Making its U.S. debut this year at the Western Pool and Spa Show, there’s a truly interesting alternative to sand. It’s called SiLibeads glass filter beads, and it’s been used in a variety of applications such as pharmacy, cosmetics, aerosol sprays, glitter, drinking water purification, and much more. Coca Cola even uses it in its manufacturing process.

Now, it’s being used for pool water filtration.

SiLibeads have a spherical, nonporous surface, with absolutely no dust content, and the manufacturer states that these properties provide several advantages over conventional sand. These include:

• Excellent filtering properties due to the uniform flow of the material over the entire service life of the filter.

• Complete cleaning of the filter during backwashing.

• No filter germination, thus less use of chemicals and better skin tolerance of the water.

• Significant savings potential due to more efficient backwashing properties.

•Longerfilterlife,lowdisposalcosts. Conventional filtration material such as sand can, because of its porous and irregular structure, harbor a variety of fungi, bacteria, algae, and calcium deposits.

Dirt and germs settle within the uneven surfaces and the open pores of the filtration material.

The SiLibead manufacturer says that doesn’t happen with SiLibeads because they are perfectly spherical and non-porous.

Use of Silibeads saves energy and uses up to 40-percent less water through reduced backwash times. This also results in lower chemical needs.

It all adds up to money saved. The spherical shape maximizes self-cleaning and dirt released during backwashing with no deposits, clogging, or residues left. Because of its exact geometrical shape and homogenous filter bed, SiLibeads have outstanding filtration properties It also suppresses the formation of biofilm and prevents unwanted contamination of the filter.

SiLibeads glass filter beads have been used in Europe’s resorts and hotel swimming pools since around 2010 and have been added to more than 100,000 swimming pools there.

It’s been in the U.S. for only about a year and a half, but it’s slowly gaining traction because while it costs about 3 times as much as sand, it lasts forever, and compared to sand, it provides a 25-percent enhanced filtration ability.