Tank Owner’s Manual Pg. 10 of 23
9/26/05 Rev. D
• Verify pressure differential through the vessels is within an acceptable range.
Refer to Appendix A for pressure drops through the tanks only. Please be aware that
depending on where the pressure readings are taken from and the design of piping
system, the pressure drops through the system will be greater than what is shown in
Appendix A. Please consult the water circulation system designer for more details.
• Note the pressure differential over the now clean filter system. If the system is
filtering within an acceptable pressure loss range, with the maximum pressure not to
exceed 50 psi, then the filter(s) can be considered clean. Please note the differential
pressure, as it may be needed later to determine backwash schedules. See section
4.1 for more details. Appendix D, which will be referred to later, provides a chart to
log these pressures into for future reference.
Congratulations, your filter is now ready to filter water. Please read the next section on
Maintenance to learn how to care for your new filter tank(s).
Although the “Smoothie” filter vessel is designed to operate for many years with little
maintenance, there are some items that should be periodically inspected. In certain situations,
periodic maintenance may be necessary. The following is a list of items that should be checked
periodically, as well as some maintenance items, which may need to be performed.
IMPORTANT: When performing maintenance, which requires entry into the
tank, VERIFY that all water sources to the tank are isolated and locked and
tagged out before entering tank. This is a confined space situation and all
rules and safety guidelines set forth by OSHA regarding such situations
should be strictly followed.
4.1 Periodic Backwash
If you have purchased the vessel(s) with the optional face piping kit, please
refer to documentation provided with the face piping kit.
The tanks need to be backwashed when the sand bed becomes clogged with debris from
the pool. There are a few different ways to determine when backwashing should occur. The
following are the most common methods, however depending on piping design; backwash
frequency can be determined in a different manor if desired.
• Pressure Differential. When tanks become dirty, the pressure through them
increases. During the initial pressure test of your tank(s), the pressure through the
clean filter(s) should have been noted and recorded. This is your clean filter pressure
differential. When the filter pressure increases by 10 psi above this clean filter
pressure, the tank(s) should be backwashed.
• Time Schedule. If desired, the system can be backwashed based on a time
schedule, such as once a week. This is up to the user as to when to backwash the
tank(s), however it is recommended that backwashing occur often enough so the
tanks don’t become too clogged. This may be especially necessary after periods of
increased bather load.