Sand? from return jets

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npdavenport

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May 19, 2022
13
North Carolina
I believe I'm having an issue with something (sand?) coming from my return jets. After just a few hours of running my pump, there is some sort of debris that accumulates at the bottom of my inline with my return jet. At first I wasn't sure if it was algae or sand, or who knows what, but I've taken a few steps to troubleshoot and remedy the issue along the way. First, I don't believe this is algae at all because if I keep my pump off then the debris doesn't appear at the bottom of the pool, it's only when I have the pump running for a few hours. Second, they debris looks a lot like wet sand at the bottom of the pool. I thought maybe it was dirt, but it seems pretty fine and breaks up with very little effort, even with the movement of water before the vacuum.

A little bit about my pool setup. I have a radiant semi-inground round pool (it's mostly buried) with a Pentair Sand Dollar SD40 sand filter. The pvc lines to and from the pool are buried beneath the ground. I also have a Pentair 1.5 HP pump. I don't have a traditional chlorine or salt water system, I have a perma salt system which uses an in-line chamber attached to the return pipe which uses copper iodization to keep bacteria/algae under control. Since it does not use chlorine, there is not a high level of chlorine in my water (never has been, and the system has worked great for years). The system is designed to be shocked every week/2 weeks.

In order to fix the issue, I have tried the following solutions:
  • Backwashed and rinsed
  • Replaced the sand pipe and laterals
  • Replaced the sand
  • Replaced the multiport valve including the o-ring.
I am sharing a video I took of the problem, but the reality is that the color shown on video is darker than what it looks like to the naked eye. I still think it is sand/dirt coming from the return, but I don't know what else to do at this point. Maybe there is a leak underground and some dirt is getting in? The system has essentially been replaced at this point other than the pump and pipes. Any thoughts/recommendations?

Thanks.
Videos of issue
 
npdavenport said:
I believe I'm having an issue with something (sand?) coming from my return jets. After just a few hours of running my pump, there is some sort of debris that accumulates at the bottom of my inline with my return jet. At first I wasn't sure if it was algae or sand, or who knows what, but I've taken a few steps to troubleshoot and remedy the issue along the way. First, I don't believe this is algae at all because if I keep my pump off then the debris doesn't appear at the bottom of the pool, it's only when I have the pump running for a few hours. Second, they debris looks a lot like wet sand at the bottom of the pool. I thought maybe it was dirt, but it seems pretty fine and breaks up with very little effort, even with the movement of water before the vacuum.

A little bit about my pool setup. I have a radiant semi-inground round pool (it's mostly buried) with a Pentair Sand Dollar SD40 sand filter. The pvc lines to and from the pool are buried beneath the ground. I also have a Pentair 1.5 HP pump. I don't have a traditional chlorine or salt water system, I have a perma salt system which uses an in-line chamber attached to the return pipe which uses copper iodization to keep bacteria/algae under control. Since it does not use chlorine, there is not a high level of chlorine in my water (never has been, and the system has worked great for years). The system is designed to be shocked every week/2 weeks.

In order to fix the issue, I have tried the following solutions:
  • Backwashed and rinsed
  • Replaced the sand pipe and laterals
  • Replaced the sand
  • Replaced the multiport valve including the o-ring.
I am sharing a video I took of the problem, but the reality is that the color shown on video is darker than what it looks like to the naked eye. I still think it is sand/dirt coming from the return, but I don't know what else to do at this point. Maybe there is a leak underground and some dirt is getting in? The system has essentially been replaced at this point other than the pump and pipes. Any thoughts/recommendations?

Thanks.
Videos of issue
Click to expand...
Oh, and I forgot to mention that I did dump bleach into the pool at one point when I thought it might have been algae, but the problem returned as well.
 
Some people get by a year or two with that before things turn sour, many don’t even get that long.
The permasalt system adds things u don’t want to your water - like copper, which can turn hair, nails & water green along with staining surfaces.
Maintaining adequate fc amounts according to the FC/CYA Levels is necessary to have sanitary water no matter what “minerals” are added.
That system relies on algeacides & oxidizers along with inadequate chlorine levels to try and keep the water clear (clear doesn’t always equal sanitary).
Chlorine, in adequate yet safe amounts, accomplishes all these tasks without the expense or complication. No magic involved.

Alternative sanitizers and "chemical free" pools--The Truth!

Pool owners frequently seek out "Chemical Free" alternatives to pool water sanitization. Many claims in favor of these systems and methods have been made (usually by the manufacturers of such systems) often without adequate scientific proof of their efficacy. Let's take a look at them and see...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
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So as is the case with the perma salt system, the chlorine levels are certainly low. The real strange part to me is that it is so tightly coupled to the return jet (and that I previously used bleach)...that has really thrown me off so much. Yesterday I did a prolonged backwash and rinse, and I turned my return jets to point down (they did point to the surface before) and it's been almost 24 hours and there has been nothing in my pool. This is the first time I've had the jets on this long without anything on the pool floor (other than having the pump off completely). Gonna keep monitoring it and see what happens. Fingers crossed!
 
Depending upon your current cya level the amount of bleach you used may or may not have been enough to even reach shock/slam level one time.
FC/CYA Levels
That definitely looks like algae in the videos. The algeacides may have been keeping it at bay but algeacides will not eradicate an algae problem. They are at best a preventative.
The remedy for algae is the SLAM Process which involves continuously Maintaining slam level for your cya until u pass ALL 3 end of slam criteria as described in the article. It’s not just a one time addition of fc.
To do this correctly you need a Taylor k2006 or tf100/pro. Test Kits Compared
 
Mdragger88 said:
Depending upon your current cya level the amount of bleach you used may or may not have been enough to even reach shock/slam level one time.
FC/CYA Levels
That definitely looks like algae in the videos. The algeacides may have been keeping it at bay but algeacides will not eradicate an algae problem. They are at best a preventative.
The remedy for algae is the SLAM Process which involves continuously Maintaining slam level for your cya until u pass ALL 3 end of slam criteria as described in the article. It’s not just a one time addition of fc.
To do this correctly you need a Taylor k2006 or tf100/pro. Test Kits Compared
Click to expand...
Interesting for sure. I do have the TF100 and will look into the SLAM process. Thank you.
 
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