Dealing with dead algae dust

[Newdude]

I don't have any idea when or whether the previous owners did a deep clean so it might have been a while.

You're 3X over the yearly rec, and THEN some. Plus, there's no telling what kind of floccs and magic potions the precious owner used, but statistically speaking, they were poolstored and used them ALL.

When you get in there, if it's still sand like, even if it's filthy and nasty, it will clean good as new. If it's gummed up and rubbery, it's time for new sand. Also, if you ever were going to do something that wasn't absolutely needed, replacing the sand either way isn't going to break the bank.

And I also wanted to point out how long the sand filter removed the extra fine particles from your water pre-SLAM. TONS of fine stuff got in there in over a year. The SLAM was simply taking its sweet time, but it would have gotten there eventually. It'll continue to do just fine now that it's back to regular maintenance.

Keep us posted when you get in there. We get involved and are part of this now.

 

[sande005]

Late to this thread, but a lot of it echo's my previous several decades battles with my sand filter. No knock against them, mine was just too small, with a pump that was too big.

The deep cleaning WORKS! Don't wait, just do it. Not that hard, an hour or two of time, and you'll get wet. Newdude's advice is spot on. If it is gummed up/rubbery time for new, but it probably is not. Just extremely dirty. Keep working that garden hose through the sand bed, until the water flows off clean no matter where you stick the hose. You'll be amazed at how much comes out. Sometimes, I had a few clumps that were gummed together, but if the bulk of the sand is, well sandy, and there are not a lot of clumps, not an issue to just remove them.
I always saw a dramatic improvement in the filtering ability after doing a deep clean. You may not even need the DE afterwards (but it is always an option).
Mine had the added issue of sand slowly being flushed out when backwashing. Not much at once, but over time adds up. So you may want to post a picture of the opened filter, for advice if you need to add a bit more, or not. Which will also help with better filtering. Note that overfilling can result in sand in the pool, as well as out the discharge - so don't just assume it needs a top off. (and new sand is very dusty - so it needs to be prewashed by the deep cleaning method first, before putting it all back into use).

 

[Newdude]

No knock against them, mine was just too small,

To be clear, I dont like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.

I'm a hardcore cart guy. But fair is fair and sand filters do the job we need them to do, and have for decades.

The deep cleaning WORKS! Don't wait, just do it.

+1. It shouldn't be totally ruined sand because it worked so well for so long, but it very well may be past the point of working ok dirty. Maybe the SLAM clogged it up just enough to push it over the edge. Plus, it's best to be sure you're turning the page with a blank slate. The last thing you need is a sequel.

 

[sande005]

Well, I'm a convert now with my new cart filter....
Doing the deep cleaning is easy and very cheap. Plus if you open the lid, you then know the condition - and whether you perhaps need to plan for a future sand change....

 

[Krulligo]

The issue I see with doing it now is that I don't have any good ways to block the water in the skimmer and in the jet. I guess for the skimmer I have a rubber stopper but nothing for the return jet. So if I take apart the sand filter, I will probably lose a lot of water in the pool.

Another thing is, being we pretty much have 1 month left in the swimming season, and in the midst of a heatwave, I don't want to risk potentially breaking something like the laterals and then struggling to get a replacement etc while the pool just sits there without circulation.

Finally I have my pump right beside the sand filter, I don't want to potential flood the pump with all the cruddy water form the deep clean.

All these issues can be avoided if I just wait until the spring to so this, and at that point, at $7 CND per 50 lbs of sand, it would just cost me $14 to replace it with fresh sand as opposed to deep cleaning it.