UGH! Incompetent pool technicians...why are there so many of them?

[poolnovice1]

I have had nothing but bad luck with pool guys. Before I found TFP, I went through 4 pool techs. They just throw pucks in there, scrub a little, and go onto the next house.

Anyway, now I only use techs to clean my DE filter, and it looks like maybe that was not a good idea. After my filter clean last week, there was a TON of DE in the spa and pool - probably two pounds. He says it is normal and came by to vacuum it up. Question: is this normal? How is it possible to get DE in the pool unless there's a tear in the grids?

Second, the guy set the return actuator valve to pool and the suction actuator valve to spa before he left. As a result, it drained my spa and the pump ran dry for a hour or two. Question: is my pump damaged? I don't see any leaks.

 

[ajw22]

I have had nothing but bad luck with pool guys. Before I found TFP, I went through 4 pool techs. They just throw pucks in there, scrub a little, and go onto the next house.

That is the training most pool guys get. They have a large route and need to get in, get stuff done quickly, and move onto the next pool. They may have a dozen pools to service in a day. With travel time there is not a lot of time to spend at each pool.

Ask your pool guy how many pools he does in a day?

Anyway, now I only use techs to clean my DE filter, and it looks like maybe that was not a good idea. After my filter clean last week, there was a TON of DE in the spa and pool - probably two pounds. He says it is normal and came by to vacuum it up. Question: is this normal? How is it possible to get DE in the pool unless there's a tear in the grids?

No, it is not normal.

I don't know how to get DE into the pool since I have never done it.

Second, the guy set the return actuator valve to pool and the suction actuator valve to spa before he left. As a result, it drained my spa and the pump ran dry for a hour or two. Question: is my pump damaged? I don't see any leaks.

Please create your signature with details of your pool and equipment. It is questions like this where it helps to be able to glance at what model pump you he.

All you can do is keep an eye on your pump. IT may take a while for a leak to develop from an overheated seal.

 

[DeanP66]

The DE may have backed up through the pipes back to the pool when he opened the filter to clean it. It can happen, especially if he opens the pump lid to clean out the basket. Some people put either a check valve or a 2 way valve in front of the suction side to the pump to avoid this very thing. I did this very thing at my friend's house about a year ago. She asked me to clean her DE filter and as it was draining, I would see a huge cloud of DE coming back up through the main drain in the deep end. It was very annoying, so I suggested she put a 2 way valve that can be closed during the filter cleaning to keep the water from backtracking. It worked like a charm. Of course, I had to pull out her manual vacuum and slowly vacuum up all the DE in the deep end very slowly, so it wouldn't go all over the place.

The other possibility is that you have a tear in one of the DE grids or in the manifold. That will push the DE back through the returns, but you can usually see that once you start the pump after a cleaning.

 

[zea3]

A small puff of DE is normal, 2lbs is not. If he took out and hosed off only the grids, or hosed them off in place and did not clean out the filter housing this could also happen. I'm not sure if your grids have a tear but it is possible that they could. Does the filter continue to lose DE into the pool? Did he vacuum to filter or to waste? If he vacuumed to waste your filter might be short 2lbs of DE.

 

[poolnovice1]

The DE may have backed up through the pipes back to the pool when he opened the filter to clean it. It can happen, especially if he opens the pump lid to clean out the basket. Some people put either a check valve or a 2 way valve in front of the suction side to the pump to avoid this very thing. I did this very thing at my friend's house about a year ago. She asked me to clean her DE filter and as it was draining, I would see a huge cloud of DE coming back up through the main drain in the deep end. It was very annoying, so I suggested she put a 2 way valve that can be closed during the filter cleaning to keep the water from backtracking. It worked like a charm. Of course, I had to pull out her manual vacuum and slowly vacuum up all the DE in the deep end very slowly, so it wouldn't go all over the place.

The other possibility is that you have a tear in one of the DE grids or in the manifold. That will push the DE back through the returns, but you can usually see that once you start the pump after a cleaning.

Thanks. That is very helpful. I don't believe it is a tear because I don't see any more DE coming out.