I would appreciate any ideas on the problem I’m having. Years ago, I replaced the original Pentair cartridges in my Pentair CCP 520 with Pleatco Advanced cartridges — no issues. Recently, after many years with the Pleatco cartridges, I decided it was time for new ones. On Google and Amazon, I saw several options, but could not find the same Pleatco Advanced. On Amazon, I chose replacement cartridges sold by In The Swim because they are an established name (They are owned by Leslie’s.) The new In The Swim cartridges worked ok for the first month, then pollen season hit. I cleaned them after one month, then again this past weekend after a lot of brushing and running the Polaris. My pool is very cloudy yellow/green. I use liquid chlorine every night and am keeping the chlorine level at about 5, so it would seem this is pollen rather than algae. I just ran the filter pump for 24 hours, but no improvement, the pool is still just as cloudy yellow/green. The filter pressure gauge is not rising much — over the past week it has gone from 17 to 18 psi. These In The Swim cartridges seem to fit perfectly, but the material is different than the Pleatco cartridges. When I clean the In The Swim cartridges with my hose sprayer, they clean much more easily than the Pleatco — unlike the Pleatco, the pollen, or algae, doesn’t seem to stick to the material. Maybe these In The Swim cartridges are more porous, or perhaps they not seated perfectly in the filter and the water is getting through without getting filtered by the filter material. Any comments would be appreciated.
Pentair CCP 520 filter not filtering
- Thread starter tfsnell
- Start date
You need to Overnight Chlorine Loss Test and stat. If you pass with flying colors than we have time to figure out anything else.
Pentair bought Pleatco and the non OEM replacements either became OEM price, or disappeared.
500s can take ALOT of crud. I completed a black swamp SLAM and they were far less dirty than a couple weeks worth of pollen season.
t,
Sounds to me like you have algae.. If so, that is a chemical issue, and not a filter issue.
Have you done an OCLT??
Thanks,
Jim R.
Sounds to me like you have algae.. If so, that is a chemical issue, and not a filter issue.
Have you done an OCLT??
Thanks,
Jim R.
Last weekend, I tested my water with my test kit and at Pinch-a-Penny and Leslie’s. Everything was in range, though chlorine was 3-4 and I prefer to keep it at 5 to guard against algae (In have a lot of trees and moss rock). The manager my Leslie’s store said since my chlorine level was ok, my problem was pollen, not algae, and he recommended a chemical to break down the pollen. I declined. All weekend, I paid attention to the pool — brushing, running Polaris, then cleaning the filters on Sunday. I kept the chlorine at about 5 this past week, though I had to go out of town for work for a night, so I relied on chlorine tablets for the one night I missed adding liquid chlorine. I got home after dark; my wife said the pool was yellow/green. I thought a problem might be that the Champion variable speed pump I got a year ago (preset at 3450 for 2 hours, 2750 2 hours, 1750 6 hours, 1150 2 hours) was not running at 3450 for long enough on a daily basis, so on Thursday night at 8pm I added liquid chlorine and overrode the preset to run it at 3450 from Thursday at 8pm to Friday (yesterday) at 8pm — no improvement, still yellow/green cloudiness (can’t see bottom of pool). At 8pm yesterday, I tested the water and chlorine was about 5. Thinking there might be a problem with my new cartridge filters, I turn the filter pump off. Then, I posted on this forum. After reading the replies at 11pm, I thought Jim was probably right and this is algae. So, I added 70 ounces of liquid chlorine (my pool is about 17k gallons) — I’m guessing this increased my chlorine level to about 9 or 10 — and I ran the filter pump at 3450 all night. Now, at 8:30am, no improvement. I just tested Free Chlorine — it’s at 8. In the past couple of years, since I began using about 40 ounces of liquid chlorine every evening, I have had almost no algae problems. If a problem started to arise, I would increase the amount of liquid chlorine (like I did last night) and it would solve the problem. I can’t figure out why it’s not working this time.
- May 3, 2014
- 62,616
- Pool Size
- 6000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
- Jan 7, 2012
- 2,117
- Pool Size
- 21000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
What filter do you have? Fill out your signature when able. Rapid filter clogging suggests algae. Hairnets in the skimmer(s) really help manage the pollen we get in March.
Perform the SLAM process. Don't cut corners. Run it like a checklist.
That's probably not enough chlorine. What's your CYA level? Have you considered a SWCG?
You have a chemistry problem. Solve it with a SLAM.
What exact test kit do you have? A proper test kit is essential to success.
Test Kits
Stay out of the pool store. They're testing/advice will lead you down the wrong path.
Do you need those speeds for a particular reason? With a VSP, run your pump at the slowest speed that still achieves your requirements (skim, operate heater, run SWCG, etc.).
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