Why Isn’t the DE Sticking to My Hayward Filter Fingers?

by Felicia A. Williams

I don’t know if it’s a common question, but it sure is a question that crossed my mind when I was cleaning up my dirty pool.

Because I had to regenerate and change the DE so often, I was wondering why every time I opened the filter housing the dirty diatomaceous earth was sitting at the bottom of the housing. It was so different from my old Sta-Rite pool filter. When I opened that one up, the dirty DE was stuck to the filter.

At first, it caused me a lot of concern. I thought there was a build-up of minerals and oils on the Hayward filter fingers so I cleaned them incessantly and soaked them overnight in muriatic acid.

DE Still Sinking to the Bottom

Even after cleaning the filter fingers, I would find that every time I opened the Hayward filter housing the DE was at the bottom.

The only reason why I didn’t call the Hayward folks is because I noticed that I was able to go longer and longer between regenerations and DE replacement (I was working with a real dirty pool…I’m talking murky brown/green water and everything). The growing amount of time between regenerations told me that my pool water was getting cleaner and cleaner (not to mention that I was beginning to see the difference when the water changed from brown to green and then a very light shade of green).

The Way Hayward Filters Work

I guess it’s one of those things that I would never understand (and now since I have a clean pool, I don’t care to). I don’t know if the DE drops to the bottom because of the extreme amount of dirt or if that’s the way that Hayward DE filters work. Whatever is the case, I’m not about to lose sleep over it. My pool water is crystal clear and I haven’t had to regenerate my filter in weeks.

The pressure gauge is at a steady level 10 and my return flow is very strong.

If you are concerned about your DE not sticking to the Hayward pool filter fingers...don’t. It all works out fine in the long run.

About the Author: Felicia Williams is a wife, mother and grandmother who likes to write about a host of topics.

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Last Modified: 24 March 2020