There are three major types of pool filtering system: cartridge, sand, and diatomaceous earth (DE). Sand and DE filters use a multiport valve primarily to help clean or backflush the filter media. Cartridge filters do not have multiport valves. These filters are cleaned by removing the cartridge and spraying it with a garden hose. A typical multiport valve has 7 settings: filter, backwash, rinse, waste, closed, recirculate, and winter. This guide explains the function of these setting and shows how they circulate water in a typical sand filter. The operation of a DE multiport valve is very similar.
Click Here to View All Multiport Valve Parts
Click Here to View All Multiport Valves
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 7/1/2013
RBW - You may have a damaged spider gasket. Its purpose is to help separate the flow of water between the multiport valve ports. The gasket for your SP710XR50 valve is: "Gasket, Valve Seat - 5 Spoke (spx0710xd)". See our guide on "How to Replace a Spider Gasket on a Multiport Valve".Reply
RBW Posted: 6/30/2013
I have a Hayward Proseries DE filter with 6 multiport SP710XR50. Debris has been recirculating back into the pool. I backwashed and dismantled the filter and manually cleaned out the grid system (which was replaced last year). The problem still occurs, in fact its getting worse. Do I need to replace the multiport system or is there a simple solution to this?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/29/2013
HRKIII - Sound like your Key Assembly is broken. Unscrew the 6 screws on top of the valve and remove the top assembly. You should be able to see the Key Assembly and see what's wrong. See our guide on How To Replace a Pool Multiport Valve Spring for instructions on replacing the key assembly.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/29/2013
jw - If the sides of the channels holding the gasket are worn down, you may be getting sand transfer. You may have to replace the key assembly. If you recently changed your sand, you may be getting fine sand into your pool that is not being filtered. Try rinsing your sand a couple of more times to clear out the fine sand and repack the rest. Vacuum off the sand at the bottom of the pool in waste mode so that it doesn't keep recycling.Reply
HRKIII Posted: 6/28/2013
Last night after I backwashed my filter I pushed the lever to switch to rinse but the lever would no longer switch modes. It feels like it is just free spinning inside. Do I need to replace the entire housing? (SP714T)Reply
jw Posted: 6/28/2013
have hayward sand filter past year getting sand in pool ,took filter apart laterals and stem are fine no cracks anywhere ,multi flo valve where spider gasket goes is worn can this cause sand to enter poolReply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/26/2013
pool lady - Here's a link to our guide on "Installing a Pool Sand Filter". See Step 24. It show a picture of the common Hayward Multiport Valve label. Click on the picture to expand it. Hayward no longer sells just the label.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/26/2013
Monique - I don't understand how the rinse water can be "really dirty" if you just changed the sand. Hard to tell what's wrong from the description. You may have to pull the sand out of the filter again and check that the laterals were not clogged in the change process. Also check that your spider gasket didn't get damaged in the process.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/26/2013
samosia - Unfortunately we do not carry the Pantera II sand filters, but here is a link to the manufacture's website: Onga Pantera High Rate Sand Filter sold through Pentair. Click on the Pantera Series II prompts for product information and owner's manual If you need more information, give Pentair a call at 1-800-831-7133.Reply
pool lady Posted: 6/25/2013
I have an older Hayward sand filter and the label is totally gone. where can I get another one? or at least see it online.Reply
Monique Posted: 6/24/2013
I have a Hayward ESeries sand filter, changed the sand, changed the spider gasket, examined finger laterals. Pressure is fine, pool water stays cloudy, chemicals fine. Backwash line was leaking on filter mode but then stopped leaking, when I backwash water just barely comes out, when I rinse there is more water that comes out but it's really dirty.Reply
samosia Posted: 6/24/2013
I have an older Pantera II sand filter and the label has been removed. The previous owners used a marker to indicate where each setting is but it doesn't match with the new replacement label that I recently picked up. It seems that the filter and backwash are in the same place but even those two I'm not 100% sure of. Any way to differentiate between the waste and backwash and the recirculate and filter?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/19/2013
KrisM - If you have water flowing where it shouldn't be, it still sounds like you have a bad spider gasket. Recheck your gasket for flat spots or small tears. Then check to see if you have any cracks in the valve itself. Also check that you don't have a weak spring under the handle. A weak spring could allow water to pass over the gasket.Reply
KrisM Posted: 6/19/2013
Cant clear my cloudy pool. All chemical levels are in ideal range. When I backwash some water still goes into the pool. When I vacuum some dirt goes into the pool. Opened the valve to look at the spider gasket, looks ok. Do I need a new valve? Can't tell if the valve is seating properly in the right spot. How do I tell?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/18/2013
backwash leaking - Sounds like your multiport valve spider gasket is blown and will have to be replaced. See our guide on "How to Replace a Spider Gasket on a Multiport Valve".Reply
Anonymous Posted: 6/17/2013
i get water out my backwash port when in filter mode is the head bad ? do i need a new head ? can i rebuild head?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/15/2013
Jason - The only difference between your filter setting and rinse is where the water is being discharged - filter goes out the return port to the pool. Rinse goes out through the waste line. If Filter works well, than we know that the filter and valve are working up to the discharge ports. If neither rinse nor backwash works, that would imply that something is wrong with the waste port. Is there anything blocking the waste line?Reply
Jason Posted: 6/14/2013
I put a new multiport valve on our pool. It has plenty of pressure when filtering, but when backwashing and rinsing the water is just barely coming out the waste line. If I push the handle down while it is set on backwash it pumps better but still not as good as last season. As soon as I let the handle go it looses pressure again. Up until this year it worked fine, it would backwash and rinse with enough pressure that it looked like a fire hose. It started doing it with the original valve, so I bought a new one thinking it might be seals going bad, but the new one isn't working any better. Any idea what may be causing it?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/9/2013
Guy C - I'm not sure what you what to do but I think the answer to your question is no. You cannot use the multiport valve to divert water to the solar panels. The return port eventually goes back to the pool. You could have it goes to the solar panels from the filter. In recirculate mode the valve would bypass the filter, but when you put the valve in filter mode the water would still go to the solar panels. Usually people put in a pair of diverter valves after the filter to direct the water to the solar panels or to bypass the panels and go directly to the pool.Reply
Guy C Posted: 6/7/2013
Can I use the re-circulate setting on my filter to divert water to a solar heater ? Will this workReply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/4/2013
debi - If you have a side mounted valve, check to see if the air relief tube inside the tank is clogged. It runs from top to bottom to relieve pressure at the top of the tank. Check to see if your motor's impeller is clogged. See our How To Guide. If you have very dirty water, it may be clogging your filter. When initially cleaning, dump the dirty water from the bottom of the pool, out the waste port.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/3/2013
mary - Generally you cannot use any kind of multiport valve on a Triton filter. The spacing between the input and output ports vary between filters.Reply
debi Posted: 6/3/2013
I have a sand filter and have had it about 4 years. When I first started it up it did not sound right when I shut it off, water shot back thru the skimmer basket about 2 feet high. I finally got it going but when I tried to clean the bottom it will run a few minutes and lose suction. I changed the sand out and check all tubes which look fine. I have not water leaks but I can not figure out what to do to not lose suction.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/2/2013
homeboy - You may have installed a pump that was stronger than your old pump. A pump's real Total Horsepower (THP) is equal to the HP on the motor label times the Service Factor (SF) on the label. Compare the THP of your old motor with the one of your new motor. Pressure gauges do go bad. Try swapping out yours with a neighbor's to see if you need a new one. Finally, the small leak in the pipe between the pump and the filter will not cause your water pressure to go up. If anything, it would relieve some of the pressure.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 6/2/2013
mison2014 - We do sell the valve body only. However the cost of the body is almost equal to the cost of the whole valve. At this point, I would replace the whole valve.Click on underlined items for more details and prices.Reply
mary Posted: 6/2/2013
Can I use any kind of multiport valve on a Triton filter as long as the fittings are the correct size?Reply
homeboy Posted: 6/2/2013
I just installed a new Hayward pool pump in my inground swimming pool and the pressure guage seems to be high (20 - 23 PSI). It was only between 16 and 20 PSI with old pump. Also my pressure guage go to 3 when the pump is turmed off and have a small leak in the pipe ging into the sand filter. Is the pressure guage broke or can the small leak be causing this problem.Reply
mison2014 Posted: 5/31/2013
I have a Hayward DE4820 filter with a Hayward Sp715XR50 vari flo valve. I only use filter, Backwash, Rinse and waste. The body has a crack so I must replace. Is there another valve I can replace it with?Or do you sell only the body for this valve. the controller top is in great shape as i replaced it about 4 years ago.
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InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 5/31/2013
Stones - Leaking out the waste port while filtering is generally caused by a damaged spider gasket. See our How To Guide on Replacing a Spider Gasket. Typical psi while filtering is 10-15 psi.Reply
Stones Posted: 5/30/2013
My sand filter seems to be working ok but I'm not sure what my normal psi should be while filtering. Also, I have a leak out of my waste port while I'm filtering. What could be causing that?Reply
DAR Posted: 5/30/2013
Well it's been about a week or so...currently I have not vacuumed the pool yet, it's no longer green at all, there's a bit of cloudiness but i can see the third stair....the filter will run up to 3 hours before it needs a backwash....it must be the amount of fine particulate in the pool...but it is odd that this has happened only in the last 2 years, it's a 10 year old pool and the number of trees nearby has been halved....Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 5/24/2013
DAR - If your water was very dirty when you opened your pool and you are processing this water through your filter, you may be clogging your filter repeatedly and you will have to backwash frequently. If you still have dirty water, try vacuuming the floor and diverting that water to the waste line. Also if you have a side mounted multiport valve, check the air relief tube that runs from the top to the bottom inside the tank. If this tube gets clogged, you can have back pressure building up in your filter.Reply
DAR Posted: 5/22/2013
I have a pool with an astral sand filter and a hayward pump. The pool was just opened; the filter will run for maybe 30 minutes and then the water output drops off dramatically; the pressure really does not change from 1 - 1.5. If I shut the pool off for a while, the output is strong but then again drops off...once the flow gets going there is no air in the filter basket.this happened last year too and I changed the sand in the filter ad the problem cleared up but I do not think thats the cause of the problem...I cant keep backwashing every 30 minutes and I'm afraid of what will happen to the pump if i let it run that way, right now it is running on reciruculate and it is producing a lot of output which suggests that the filter is the issue.
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InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 5/13/2013
5deeds - The small leak in your multiport valve will not cause high pressure. In fact it might be relieving some of the pressure in your filter. The most common cause of high pressure is a clogged filter. Spraying off the debris is not always sufficient. Periodically you should soak the cartridge with a cleaner/degreaser to remove oils, grease, suntan lotion, chemicals that clog the filters. We sell this Cartridge Cleaner. Another common problem is an oversized pump. A relatively inexpensive solution to this problem is to replace the motor's impeller with one a size smaller.Reply
5deeds Posted: 5/11/2013
Can a small leak in the multiport valve cause high pressure in the pump? We have cleaned filters, put new O-rings in chlorinator and around skimming basket. Not sure what else to do except that I did notice some water leaking around multiport valve.Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 3/24/2013
Canuck - If your pool has a lot of debris in it from the winter, you should set your multiport valve to waste. Clear the large pieces out with a net. After your pool is relatively clean, switch to filter. If you did not backwash your filter before you closed for winter, I would also throw in a backwash cycle after the waste cycle.Reply
Canuck Posted: 3/23/2013
When my pool was closed for the winter the valve was set on winter (I live in Canada). When openning the pool after winter, once drain plugs replaced, water level adjusted etc, and am about to start the pump after priming, what should the vari flow valve be set to; filter, bachflush, waste?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 3/13/2013
Dallas - If this just happened during normal operation, I would guess that the spider gasket in your multiport valve is blown. See our guide on "How To Replace a Spider Gasket on a Multiport Valve" for more information.Reply
Dallas Posted: 3/12/2013
My multiport is running backwards. When set on backwash itis running on filter. Is this an easy fix?Reply
InyoPools Product Specialist Dennis R. Posted: 2/19/2013
Steve - If you just have a little blowback, I wouldn't worry about it. If it gets worse, you may have a damaged spider gasket in the top of your multiport valve. See our guide on " How to Replace a Pool Multiport Valve Spider Gasket" in our list of How to guides under Filters/Multiport Valve.Reply