Underground backwash basin acting strange?

[pcm2a]

I have totally bungled this terminology, so please let me know the correct verbiage. When I backwash my sand filter it goes down into some kind of underground area that is pretty large. You can hear it down in there gurgling. In seven years here I never knew that there was two access points where water could escape if it became full. A few months ago I noticed that now when I backwash water comes out of both. It goes away after a minute, but I'd like to know what has happened in that underground cavern to become clogged. In the photos this is just after backwashing and those two green access points were never visible under dirt and grass all this time I guess.

Why is it acting like this now and is any action needed on my part? Since the water dissipates after a minute, I assume it is not critical.

 

[ajw22]

I think you need to find your drain pit and see why it is not draining the way it used to. It will likely drain slower and slower to where most of the water will overflow out of those pipes.

 

[pcm2a]

In my mind this is going to require some kind of pool building expert to come in ($$$) and bring some kind of excavator ($$$) to dig down, and then repair/replace however this system works ($$$). Am I off base on this? If it became a critical issue and it's thousands of dollars, the 100 foot flat hose is only $30. I see a lot of neighbors using those.

 

[Lake Placid]

Can you have a plumber come in a run a camera through the access ports to give you an idea of how the system is setup?

 

[ajw22]

Who does your landscaping and lawn care?

No pool guy needed. It takes a guy with a shovel an hour or so to dig down and find out what is down there.

Landscaping companies deal with water management, drains and sump pits.

 

[Bill1974]

Most likely it's a drywell that has finally filled with debris or plugged up with enough debris that it does not drain well anymore. A septic company should be able to pump it out and suck out the debris preventing it from draining well. If you're a bit handy, and don't mind some sweat equity, get a shovel and find the cover. If it's smaller in size (only a few feet deep) you could probably pump the water out and then suck out the debris on the bottom with a shop vac (it's going to take a fair bit of shop vac loads to do and you're going to need somewhere to dispose of the debris). Other option is to mix it up and use a dirty water pump to clean it out.

Another option is to pump the backwash somewhere else. Mine goes onto my lawn, as long as the chlorine level isn't to high it barely does anything to the lawn. I try to backwash when the chlorine level is low and it's going to rain.

 

[pcm2a]

Another option is to pump the backwash somewhere else. Mine goes onto my lawn, as long as the chlorine level isn't to high it barely does anything to the lawn. I try to backwash when the chlorine level is low and it's going to rain.

Thank you, this was very helpful information. Septic company sounds like a pretty good idea. A lot of my neighbors use the super long flat hose to backwash into the ditch. That is always an option too since they are cheap. I haven't noticed the water doing anything to the grass or flower beds except making them grow faster and look greener than the rest of my yard. I keep my chlorine in the recommended range and I also backwash before adding the days chlorine.

Since you meantioned out in the yard. My gutters go down into the ground and the drain is way out into the yard. I could probably hook into that and pump the water far out into the yard. The gutter system is real close by the pool filter. Lots of good options.