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How To Clean Hayward Grid D.E. Filters

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The DE swimming pool filter can be one of the most effective types of swimming pool filters on the market today if they are used and cared for properly. The problem is that most swimming pool owners do not realize that they will have to actually not only backwash their pool filter weekly, but they will also have to take the filter apart and actually clean the filter grids as well.
How To Clean Hayward D.E. Pool Filters

Cleaning your DE pool filter is easier then you think and can be done using a few tools that you will probably have right in your tool box. The tools you will need are an adjustable wrench, Flathead screwdriver and garden hose that is connected to a water supply. Before working on your swimming pool pump or filter, you always want to make sure that the power is off to the pump and also that the pump is unplugged.

Step One:

How To Remove the filter from the swimming pool system:

The first thing you will want to do is to remove the swimming pool tank from the pool system so it gives you more room to work on the actual filter Vs being all jammed up. You will now want to take a large pair of channel locks and loosen the bulk head nuts that connect the multiport of the pool filter to the pool tank. These bulk head nuts are made from plastic so be careful when loosing them because that can become brittle over time and crack. Also always remember that you will want to always turn to the left (counter clockwise) to loosen and to re-tighten later on you will want to turn these nuts to the right(clockwise).

Step Two:

Loosing and Removing the Hayward Belly band clamp:

Now that you have the filter disconnected from the multiport and the filter system you can start to take your Hayward DE 3600 filter apart. The first thing you will want to to is to loosen the belly band nut as you see pictured above. The belly band nut is made from brass so be careful when using pliers or a wrench as you can strip out this nut of you are not careful. To remove the belly band nut, turn the brass nut counter clockwise until it is fully removed from the threads. Once you loosen and remove the brass belly band nut you will be able to remove the belly band spring and then remove the Hayward 3600 belly band from the filter.

Hayward PRO GRID D.E. Filter

Step Three:

Bleeding the air & opening the Hayward Grid filter tank:

Once you have removed the belly band from the filter tank, it will now be time for you to open the Hayward 3600 DE Filter so you can complete your goal and clean the filter grids. Even though most of the water has drained from the bulk head fittings, it is still a good idea to open the air bleed screw a few turns so that and extra water can drain from the filter. But chances are your filter tank is most likely empty by now. You also could remove the bottom drain plug if you like to get all the water from the tank, or you can just wait until you remove the top half of the tank and then you can just dump the rest of the water out of there is any.

Step Four:

Washing out the tank and inspecting the o-rings:

Once you have the top half of the filter tank off you can pull the filter grids from the tank. The way to safely remove the filter grids from the tank is to grab the two small handle shaped parts you can see in the picture below and then twist and pull up at the same time. This can take a bit of strength if the filter is older or has not been taken apart in a while. Once you remove the filter grids you will want to inspect all o-rings for wear and tear. You also will want to wash all parts of the filter tank to make sure you wash all the debris out.

Hayward PRO Filter Grids

Step Five:

Cleaning the Hayward filter grids will help improve the overall performance of your swimming pool filter, In simple terms, your pool will be blue and clean more often then not. To properly clean your filter grids you will want to get a garden hose. Once you have a garden hose with a high powered nozzle you can begin spraying the grids down. You will want to spray all of the grids, from top to bottom, inside and out. The better you clean the filter, the better it will work.

If you have a tough time getting in those hard to reach spots you can use something called a “filter cleaning wand” that will attach to your garden hose and fit nicely between the filter grids. Filter cleaning wands can cut the time you spend cleaning your pool filter in half.

Step Six:

Re-assembling the Hayward Grid D.E. swimming pool filter:

Now that you have washed all the filter grids and the tank, inspected all seals and o-rings on your Grid Hayward DE Filter, you can now put it back together. To re-assemble the filter you can just reverse the way you took it apart. Also make sure to tighten the air relief screw and prime your pool pump before you start the system.

33 Comments

  1. Good summary a little short on reassembly where errors can make the filter ineffective. I was told to soak the filter overnight in a phospate solution (dishwasing powder will do ) Any problem with this?

    Thanks for your help

    Joe Visconti

  2. Joe,

    You can also soak the grids in Vinegar for a few hours as well.

    The swimming pool professionals use acid, but vinegar is the safe acid, that will clean the grids, just make sure to rinse them off after soaking.

    Hope that helps, Thanks for the kinds words about the summary,

    ~Wet Head

  3. After I have added the DE how do I backwash the system? I do not see anything on my pump or filter unit to reverse the flow of water. I am dealing with an older filter but a new hayward pump. I would love to get this fixed so that I do not have the lovely green pool.

  4. I followed your directions to the “T” but when reassembling, I now how some water marks coming down the outside of the filter by the belly band. Could I have tightened the belly band too much? How do I know if enough is enough? I get high pressure in my tank after about 1 hour of operation and find the only way to relieve this is to back wash. Yes, I put in a new o ring with plenty of sealant too. Please help.

    • when you tighten the belly band go a little at a time also take a pair of channel locks and tap all around the belly band but be careful not to hit anything else or you could have a big problem also it is not good to back wash you should take completely apart wash out tank or filter bottom and open small pulg on the bottom of filter wash out .then clean oring and lub with magic lube and start tighting keep the air valve open when reinstalling when every thing is tight the start the pump wait for the water to spill out from air valve locted on top of the filter then tighten and go to the skimmer make sure to swirl the de when putting it into the skimmer and only one at atime you should use a de cup 3lb in a de cup your pressure will go down with the proper amount of de make sure to mark the gauge at clean for example if at clean it is 18 pounds it is dirty at 28 pounds well good luck

  5. Lee,

    What Model do you have the 3600 or the 3620?

    Are you aligning the “notch” on the bottom of the tank with the indent on the top of the tank?

    Also make sure your not “pitching” the o-ring in anyway,

    How tight are you making the belly band? Maybe its not tight enough? Are the spring coils touching?

    Let me know,

  6. 1. What kind of container can I soak the grids in? I have the Pentair FNS Plus vertical grid (FNSP48).
    2. Instead of backwashing once a month I actually take the grids out of the filter and hose them down. Does this cause any harm as opposed to backwashing the system?

    • Hi John,

      1. “I” like to use a 55 gallon plastic barrel/ drum that you can usually find at a local car wash, or sometimes even a food plant. You can also look on Craigslist for people selling 55 gallon plastic barrels and then you would just fill that barrel as its plenty big.

      2. Yes, That is actually better then back washing in my book, I have seen many filters that were still dirty after back washing.

      If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask,

      Joseph

  7. The manufacturer suggests 1 part acid to 6 parts water. Do I need to disassemble the grids for the acid bath or can I just place whole unit in the wash. I know there a 2 metal rods holding the grids together.

  8. Hi John,

    I have “seen” some mechanics dip the whole thing and it was fine, well as far as I new, gawd knows how long it lasted after they re-installed it. I worked for this one pool company at one time that had like 50 guys. BUT I like to take it apart and just let the grids soak, and that’s the best and proper way.

    Let me know, if there is anything else.

    Joseph

  9. I just bought this house with a Hayward DE3600 filter, I am getting DE in the pool, so I took it apart to clean. The top was loaded with DE so I cleaned it all out and hosed off the grid. I noticed that there are holes worn in the mesh at the top where it is held in the plastic grid holder. Will this cause the DE in my pool? Also your site says to inspect o’rings, where are they besides the big one between top and bottom? Also do they have a convertion kit to convert this DE3600 to a filter cartride type filter?
    Thanks for all your help, this site is great for a newbie!
    Ron

  10. :Is there ANY potential danger when DIY to clean the filter since there is PRESSURE factor involved?

    Thanks,

    Nick

    • Hi Nick,

      The filter will have pressure in it when the pump is running, so anytime you work on your filter system, you will want to shut the pump, open the air valve on top of the pump to release the pressure if there is any and then you will want to drain the filter tank.

      You will want to do all that before you work on the filter just to be safe,

      Please let me know if you need more help,

      Joseph

  11. I had very low flow in my pool recently and thought it was pump or suction problem because the pressure in my Pentair PacFab Nautilus NS36 DE Filter was normal (20 PSI) and all strainers were clear. So shut the pool pump down for over a week while I took apart pump impeller, seal, etc. to see if there was a problem. No problems with pump (although replaced slightly worn impeller gasket) or suction lines but by then the pool was green.

    Backwashed and manually cleaned the pool filter and noticed lots of small seed pods in the filter fins. There’s lots of pollen and very small debris this time of year in Florida! Tried to get as many out as possible by using garden hose but still many left. Put it all back together, started the pump and everything ran good for a few hours. Started to make a dent in all of the algae, etc. but then got low flow again. Cleaned out all strainers, etc. but didn’t help. Finally shut off pump for about an hour, turned back on and got good flow and pressure again for about 45 mins to an hour, then low flow again. Pressure in the filter does not go above 20 PSI. It seems like the filter fins are getting clogged with these seeds, then when I turn off the pump, they have a chance to settle? Can’t think of any other reason why turning of the pump for awhile results in good flow again. Not sure what is going on but this is really frustrating. Going to backwash and clean the filter again, but not sure how to remove all the tiny seed pods from inside the filter fins.

    Any ideas what could be wrong or what else I can try?

    Thanks!
    Angela

    • Hi Angela,

      Sounds like you need something we call a “pool filter acid wash”. You will want to have the filter acid washed by your local pool store.

      Let me know if you need more help,

      Joseph

  12. I just spoke with my local pool store and they were very informative about the DE filters versus Sand filters. They said that the DE filters are more work in getting the pools started up early in the season but once they are going, they are better at cleaning the water.

    You may have to keep flushing and clearing the filter a couple more times in order to get those little seed pods out of the filter. Once you get them all, your pool filter should hopefully run more effeciently.

    I have to head home and clean my filter out again!! Too many leaves in my pool.

    Good Luck!!

  13. Hello
    I’ve been reading a bunch of posts replied by Joseph. I am at a loss here, The pool filter pressure is running high, causing no flow. I read everywhere the filter may need to be cleaned. Everything looked clean, but I still soaked it in Muriatic acid & water mix. When I put everything back together, there was no change in pressure. Any ideas of what I could possibly do next or what else the problem could be?

  14. Right now there is none in there. I noticed the pressure was getting low the past week or so, I back washed, which normally fixes it. When that didnt work, I started researching & then soaked & cleaned the filter, but havent added any earth yet.

    • Hi,

      That’s your problem, You need to use DE at all times when running the filter, WELL – at least this time, meaning if you just run a filter without DE it will clog up fast and you will have no pressure.

      If you were adding DE before this and still had the issue, and then tried acid washing and still have the issue, I would recommend replacing the grids / fingers.

      How old is the filter?

      After you “acid washed” were the fingers / grids bright white or still stained yellow?

      Let me know and I can help further,

      Joseph

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