Sand filter - What media?

[chriscnet]

Hi! long term visitor, first time poster here...

I'm hoping someone can help me with some advice. We have an above ground pool which is working fairly well by following all the advice on the forum. I've just bought a sand filter for it to upgrade the one that came with it but not sure what type of sand I should put in it.

I've read quite a bit about the different grades, however this filter says "Size of silica sand: 0.8mm" - what does this mean? The sand grades I can find all seem to be 0.4 - 0.8mm not just 0.8?

Any advice gratefully received!

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

Sand Filter Use and Care - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

The sand in a pool sand filter is #20 silica sand; 0.45 - 0.55 mm. A discussion about different qualities of pool sand can be found in My findings on how not all sand is created equal. Pool sand that is too fine with small particles will be blown out from the laterals.

Pentair uses US Silica Mystic White II sand for all of their testing