but this forum gives me room to clarify. Back pressure in the filter is a normal side effect of a pressure cleaners. It seems from my experience in the field to be more noticeable in a D.E. filter as the gauge in a D.E. filter will actually move accurately as opposed to a cartridge filter (if you own a cartridge filter you will notice very little PSI fluctuation - unless you turn it in spa mode). I think the age of the filter grids is also a factor. I have a 360 on an old FNS Plus and I notice that it rides about about 8 PSI higher after I installed it (Around 28 PSI on the gauge). I am in the process of trying to replace all of the grids. I have another pressure cleaner on a Pentair 4000 series and that one is up about 5 PSI. I don't think it poses a danger since a lot of filters will go up in pressure similarly when they are in spa mode. It is just basic physics as you restrict the return jets to get the pressure side cleaner to work - less water flows and that creates back pressure. Cleaning and backwashing the filter more often helps in this regards. I notice that after a filter cleaning the back pressure the cleaner creates drops. It starts to rise again when the filter starts to get dirty. So maybe clean your filter and then see if the back pressure is lessened (I think Polaris recommends cleaning the filter upon installation). You can also decrease the wheel RPMs slightly down to 24-26 RPM and it will work fine plus it will reduce the back pressure also. I think the rainfall return also creates it's own back pressure to the filter so maybe the combination is making the problem worse. I would try taking out one of the eyeball regulators and turning off the rainfall return to see if that reduces the back pressure. Not sure what the RPMs will be if you do that though. They also sell other size eyeball regulators with a slightly larger hole.

On minor drawback of the Polaris 360 is that by restricting the return lines and using one to power the Polaris 360 - the pools overall skimming capability is reduced. But the skimmer should still have full suction. Take the skimmer lid off and check to see if it is working and you should see it flowing like normal. Without the return jets pushing the surface debris it appears that the pool is not skimming. But it is - the return jets play a big role in pushing debris into the skimmer. You will just have to manually skim your pool a bit more. It really hasn't been an issue to the customers with the Polaris 360 as the bottom is left spotless. Keeping your filter clean also helps with this is issue also.
 
On thing I forgot to ask - what size is your cartridge filter? Filter size is also a factor in the equation. You mention yours is a Clean & Clear but they make lots of sizes. I hope it is at least a 420 sq ft or 520 sq ft one with that 2 HP pump as that can also increase the filter back pressure. I wouldn't recommend such a large HP pump on anything smaller.
 
I actually watched all of your videos while trying to decide which pool cleaner to get. They are a huge help. Thank you so much for your response.

1. We have a cartridge filter that we just cleaned. It was running at about 8-9psi before installing the cleaner.
2. We put medium sized reducers in. We tried all different kinds of combinations to create enough pressure to operate the cleaner. Turning off the rainfall created more back pressure.
3. I never even thought to actually look in the skimmer. :hammer: You are probably right, though. It has to just appear that it is not skimming, although it really is. As soon as you remove the cleaner and put the eye back in, it works normally. I will double check this afternoon.
4. I have no idea what size the filter is.

The cleaner is doing a great job. The pool is spotless. And with all of the oak trees, etc. around our pool, that never happens. We were always manually vacuuming. I leave the cleaner in the pool unless we are in the pool. The pump is set to run about 5 hours during the day while we are gone and the cleaner runs at the same time, obviously. I just didn’t want to have too much pressure on the filter. I think I will try opening up the pressure relief value on the cleaner hose just a bit to see if that helps any.

Thank you again for your help. I really appreciate it! :-D
 
Glad to hear the videos helped you. Sometimes builders will put in an undersized filter - not on purpose but they just look at the flow rating on the filter and the numbers sound good. In reality the bigger the filter the better off you are for your pool size. It is pretty easy to tell the size. Just look at the label and it will tell you the make and size. For example: Clean and Clear Plus and the hole will be punched out on the 320 mark.
 
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