Domakihub Pool Sand Filter vs Cartridge Filter: Which Should You Choose?
A practical breakdown to help Greek homeowners, rental managers, and hoteliers pick the right pool filter.
Reviewed by Domakihub pool pros · 2026-06-23 · 5 min read
Choosing the wrong filter for your pool wastes water, time, and money — a real concern for properties in Greece where summers are long, water is expensive, and guests notice clarity fast. The video above walks through both filter types side by side; this guide takes it further with a step-by-step decision framework tailored to homes, holiday rentals, and hotel pools operating under Greek conditions. Read both together and you will know exactly what to buy and how to maintain it.
How Each Filter Works
A sand filter pushes water through a tank filled with silica sand (or the finer alternative, zeolite). Dirt and debris get trapped between the sand grains, and when pressure rises you backwash — reversing flow to flush the waste out to drain. The process takes two to three minutes and requires no disassembly.
A cartridge filter uses a pleated polyester element, similar to a car air filter. Water passes through the pleats and particles are captured on the surface. Instead of backwashing, you remove the cartridge every few weeks and rinse it with a garden hose, then return it. No wasted water during cleaning, but the cartridge itself needs replacing every two to four years.
What Matters Most in a Greek Pool Context
Greek pools face heavy pollen and airborne dust loads in spring, high swimmer counts in July and August, and hard water that can cake onto cartridge media. Holiday rentals and hotels with unpredictable bather loads tend to accumulate debris faster than private homes, which shifts the calculation toward a filter that can be cleared quickly without shutting the system down.
Water scarcity is a real constraint outside Athens and on the islands. A sand filter backwash uses roughly 200–400 litres each cycle; cartridge rinsing with a hose uses almost nothing. For island properties or anywhere on municipal restrictions, that difference matters across a full season.
How to Choose and Size the Right Filter in 5 Steps
- 1
Calculate your pool volume
Measure length × width × average depth in metres, then multiply by 1,000 to get litres. A 10 × 5 m pool at 1.5 m average depth holds roughly 75,000 litres. You need this number to size any filter correctly — both sand and cartridge models are rated by the flow rate (m³/h) they can handle.
- 2
Check your backwash or drainage situation
If your property has an easy drain connection or a soakaway and water is abundant, a sand filter is straightforward to maintain. If you are on a cistern, in a water-scarce island municipality, or your waste outlet is awkward, favour a cartridge filter — you rinse it with a hose and no water goes to drain during routine cleaning.
- 3
Assess your bather load and debris type
High-turnover rentals and hotel pools with 20-plus bathers daily, or pools near olive trees and pine forests, generate heavy organic load. Sand filters handle large debris volumes well and can be backwashed in minutes without stopping operations. For a lightly used private home pool, a cartridge filter's finer 10–15 micron filtration gives noticeably cleaner water with less hassle.
- 4
Match the filter flow rate to your pump
The filter's maximum flow rate (m³/h) must equal or exceed your pump's output. Under-sizing a filter forces pressure up, shortens cleaning intervals, and stresses the media. As a rule of thumb, your system should turn over the full pool volume in 6–8 hours; divide your pool volume (m³) by 7 to get the minimum flow rate you need.
- 5
Plan your maintenance schedule before you buy
Sand media lasts 5–7 years before it rounds off and loses efficiency; budget for a refresh and add zeolite for finer filtration. Cartridge elements need hosing every 4–6 weeks in active season and a chemical soak (dilute acid or enzyme cleaner) once per season to clear scale and oils. Write the schedule into your property maintenance calendar before installation — the filter you will actually maintain is always the better filter.
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FAQ
- Which filter gives cleaner water — sand or cartridge?
- Cartridge filters typically filter to 10–15 microns versus 20–40 microns for standard sand, so they remove finer particles and produce visibly clearer water. However, upgrading sand to zeolite (a natural mineral medium) closes much of that gap and is a cost-effective option for existing sand-filter pools.
- How much water does a sand filter waste during backwashing?
- Each backwash cycle uses roughly 200–400 litres depending on tank size and how long you run it. For a pool backwashed twice a week through a six-month Greek season, that adds up to around 10,000–20,000 litres per year. On water-metered or cistern-supplied properties, this is a significant argument in favour of a cartridge system.
- Can I switch from a sand filter to a cartridge filter on an existing pool?
- Yes, in most cases. You replace the filter tank and connect it to the same pump and pipework. The pump flow rate must fall within the cartridge filter's rated range — if your pump is oversized for the new filter you may need a variable-speed pump or a flow restrictor. A pool technician can confirm compatibility in a short site visit.