How to get vacuum working Hayward equipment

[tstex]

Hello to all,

Pool has been operable for almost 1 week now and I need to brush and vacuum it.

The PB is not around at this time, so I was wondering what I needed to do to get the pool vacuum working. Here are some facts:


* Plaster was completed last monday, acid washed tues and filled Wed/Thur of last wk
* Pool walls and spa are a pebble sheen finish
* When pool was filled, pump was turned on and has been on 7x24 since Fri of last wk. Water is over flowing from spa into pool. I put drain baskets in skimmers
* There are 6 PVC pipe openings on the pool wall and one in the tanning shelf
* Pool has a few leaves in it, but it also has some small rocks [looks like grout chunks] and end slices of PVC.
* PB has not provided pool school yet.
* At suggestion by forum members, I did buy a TK-100 test kit and auto stir stick.

Ques:

Where and how do I hook-up and start vacuum, then shut off back to where I started?
Can the vacuum suck us the rocks and plastic debris?
Do I brush first, then vacuum, which would seem logial to free-up any loose peeble sheen pebbles to bottom of pool?

Other?

Thank you very much,
tstex

 

[JasonLion]

I'm going to assume you have a manual vacuum. If you have some other kind of vacuum you will need to say what kind.

A manual vacuum basically has three pieces: a long hose, a pole, and a vacuum head. One end of the hose plugs into the vacuum head. The other end of the hose plugs into a skimmer (more in a moment). The pole also connects to the vacuum head. It is important to make sure the hose is completely full of water before plugging it into the skimmer.

There are two ways to plug the hose into the skimmer. Modern skimmers often come with a fitting (plastic disk with hose connection) that sits on top of the skimmer basket and has a port for the hose to plug into. Older skimmers, or if you can't find the fitting, you remove the skimmer basket and plug the hose into the hole at the bottom that has suction.

Depending on your setup, you may need to turn up the pump speed, and/or close off the other skimmer(s) to get enough suction for the vacuum to work well.

The vacuum will often suck up rocks, but sometimes there isn't enough suction. Plastic debris shouldn't be a problem. Make sure to clear the skimmer basket (if used) and the pump strainer basket after vacuuming. You may also need to backwash/clean the filter after vacuuming, so check the filter pressure to see if that is needed when you are done.

You should be brushing regularly regardless. Brushing first then vacuuming works best, but isn't crucial.

 

[tstex]

Jason,

Thank you.

I did reply back yesterday, but it did not post for some reason. Yes, the vacuum cleaner is a 3 part device. We also have a shark robotics coming too.

I apprecaiate the info, I am not familiar w the equipment on how to shut off/turn off things and clean/empty anything. therefore, I am hiring a pool cleaner guy to come out today and give me a quick "pool lesson" so I can become immediately familair w all. I am not waiting for the pool builder.

One thing, the area where the auto fill is located, I had a friend come and the area was completed filled w dirt, sand and concrete/gunite chunks, and the auto fill itself was solidified in a chuck of concrete [NICE]. Can the vacuum hose be used to suck out all of debris. minus the large stuff i will pull out w hand...majority has been removed, but still more to go...the auto-filler is set off to the side.

Thanks again,
tstex

 

[JasonLion]

The vacuum will vary in effectiveness with different sizes/shapes of debris. Pebbles are fine since they are rounded and fairly small, but larger or pointy pieces are likely to get stuck in the hose.

 

[ITR]

I was told by my PB not to use a vacuum for about a month while the interior completely cures (and that seems to be a general recommendation I read on here). He said if I didn't I would risk the chance of leaving tracks from the wheels. Are you sure you want to vacuum so soon?

 

[JasonLion]

The National Plasterers Council says you can start vacuuming on the seventh day as long as you use a vacuum with brushes rather than wheels.

 

[tstex]

Thanks for your replies on vacuuming.

It was only done one time on the 8th day w wheels that had what looked like circular insulators on them. Since then, only brushing.

I have a nbor w a tree that drops a lot of leaves and they are going into pool left & right. Don't want them to stain new plaster, so that is why vacuuming.

Thx again to all,
Tstex