Should we do a sand or try a cartridge filter?

[georgiapoollover]

We had a 16 X 32 vinyl pool with 8 foot deep end before. Our sand filter worked fine. We are now about to do a 14 X 28 with the deepest spot being 5.6 feet. We have never used a cartride filter. I am thinking sand again. Any comments? Also, we are going to use the salt system for the first time. I am looking forward to no chlorine.

[JohnT]

We had a 16 X 32 vinyl pool with 8 foot deep end before. Our sand filter worked fine. We are now about to do a 14 X 28 with the deepest spot being 5.6 feet. We have never used a cartride filter. I am thinking sand again. Any comments? Also, we are going to use the salt system for the first time. I am looking forward to no chlorine.

If you believe there will be no chlorine in a salt pool, you have been misinformed. It will be there, you just don't have to add it.

[waterbear]

We had a 16 X 32 vinyl pool with 8 foot deep end before. Our sand filter worked fine. We are now about to do a 14 X 28 with the deepest spot being 5.6 feet. We have never used a cartride filter. I am thinking sand again. Any comments?
This is a debate that has been going on for a long time and will continue to go one. I will say up front that I use cartridges and like them. Here are a few facts that you can base you decision on:
Sand will filter to about 60 microns
Carts to about 20 microns
DE to about 5 or 6 microns
Sand is easiest to maintain
DE and CART are a bit more work, which is more work really depends on the filter design...some DE are pretty easy, some are a lot of work.
Some cartridge filters use one large cartridge (fairly easy), some use several smaller ones (I was taught that if you have nothing nice to say then don't say anything at all )
Also, we are going to use the salt system for the first time. I am looking forward to no chlorine.
Salt systems, or Salt Water Generators, generate chlorine from salt added to the pool. This has several advantages over manually adding chlorine such as, for many people, never needing to shock. It does have some downsides such as pH constantly rising becuase of the chemistry of chlorine generation by electrolysis. I have one in my pool and would not be with out it! You are going to LOVE it!

Hope this helps some

[georgiapoollover]

Thanks for your input. I am thinking of just keeping the sand filter. I am a woman and familiar with it. I maintained our last pool, as my husband was working alot. It was pretty easy.
As for the salt system...I am excited about it. I remember many times opening my automatic chlorinator and nearly being knocked over by the gas inside the chamber. I won't miss that. I meant earlier that I would not miss the constant chlorine tablets.

[CarlD]

One of the neat tricks we've learned is that if you add a little bit of DE to your sand filter, it filters much finer stuff. I use less than 1 cup of DE. You add just enough to raise your pressure about 1 lb. It can be anywhere from 1/4 to a full cup. You add more after you backwash. DE is amazingly cheap when used this way. I'm not even halfway through a 10# box I bought last summer for $8. I MAY finish it this season, but the results are incredibly good.

[georgiapoollover]

how do you add the DE?

[Poconos]

Mix the DE in a pail of water and slowly pour into the skimmer. Let the pump run for about 20 minutes for the pressure to stabilize. Add more if necessary, wait again, to get the 1 PSI increase.
Al