Polaris 280 is giving me fits! Majority of the time it floats. It will nosedive and act like it’s going to the bottom but then floats right above the bottom for a bit then eventually floats again. Filters are clean. New bags on the Polaris. A few months back I changed the back valve. It worked fine for a while & has now started with this. Any help is appreciated!
Polaris 280 Floating
- Thread starter ashleyegonzales
- Start date
- Jul 21, 2013
- 64,775
- Pool Size
- 35000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Welcome to TFP.
The Polaris cleaner floating is usually a sign of air from a suction side air leak getting into the cleaner and affecting its buoyancy.
Do you see bubbles in your pump basket or coming out of your pool returns?
Also check for leaks in the hose, swivels, or at the wall fitting.
Is water coming out from the pressure relief valve at the UWF connection?
www.troublefreepool.com
The Polaris cleaner floating is usually a sign of air from a suction side air leak getting into the cleaner and affecting its buoyancy.
Do you see bubbles in your pump basket or coming out of your pool returns?
Also check for leaks in the hose, swivels, or at the wall fitting.
Is water coming out from the pressure relief valve at the UWF connection?
Suction Side Air Leaks
If you see air bubbles coming out of the return lines in your pool, you likely have a leak. Some signs that a suction side plumbing leak has occurred include: Read more
www.troublefreepool.com
That picture looks like the back-up valve has just started or is just ending its cycle. If that is all the flow you are getting even in the middle of the cycle, your system is pulling in a lot of air. It is not an issue with the valve. It will also fill the bag with air and make the Polaris float.
Is the backup valve facing the correct direction?
Maybe the backup valve is not working correctly?
Yeah, it’s on correctly. Would it be normal to need to replace the backup valve already?
Have you tried adjusting the head float? If it's too close then it will make the nose dive and back float up.
See the highlighted section in the instructions:
- Dec 13, 2020
- 901
- Pool Size
- 19600
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
Is the bag truly brand new? If not, maybe this is it...
My Polaris got floaty and drove me through much the same process as you, checking _everything_. Finally read somewhere that a biofilm growing on the bag can cause it to trap air. Sure enough, I hand-washed the bag with dish washing soap, just rubbing one side against another for a minute or two, and the thing went back to normal operation. Now I scrub every time I put a fresh bag on. The problem has never returned.
My Polaris got floaty and drove me through much the same process as you, checking _everything_. Finally read somewhere that a biofilm growing on the bag can cause it to trap air. Sure enough, I hand-washed the bag with dish washing soap, just rubbing one side against another for a minute or two, and the thing went back to normal operation. Now I scrub every time I put a fresh bag on. The problem has never returned.
There's also a jet at the rear which controls lots of its behavior. Initial setting I think is to have pointing at the 11 o'clock position.