Very Cloudy/Foaming issues

Great info, thank you PoolDoc. I will get the materials, but before I do, I wanted to update where my pool is at as of today. Due to the weather systems rolling through AZ, it has been unusually cool for this time of year, so I jumped at the opportunity to partially drain my pool last night and refill. I also began to work at increasing my chlorine content since I was told it was quite low. With the partial drain (3 feet) and refilll, my applicable levels as of this morning:

FC - 8ppm
CC - 2ppm
CH - 400ppm
pH - 7.0

Am I still ok to proceed with the process mentioned above? Also, I've attached a photo of my soupy pool. Water doesn't look bad, but once I kick that system on you can just see the nastiness being placed back in. This is what made the DE test very hard. Really wish I had the VAC 2 WASTE ability.

http://i1369.photobucket.com/albums/...ps0a3383e3.jpg

1. Check the sand, as above, if possible.

2. Do NOT cycle your pump on and off -- disable your timer for now.

Instead, run it continuously till EITHER the water is clear OR the pressure has risen at least 6 pounds over the clean pressure. At that point, BACKWASH, then RINSE, before returning the multiport valve to FILTER.

My bad. I was confusing this thread with another one.

If possible, you should check your sand filter for LEVEL and for QUALITY. Get a bag of LABELED filter sand from a pool store (NOT: Lowes or Home Depot). Open the filter and check the sand LEVEL and quality (gummy, lumped, etc.) If there's sufficient sand, and it's OK, remove a handful and dry it on a pan in the over. Place some sand from the new bag side by side on a smooth white cloth (old pillow case) with the dried sand. See if they are the sand.

Also if possible, replace the push-pull valve with a multiport valve. It will make managing your filter much easier.