Pentair Triton II Sand Filter

The Triton II is Pentair's side mount sand filter: a round one-piece fiberglass-reinforced tank on a foot, with a threaded closure on top and two ports on the side where the valve goes. Pentair's current item table and its 2025-2026 catalog list three sizes, the TR 60, TR 100 and TR 140. The TR 60 and TR 100 are also sold online, as EC-140264 and EC-140210.

The filter comes without a valve. Pentair says valves must be bought separately, and its catalog notes the unions aren't included either. Budget for both.

It isn't the Sand Dollar, which is a top mount filter with the valve clamped on top, though Pentair's parts lists give the two the same pressure gauge, 190059, and the same 150085 quarter-turn lateral.

Why the TR 100 barely out-flows the TR 60

Pentair's manual rates the three sizes:

• TR 60: 3.14 sq. ft., 63 GPM
• TR 100: 4.91 sq. ft., 74 GPM
• TR 140: 7.06 sq. ft., 106 GPM

The TR 60 figure works out to 20 GPM per square foot, the rate Pentair's ClearPro brochure calls the maximum flow. The TR 100 and TR 140 figures carry a footnote in the manual: they're based on 15 GPM per square foot.

So the TR 100 has 56% more sand area than the TR 60 but a flow rating only 11 GPM higher. Don't size up to it expecting a much bigger flow rating. The filter sizing guide covers matching the filter to the pump.

Pentair also says the system must turn over the pool's whole volume at least twice a day. At the rated flows, 12 hours of running turns over 45,360 gallons on the TR 60, 53,280 on the TR 100 and 76,320 on the TR 140.

Choosing a valve

Pentair lists these valves for the Triton II:

• 261173: 1½ inch multiport valve (SM 10-3)
• 261055: 2 inch multiport valve (SM 20-3)
• 261049: 2 inch HiFlow valve, no plumbing
• 261050: 2 inch HiFlow valve with plumbing
• 263064: 7½ inch center push-pull valve, almond PVC
• 263080: a valve for sand and Quad D.E. filters with the inlet port on top and 2 inch unions glued on

The two side ports sit 7½ inches apart on Pentair's dimension drawing.

A multiport valve has a Rinse position. A two-position slide valve doesn't, so Pentair's backwash steps skip straight from Backwash to Filter. Pool valves explained covers the difference.

For the TR 100 and TR 140, Pentair says to use at least 2 inch pipe, with as few fittings as possible.

Installing it

Pentair's manual says only a qualified professional should install the filter. Its guidelines are worth knowing even if you're not the one doing it:

• A permanent slab, preferably poured concrete, or a platform of concrete block or brick.
• No electrical controls over the filter, and room to stand clear when the pump starts.
• A check valve between the filter and heater, to stop hot water backing up.
• A vacuum breaker if the backwash line runs more than 40 feet, or discharges more than 10 feet below the pool water line.
• No pump with a shut-off pressure of 50 psi or more. The filter's maximum is 50 psi.
• The chlorinator downstream of the filter, with a check valve between them.
• No positive shut-off valve at the filter outlet. If the system ever runs with one closed, the internal air relief can't work.
• Pool chemicals at least 10 feet away. Pentair says their fumes and spills can weaken filter parts.
• Never pressure test it with air or gas.

Sand, or gravel and sand

Pentair's manual specifies No. 20 standard silica sand, 0.018 to 0.022 inch, with a uniformity coefficient of 1.75 or less.

• TR 60: 325 lb, with 10.5 inches of freeboard
• TR 100: 600 lb, with 11.25 inches of freeboard
• TR 140: 925 lb, with 13.5 inches of freeboard

Freeboard is the gap between the top of the tank and the sand bed. Pentair calls it the most important variable, and says sand density varies, so the weights are for reference only. Fill to the freeboard, not the bag count.

Pentair's catalog gives a second option for each size: pea gravel under a smaller amount of sand. That's 75 lb of gravel and 250 lb of sand for the TR 60, 150 and 450 for the TR 100, and 275 and 650 for the TR 140. The totals match the all-sand weights.

To fill it:

1. Fill the tank about halfway with water.
2. On all three sizes, swing the diffuser out of the center of the tank by turning it counterclockwise.
3. Pour the sand in slowly until it reaches the freeboard depth.
4. Swing the diffuser back upright, parallel to the sand bed.
5. Check that the automatic air vent sticks up into the center of the closure. Pentair says if it doesn't, trapped air builds up in the filter.
6. Clear any sand from around the tank opening.

The closure

Pentair's warning is blunt: trapped air can launch the closure with deadly force. Before touching it, turn off power to the pump and any automatic controls, open the manual air bleeder, and wait until all the pressure is gone. Never adjust or tighten the closure while the system is pressurized or the pump is on.

1. Clean the closure o-ring and coat it with silicone lubricant.
2. Thread the closure in hand tight. It should turn freely. If you feel resistance, back it out and start again; the starting threads have to engage, and it must not cross-thread.
3. Tighten it as tight as possible with the closure wrench that comes with the filter.

The TR 60 has a 6 inch closure. The TR 100 and TR 140 take a larger 8½ inch one, per Pentair's parts sheet. Filters made before December 1, 1991 have a V-thread closure rather than a buttress thread, and the two aren't interchangeable.

Starting it up

1. On a new pool, clean the pool before filling it.
2. Open the backwash line and put the valve on Backwash.
3. Fill the pump's strainer pot if it needs it, and check the closure is tight.
4. Open the manual air bleeder, stand clear of the filter, and start the pump.
5. Close the bleeder once the air is out and a steady stream of water comes out.
6. Keep backwashing until the waste water is as clear as the pool. Pentair says sand abrasion during shipping can make this first backwash take longer.
7. Stop the pump, set the valve to Filter, and check the suction and return lines are open.
8. Open the bleeder again, stand clear, start the pump, and close the bleeder once water runs steady.
9. Write down the operating pressure. Everything after this compares to it.

When and how to backwash

Don't backwash on a schedule. Pentair's manual says backwashing too often leads to poor filtration, and that weather, rain, dust, pollen and water temperature all change how often it's needed.

• On a new pool: backwash after the first 48 hours, to clear plaster dust and construction debris.
• With a flow meter: backwash when flow is 30% below a freshly backwashed filter.
• Without one: backwash when the gauge reads 10 psi above its reading just after a backwash.

The steps:

1. Stop the pump, open the backwash line, and set the valve to Backwash.
2. Stand clear, start the pump, and backwash for about 3 to 5 minutes, or until the water runs clean.
3. Stop the pump. With a multiport valve, set it to Rinse, start the pump and rinse for about 30 seconds. With a slide valve, skip this step.
4. Stop the pump, set the valve to Filter, and check the return line is open.
5. Open the air bleeder, stand clear, start the pump, and close the bleeder once water runs steady.

Always turn the pump off before moving the valve. How to backwash a sand filter covers the steps for any make.

If the pressure right after a backwash is 4 to 6 psi above the original start-up reading, Pentair says the sand bed needs a chemical clean.

Chemical cleaning

Pentair says to get a sand filter cleaner from a pool supplier, which removes oils, scale and rust, and to mix it per its label.

1. Backwash the filter.
2. Shut the pump off, open the filter drain and let the filter empty, closing valves first if the filter sits below the pool's water level.
3. Close the drain and set the valve to Backwash.
4. Clean the pump basket, pour the solution into the strainer pot and put the lid back.
5. Run the pump for about three minutes.
6. Shut it off, leave the valve on Backwash, and disconnect power to the pump and controls.
7. Let the solution soak the sand bed overnight, then backwash.

Winterizing

1. Backwash the filter.
2. Shut the pump off and open the air bleeder.
3. Set a multiport valve to Winterize and leave it there until spring. With a slide valve, take the piston assembly out and store it.
4. Remove the drain plug and store it.
5. Drain the system's piping.
6. Cover the filter with a tarp or plastic sheet.

If you blow the lines out with compressed air, Pentair says to make sure the filter's air relief is open first, or the closure can separate violently. Closing a pool for winter covers the rest of the system.

What the troubleshooting table says

Water not clean enough: unbalanced chemistry, backwashing too often, the wrong amount or size of sand, or not running the system long enough.

High filter pressure: not enough backwashing, debris or mineral deposits in the sand bed, or a partly closed valve or blockage in the return line.

Short filter cycles: poor backwashing, unbalanced chemistry, a flow rate that's too high, or a dirty or worn-out sand bed. For deposits, Pentair's fix is to remove the top inch of sand, replace it and chemically clean the filter. If the sand has eroded over time, replace the whole bed.

Low flow at the returns with low filter pressure: a clogged pump basket, a blockage in the pump, or a blockage in the suction line.

Sand coming back into the pool: a damaged lateral, a backwash flow rate that's too high, or a damaged or missing valve air strainer.

Looking after the tank

Wash the outside with mild detergent and water, and no solvents. For internal work, Pentair says to remove the sand drain at the bottom and flush the tank out with a garden hose; its Sand Vacuum, 542090, also works. After years in the sun the tank can turn foggy or rough, and Pentair says it can be painted, but not the valve.

The ClearPro version

Pentair still has a product page for the Triton II with ClearPro Technology, and its 2025 manual lists parts for a TR 60 ClearPro: six ClearPro laterals, its own lateral hub and its own lower piping. Its brochure lists only the TR 60 CP, at 63 GPM. It isn't in Pentair's 2025-2026 catalog, and the ClearPro product page lists seven item numbers without naming their models, so this page doesn't cover it as a current size.

Buying one online

The EC- versions are Pentair's online items, and Pentair's warranty page gives anything bought online, even from an authorized reseller, one year, parts only. Both Amazon listings on this page say the valve is sold separately.

One listing to avoid, as of this check: a listing from another brand at $3,098.99, titled with the TR 100's item number but describing itself as fitting a TR 60, with a listed weight of 1 pound. Check the manufacturer line and the model number before buying.

Where Pentair's documents disagree

• The sizes. The brochure lists a TR 40 and TR 50 too, and the manual still has the TR 40. The product page's item table and the 2025-2026 catalog list only the TR 60, TR 100 and TR 140, though a note under the item table also names two item numbers that aren't in the table.
• Residential or commercial. The brochure and catalog label the flow column as commercial, while the brochure labels the turnover figures beside it residential. The manual doesn't label them either way.
• The closure o-ring. The manual lists 152516 for buttress-thread closures made from December 1991 on and 154493 for older V-thread ones. The parts sheet lists only 154493, as the 6 inch closure o-ring, and the catalog calls 152516 a quad seal.
• The TR 60's internals. The manual calls lower piping 155284 the TR 60 ClearPro's and lists the six quarter-turn laterals, 150085, with no date. The parts sheet and catalog list both for TR 60s built after June 2007.
• The ClearPro lateral hub. The manual gives 152222; the parts sheet and catalog give 155753.
• TR 100 and TR 140 lower piping. The manual lists only the new quarter-turn hub assemblies, 157110 and 157111. The parts sheet and catalog list 154807 and 154489.
• The TR 100 and TR 140 closure. The parts sheet and catalog give these sizes an 8½ inch closure, kit 154856. The manual's Triton II list gives its closures and closure kits no size, and its wrenches are a 6 inch one and an aluminum one with no size given.
• The flow-meter example. The manual says to backwash when flow is 30% lower, then gives the example of 60 GPM falling to 40 GPM. That's a third lower; 30% below 60 is 42.
• Where to buy it. The product page says it's available only in-store from Pentair dealers or retail stores, above an item table listing two EC- versions as available online.