Swimming Pool Filter: What’s Right for Your Pool?
Thursday, October 18th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
A swimming pool filter is quite possibly the hardest working piece of equipment in your pool’s maintenance setup. The filter system removes dirt, debris, sediments and harmful particles from the pool water so your pool remains sparkling clear and healthfully clean. There are three types of swimming pool filters: sand filters, diatomaceous earth (DE) filters and cartridge filters. Plenty of folks will tell you that one type of filter is better than another; but in reality all three work very well.
The most important concern in choosing a swimming pool filter is the size of the pool. It’s important because your filter has to have enough capacity to handle the water volume input from your pump. An undersized swimming pool filter system would be quickly overwhelmed with debris and possibly damaged from the pump’s force. Poor filtration and circulation means your water will look cloudy and uninviting. Who wants to swim in dirty-looking water? Go with a filter one size larger than you think you need to keep your water clean and minimize filter cleaning and maintenance.
Once you have determined the size of your pool, you can now compare filter types to know which kind you should buy.
Comparing Swimming Pool Filter Types
Sand swimming pool filters use high-grade silica sand as the filter media. Water is forced downward through the sand bed in the filter tank and the sand’s sharp edges catch and separate the dirt and sediments from the water. A sand pool filter usually traps debris as small as 25 microns in size. For comparison’s sake, a grain of salt is approximately 90 microns. Particles measuring under 35 microns are invisible to the naked eye. The sand swimming pool filter is cleaned by backwashing every 1 - 2 weeks during the season. Generally speaking, you turn a valve and water is forced backward through the sand, flushing out the imbedded debris. Sand pool filters are quite efficient in cleaning most pools, and I understand that sand is used for many hotel and apartment complex pools. It’s the most affordable filter media, and needs infrequent replacement. If your pool has debris particles smaller than 20 - 25 microns in the water, a sand filter cannot effectively trap these irritants. Also, backwashing generally wastes a few hundred gallons of water that you will have to replace in the pool. In my drought ridden area of the US where outdoor water use is banned that would bring out the water police in a hurry. It’s reported that some areas are banning the use of sand swimming pool filters because backwashing causes contaminated water to mix with the groundwater supply.
DE swimming pool filters use a filter powder known as “diatomaceous earth” as filter media. No, DE is not “dirt” or “earth” as the name implies, but actually the powdered skeletal remains of diatoms, a prehistoric aquatic creature. Funky, eh? But compared to sand and cartridge filters, the DE pool filters are the most effective type of swimming pool filter, regardless of brand. DE filters capture dirt as small as 3 - 5 microns, well below what the naked eye can see. DE coats the fabric filter grids inside of your DE filter tank, and the combo of the DE plus the fabric grid pulls maximum debris out of the water. You will pay for this effectiveness; DE filters are generally more expensive. And DE swimming pool filters, like sand filters, must be backwashed to clean; again wasting hundreds of gallons of water. You must also add DE powder after every backwashing to recoat the grids. Handle pool-grade DE powder with care; gloves and a dust mask are suggested.
Cartridge swimming pool filters use fabric-type pleated cartridges as filter media. The filter tank holds three to four cylindrical filter cartridges and the water is forced through them for cleaning. It’s kinda like that water filter in the kitchen on the faucet or under the sink, just much bigger 
. The cartridge traps debris as small as 15 microns in size - so it’s slightly better than sand, but less efficient than DE. This kind of swimming pool filter requires little maintenance; you wash them once or twice a year, depending on usage and if you had any algae problems. To clean them, depressurize your system, open the tank, remove the cartridges and hose them down to remove dirt. I prefer a small pressurized power washer for the job. I’ve heard that some people take their cartridges to the local car wash - I don’t think that’s necessary. Cartridge filters are generally recommended for most smaller pools and spas. Many people dismiss cartridges as a less efficient filter medium because of past performance issues. Today’s cartridge swimming pool filters are made much better and perform more efficiently than in the past, and in many parts of the country they are increasing in popularity. I own a Heyward cartridge filter system and have been pleased with its performance. I’ve had the cartridges for three years and will likely replace them next year because they’re becoming less efficient in filtering. I think that with the increased interest in water conservation, particularly in the South and West, a lot of folks will be switching to cartridge swimming pool filters.
So to summarize:
- All types of swimming pool filters do the job very well.
- Consider the size of your swimming pool and choose a filter system with capacity large enough to meet your needs. If in doubt, go bigger.
- If you want absolutely the cleanest water, choose DE.
- Sand is pretty foolproof and reliable, and so are cartridges.
- Cartridges are low maintenance and use lots less water to clean than DE or sand.
Hope this helps you choose the right swimming pool filter for your needs.
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