To start off with, I live in Alaska and this year we have had a lot of rain. But then for a month or two, we had really nice, hot weather. (Perfect conditions for algae to grow!). Our paper cartridge filters were overwhelmed, so we got this pump to replace our above ground paper cartridge filters that could not keep up with the gunk. We followed the instructions for set up, and any time the pressure started to get close to the yellow, we back washed it. After awhile I noticed the pool was just not getting clean and gunk was accumulating on the bottom, the water was cloudy, it was just gross. Kids didn't care though! It was to the point where even when I backwashed and rinsed to level the sand out, it was still throwing reddish or green water into the pool. We have only used this pump for about about 2-3 months.

I finally took the pump apart and put the input hose i to the skimmer basket from the old cartridge pump and took the sand pump apart. The amount of algae growing in it was phenomenal. I thoroughly cleaned all the sand, took the solid chunks of algae out, rinsed the sand again, and then reassembled. I disconnected the output hose that goes to the pool from the filter and drained the gross water from it. Once everything was cleaned out and put back together, I turned the pump on. Clean clear water poured quite forcefully into the pool. I did not realize how weak the return water pressure had got. I figured out how to set the timer for how ling the pump runs for, and put that on 5 hours. A couple of days later and the pool was looking much better. I vacuumed it to help the filter, but it still needed more help. I put flocculant in and over night the pool was crystal clear. Vacuumed it again and it continues to run smoothly and is keeping up with the gunk. I also got a cover for the pool which is helping. The pump runs with the cover on and has no issues.

I bought this to replace the small mostly useless filters that come with Intex pools. I have a 12 ft round 3 ft deep Intex pool. 1700 gallons. I bought this filter which was minimum 2500 gl pool, but it works perfectly on this smaller pool. The salt water system was easy to set up as was the filter and hoses. You will need a backwash hose (2 in) and adapter or clamp to hold hose in place. You may also need adapter b if you have 1.25 in. hoses. This filter is 1.5 in. hoses. The adapters work great. You can also opt for plungers so you can just turn water flow off when tending to filter. I just have the black caps which work fine, too. My pool sparkles now whereas before I could never keep up with constantly rinsing the small paper type filter that came with it. I highly recommend moving on up to this filter or the like. I am saving so much $$ not buying chlorine anymore.

This is a great pump for a great price. I am so happy with this pump. It's one of the best purchases I have ever made from Amazon. This thing is an extremely powerful little awesome pump and filter. No more cleaning paper filters for me. Thank you Intex for making a great product. Now only question is how long will it last. It does come with a 2 year manufacturer's warranty so that's wonderful!
If you are wondering if it is a worthy buy, YES,JUST BUY IT. It will definitely save you time and money as it is already saving me money because I have not had to add as many chemicals as I did with the poor little pump that came with my pool as well as not needing to clean my filters daily just to keep my water somewhat decent and moving. I bought this pump to go with my 18' x 48" coleman vista steel above ground pool. It works wonders for my pool and my wallet. So far I have noticed, the pump creates a vortex tornado motion which makes all of the leaves and debris circle to the middle of the pool where I just scoop it up.This pump definitely keeps the water moving which is great for many reasons. One that algae doesnt really get a chance to sit if you are treating your water as needed. Two, distributes and keeps chemicals moving and less likely to settle to the bottom. Three will save money on many extra unnecessary chemicals because it will help keep water balanced and no need to keep cleaning and replacing filter cartridges.
I ordered this pump ,which was supposed to take 3 weeks to arrive, it arrived in less than a week of my purchase date. Nice, I know, I am happy with that.
Set up was very easy. Much of the parts are already put together. Be cautious as the seal rings are in tact and you dont want to lose them. All you need to do is connect the filter debris basket, pump and sand bucket to the base. Connect the hoses to the pump as directed. I did NOT need to purchase any extra parts or fittings because I connected the hoses to the hoses that came with my pool. You'll also need to connect the adapters to your pool. Make sure that you grease all of your rivets with vaseline or petroleum jelly as recommended by intex. You will need to buy 20 grade silica sand ( it does not come with sand) . Approximately 2.5 ,50 lb bags filled my sand pump to the recommended level, which I picked up for $11 usd at my local pool supply store. And the best part is you dont need to change filters frequently because this sand will filter your pool for 2-5 years. I wouldn't recommend that you use any sand except what is called for. I almost purchased the clorox brand pool filter sand but was steered to follow suit with what intex recommended plus many reviews on the clorox pool filter sand changed my mind. When adding sand make sure that you use the piece to cover the pump hole as you DONT WANT to get sand in your pump. It will help to distribute sand evenly around your sand bucket. First setting up is it is recommended that you rinse and backwash your sand filter pump to get best performance out of your sand filter pump. I've added a skimmer with a filter sock to my pool which also increases my pools ability to stay clean and save me from extra work.
The pump comes with 6 settings. RECIRCULATE closes off filter basket and sends same unfiltered water back into pool which I use when adding chemicals to circulate and distribute chemicals evenly around the pool without settling to the bottom I use it for 30 mins to about an hour. This setting is also great for long trips away from home. Then FILTRATION which I use after circulating chemicals around pool to start filtering algae, debris etc. This setting cleans your water. WASTE- exactly what is. It sends out dirty water that you dont want back in your pool or filter. RINSE,almost exact same as waste ,rinses your sand.BACKWASH, also pretty much the same as waste. Sends junk and dirty water out of your pool. CLOSED, closes off all water flow to pool and pump.
I would recommend this pump . It does its job and soo far I am very pleased. I havent had leaks , as I believe if you follow directions as instructed you will not have any issues. The price is well worth the purchase. Saves money, time, work, chemicals and it works as well as those high priced filter pumps. If this pump lasts only a couple years it still is worth the money it will save you ,and has saved me in only a few weeks. It does what it says it does and that includes all the time I was spending trying to balance and clean my pool l. I am happy , and i hope that this review helps you and gives you the answers you are looking for.

For the price I was very skeptical but had no choice as my pool store bought 2 year old sand filter wasn't cutting it. For a month I battled balancing chemicals and getting rid of the swamp that became an unstoppable extremely cloudy pool with the old filter running 24 hours a day following the chemical cocktail constructions.

Now for what you really want to know! Out of the box and I was blown away! The filter was larger then I thought for being 15 inches. Set up was a breeze with the included threaded fittings. But the surprises were not complete"¦ Hooking up the agitator flow blah blah thing I was like well isn't this a fancy looking thing that is probably just for show. Right? Again I was wrong I turned on the pump and set the amazing timer for "fp" and watched my 18 foot calm pool turn into the bay on a choppy day! Well maybe not that much motion but it did cause a nice ripple as the water flowed out of the filter and into the pool. With one day the pool was nearly clear and after 48 hours it was what I thought was crystal clear but to my surprise it was after 60 hours did I see that the water was cleared then it has ever been!

Now I have the timer set to run for 8 hours to start around 6 pm. Just in case you are like me and don't like reading how to work things, the time that you turn on the pump and set the amount of time that you would like it to run will set the automatic timer to turn on at that time each day.

The motor is also seems to to be power enough to support the filtration needs of my 6500 gallon water above ground pool.

Can't go wrong with this one!

This pump is perfect for my above ground pool and has helped keep it really clean