Swimming Pool Tips and Reviews

The Sta-Rite SYSTEM:3® Modular Media Filters - SM Series has the industries longest lasting cartridges of any Cartridge Filter. I usually get 8-10 years of use out of them before I replace them for my customers. As long as you clean them at least every six months they should be very long lasting. It is a good thing too that they last so long because the replacement cartridges are very expensive. I buy only the Sta-Rite OEM cartridges when I replace them.   So when to replace them? Usually when the pool starts to have issues like the chemicals zeroing out, cloudy pool water and poor flow after cleaning them. They can become very stained also and on rare occasions the pleats can form tears. But since they are so well made it can be tough to know when to replace them and if your pool is circulating fine without issues and the cartridges are old, keep using them until problems with the water quality develop. You can see from the video that the 450 sq ft ones when compared to...

In this article I cover how to vacuum a pool that has a vacuum leak, known also as a suction leak. If air is entering the filtration system, this causes the pump to lose prime when you connect a manual vacuum or automatic cleaner to the skimmer. The vacuum leak introduces air into what should be a closed system creating a loss of suction. Some of the tell tale signs of a vacuum leak are that there is air coming out of the pool return lines constantly while the pool is running, sometimes air will come out of the return lines for the first couple of minutes and then stop. But with a vacuum leak air will come out of the line all the time. When you connect an automatic cleaner or a manual vacuum hose, the pool will lose prime. One of the problems with a vacuum leak is that the air in the system will cause the pool pump to prime slowly (usually it primes) and a vacuum leak makes it nearly impossible to manually vacuum a pool and will cause your automatic cleaner to work poorly, i...

In this article I cover how long to run your pool pump when you add chemicals to your pool. Of course the longer you run it the better, but the industry standard is a 3 hour time period with the pump running at standard speed (high speed on a variable speed pump). For optimal results it is best to add chemicals with the pool running. I also touch on how to set the run time on the pool for a 3 hour period, whether you have a standard mechanical timer or an automated system. Since you will know your swimming pool filter run time it is best to add chemicals when the pool is in it's normal programmed or set time schedule. But that is not always the case and frequently you will need to add chemicals outside of the pool's set run time. The manufacturers of automated system and of variable speed pumps know this, so they have included a “Time Out” Mode on their automated panels and a 3 hour run time button on their variable speed pumps (Quick Clean) in the case of the Pe...

First I want to say that I feel really bad for those who were in charge of the Olympic Pool in Rio that turned green and had to be drained. When I get to a pool on my route and it is looking something like this, I always look around for the customer because it is embarrassing to say the least. If they are not around I breathe a sigh of relief and then I proceed to rapidly turn it around. So for this to happen in such a huge World Wide venue, I can't imagine the feeling of those in charge. The ridicule and shaming they must now endure has got to be just unbearable. So I will leave it at that and not pile on in this article. But there are many lessons to learn from this incident that we can all apply to our swimming pools and swimming pool routes. Lesson #1: Stuff like this happens, you need to be equipped with the knowledge to deal with it. Just today I was at an account and from last week to today it looked like the Rio Diving Pool. It has been in the 100's all wee...

This is the NEW Pentair DORADO™ Automatic Suction-Side Pool Cleaner. The Dorado is a unique cleaner with bristle brushes all along the bottom to help it clean and scrub your pool surface. The Dorado is part of Pentair's Trade Grade product line which means it is not sold online but only available from your pool service tech or your local brick and mortar pool store. The Dorado is based on the Kreepy Krauly Great White cleaner and it has the same internal design of that cleaner. The outer body is the main difference, and I find the Dorado to be an overall better balanced design. The reason manufacturers are making cleaners only available at your local pool store is to basically level the playing field. Retail stores and pool service guys can't compete with the online pricing in most cases - online retailers do not need to keep an inventory, they just simple drop ship an item in most cases. So to keep pool stores and dealers doors open Pentair offers the Dorado cleaner...

This is the Pentair GW9500 Kreepy Krauly Great White inground pool cleaner.  It has taken me some time to get around to reviewing this cleaner but since the release of their new Dorado cleaner, I thought the time was right. This is actually a great alternate cleaner choice if you are in the market for a suction side cleaner. One thing you will notice right off  is that this cleaner lacks a lot in the looks department. But don't let the plain, flat, and out of date design fool you - this is a great cleaner.  What matters is what is under the hood and the Great White does not disappoint. It is a simple geared type cleaner with actually very few moving parts. The bottom sports brushes all the way around and the cleaner has a slight bouncing motion also as it moves along the surface. The opening for debris while odd, is large enough for acorns and other large debris. I like the unique pop out turn mechanism as it is simple yet very effective. The Great White has a l...

In this article I cover the PSI reading on your pool filters pressure gauge. I go over the causes of high filter pressure and low filter pressure. PSI is: Pounds per square inch a standard unit for measuring pressure and the most common factor used in determining when to backwash or clean a pool filter. A filter pressure gauge is used to measure a filter's PSI and every filter should be equipped with one. The most obvious reason for high PSI is that the filter is dirty. Simply cleaning the filter or backwashing it if you have a D.E. Or Sand Filter will usually lower the PSI down to acceptable range. The clean starting filter PSI will vary from filter to filter, some hover around 10-15 PSI but many cartridge filters start at 20 PSI. The best way to know in your case is to clean the filter and then mark on the gauge the clean PSI for your particular filter. A general rule of thumb is that if the PSI goes up by 10, if it is at 15 and goes up to 25, then a cleaning or backwash...