New pool owner, intex 18'x48"; uneven bottom; what vacuum do I purchase?

[Jabo]

Problem: Hired landscaper to dig out grass and he filled with 4" of sand; after pool filled pool floor very bumpy and uneven. Landscaper said the weight of filling the pool will even the sand; it didn't!

Water testing has been good, deck not built yet so sand getting in pool. Debris will be an ongoing problem for us because of trees around pool area. Used simple large leaf water hose vac. with mesh bag to get leaves and seeds off bottom, but can't get sand with this vac. Bottom very bumpy so concerned about what vacuum I can use so don't damage the liner and can get small debris out of pool.

Pool has no skimmer, what would be recommended for this? Using hand skimmer only now.

Do I need to brush sides and bottom of pool regularly also, if so, how often? Thanks

 

[zea3]

Hi welcome to TFP! What kind of filter do you have on the pool?
You can choose to modify your pool and install a through the wall skimmer like traditional pools have, or you can add the over the wall skimmer intex makes, or you can continue to skim by hand. That will get old fast if you have a lot of leaf debris.

I would only recommend brushing an intex if there were a heavy algae bloom in the pool.

 

[Jabo]

Thank you, Krystal Clear Model 635T Filter Pump that came with the pool (1500 gallon so figured I needed to run about 8 hrs a day with 6424 gal pool water); Added Krystal Clear Saltwater System Model CS8110. I will consider the addition of the through the wall skimmer, cautious because worried about cutting the liner? Had to slam pool yesterday as I ran saltwater system extra hours after heavy rain and debris that had been in the pool a few days, per pool store chlorine way too high now. Ordered the recommended kit to test myself and salt tester also.

How do I get that sand and dirt off bottom? So worried about that being unsanitary.

 

[Sykesville001]

Hi Jabo - We currently have the same model pool and purchased the Aquabot Pool Rover Jr. last year. It has done a great job keeping the bottom spotless - we throw it in maybe twice a week and let it do its thing for about 3 or 4 hours and all is good. Our bottom is pretty flat, but I have a crease or two as I was moving quickly when we put the pool back up this spring. I've not had an issue with it not picking things up because of the creases.

For the skimmer, we added the Intex skimmer this year and it is just OK. The clamps that secure it to the metal frame are plastic and they do not hold it in place securely enough. This resulted in it floating up out of place and not feeding the appropriate amount of water to the pump/filter. I rigged it with a few zip ties and, since then, it has stayed put. Once it stays secured it does a fine job.

Hope this helps - good luck!

 

[zea3]

I would get something like an aquabroom to vacuum the floor of the pool. Traditional vacuum set ups tend not to work very well with intex cartridge filter systems.

 

[Jabo]

Thank you, both, for your answers. I appreciate the help.