Part 2: Pool Filter Maintenance & Safety
Part 2: This post will focus on the pool filter and finish up the last main item of the equipment pad. Later I will discuss the life spans of ancillary pool equipment like heaters, timers, valves, and automation.
Pool Filters
Most residential pool filters are pressure vessels designed to handle water pressure and house filtering elements to clean your pool water. Yes, I know a few of you out there still have in deck suction side DE filters but those are very rare at this point. Anyway, your filter housing sometimes called the “filter tank body,” should last at least 10 years unless your pool equipment gets an inordinate amount of sunlight which can warp and weaken modern plastic pool filter housings. With proper preventative maintenance, the non wear out parts of a filter should last between 5-10 years as well- these include the band clamps, the internal grids, and plumbing including valves. The wear out parts- O rings, gauges, air relief systems, and Cartridge filter elements all need to be checked annually.
Safety
It is vital to make sure your air relief system works properly – this is a big safety issue. Pool Filters are designed to handle water pressure, water does not compress. They are not made to handle air pressure- air compresses very well and can build up to pressures no pool system is designed for. If you forget to bleed off the air after you clean your filter, this can cause a dangerous situation if your filter’s internal air bleed off and pressure relief valves are not intact and properly functioning. Please get a licensed pool professional to make sure yours is and never open a pool filter with the system and until you have opened the pressure relief valve and are sure the system is not under pressure. Never let inexperienced people perform this task.
Sorry off topic on my safety soapbox. Okay, so we know the useful life spans of the Pool Pump and Pool Motor (part 1) and the Pool Filter. If you have any questions or want help with keeping this equipment up to speed in terms of preventative maintenance, please call us today to schedule your Spring Special, a sale we run annually in the spring to help your pool operate at its best and your equipment last as long as possible.
