WHAT IS INVOLVED IN A FILTER SAND CHANGE?
There’s almost nothing better on a hot summer day than a dip in a crystal-clear pool. Your family pool is the center for family fun, memories, and relaxation. Of course, in order for your pool to stay crystal clear and relaxing, it has to be maintained and cleaned regularly. Your filter plays a primary role in how well your pool looks, feels, and functions. If you have a sand filter, the filter replacement and management can be a bit of a process. Let’s talk about the process and why it may be easier to hire pool companies in Ottawa to take care of it for you.
300 POUNDS OF SAND
The average sand filter holds around 300 pounds of sand or more. It’s a big job to tackle on your own and requires specialty sand. You don’t just want to go to your local home store and buy any type of sand. Proper replacement sand can be purchased at stores specific to pool needs and is usually purchased in bags that range from $7 to $10.
Replacement sand needs to be coarse for the rough edges of each grain of sand to work as a filter. As the grains wear down, their rough edges smooth out and lose their ability to act as a filter. Instead, they clump up and leave open areas where rivers of water can tunnel through unfiltered.
DRAINING
Before you can replace the sand in the filter, it’s important to drain it. While it is a simple task to remove the plug at the bottom of the tank, it’s no small feat to get all the water out. It first has to filter through the sand, which can take quite a long time without specialty equipment. A pool company will have all the equipment necessary at hand and will be able to remove the water quickly.
PARTS REMOVAL
From that point, valves, piping, and any encasement on the top of the filter need to be removed. This too requires some specialty tools, but is a simple process for someone who works in the pool maintenance and installation field.
The next step is to remove the sand from the filter and replace it with fresh sand – keep in mind you’ll need a system for removing and storing the old sand. Then reassemble the filter and give it a trial run.
With the right pool maintenance tools and systems, you can replace the sand in your filter yourself. However, it is less expensive to hire an Ottawa pool company to do it for you. With the cost of tools and the risk of making a mistake, it’s much wiser to delegate the task to a local professional. Talk to a representative from one of the pool companies in Ottawa and remember to keep your pool clean and fresh all summer.
