type of sand

[purplegirl]

what type of sand does a sand filter use? can i use anything? or does it have to be special pool sand?

[waterbear]

You need pool sand. Other types of sand are not going to filter properly and might really cloud the pool if they are not de-dusted. Play sand and building sand are not filter sand. Sand is cheap and lasts so don't try and save a few pennies here.

[purplegirl]

Thanks waterbear. My neighbor, who got rid of his pool last year, gave us his sand filter and pump. I've been reading on here that you can have a pump that has too much horsepower. I don't know the size of the filter (holds 6 bags of sand) or pump. I want to know if it is possible to have too large a filter for a pool (my pool is 5000 gallons) and what would happen if the pump I have is too large for my pool? Can it hurt? These were free and I would hate to not be able to use them, especially considering my pool is green and will be for the foreseeable future.

[waterbear]

too big a pump can cause problems for a filter but if they are matched it should not be that much of a problem. 300 lbs of sand does not sound like a hugh filer so you should be ok. You might also need some pea gravel to cover the laterals.
post the make/model number of the pump and of the filter (they are not the same) If this is a skidpack (both on one one base) then there would be a make/model for that also possibly.

[purplegirl]

We emptied the old sand out of the filter and there was no pea gravel at the bottom, it's possible the old owners neglected to put it in there. Should we put pea gravel down there, would it help?

unfortunetly all discrimenating labels have long worn off both pump and filter. There is a plate attached to the pump with a number. I am having a problem downloading a picture. The numbers on the pump read COL1081PSC motor RU, I'm sorry I can't give you more info.

[waterbear]

We emptied the old sand out of the filter and there was no pea gravel at the bottom, it's possible the old owners neglected to put it in there. Should we put pea gravel down there, would it help?

unfortunetly all discrimenating labels have long worn off both pump and filter. There is a plate attached to the pump with a number. I am having a problem downloading a picture. The numbers on the pump read COL1081PSC motor RU, I'm sorry I can't give you more info.

all the number you gave means is the motor meets UL 1081 for pool motors and that it is most likely a Marathon PSC series motor, which can be anything from 1/2 HP to 5 HP! Is there no name or numbers visible anywhere on the pump or filter? Even a partial one could help.

Is this a 'skid pack' from an above ground pool or a separate filter and pump? How big a pool was it on?

Not all manufacturers recommend pea gravel on the bottom of the filter but i feel it's a good idea to cover the laterals with pea gravel (and many other people in the biz feel the same).
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showthr...ghlight=gravel
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showpos...55&postcount=5
http://www.poolforum.com/pf2/showpos...26&postcount=8