This will be my 3rd summer as a pool owner. 20x40 concrete. Probably built in mid to late 70's. Last summer we started losing a lot of water. We were having to run the hose in pool for about an hour each day just to keep above the skimmers. We have done the food color test on all returns (have slight leak in one return) but ... the bottom of the skimmer baskets have dropped. One of them is considerable. It looks like the concrete that was at the bottom of basket has just slowly deteriated and left the dirt exposed. The plumbing pipe is probably two inches above the dirt. and yes it is dirt with a little gravel/concrete feel to it just below the dirt when you stick your finger in it. I have some pictures but it says my file is too big to post. I need ideas/help/suggestions on how to solve this problem. It seems that if we replace concrete and level out the bottom of basket and then maybe epoxy over - that we will be okay...?
Dropped skimmer plumbing
- Thread starter JoeAndSara
- Start date
JoeAndSara said:
if you want to post pictures download this software and it will allow you to downsize the photos and be able to post
http://download.cnet.com/FastStone-Phot ... 19476.html
Thank you ..maybe pic attached this time!
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This is my #1 skimmer -it is the worst one. The #2 bottom is still lined with concrete. It is just pulled away about 1/4 inch or so.
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This is my #1 skimmer -it is the worst one. The #2 bottom is still lined with concrete. It is just pulled away about 1/4 inch or so.
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This is my #2 skimmer. See the bottom. I have not gotten down and cleaned them real good yet. I was just so excited that I think I finally found why we are losing so much water!...I just decided to snap pics.
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That is curious. It looks to me like part of the simmer is missing. The thing is that it would have originally all been one piece, solid plastic right down into the pipe. So I can't imagine how the missing part could have gone away so cleanly, when it would have had to have broken off.
I thought so too, Jason. It looks almost like the skimmer never had a bottom!? I don't know if you could seal the bottom of it somehow, with concrete/epoxy/etc. You may want to prepare yourself for the prospect of cutting the deck and replacing the skimmers.
Any of the service guys recognize this?
Any of the service guys recognize this?
So it sounds like even back then the skimmer should be built with a bottom.? I do not want to and probably won't cut into decking. There has got to be an easier way...surely... It doesn't look like there was ever a bottom...it looks like this is the way it was made. the pebble rock stuff that you can see in the bottom of #2 is the same pebble rock that my decking is...I don't know if the way pools were built in the 70's differs from area to area but we are in north Mississippi. The plumbing pipe is seemingly perfectly level with the bottom of the skimmer. The pipe doesn't look damaged much if any at all (it isn't broken). It just looks like the concrete filler/support that was once around the pipe has "gone away".
what does "homemade" mean? It looks like it was made this way and it doesn't look homemade to me. There are no rough edges... Either way...does anyone have any suggestions as to a way to fix my water loss problem? I really appreciate any input. With your experience in pools, which i am sure is longer than mine...do you suppose that reconcreteing and maybe an epoxy might work or hold up?
JoeAndSara said:
Put a sponge in the pipe, and fill the bottom with "hydraulic cement" from home depot up to the top of the pipe.