Help with draining pool, potential repeat bouyancy issues.

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Colinod

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Aug 15, 2007
7
I plan to drain my 35k gallon inground plaster pool. How do i go about it without aggravating the pools currently popped state? I don't want to further jeopardize the intergrity of the main drain plumbing.

I live in houston, and it's been a rainy summer, so the water table is high.
 
If the water table is high it isn't safe to drain the pool. Commonly holes would be drilled in the pool so ground water could get in, eliminating the possibility of the pool popping out of the ground. Then you pump out the pool, trying to lower the water table as well as the pool. In severe cases you also need to dig some extra wells around the pool and pump from them as well to help bring down the water table.

Because draining with a high water table is such a large project most repairs are done with water in the pool.
 
Draining the pool now is out of the question today, as we had a tropical storm pass by. The water table level is as high as the deck surface. It'll have to hold off unitil winter, IF there is no other huge rainstorm.
 
I hope I don't step on colinod's toes but I saw this thread on another forum. . .

He's a 16 year old trying to get this pool back from the depths of heck. His dad left it go about 10 years ago and the neighbors called the city on them and made them drain it and it popped out and dad refilled it but never treated it and in 2 weeks, it went back to it's stagnant state. The water is a thick green muddy mess now as you can imagine X's 10. He's been tryin to scrape the stuff out but it's ALOT of yuck and muck! He posted links in the other place but I'll let him do that here. His equipment is older and may not work but he seems determined to get a job and fund this project himself, even picked out a new sand filter to get it started (I just saw).

He's got a lot on his plate. I'm hoping he can pull it off. 8)

Again, I'm sorry for speaking for you colinod. I wish you the best of luck with this and you should get an extreme amount of help here. Maybe you can post your pics here too???
 
I wouldn't drain it. I went and found the other post and looked at the pics.

You can treat the water. Keep scooping out the crud and see if you can get the pump/filter replaced.

What a job, though, and my heart goes out to you for even trying.

You might be able to find some decent used equipment. You know, I might suggest talking to some pool places and asking them about used equipment. I know, in our area there are some local shops that repair the pool pumps and probably most of the pool repairmen in the area frequent the place. So, I'd see if you can find a place like that. You might be able to score a good deal on some used equipment.

If you turn on the equipment do you see any circulation going on? Make sure the lint pot and skimmer are cleared of debris and try it.
 
Sorry to cross post!

I didn't realize so many people from the havus forums go here!

I wanna drain the pool, because powerwashing the walls with the pool drained is MUCH easier than brushing the walls blindly. Even if my powerwasher quit mid way into the cleaning, brushing wouldn't be half as bad as doing it with a full pool.
Maybe I'd like to do some DIY plaster repair while I'm down there.


Buggsw,

My pump does not work! the motor is good, but yesterday I primed the pump, and ran it with the filter cap off (Both the skimmer and main drain valves were open). I didn't see water rush into the filter, though it does stir around.

Though I won't know for sure unless I isolate the pump from its surrounding plumbing and make sure it can suck up a sample of water.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't expect the main drain to suck anything, since I scooped the deep end, and the gunk down there wouldn't let any water through the mesh! So I'd think the same thing is happening to the main drain.

I lost one of the skimmer baskets to one of the skimmers, but the other one has it. Im afraid to reach down in the skimmer with the missing basket even with a glove for some dumb reason. But I cleared the other one's basket. The pump still wouldn't suck.

On my filter the valve is a push pull one, I pushed it in because I assumed that would normally filter, but I ran the pump, and water that was already sitiing in the pump stirs, as I've said, and no water comes out of the top pipe (Side valved filter). This would lead me to believe this is in the backwash function. So I'm going to test it with the push pull valve raised up.

Reporting back soon.
 
Wellll the pump does work, but the filter doesn't. I'm guessing a broken lateral or some other component.
I saw unfiltered water come from the booster pump, not pressurized either (Booster pump is broken)

The filter is a triton 4.6 sq ft 40"?( I could barely read the decal)

If the drain pipes are clogged then I will move the filter to a less remote location (It's about 100 feet from the main drain)
and rig my own drain/return lines. At the worse, I will buy a new filter/pump.
 
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