OK, added the baking soda and some CYA. Also I finally took the filter apart, everything looked pretty normal with the filter and the sand. I went ahead and changed the sand out as I was out of ideas. I noticed when putting in the new sand that the level was higher, so I definitely think that pooldoc was on to something with the fact that I've lost some sand. The pool water was immediately clearer but not totally clear. I think as the filter operates normally the water will get better every day.

What are your suggestions on the loss of the sand? I was thinking that I could add some to the skimmer (like how you add DE) every so often....or install a throttle valve when backwashing to keep the water from pushing sand out. I don't think it's just completely blowing the sand out while backwashing. I ran my hand through the waste stream while backwashing and did not notice any sand....but I know it went somewhere. With 0 pressure on the system (backwashing) I'm getting 50-60 gpm through the waste line (bucket calculated) but the filter is designed for 60 gpm.