How to Maintain Your Pool Cleaners & Filters

Overview

Your pool cleaners and filters need to be properly maintained and cleaned for them to do their job of cleaning your pool and the water in it. Dirty cleaners and filters can’t clean a dirty pool. All they can do is to recycle the dirty. Which is not what you really want to do.

Your pool’s pump filter plays a big part in keeping your pool water clean, as it removes debris and contaminants from the water – including bacteria that the chlorine or other sanitizers have killed. Cleaning your filter regularly can help keep the water clean and safe unless you enjoy calling up the pool support for every tiny little issue.

Before using your pump cleaner!

Before using your cleaner – automatic or manual – make sure all the inline filters and skimmers are clean and free of debris. Wash them off with a garden hose or wash them gently with soap and water. Examine the cleaner head and clean it as well. If you need to use a brush on it to remove some of the grit and grime, use a soft bristle brush like a shoe brush. Alternately you can use a toothbrush to get into some of the tighter spots.

Check what type of filter you have.

There are three primary types of pump filters, and each type requires a different maintenance routine. Below are some general guidelines, but you should always defer to the directions in your owner’s manual. If you are uncomfortable conducting any of the maintenance yourself, contact a professional pool support team.

Cleaning a cartridge filter

Cartridge filters are the easiest to clean and maintain. They have a very fine surface that catches all the dirty and debris. Simply remove them and wash them off with a garden hose. You can wash them gently with soap and water, but it isn’t necessary. Once the filter is clean, put it back in place and you’re done.

To clean it, you just backwash the filter on a regular basis. Once a week is a good place to start, then adjust it from there.

Cleaning a Sand Filter

A sand filter tank is made of metal, concrete or fiberglass and contains a thick bed of special grade sand. While filtering, dirty water from the pool comes in through the filter’s inlet pipe, which leads to the water distribution head inside the tank. While gravity pulls the water down through the sand, tiny sand particles catch dirty and debris. At the bottom of the tank, the filtered water flows through the pickup unit and out the outlet pipe.

If the water flow is slowed by dirty and debris, pressure gauges at the filter inlet and outlet give the pool owner and idea of the blockage level inside. If the inlet pipe has more pressure than the outlet pipe, there is collected debris in the sand. You will then need to backwash the filter.

For regular cleanings, you can backwash a sand filter to remove debris. You will also need to use a chemical cleaner on your sand filter at least once a year.

The coarseness of sand traps debris particles and over time, the sand will become smooth and round. This sand should be changed every five years. Contact a pool professional to change the sand or you can choose to do it yourself.

Diatomaceous Earth Filter

The Diatomaceous Earth Filter (DE) differs from the other types because of the filter media itself. In this case, the DE is the filter media. DE is an extremely fine powder that is produced by crushing the fossilized exoskeletons of diatoms. These ancient hard selling organisms were like algae, but the porous bone material makes an excellent filter when used in this way. The powdered skeletons coat a fabric covered filter grid that keeps the DE itself from washing back into the pool.

Adding the new DE is simple. It goes directly into the skimmer and the pump sucks the DE into place preparing it to do its job as more contaminants enter the water. You will be able to tell when there is enough DE in the system by watching the pressure gauge fall below 8 pounds or into the indicated safe zone of the pump. Backwashing and addition of new DE is required once or twice a year for residential pools.

What to do after using pool pump cleaner

Once you are finished using your cleaner, or it’s done working by itself if you have an automatic one, go through the same cleaning and washing process again. Cleaning your pool will deposit new debris and leaves the inline filters, filter back and skimmer basket(s). Empty them out and rinse them off with a garden hose.

Have the following in mind.

• Keep your pool’s water between 1/3 and ½ way up the opening of the pool skimmer. This is the level at which your pool operates at best. A pool skimmer is a device that attracts the surface water of the pool. It pulls in small debris like leaves and other things that might have fallen into the pool.
• If the water level is too high, the water moves too slowly into the skimmer. This can result in debris bypassing the skimmer and accumulating in the pool.
• If the water level is too low, the skimmer is left with little to suck in and it can bottom out. It will suck in air instead, potential burning your pool’s motor pump.
• Before backwashing and vacuuming, make sure you pour in water. The action of vacuuming causes the water level to decrease, which is why you need to add water beforehand.
• Be aware of different filtration systems – Sand filters, cartridge filters, diatomaceous earth filters.
• Make sure to remember your pool filters in your pool care routine.