I have a new pool with an in-floor cleaning system. The in-floor cleaning system company designed a specific schematic for the builder to follow when plumbing the 6 zones for my pool. Essentially, the idea was that the zones (not the heads specifically!) would rotate from 1 through 6 in such a way that the higher levels of the pool (steps and sundeck) would be followed by the lower zones from shallow to deep where the drain is. Unfortunately, my builder got these zones out of order so that the zones in the deep end (nearest the main drain) operate and are then followed by zones in the middle and shallow end of the pool. While I understand that the heads rotate during each zone cycle, I contend that the direction in which the zones operate matters for cleaning efficiency! The builder says it doesn’t matter because the individual heads rotate anyway. So the short question is: Does it matter which direction the zones operate in an in-floor cleaning system?!?
You are both right in a sense, but ideally the pool would sweep clean from shallow to deep end, depositing the sediment into the main drain. To remedy the situation it would seem the infloor control unit would have to be taken apart, the plumbing adjusted/re-routed to the correct order, and it be put back together. Depending on the type of system used (brand/manufacturer) this may be next to impossible, or it could be do-able with some work and modification. The question is, now when your pool is clean, do the heads take care of the majority of the dirt or is it highly noticeable that the zones go in their own order. If it’s something you can live with, and take care of sediment with a quick brushing of the pool that you should be doing on a regular basis anyway, that may be the best answer.