Sand Filter Issues

[chinewalker]

We just set up our first pool about a week ago. Thanks to this site, our water chemistry seems to be going very well so far. But, we are having an issue, I think, with the filter.

The filter is a Jacuzzi ATL140. I changed the sand before we started using the filter. I inspected the laterals when it was apart and they appeared to my untrained eye to be just fine. Nothing looked broken or out of place.

The problem is that the filter is losing about a half pound of sand into the pool every day. We bought sand for sand filters from a department store. Are there different grain sizes? This is a real pain in the butt and I'm worried about vacuuming the pool with all that sand going thru the pump. Any suggestions/ideas?

There is also one more issue. Each time the pump is turned on, a brown cloud is blown into the pool through the return line for about 3 - 5 seconds. It dissipates quite quickly and doesn't seem to have any lasting effects, but this is not normal is it?

[Watermom]

What size sand filter and what size pump. It may be that your pump is just too powerful for the filter and is blowing everything through it too forcefully. We see this a lot. People think bigger is better but with pool pumps, that is not the case. (I have a 24ftAG -approx. 13K gallons- and a full-rated 1/2 hp inground pump with a 200# sand filter.)

[CarlD]

Does sound like an oversized pump. The solution is to get a bigger filter, a smaller pump, or replace the impeller with a smaller one.

Carl

[chinewalker]

The only problem I have with the oversized pump theory is that a friend had this pool for 10 years and never had this issue. It is still the original pump and filter. The filter is a 90# and I'm not sure of the size of the pump. It's a matched set that came with the pool kit.

uhhh...as I was writing "the filter is a 90#..." I realized that I used two 50# bags to fill it. :) Could an extra 10# of sand cause such a problem?

Any ideas about the big brown plume problem? The pool looked so nice before I flipped the switch this morning. It clouded the whole pool.

BTW, My pump is a 1hp. Filter says 20 gal/per minute.

Thanks!

[not2high2fly]

I'm not sure but could it be you didn't wash the sand first? Did you backwash before you set it to filter on start up? how about your multiport is the o ring and the spider gasket in good shape?

[BigDave]

I would make sure the borwn stuff (sand?) doesn't go through the solar loop.
I have a 1/2 hp pump that's rated at 40GPM...your filter may be too small. Do you have a valve that you could use to throttle the flow?

[chinewalker]

I'm not sure but could it be you didn't wash the sand first? Did you backwash before you set it to filter on start up? how about your multiport is the o ring and the spider gasket in good shape?

I backwashed the filter before using it, but I think that I should have possibly rinsed it longer before putting it into service. The sand flow has diminished to almost nothing after a couple of weeks. I believe that the o-ring and or the spider gasket could be bad because I have to fiddle with the lever every time I move it to stop it from leaking. The unit is quite old and I'm having trouble finding a clear replacement. I hate to tear it apart until I am sure I have the right parts.


I would make sure the borwn stuff (sand?) doesn't go through the solar loop.
I have a 1/2 hp pump that's rated at 40GPM...your filter may be too small. Do you have a valve that you could use to throttle the flow?

I do have a ball valve in the return line that I use to throttle the flow down some.

Thanks for the responses guys!