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The various filter media can be compared in terms of performance and cost, but which of them is nature’s favorite?

It takes a moment of reflection to realize that these three selection considerations — price, performance and environmental impact — are becoming virtual coequals in the minds of consumers.

This is driven in part by a rise in the prices of energy and resources, but also due to the increasing sense of planet stewardship among buyers of pool products. Extrapolating this general shift in priorities through the decades to come, a filter’s green credential is likely to become its chief selling point.

Thus far, the green movement in filters has focused on energy and water conservation — energy being perhaps the chief concern as it involves not only the direct cost to the consumer, but a host of environmental issues, as well. For every kilowatt-hour of energy saved, air pollution is reduced along with the need to build new power plants and import fuel from foreign countries.

Filters “consume” energy by restricting flow and raising total head for the system. The greater the total head, the larger the pump needed — and the pool pump is by far the biggest energy hog in the backyard, second only to the air conditioner for the entire residence.

As a general rule, cartridge filters have been winning the energy battle so far. They’re less restrictive because they are plumbed directly into the circulation line, and do not require the energy-sapping backwash or multiport valves that sand and DE filters must have.

These valves require extra turns and convolutions in the flowpath, and every time flowing water is forced to change directions, especially at sharp, 90-degree angles, system head rises and more pump pressure is required.

However, manufacturers are focused on making more-efficient backwash valves to close that energy gap. Zodiac Pool Systems has a backwash valve that it claims only loses 1 pound of pressure across the unit, and other manufacturers are said to be poised to follow suit.

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