4 Steps on How to Clean a Swimming Pool Sand Filter

Cleaning a Sand Filter

  Doing an annual cleaning maintenance of a swimming pool sand filter helps to keep the pool in good condition for a long time. The kind of sand used in the swimming pool filter is a specialized kind of sand which appears to be unpurified, rough and sharp. A sand filter is square-shaped large tank made of fiberglass containing this specialized kind of sand.

What Happens During the Filtering Operation?

The dirty water coming from the pool enters the inlet pipe of the filter. The filter’s inlet pipe connects to the water distribution head located in the interior of the tank. Simultaneous to this process is the tiny sand particles catching on dirt and other debris as water is rushed down through the sand. Underneath the tank, the water that went through filtration moves through the pick-up unit and further out to the outlet pipe.

   There are various manufacturers of sand filter cleaners available in the market. One such manufacturer is the Strip Kwik by BioGuard. For the degreaser, there is the company called Power Blue. There is good results to using these two brands. What the filter cleaners do is washing out oils and lotions accumulated in the sand that can not be washed out by normal washing.

Step 1-Prepare the Swimming Pool for Clean-up

• The first thing that you should do is to turn off the swimming pool pump. 
• The handle of the sand filter should then be moved to the backwash position 
• Then empty the whole bottle of the sand filter cleaner into the skimmer which is located beside the swimming pool. 
• Turn the pump on immediately for some 5-10 seconds. 

   The purpose of this is to allow the cleaner to move from the skimmer basket to go through the pump of the pool and finally into the filter before being washed out.

Step 2-Sand Filter

The next procedure is for the swimming pool pump to be turned off again with the handle being moved to the closed position of the sand filter. Retain at this position for a few hours.

Step 3-Settling the Sand

At around 2-3 hours after having done Step 2, move the handle of the sand filter to backwash and turn on the swimming pool pump on again. Have the backwash running until the water becomes clear. There is a sight glass in most swimming pools that can be viewed to see the backwashing procedure. This should be take around 5 minutes. When this is accomplished, it is time to turn the pump back to "off" again then move the handle to "rinse". The pump of the pool should be turned on for 30 seconds to enable the sand bed to settle in the filter.

Note – Some systems have multi-port valves instead of “push-pull” valves. Instructions on how to set the valve up for backwashing can either be found on the valve itself or in product documentation.

Step 4-Return to Normal Function

The final procedure is for the pump to be turned off again. Move the handle to the filter mode and the pump should be turned back on. At this point, the sand filter is fully cleaned and water is ready for use.

If you have any questions about backwashing your sand filter, you can visit The Blue Lagoons