Recent content by Smeade

These are fun! In a few days you‘ll be able to toss a quarter in and see if it’s heads or tails and then you’ll say, “Now THAT‘S what a clean pool looks like.” And then you’ll be grossed out when you see other people’s pools. ?

My plan is to add SLAM levels of chlorine, and simultaneously vacuum the pool (I’ll be vacuuming blind because I can’t see the bottom). I have a leaf catcher thingy inline with my hose (I once sucked up a chunk of hardwood that blocked my skimmer line, like to never got the sucker out), so if...

I’m going to chime in only to get the ball rolling for you; it won’t take long for an “expert” to chime in. I’m answering because I opened my pool today and have the exact situation (and exact same filter) that you do. You need the DE properly run the filter but you’ll be “bumping“ it frequently...

Hi Denise! I don't really have much to add except that you're going to be so glad you found this forum in the early stages of pool ownership. I found it after some twenty years of doing it the pool store way. Could have saved a lot of time, money, and aggravation. You're gonna do great!

Thanks, Pat! I really appreciate you educating me on how this stuff works (and being patient with my questions!). I have a better understanding of the plumbing side of things. I'll discuss with my husband and see what he wants to do and how much $$ he's willing to part with. �� I'm...

So in your setup (pretty pool BTW, I love the color) water comes in through the skimmer, passes through a check valve and then a 3-way before hitting the pump (why the 3-way if the water only has one place to go, to the pump? or is that to draw water from two places, skimmer or main drain?)...

Dndrich, I started TFP around the same time you did and couldn't agree with you more! I haven't opened my pool yet and I may be in for a nasty surprise, (who knew this winter would be so mild), but I know exactly what to do to fix it. No $500 trips to the pool store for magical potions that...

Hi Pat, thanks for your input as well as that from Dave S. At this time we're not considering a pump or filter change; both are fairly new, 5 years old or less, and seem to be serving us well at this point. All of the plumbing runs below the concrete apron, so highly likely we'll not ever...

As I said in the OP, I was grubbing out some ornamental grass that had grown around the pump and filter area. I had to fight the grass every time I needed to clean out the pump basket. That's how the pipe got broken (accidentally hit it with the grub axe, apparently the PVC was/is very brittle...

If I attached the photos correctly (and I'll try again if not), one is of the plumbing setup in relation to the pool and the other is a closer view. I misspoke about two of the valves, they are gate valves, not ball. Also, yes, that is a tub of pucks. They are three years old and that's what...

Hoping to get my pool running for the year, waiting on some new parts (simple stuff, gaskets, etc). Today I was moving some ornamental grass that was too big/too close to the pump and filter and managed to break the pvc return line. Oops. I don't think it will be a huge repair, but my husband...

Update: I went to bed Wednesday night tired and frustrated (and just a bit angry). I was not looking forward to the idea of having to dig up the pipe to clear it completely. We had water flowing to the pump, but it was weak and of course the return flow to the pool was also weak. I didn't sleep...

Also, Richard, I see your picture, but we have no way to divert water to one side or the other. Our skimmer has two holes in it, one draws the water toward the pump, the other hole I'm assuming is to the floor drain but there's no diverter within the skimmer or any kind of valve that we can...