Remove Sand From Pool After New Sand Filter Is Installed

[Scott W]

Greetings from Sunny Chicago!

I think I am almost to the end of a 2 year old problem with cloudy water and debris in my pool. I have a 21' round 54"d above ground pool. I was running a Meteor 18"diameter sand filter prior to this week. My pool has been cloudy and a breeding ground for algae for the past two years since I switched from a cartridge filter.

After taking my filter apart, I discovered cracks in the laterals. I also noted that the level of the sand was extremely low. I scooped up some of the debris from the bottom of the pool and found it was mostly sand. It all started to make sense. I added sand, and the filter just blew it through into the pool. No real filtration was taking place, so none of the particles were being removed.

So I ran off to my local pool supply, and purchased a new filter. This one is a bit larger - not sure the diameter but it is closer to 28-30" and takes 250# of sand instead of 75#. I got it all hooked up and followed the startup directions closely - backwashed and rinsed until clear, then fired it up. So NOW . . . I FINALLY have a working filter again.

NOW FOR MY REAL QUESTION. I probably have 50# of filter sand on the bottom of my pool. Do I need to vac to waste to remove it, or can I just vac it into the filter and let the sand in the filter catch the sand from the pool? Keep in mind, this is new sand from this spring.

I would appreciate any advice any of you can give me. I am close to being able to use my pool again after 2 years of disaster.

Thanks

Scott W.

[matcin2531]

Scott I would vac to waste. Let me tell you why I think so. I this year installed a new AGP and bought one of those ez-steps to replace the ladder. When I put it together the directions told me to weigh it down by pouring filter sand inside it. I poured double the amount by directions and noticed a day later that sand was all around the steps. It was spitting out sand every time someone stood on them. I figured I would vac it out in filter mode since it was the right kind of sand for the filter anyway. After I was done maybe the next day I went to backwash and could not move the handle. The sand got in between the valve and siezed it up. I had to take the top assembly completely apart and rinse the sand out of it.

[matcin2531]

Scott I would vac to waste. Let me tell you why I think so. I this year installed a new AGP and bought one of those ez-steps to replace the ladder. When I put it together the directions told me to weigh it down by pouring filter sand inside it. I poured double the amount by directions and noticed a day later that sand was all around the steps. It was spitting out sand every time someone stood on them. I figured I would vac it out in filter mode since it was the right kind of sand for the filter anyway. After I was done maybe the next day I went to backwash and could not move the handle. The sand got in between the valve and siezed it up. I had to take the top assembly completely apart and rinse the sand out of it. Not to mention that the pump is a lttle louder now, like I may have grinded the bearing area. I have not taken the pump apart in fear ,I do not have a replacement yet in case I mess a gasket up or something.

[matcin2531]

Scott I would vac to waste. Let me tell you why I think so. I this year installed a new AGP and bought one of those ez-steps to replace the ladder. When I put it together the directions told me to weigh it down by pouring filter sand inside it. I poured double the amount by directions (about 35 lbs. more) and spilled some too. It was spitting out sand every time someone stood on them. I figured I would vac the sand off the bottom in filter mode since it was the right kind of sand for the filter anyway. After I was done maybe the next day I went to backwash and could not move the handle. The sand got in between the valve and siezed it up. I had to take the top assembly completely apart and rinse the sand out of it. Not to mention that the pump is a lttle louder now, like I may have grinded the bearing area. I have not taken the pump apart in fear ,I do not have a replacement yet in case I mess a gasket up or something.

[Scott W]

Scott I would vac to waste. Let me tell you why I think so. I this year installed a new AGP and bought one of those ez-steps to replace the ladder. When I put it together the directions told me to weigh it down by pouring filter sand inside it. I poured double the amount by directions (about 35 lbs. more) and spilled some too. It was spitting out sand every time someone stood on them. I figured I would vac the sand off the bottom in filter mode since it was the right kind of sand for the filter anyway. After I was done maybe the next day I went to backwash and could not move the handle. The sand got in between the valve and siezed it up. I had to take the top assembly completely apart and rinse the sand out of it. Not to mention that the pump is a lttle louder now, like I may have grinded the bearing area. I have not taken the pump apart in fear ,I do not have a replacement yet in case I mess a gasket up or something.

Thanks for the advice. I will probably do just that.

[Wizzard of spas]

Scott I would vac to waste. Let me tell you why I think so. I this year installed a new AGP and bought one of those ez-steps to replace the ladder. When I put it together the directions told me to weigh it down by pouring filter sand inside it. I poured double the amount by directions and noticed a day later that sand was all around the steps. It was spitting out sand every time someone stood on them. I figured I would vac it out in filter mode since it was the right kind of sand for the filter anyway. After I was done maybe the next day I went to backwash and could not move the handle. The sand got in between the valve and siezed it up. I had to take the top assembly completely apart and rinse the sand out of it.

[/quote

Thats funny, I had the same ladder. I drilled holse into the ladder and let it fill up with water. It worked great. It sits right down does not float a bit.

[Pool Clown]

You may want to remove as much as you can by hand as vacuuming to waste still sends it though the valve.

[RossT]

You may be able to siphon it out with a garden hose although that sounds like a lot of sand. I've had above ground pools my whole life and what we do is create a whirlpool current by walking around the pool. This should push most of the sand to center which will make it easy to scoop up and out. The remainder could be siphoned or you could get a sump pump for a better suction to suck the sand out.