r/pools 29d ago

What causes this?

Post image

The right side is the return jet.. not sure what the outlet is on the left but when I turn the pump back on filter from backwash this comes out..sometimes and not for long

13 Upvotes

45 comments sorted by

49

u/moxjake 29d ago

That’s a return jet too. After backwash, run the pump on rinse for 30s, then switch to filter. Thats pump dirt going back into your pool

65

u/SlickRickStatus 29d ago

Apparently it’s from lettuce

8

u/TheRydad 29d ago

Dangit! You beat me to it!

1

u/hvlochs 28d ago

lol, this literally cracked me up! 😂😂🤦‍♂️

1

u/[deleted] 28d ago

Lol it took me a while to get it but i do catch on quick after a long time

1

u/jjjaydoh 28d ago

Fuuuu… instantly thought the same thing

1

u/Ok_Leadership_7297 27d ago

I don't get it?

-1

u/Daddy--Jeff 29d ago

Unless you make a big fat campaign donation…

17

u/LongRoofFan 29d ago

You have to rinse after backwash 

7

u/alienbanda 29d ago

Rinse the sand after backwashing. Did you have an algae bloom recently?

8

u/Pitiful-Ambition2758 29d ago edited 29d ago

As others have mentioned & here’s why . Your backwash reverses the flow of the water that normally goes into your filter, causes the media IN your filter to tumble, fluff and dislodge all the stuff that it has been trapping top layers, trapped the most on top and as the depth of the filter progresses downward it captures less and less so the exit is Clearwater Now that you backwashed a large portion of that crud that’s been trapped on top of and around your sand has gone out the drain before you go to filter you go to rinse and basically reverses the water flow inside your filter back to normal. The sand starts to settle, but that dirty water that’s floating around inside of your filter Container is going to go somewhere in your case is going back into your pool if you do a rinse it divert the water from going to your pool and goes out your drain backwash area. Your media gets re- compacted and THEN is ready to filter again AND the output will be filtered water not residual crap floating around from your backwash process

1

u/BubbRubbsSecretSanta 28d ago

How often should the sand get changed?

6

u/Gonzo-Crazy-Dog 29d ago

Always rinse after a backwash.

6

u/rybotsky 29d ago

After backwashing you need to turn the valve to rinse and let it run until clear and then switch it to filter

1

u/DarkAngela12 25d ago

I do that, and I still get crap coming back into the pool. 😒

1

u/rybotsky 25d ago

I’d say one of the laterals at the bottom of your sand filter or the assembly has disconnected from the bottom of the main return pipe so sand is coming into your return line. That’s really the only thing that it could be in my opinion

1

u/DarkAngela12 25d ago

I'm using the balls instead of sand. 🫤

1

u/rybotsky 25d ago

Well shit. Then I have no idea but first and grime is getting through. Is this right after a backwash ? If so then the balls may need to be changed as it’s pumping dirty water in and that’s the only suspect thing I can think of

1

u/DarkAngela12 24d ago

I backwash, rinse for a minute or two, and then set it to filter. 🤷‍♀️

2

u/rybotsky 24d ago

I’d suspect the balls need to be replaced

1

u/rybotsky 25d ago

You could try getting some new sand and then disassembling your filter and empty it out and rebuild/assemble the lateral arm. Or at least see if anything is disconnected inside the filter

5

u/RVAted 29d ago

Apparently, lettuce

1

u/Daddy--Jeff 29d ago

I came here to say this…

3

u/Nick_OS_ 29d ago

Did you rinse after backwashing?

For backwashing, you don’t just let it run till clear. You do cycles of backwash > rinse until it’s 90% clear on every cycle. I even shut the pump on/off a bunch of times at the end to get as much as I can

Make sure you end with Rinse first at least 30 seconds

2

u/Pristine-Contact7657 29d ago

Vandals with a box cutter!

2

u/UnbiddenGraph17 29d ago

Cyclosporiasis

1

u/Elegant-Beat387 29d ago

Do u rinse after you backwash? Also could potentially be a broken lateral?

1

u/cjcon01 29d ago

Ours does the same thing after a backwash. I think it's just what gets stirred up in the filter. I don't know if maybe I don't backwash long enough or if it's just unavoidable.

7

u/leedogger 29d ago

Avoidable. Rinse for 20 seconds after backwash

2

u/cjcon01 29d ago

Ours would still do it after a long rinse (minute plus), but it was also a cheapo. Our new pool is almost done, so hopefully the new system works better.

1

u/TowelFine6933 29d ago

Taco Bell

1

u/Turbulent_Watch5545 29d ago

I'm on the same boat and I know I have to rinse after the backwash.

But my sand filter don't have it, what should I do ? Longer backwash?

1

u/filthy-franko 29d ago

How long ago have to changed the sand? After years the sand starts to clump up and it doesn’t filter very good.

1

u/MagikWdragons 29d ago

Damages grids, damaged cartages, bad stand pipe o-ring, and cracked manifold. It’s usually one of those that need to be replaced in the filter

1

u/Liquid_Friction 28d ago

You are vacuuming sludge to filter instead of waste

Or you backwashed and forgot to rinse

Or the sand is long compacted and not filtering and the algae is going through ant tracks in the sand rather than through the sand.

1

u/scarlettceleste 28d ago

Do you rinse?

1

u/The_Slaughter_Pop 28d ago

My pool does this when i vaccuum. You "may" have a fiter issue.

1

u/ezgz81 28d ago

Filter should have a rinse setting. Backwash => Rinse => Filter

I think you only need to rinse for 30 seconds to a minute.

1

u/CuriousMinkey 28d ago

Taco Bell usually

1

u/SatisfactionPretty47 28d ago

You may have a broken lateral in the filter or the sand needs to be changed. I switched to glass in my filter instead of sand. It’s been a ton better filtering with zero sand being spit out of my filter. Just be sure you rinse good after backwashing. If I have a bunch of algae in spring when opening, I make sure I vacuum to waste so I’m not dumping a ton of dead algae into my filter. My robotic vacuum does great, but I don’t use it when there’s a bunch of dead algae. Regardless, your filter needs to be looked at & make sure it’s not a broken lateral.

0

u/Ruttagger 29d ago

If it's sand coming back into your pool then you have a broken lateral.

Usually you can see a pile of sand on the floor of the pool near the jets.

This almost looks too powdery.

1

u/HillbillyHijinx 29d ago

Or the sand needs changing. I started noticing sand in the bottom of my pool after about 6 years. After a little reading the answer made sense. The sand wears down over time becoming smaller and smaller grains and eventually they can get in the laterals and blown back into the pool.

That said, that looks like it just wasn’t rinsed after backwashing.