​Swimming Pool Filters: Filter Media Options : Sand vs Zeolite vs Glass Filter Media

Swimming Pool Filters:  Filter Media Options

How to Save Money, Power and Water

Sand vs Zeolite vs Glass Filter Media

So you have this huge round filter at the end of the pool and you are required to backwash it regularly to keep your pool water clear and looking amazing, but you have found that over time the pools clarity is just not as good as it used to be, so let’s have a look at Sand Filters first then your options.

They are called Sand Filters because in the past they were basically filled with Sand (Silica Sand) and they work by filtering the water through the sand from your pool which then allows the small debris, and dirt from your pool water to be trapped in the edges of the sand leaving it there until a lot of it is backwashed out.

However of the past 20 or so years a couple of other options have become available for us pool professionals to use as a replacement for the sand which we have found to provide better filtering, allowing you to save on water, power and chemicals and this is what we will look at below:

	Sand	Zeolite	Glass Media
Works by:	Process of Entrapment (trapping debris and dirt) as small as 20 -40 microns	Binds and removes nutrients such as ammonia and nitrogen, filters microns as low as 4 microns	Captures particles as low as 3-5 microns which results in a negative charge, particles stick like a sock to a static jumper. Backwashing releases the charge and contaminants are flushed out
Health & Safety:	Prone to housing potentially harmful varieties of bacteria, Surface houses bacteria	Controls odours and metals making the water softer.	Because of the smooth surface of the glass crystals bacteria cannot flourish or grow, and if the laterals do fail they do not put swimmers at risk.
	Harmful to breathe, Class II Carcinogen	Natural and safe	Safe, Not harmful to breathe – non carcinogenic
	Uses the most water and power	Lighter and requires less Media than sand	Cuts Chemical usage by up to 50%, lower chlorine demand
Environmental Concerns:	Requires the longest and the most often Backwashing	Can be used as a “slow release” fertilizer for gardens	Requires less backwashing, and is the quickest by 23% as it is lighter and less dense
	More water for backwashing	Decreases Backwashing compared to Sand	Less Water & Power usage, up to 65% less water.
		Cleaner than Sand	Smallest Carbon footprint
	Strip mined depletes our environment	Natural Mineral mined from Volcanic Rock in Northern NSW	100% Recycled Glass
Lasts for:	3 – 5 years	4 – 6 years	10+ years

Our opinion after using all of these options in our 16 years of being in the pool servicing industry is that glass is by far the more superior product especially if you are planning on staying in your home for a few years.

We changed our home pool from Zeolite to Glass a few years ago and the pool has never looked better.

If you would like a quote to replace your Sand with either Zeolite or Glass please phone us on:  07 3288 1033

Or alternatively if you would like to tackle the job yourself you can purchase the filter media instore and we also sell or hire out a venturi pump as seen here to quickly remove the old media from your sand filter tank.

Venturi Sand Pump