Hi, New to TFP but have been referencing each year since we moved into a home with a pool! Each summer I gain confidence taking care of our equipment, but with a long NE winter between seasons I struggle to retain everything I've learned.....
Case in point, our pool company opened our pool (I'm still not comfortable doing this myself especially with 4 young kids home (and interested in everything going on....) and I had told them I'd do chemicals myself. They removed the cover, plugs, installed DE filter, and turned things on. For once, everything worked (even an aging heater!). I shocked the pool in their presence, and they left. The pool was dark green as usual, but within a few hours the water was looking great despite the mess on the bottom (leaves, and lots of sediment on walls and floor from long winter and just power washing our surrounding bluestone). Anyhow, around this time (3 hrs after starting pump) it occurred to me that the guys had never asked for DE for the filter and I panicked. The filter pressure was already high (28 psi, normally sits around 18), so I did a quick backwash but did not see anything wash off. I restarted and added about 12L of DE for my 60 sqft filter (I see lots of references to how many lbs of DE but my bag also had a measurement in Liters so I was using a Liter scoop....). The pressure creeped down to about 20-22psi. Still higher than normal, but I let it go. I ran the filter all night. The next morning the pool water looked very clear, but the filter was again up around 28-30 psi. I backwashed and then added 6L of DE. Pressure sat around 24-25psi. At this time I also brushed the walls and some of the floor as I'd begun to balance the water and didn't want things sitting on the bottom. The brushing really created a mess and it hasn't been as clear since. I didn't run the filter overnight because of the high pressure.
Based on what I've read, I think I need to open up the filter and start all over again, correct? Unfortunately, I need a new bag of DE and a bunch of confidence (and spare time!) to properly attack this problem, but I'd really like to know at least that I'm on the right track.
Water tests
FC 0
CC 0.4
Ph 8+ (despite 10lbs Ph reducer)
Alk 70
CH 160
Salt not tested yet
Thanks TFP!
Case in point, our pool company opened our pool (I'm still not comfortable doing this myself especially with 4 young kids home (and interested in everything going on....) and I had told them I'd do chemicals myself. They removed the cover, plugs, installed DE filter, and turned things on. For once, everything worked (even an aging heater!). I shocked the pool in their presence, and they left. The pool was dark green as usual, but within a few hours the water was looking great despite the mess on the bottom (leaves, and lots of sediment on walls and floor from long winter and just power washing our surrounding bluestone). Anyhow, around this time (3 hrs after starting pump) it occurred to me that the guys had never asked for DE for the filter and I panicked. The filter pressure was already high (28 psi, normally sits around 18), so I did a quick backwash but did not see anything wash off. I restarted and added about 12L of DE for my 60 sqft filter (I see lots of references to how many lbs of DE but my bag also had a measurement in Liters so I was using a Liter scoop....). The pressure creeped down to about 20-22psi. Still higher than normal, but I let it go. I ran the filter all night. The next morning the pool water looked very clear, but the filter was again up around 28-30 psi. I backwashed and then added 6L of DE. Pressure sat around 24-25psi. At this time I also brushed the walls and some of the floor as I'd begun to balance the water and didn't want things sitting on the bottom. The brushing really created a mess and it hasn't been as clear since. I didn't run the filter overnight because of the high pressure.
Based on what I've read, I think I need to open up the filter and start all over again, correct? Unfortunately, I need a new bag of DE and a bunch of confidence (and spare time!) to properly attack this problem, but I'd really like to know at least that I'm on the right track.
Water tests
FC 0
CC 0.4
Ph 8+ (despite 10lbs Ph reducer)
Alk 70
CH 160
Salt not tested yet
Thanks TFP!
