Parent's pool has a Hayward Pro-Grid DE4820 that had broken grids. Got a new full grid set and wrangled them back together in the cluster assembly; put back in the filter and closed it up. No DE added; runs fine with good circulation, but after a few minutes (not sure how long), circulation is almost completely cut off as if the filter was very, very dirty. Stopping the pump waiting a minute and then restarting starts this cycle over again. Anyone have a clue what I've done? Is there something in the panels that could be clogging them up and then falling down when restarted?
Hayward DE filter acting clogged
- Thread starter rj101
- Start date
I did originally and thought that might be the problem; so, I ran it with no DE to diagnose the cause of the problem.
It sounds like you have a DE clog in your return to the pool. Once the system builds it pressure up the clog sends the pressure sky high. You might try to snake the return from the pool or from the filter if needed.
jark87
Silver Supporter
- Jun 5, 2011
- 1,316
- Pool Size
- 25500
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
I had a similar issue several years ago, except it was taking a couple of hours for my filter to clog instead of minutes. Thinking I had a filter issue, I even took my grids into a store for inspection, but was told they were fine. Turns out I had an algae problem that I really couldn’t see. Given how quickly your filter is clogging, that probably isn’t the issue, but running an OCLT (if possible) would at least rule out algae.
- May 27, 2021
- 1,343
- Pool Size
- 17000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Have you tried running the filter on recirculate to see if you can duplicate the loss in circulation? What was clogging the filter elements when you ran them with no DE? What is condition/clarity level of the water?
I'm sorry for the delayed response; had a emergency come up and I didn't want to give bad information. Been running it on recirculate only for 48 ours (needed to keep the water moving to circulate the chlorine) and it's running just hard as minute one. It's got to be something in the filter with the new grids. I've been responsible for running pools continuously since the late 70's with some of those years being public pools including municipal pools with hundreds of thousands of gallons, ton chlorine gas cylinders (lots of fun putting on the full face gas mask to work on in August), and three sand filters that we would drop down the access port to crawl inside of to work on. Been through many of the fads with copper ionizers, baquacil, zeobrite/zeosand, etc. I'm really, really, not trying to be a braggadocios Rear here (because I'm obviously stumped in this situation), just trying to give some context when I say that the conditions of the pool were not good, but there is no reason that it should be acting like this after only 15-20 minutes, especially with no DE whatsoever. When you backwash, there is nothing in the sight glass or the the water output, just clear water. There's got to be something with the new filter grids or the way that I put them together/installed them. Mechanical obstruction maybe? Thanks!
- Jul 21, 2013
- 65,486
- Pool Size
- 35000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Does the pool pass a Overnight Chlorine Loss Test?
Your description is classic for an algae problem clogging the filter. Yes, it can clog that quickly.
Running a DE filter without DE can quickly clog the grids. The grids are not made to be backwashed and cleaned. The DE is supposed to protect the grids and clean out the dirt. If you run the filter without DE the grids can get permanently clogged and be difficult to impossible to get clean and flowing again.
www.troublefreepool.com
Your description is classic for an algae problem clogging the filter. Yes, it can clog that quickly.
Running a DE filter without DE can quickly clog the grids. The grids are not made to be backwashed and cleaned. The DE is supposed to protect the grids and clean out the dirt. If you run the filter without DE the grids can get permanently clogged and be difficult to impossible to get clean and flowing again.
DE Filter Use and Care - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
I'm proof that you are never too old to be wrong. After finally getting the pool cleared up, the filter seems to be working fine. Thanks for the advice.