How To Change Laterals In Sand Filter

How to Change Sand in Your Pool Filter

A sand filter pushes your pool water through layers of sand, which functions as the filtration medium in the filter tank. The sharp edges of the sand grains capture contaminants as the h2o passes through the filter.

About sand filters use several graded layers of textile to clean the water. Coarse sand is the bottom layer of the sand bed, followed by medium then fine sand, with very fine silica sand on the top.

Did You Know?

The size of the sand granules is critical for optimum filtering efficiency. If the granules are too big, you'll see less filtering efficiency; if the granules are also small, you risk bottleneck the filter speedily.

Chemic flocculants or diatomaceous earth (DE) powder can too be spread over the peak layer of sand to amend the filter performance. Flocculants concenter floating microscopic debris and cluster the particles together into chunks big enough to sink and be vacuumed up. DE pulverisation is pulverized plankton fossils (called diatoms) that coats the filter element to collect impurities.

Exit a infinite of about half the depth of the filter bed betwixt the sand bed and the overdrain, to give the filter enough of room to function properly.

sand and pool filter

How to Change the Sand

Changing filter sand is a fairly complex process. The adept news is that a sand filter can go nearly a long time without needing fresh sand.

Did You Know?

A fiddling debris can really aid in filtration. When the sand bed is completely clean, some of the smallest particles will pass through unfiltered. As the sand bed begins to accrue the impurities, the filter can take hold of more and more as accumulated particles concenter.

Step 1. Get the Right Equipment

Exist sure you have everything you need on manus earlier you begin the process. Your listing of essentials can include sand, a replacement O-ring between the valve and the tank, Teflon record, lubricant, and unions.

Simply use pool filter sand that is approved by your manufacturer. If y'all have any questions about what kind of sand you need, bank check with your local pool retailer.

Pro tip: Your puddle filter has many small however of import components. Always place items like your filter drain cap in a safe, memorable place so you can notice them easily during reassembly.

Step 2. Plough the Power Off

Plough off the pool pump and timer (if you have one). Amend yet, shut off the ability to the pump at the circuit billow.

Step iii. Bleed the Tank

Remove the drain cap at the lesser of your filter tank to release the force per unit area in the filter and drain the water. Give the drain cap at the bottom of the tank but half a plow counter-clockwise to allow out all the air. Later a burst of air pressure, remove the cap to bleed out the h2o. If you don't want the water elimination directly onto the ground, quickly attach a hose over the drain afterward you remove the cap to direct the draining h2o elsewhere.

Step 4. Remove the Multiport Valve

Disconnect the pump, return, and waste material hoses fixed to the multiport valve at the acme of your filter. After those port attachments are off, take out the multiport valve flange clench that secures the filter in place. Unscrew the bolts that carve up the clench, and pull deliberately and consistently to lift the valve off the pipe.

If your multiport valve has unions, just unscrew them from the multiport valve. If yous do non accept unions, you'll need to cut the pipes running to and from your filter. Information technology might exist a skillful time to install unions before reassembling to make hereafter maintenance easier. Brand sure you leave plenty exposed pipe after the cut to add both sides of the unions.

Pro tip: Use a very gentle twist to pull the valve off the piping. Yanking too hard will likely break the lateral pipes at the bottom of the tank.

Step v. Remove the Old Sand

Equally soon as you disconnect the pipe from the multiport valve, tape the terminate of the pipe airtight to forestall sand from inbound it and clogging the laterals. Later y'all tape off the piping, empty out all the existing sand. Scoop it out with a plastic cup – or vacuum it out with a store vac – until the top of the laterals at the bottom of the tank are visible.

Pace 6. Withdraw the Lateral Assembly and Pipe

Slowly rotate the 10 lateral pipes up, then smoothly pull the lateral assembly and pipage out of the rest of the sand. Inspect the laterals for impairment, supplant whatever that look broken or worn out. Clogged laterals should be soaked in a bucket of cleaning solution for a few hours, so thoroughly rinsed and reinstalled onto the assembly.

Pace 7. Wash the Tank

Thoroughly wash out the tank with a garden hose. Bank check the bleed cap, and swap it out with a new one it if you lot find whatever cracks. Fill the filter tank hallway up with water to provide a cushion and protect the laterals from getting clogged when yous pour in the new sand.

Step eight. Replace the Lateral Assembly and Pipe

Insert the lateral assembly and pipe dorsum into the tank, with the ten laterals rotated upwards. Once the lateral assembly is secured, turn all the laterals xc degrees back to their downward position.

Step 9. Add together Fresh Sand

Tape off the peak of the piping to prevent sand from entering and clogging the laterals. Keeping the pipage centered in the tank, carefully and slowly cascade sand into the filter unit. Add enough sand then that the laterals are completely covered. Level the sand as you pour to ensure fifty-fifty sand distribution for effective filtration and water circulation.

Pro tip: When adding new sand, have intendance not to lift the lateral assembly and piping off the bottom of the tank. You won't be able to push it back down without rotating the laterals up, and upward-facing laterals will prevent proper filtering.

Step 10. Audit (and mayhap supervene upon) the O-Ring.

Remove the O-ring at the lesser of the multiport valve and inspect for excessive habiliment-and-tear. Since you only perform this procedure every 5 years or so, it'southward a smart option to go ahead and replace the O-ring now, even if yours is in decent shape. O-rings are actually cheap, and they do wear out.

Of course, if you don't replace the O-ring, make sure to lubricate information technology sparingly with a silicone-based lubricant.

Step 11. Re-set the Multiport Control Valve

Remove the record from the finish of the piping, and carefully set the multiport control valve dorsum in its original position on the central pipage. Secure the valve clamps around the tank and tighten them into place. Reconnect the unions with the pool pump and the return ports.

(If your filter doesn't have unions, gum the pipes back together with straight couplers.)

Step 12. Backwash the Filter

With the pump still switched off, rotate the valve handle to the "Backwash" setting and so plough on the pump. Subsequently information technology's fully primed, run the puddle pump for about 2 minutes to flush out the impurities in the water and the finer sand particles from the sand media, and to ensure that your pool h2o waste is exiting at the right place.

In one case the backwash water runs clear and make clean, turn the puddle pump off. Switch the multiport valve to "Rinse," and then plough the pump dorsum on. After about a minute, the water in the sight glass should exist clear.

Step 13. Savour!

Turn the puddle pump back off and gear up the valve to "Filter" (the normal operating mode). Turn the pump back on, and go ready to savour your swim!