Garden DE in Sand Filter

[iammikeb]

My son used garden DE after backwashing our filter. Wondering why he did this I searched online and discovered everyone says not to do this. Great.
Should I be worried? Do I need to drain my pool?

 

[zea3]

Hi, welcome to TFP! You don't need to drain the pool but you do need to hose off the garden DE and charge the filter with pool DE. If you had a bunch of garden DE blow into the pool you should be able to vacuum it up.

 

[Richard320]

Sand filter, correct? It's just more dirt as far as the filter is concerned. When the pressure climbs, backwash it away.

 

[iammikeb]

Yes, it’s a sand filter. I may go ahead and backwash it again just in case.

So, it’s safe to swim in then?

 

[Richard320]

Yes, it’s a sand filter. I may go ahead and backwash it again just in case.

So, it’s safe to swim in then?

Yes. The only real difference is that one type of DE is heat treated. Off hand I can't remember which. It's pretty much inert. It shouldn't have messed with the chemistry at all.

 

[zea3]

Pool grade de is heat treated to make it filter better. I wouldn’t eat the stuff, but all none Pool grade de is food/feed grade. It’s only bad for you if you inhale it.

 

[iammikeb]

Thanks so much, everyone. So glad I found this community.