Hey Gdubps,

I moved this to your own thread, to avoid getting it tangled with the other thread. And, yes, your cartridges could die in just a year. Possible reasons:
  1. Failure to clean them fully.
  2. Cleaning them the WRONG way (acid washing grease will do it!)
  3. Asian made cartridges -- I'm sure someone in Asia *could* make high quality cartridges, but to the best of my knowledge, no one there is doing so yet.

Try this, first -- get a basic cleaning set-up:
(You can get all these locally. TSP is usually in the paint section. Any clean plastic 5 - 10 gallon bucket with a lid will work for soaking:
Rubbermaid BRUTE Gray 10 Gal Container w/o Lid @ Amazon
Round Brute Lid For 10-Gallon Waste Containers, 16" Diameter, Gray
1lb Savogran 10621 Trisodium Phosphate (TSP) @ Amazon
Order that stuff -- or buy it locally -- and clean your filters properly. See if that helps.

ALSO . . . verify that your pressure gauge is working properly. If it doesn't return to 0 when the pump is off -- replace it.

If the gauge is OK, and cleaning doesn't help, it's time for new cartridges. Unicel makes many of the Hayward cartridges -- by either a Unicel or a Hayward OEM. I think this is the correct cartridge:
Unicel C-7442 Replacement Filter Cartridge for 40 Square Foot Hayward CX410RE
But here are the dimensions of that cartridge:
Easy Clear C400 40sft 7" diameter 14-3/16" long open w/ molded gasket CX410RE C-7442 4 oz
Measure your existing cartridge, and make sure that's correct; then order (2).

Clean them by
  • Spraying them off -- NO pressure washer; no scrubbing.
  • Soak them in 4 gal water + 1lb TSP + 1/8 cup of bleach each time you change cartridges.
  • When swapping, remove from tank; drain, rinse, drain again, rinse, drain again, rinse a 3rd time; install
.

Rotate them regularly, with one cartridge always soaking. NEVER acid clean a cartridge unnecessarily; NEVER acid clean without using detergent (TSP) first.