How to clean algae out of Multi Cyclone 50
- Thread starter rbwamsley
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THe manual gives instructions on how to clean it out. If there is algae there it is also in your water and it tells you that you don't have enough chlorine in the water.
Maddie
Rb,
I know how I would clean it. I'd take it out and put it in the trash can..
I doubt that you'd ever know it was missing.
Jim R.
I know how I would clean it. I'd take it out and put it in the trash can..
I doubt that you'd ever know it was missing.
Jim R.
You would if you lived in an area with blowing sand, grit and dirt. Everything that ends up in the MultiCyclone doesn't end up in the filter. It takes two minutes to flush the sediment out of the MultiCyclone and extends the filter cleaning intervals by several months.
Bert,
My opinion is that is all marketing and bull feathers. Your opinion is that it works.
I guess we will just have to agree to disagree.
Thanks,
Jim R.
My opinion is that is all marketing and bull feathers. Your opinion is that it works.
I guess we will just have to agree to disagree.
Thanks,
Jim R.
Hi JimBert,
My opinion is that is all marketing and bull feathers. Your opinion is that it works.
I guess we will just have to agree to disagree.
Thanks,
Jim R.
It's not marketing and it's not my opinion. The dirt in the bucket after flushing the MultiCyclone speaks for itself.
I don't sell these things. I'd never heard of it until four months ago when we bought this house. I just don't want people to get the wrong impression on a simple and inexpensive device with no moving parts that extends the interval for filter cleaning. Who doesn't want that???
It sounds like the problem the OP is having is the canister wasn't flushed frequently enough and the dirt and debris settled into a packed "cake" of dirt/debris. More frequent flushing would eliminate the problem but I don't know how to clean the algae and debris he mentioned other than an extended flush or disassembling the canister. Maybe like this....
-Brian
- Jan 7, 2012
- 2,123
- Pool Size
- 21000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Yes, I use those in my filter basket to catch leaves, bugs and debris floating on the surface of the pool. But, those do not catch dirt and sand particles. The MultiCyclone and main filter do that.
Brian you have a 600 Sq ft cartridge filter that can probably go 2 years between cleanings. If you used skimmer socks it might go 5 years.
If you really wanted, you could unscrew your drain plug and most of the heavier debris would come flying out of your filter only leaving the finer pollen and whatnot stuck in the pleats.
That's not to say the pre-filter doesn't work. I believe it works amazing. I don't believe there is any need for it whatsoever with a properly sized filter.
@rbwamsley to clean it I would mix up a small bucket if 2:1 bleach and get up in there with a sponge, a toothbrush or whatever else I could find in the normal cleaning supply cabinet.
Yeah, the normal flushing wasn’t cutting it. Guess I’ll try to take it apart and clean it.
Thanks for the help.
Thanks for the help.
Got it all apart and I’m so glad I did. I couldn’t see how bad it was. Dirt was covering the algae so I could see if from the top. Would have completely ruined my SLAM.
Attachments
Good job! Was it pretty easy to separate the two halves? Is there an O-ring for sealing them?
Yes, it was. I couldn’t get the big ring undone by hand. Had to tap it with a dead blow hammer. There are two o-rings. The larger one was already stretched a bit and the thing has never been apart (not sure how that happened. Greased it up good and it stayed in place. Will have to get a new one for next time I take it apart.
For anyone else that does this. Pay close attention to how everything goes back together. The plastic pieces on the inside are self explanatory, but when the metal part goes back on the clear plastic there is only one way it can go to seat fully. Look for the nub on the metal and the hole it goes in on the plastic.
TexEdmond
Gold Supporter
- Jun 16, 2021
- 661
- Pool Size
- 25500
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
I cleaned mine out not long after buying our house with a moderately neglected pool. I just took it all apart and hosed it off til it was clean. There was quite a bit of junk and dirt stuck in the upper section.
This website is a phenomenal resource but ironically it's not without its flavor of superstitious dogma. "That's dumb because I didn't think of it" or "That's not what I have on my pool" aren't good enough excuses for a website that claims to be scientific. Good on you for speaking clearly and directly to empirical truth that you've measured. I can say with confidence that this unit on my pool is responsible quite literally for keeping pounds of sediment out of my filters per season. If it comes down to me turning a ball valve every few weeks to doing 1 more filter cleaning a year, I'll gladly take that deal. Similarly I've got three cyclone dust separators of one kind or another in my woodshop and I wouldn't consider thinking of throwing them away just so I could empty shop-vacs or filter bags more.
My situation isn't like everyone's, so most folks certainly don't need one of these. I live just on the edge of the suburbs and it's just a few miles to legit farmland. The leaves are off the trees too many months out of the year, and the wind just simply never stops blowing 15mph one way or the other. Except for scooping out the large sticks and twigs I have hardly touched the skimmer pole and have used the pool brush exactly twice this whole year. The floor cleaners (another thing often poo-poohed by the "old guard" on this website, they're wrong about that too) and the robot have things well under control.
What I find odd is people swear by hair nets for their filter basket to keep floating stuff out of their filter but then say the MultiCyclone is a gimmick even though it keeps dirt out of the filter. They both do the same thing - keep stuff out of the filter! If you think hair nets help (which they do and I use them), you should also understand the value of a MultiCyclone. I'm not saying you need a MultiCyclone any more than you need hair nets. I'm just saying they both help extend the time between filter cleaning and all pool owners should appreciate that.
I'm new to this forum and have learned a couple things. First, there are some incredibly knowledgable and helpful people here. As a new pool owner, I've posted several questions and got some really great replies from many people that helped me immensely. I went from knowing nothing about pools to being a confident pool owner in just a couple weeks. But, I've also learned there are a few people here that although experts on many things related to pools, they are flat out wrong about a couple things. First is the MultiCyclone. Second is IFCS. Because of this, I no longer trust without verifying some opinions I read here.
I'm new to this forum and have learned a couple things. First, there are some incredibly knowledgable and helpful people here. As a new pool owner, I've posted several questions and got some really great replies from many people that helped me immensely. I went from knowing nothing about pools to being a confident pool owner in just a couple weeks. But, I've also learned there are a few people here that although experts on many things related to pools, they are flat out wrong about a couple things. First is the MultiCyclone. Second is IFCS. Because of this, I no longer trust without verifying some opinions I read here.
You are missing the entire point.
You have a 600 Sq ft filter. There is zero need for a couple hundred dollar device on your pool.
If you were building and had a smaller filter planned, the cyclone costs would be better served upsizing the filter so you didn't need filter help.
For folks that inherit a pool with a small filter, many would have to buy the cyclone and pay a plumber an exorbitant rate to install it, which would be cheaper than buying a big filter and installing that, but still more than most would want to spend. In THAT case, 10 cent hair nets are amazing.
You have yours already It came free with the house. Use it all you wish. Love it all you wish. Your filter doesn't need it. Nobody else needs to spend the money on it to increase their filter ability when hairnets are so cheap.
There is a similar difference in looking at IFCS. If you were to pay 5X to 10X the cost of a robot to clean less than the robot, it's a no brainer to skip the IFCS. If you have an unlimited budget on a build, feel free. Again, you didn't pay for yours. Enjoy it all.you wish. If you were going to add them, we'd reccomend many things that would come more in handy. If you disagreed, we'd high five you and enjoy watching them being installed.
Paint your pool red if you wish. I'll tell you that paints don't hold well underwater anymore due to environmental concerns, but if you go ahead anyway, I'll sit here all
In my case the multicyclone is on my in-floor cleaner system, so its the perfect application in my opinion. In pump basket catches the big stuff; multicyclone catches all the smaller stuff so it doesn't get into the filter. Basically exactly what you said @bertschb, I have a "hair net" on my clean system.
If I was building a pool today, I would have both the MultiCyclone and IFCS installed regardless of the cost because they reduce pool maintenance significantly and I prefer to spend less time maintaining my pool. Isn't that the entire premise of this forum - Trouble Free Pool????
If somebody said they would install a MultiCyclone for free on your pool, would you accept?
I hunted for weeks after the ship went sideways last year to secure my 500 Sq ft cartridges that won't need it. Or hair nets. I have zero use for either. My filter (and yours) will go all year, including pollen season. You should crack any filter open once a year for inspection alone. Clean it while you're in there.
But again. I am happy you are happy with it. My(our) job is for you to understand that it is a want and not a need. (Just like the IFCS). That doesnt make us right, or you wrong. We get you the education and you chose whats best for you. Then we high five you for making your best choice. We will even tell you how to install the next one if you move again and want a new one.
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