Clean Filters with vinegar?

[vangoghsear]

Anyone ever use white vinegar mixed with water to clean their filters?

Read that it can be done, just wondering what you experts say.  The fluid I bought at the pool store to do the job is expensive and you are supposed to use the whole bottle. 

I was looking for alternatives and found this:

ehow.com/how_6142640_clean-spa-filters-vinegar.html

[TwinCitiesHotSpring]

you can buy muriatic acid and TSP and mix up some filter cleaner yourself...that is basically what filter cleaner consists of and of course you pay double because it is "pre mixed" similar to buying antifreeze vs pre-mixed antifreeze

[kwilli]

It works. Plus it's not too strong compared to other chemicals. But you'll probably use a lot. I use it for cleaning soap scums too.

[vangoghsear]

Thanks for the responses guys.   

[vangoghsear]

I was looking up the muriatic acid and TSP solution for quantities and came across another method:  dishwasher detergent, such as Cascade.  Use 1 cup to 5 gallons and soak overnight like the acid bath.

Anyone try that?

I also read that weekly spraying off of the filter before a thorough cleaning helps prolong the period before the acid bath is required, which makes sense.

[wmccall]

I was looking up the muriatic acid and TSP solution for quantities and came across another method:  dishwasher detergent, such as Cascade.  Use 1 cup to 5 gallons and soak overnight like the acid bath.

Anyone try that?

I also read that weekly spraying off of the filter before a thorough cleaning helps prolong the period before the acid bath is required, which makes sense.

Yes, I would add rinse twice as much as you think, soap, hot water, and jets equals bubble bath.

[Dr. Spa™ Ret.]

Acid washing is only needed if there's mineral deposits on the cartridge. If there's no mineral deposits, all the acid washing will do is shorten the life of the filter.

Cascade works, or at least use to, due to the phosphates in it (which have mostly been removed)....same reason TSP works, but cheaper, purer and less "soapy".

[TwinCitiesHotSpring]

Acid washing is only needed if there's mineral deposits on the cartridge. If there's no mineral deposits, all the acid washing will do is shorten the life of the filter.

Cascade works, or at least use to, due to the phosphates in it (which have mostly been removed)....same reason TSP works, but cheaper, purer and less "soapy".

correct re: mineral/calcium buildup...its a must in my neck of the woods because if your water doesn't run through a softener the calcium around here is sky high and apparently running a hose inside the house to fill with soft water is just too much of an inconvenience 

[Chas]

Vinegar is a mild acid - and some folks use diluted Muriatic Acid for cleaning filter carts. But - Unicel says this:




For years, service technicians and homeowners have acid washed D.E. grids. However, cartridge elements do not have the protective D.E. powder coating that grids have and can be permanently damaged by the acid. As a rule of thumb, acid wash only when required, if at all, and never without thoroughly cleaning the element with a cartridge degreaser first.


After thoroughly cleaning the cartridge with a degreasing agent, flush the cartridge with a garden hose to remove all traces of soap, etc. Now apply several drops of acid directly to a small area of the filter media. If bubbling occurs, this indicates a build-up of calcium or minerals, and you should proceed with a mild acid soak (see Unicel Cleaning Instructions for more details). If no bubbling is observed, your cartridge most likely does not require acid washing."

From Unicelfilters.com - "FAQ - Acid Wash 101"

[JohnnyK45]

Probably as many methods of cleaning your filters as there are spa mfgs.  I heard soaking your filter(s) in a bucket of water with Dawn soap does the trick; BUT, one must rinse their filters off very well.

Not sure I will do that, as I have a bottle of this, which is from the company where I get my other spa maintenance stuff from...

http://www.ecoonespa.com/spa-products-2/filter-cleanser/

[JohnnyK45]

Our tub just takes two filters, so while running errands, picked up 2 more from my local dealer (his price was within a couple of bucks of getting them online, so try to support him when I can).  For ease of use on my end, I'm just going to swap out and rotate filters per cleaning.  I do this with our reptile carpets we have for our corn snakes and it works great; so, going to do the same with these hot tub filters (hey, connecting spa filters and snakes in the same sentence, not bad, huh?  ).  Not sure how true or not, but thought I read it is of benefit if the filters, after being cleaned, are totally dry before being put back in the spa - true or not, I just want to be able to swap them out in a few seconds and always have a clean set on hand.

J

[chem geek]

See this post for instructions on cleaning cartridge filters, courtesy of Unicel.

[vangoghsear]

Thanks all for the great information!   

[TLWR]

I used Leslie's Cartridge Cleaner overnight on the filter. It appeared to work really well. The gunk that was built up in the pleats is now gone and the spotty discoloring is much reduced or gone. After a good rinse, there was no foaming issues when reinstalled and ran in the tub. I think I used 4oz, and at that rate, the $15 bottle will last a few years.