One of the keys to clean and clear pool water is to maintain a clean, working filter. All but the most casual pool owners know that they need to clean and maintain their pool equipment regularly. Cleaning or backwashing a pool filter is something that should come to mind frequently, so in this blog, we’re going to discuss how often you should do this and how a robotic pool cleaner can assist you in keeping your entire pool clean and contributing to less wear and tear on your filter.
What’s the Importance of Pool Filter Maintenance?
But before we jump into how frequently you need to clean or backwash your pool filter — let’s first clarify why it matters.
The pool filter is used to remove debris, dirt, leaves, and other contaminants from the pool water, keeping your pool water clean and safe for swimming. Over time, debris accumulates in the filter, which may decrease its efficiency, hinder water circulation, and generate increased pressure on the pump. This allows your filter to operate effectively for a longer period, which reduces wear and tear on your pool equipment and saves you time, making backwashing and cleaning routine upkeep for your pool.
A clean filter also minimizes the amount of chemicals you need to adjust, which keeps pool water balanced and healthy for anyone who enters it.
Types of Pool Filters
There are three types of pool filters, and each one requires slightly different maintenance:
Sand Filters– This is the most common type of filter. Sand removes dirt and debris from the water. As a general rule, sand filters are backwashed once pressure rises 8-10 psi above normal operating pressure.
Pros: Cartridge Filters trap debris into a cartridge. They need to be cleaned every so often either with a hose or a pool filter cleaning solution, usually every 4-6 weeks.
Diatomaceous Earth (DE) Filters: These filters utilize DE powder to capture impurities. Depending on how often you use your pool and the amount of debris, they require backwashing and cleaning more often than sand or cartridge filters.
How Often to Clean or Backwash Your Pool Filter?
How often you will need to clean or backwash the filter in your pool will depend on the type of filter you are using, how large your pool is, and how often you use your pool. Let’s break it down:
Sand Filters
Backwashing of sand filters is usually performed when the pressure on the gauge increases 8-10 psi over the normal operating pressure. This typically happens after weeks of use depending on the condition of the pool.
Sand Filter Backwash Frequency: You should backwash a sand filter every 4-6 weeks on average but this does depend on debris.
Signs You Need to Backwash: If you notice cloudy water around the pool, or that circulation seems slower than usual, it’s time to backwash the filter. Moreover, if the pool cleaner cannot clean the pool, the filter might be blocked.
Cartridge Filters
Unlike sand filters, cartridge filters do not need to be backwashed but need to be cleaned regularly to keep them working effectively.
Clean Every 4-6 Weeks: So you should clean your cartridge filter at least once every 4–6 weeks based on how much debris is in the pool. And if your pool receives heavy use, you might need to clean it more frequently.
Deep Clean: If the filter is not maintaining a clean pool, deep cleaning the filter with a filter cleaning solution or hose will remove any stubborn dirt or oils from inside the cartridge.
Filters made of diatomaceous earth (DE)
In addition to regular backwashing, DE filters must have DE powder replenished each time they have been backwashed.
Frequency of Backwashing: This type of filter typically requires backwashing every 4-6 weeks (when the pressure gauge has increased to 8-10 psi).
Cleaning and Recharging: Following backwashing, you must charge the filter with DE powder to restore effective filtering.
Why Using a Robotic Pool Cleaner Will Service Your Filters
A robotic pool cleaner such as the Beatbot AquaSense Pro will go a long way in easing the load on your pool filter, keeping your pool clean, and preventing debris from building up. By using a robotic pool cleaner regularly, you will help:
Cleaning Your Pool Prevents Debris from Reaching the Filter: A pool robot cleaner cleans your pool regularly so it can remove debris before it gets to the point where it can clog your filter, prolonging the time between cleanings and backwashes.
Enhance Water Circulation: A pool cleaning device will make sure the water is circulated, so it cleans — by taking dirt in every area of the pool and lowering the load of your filter to try to catch every single particle.
Limit Wear and Tear On Pool Equipment: By having a pool cleaner robot clean your pool regularly, you limit the debris that could clog your filter, resulting in greater equipment longevity and a reduction in backwashes, or cleanings of the equipment.
Improve Pool Health: A cleaner pool means relying less on chemicals to keep the water clear, making life easier on a pool filter.
The iSkim Ultra by Beatbot, for instance, is purpose-built for high-efficiency filtration and direct cleaning, thus ensuring that your pool remains in top condition with lesser maintenance of the filter.
How to Prolong the Lifespan of Your Living Room?
Regular Cleaning: You need to ensure to maintain a good cleaning regime for your pool filter, irrespective of whether it is a sand filter, a cartridge filter, or a DE filter. This regular maintenance will help prevent clogging and reduce the amount/need for backwashes or filter replacements.
Pressure Watch: Stay vigilant by glancing at the pressure gauge every now and then. If the pressure rises 8-10 psi, it’s time to clean or backwash your filter.
Invest in a Robotic Pool Cleaner: A robotic pool cleaner will assist in preventing debris build-up in the pool, and lessen the workload on your filter. This means you need to clean your filter less regularly, making for a time-effective and less laborious experience.
Clean the Filter Filter as Needed: Some of you may need to constantly clean the filter filter filter or mean, once you find that the water flow has significantly reduced or that the filter filter appears to be blocked, it often means that it is time for you to perform such a clean up dust filters.
Conclusion
Keeping your pool filter cleaned or backwashed regularly is essential to keep your pool water clean and improve the life of your pool equipment. How often you will need to clean it will depend on your filter type, pool usage, and pool debris. This will help avoid having to clean the filter more often and backwash too frequently as well using a robotic pool cleaner can save a lot of trouble by frequently cleaning the pool ensuring it is clean and free of algae.
With the upkeep of both your pool cleaner robot and your filter, you’ll have a cleaner and healthier pool with little effort. So, maintain filter balance and your automated pool sweep, and you’ll have a patio of pristine pools the whole season long.
