Pool Equipment

1. Filter pump — This is the driving force of your entire pool. It pulls water from the surface skimmers and pool-bottom main drains. Then, it sends the water to the filter for cleaning, to the heater for heating, and to the sanitization system for disinfecting before returning it back to the pool through the inlets, or “returns”.

2. Sand filter — This is the main contributor to clean, clear, and sparkling water. As water travels through a sand filter, suspended dirt particles become trapped in the filter’s silica sand media. Over time, the captured particles build up and the filter needs to be “backwashed” to rinse the sand clean. This 5-minute process is typically required once every two weeks and more often in the spring when trees are pollinating.

3. Heater — This is what puts some of the “luxury” into “luxury swimming pools”. As the name suggests, heaters warm up pool water for you, typically using natural gas to efficiently do so.

4. Polaris pump — This booster pump is the driving force behind the Polaris pool cleaner, the best pressure side pool cleaner on the market. This is usually connected to a timer, allowing it to activate automatically, ensuring a clean and spotless pool bottom daily.

5. Sanitization system — There are a variety of system options available that will remove algae and bacteria from your pool water, and the most common ones are listed below. Please see our section on “Chlorine vs. Saltwater Pools” section for a detailed description of each.

Other pieces of equipment your system may include:

3-way valves — If a whirlpool is attached to your pool, the pool system will have two of these electronic valves. One will be on the filter pump suction side, and the other after the heater, on the return side of the system. Working together, they direct water flow to originate and return to either your pool or your whirlpool.

Whirlpool jet pump — You might have one or two of these, depending on the number of therapy jets the whirlpool contains. The pumps’ sole responsibility is to create the strong, therapeutic, and turbulent hydro-air jet action that our whirlpools are renowned for.

Water feature pump — If you have a waterfall, water spout, negative edge, or sheer decent water sheet as part of your pool design, you will likely have one of these pumps driving that feature. For most water features, we use special “high head” pumps specifically designed for this purpose that reduce energy consumption.