I have a similar ? pentair 420 Clean and Clear cartridge filter. Pool was done in June 06, so that is almost 4 summers of use. Pool is small, maybe 10,000 gal. We cleaned them twice a year as figured this filter was way oversized for this pool. That was fine by us. May, we noticed the PSI was up to 31, stayed at 11 before it started rising back up.Cleaned them. 11 lasted 3 weeks before back to 31. Ithought you could get away with that big a filter with just twice a year cleaning. I guess I need to buy new ones but ouch. Live in AZ, any idea why they didin't last long? As for the water when we clean them? I live in the desert. The ground is glad to have it.

Hose them off first. Then try soaking in a clean trash can overnight with powered dish washer detergent and then rinsing. They may have oils and such that need to be broken down or released.

Scott

poolguyni,

I see what you are talking about. I noticed oils stuck to the grids/fins of the cartridge. I did not use any cleansing solution this time around. I guess I will do it next time around.
how crucial is this?
thanks again

I think you answered your own question with what you noticed.

Scott

I use Simple Green in a spray bottle. Spray it on , let it sit for a few minutes, hose off. Works great!! No problems,pool sparkling clear.

How do I get all (if possible) of the water out of the filter housing before opening it up?
Whenever I open the filter housing it has a lot of water still inside and it goes to waste.

thanks in advance

Open the air bleeder first, assuming you don't have a flooded suction. Water will seek it's own level.

Scott

Just bought some Simple Green at the Depot. Does it need to be diluted to use on the filters? I'm assuming not. ??

clean my 4 cartridges which were quite dirty. I just hosed them down and removed a lot of gunk from them. The pressure was @ 28-29 and now it's @ 22-23. Not much of a difference but I hope it helps with the water clarity.
I'll do this again in a week or two and use simple green or something like that to see if the pressure drops further.
????
thanks in advance

Soaking them with the dish washer detergent does a great job.

To conserve water when cleaning your filter, consider using a pool water recirculation system. Instead of letting the water drain to the ground, you can direct it to a separate holding container or tank, let the debris settle, and then pump the clean water back into the pool.

Another option is to repurpose the drained water for landscaping or watering plants, as long as the chemical levels (chlorine and pH) are safe for plants. You might also want to invest in a filter cleaning tank, which uses less water and makes the cleaning process more efficient.

If you'd rather have professionals handle it, check out pool cleaning services for expert help in maintaining your pool filters while minimizing water waste.