Main drain is capped off--- how to re-plumb???

[ZESTR]

We bought this house a year ago and even tho the main drain is capped off and not in use-- it passed inspection bc apparently as long as the skimmer is working hey don't have to have the main drain operating. Frustrating! I am pretty sure this is why we can't get rid of mustard algae no matter the lengths we go to to SLAM, etc... it always creeps back...
So-- how much do you think it would cost to hire someone to re-plumb the main drain so it operates?
I was told the spot in the pic with the pipe sticking straight up with the cap on it is the main drain.
What we've been doing meanwhile is-a few times a week- leaving the vacuum right at the drain for a few hours.

I'm afraid to call someone bc
a) it will cost more than we can afford
b) so many pool companies in our area (North Florida) have bad reputations, so not sure who to trust enough to ask and not sure we can do it ourselves

Any advice? Is it no big deal to get it operating again? Or does it matter either way?
Thanks!
E

PS- I keep trying to upload the image of the pipes and even made it smaller, but it wont allow me to upload...?
http://www.troublefreepool.com/images/misc/exclamation.png

 

[jblizzle]

Many pools have no floor drain and do not develop mustard algae. The floor drains serve very little purpose and are just not required.

I would wonder why it is capped off ... it could have developed a leak and fixing that will cost a LOT of money.

To post more/larger pictures, you either need to raise your storage allotment by Becoming a TFP Supporter or follow the How To Post Pictures tutorial.

 

[duraleigh]

+ 1 what jblizzle said. The lack of a main drain is not related to your mustard algae........it's your water chemistry.

 

[DaninFLA]

if the main drain is capped, I bets its because you got a leak in the line under the pool and that is VERY expensive to fix. I would just run the pool thru the skimmer and enjoy. you can always remove the cap, but I bet you will discover you have a leak. what makes you think you have mustard algae?

 

[borjis]

I was told the spot in the pic with the pipe sticking straight up with the cap on it is the main drain.

without a photo, that description sounds like a hydrostatic valve (you open if draining completely to avoid the pool popping out of the ground)

either way if your drain is disabled, just way cheaper to rent a pump to drain down if needed.

 

[ZESTR]

Well, we have had the algae problem since we moved in 13 mos ago. The pool was re-lined and filled and no chlorine added for 20 days of sitting empty! Ugh.

And we SLAMd and SLAMd and SLAMd and it would go away but always comes back--even after passing the OCLT test each time.

I brush the pool every day now--every 2-3 days before I can even see the yellow, when I brush a fine fine cloud comes up that you wouldnt notice unless you brushed it. I assumed it was bc it was hiding in the inoperative drain where we couldnt scrub it out...?

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I have even had my husband swim down with a children's medicine syringe of chlorine and shoot it into the drain!

 

[zea3]

Could you post a complete set of current test results? Your FC to CYA ratio may be the real problem.

 

[TomBorg]

Not having a main drain isn't a problem. Having a NON-OPERATIONAL main drain can be a problem. The drain cover protects the area underneath from the pool's normal circulation, but lets in plenty of light. So it becomes a cozy little haven for algae growth, and what little chlorine makes it in there is used up immediately.

(This was the problem at my pool. Missing float valve meant the floor drains were non-operational, and the pool would get cloudy even at good FC/CYA levels. Installing float valve solved the problem.)

If you can't easily get the main drain operational, you might try replacing the drain cover with a solid piece of plastic, sealed all around to completely isolate the drain underneath.

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Of course, that being said, just keeping your FC 1ppm higher than the minimum required by the FC/CYA chart should keep the problem at bay.

 

[ZESTR]

FC= 9
CC= 0
pH= 7.6
Alk=75
Calc=200
CYA- 30

That makes a lot of sense, TomBorg!

So--- what kind of plastic and how do I get it to stay???

Thanks!

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FC is 9 bc we have been keeping it a bit higher to keep yellow out

 

[TomBorg]

Oh, I have to follow that thought to completion? You're making me have to work too hard!

Well, what I would do is dive down and remove the existing drain cover(s). At that point I would probably get lazy and leave it that way for a few weeks, thinking that now the drain is exposed to the water circulation and the algae problem would go away. Eventually I would get sick of looking at the hole, but if the algae problem were reduced, I'd want to follow through on the project. So I'd go to home depot for some plastic and some rubber to use as a gasket. Then, using the old drain covers as a template, cut appropriately sized chunks out of the plastic (and rubber), and drill holes where the screwholes are in the drain cover. Then install.

But first I'd try hooking up the drains to see if they can be made functional. Maybe the person who capped the pipe was experimenting to solve an unknown problem....

 

[duraleigh]

FC= 9
CC= 0
pH= 7.6
Alk=75
Calc=200
CYA- 30

A pool that maintains those numbers will not have algae.....whether your main drain is broken or not. If, in the past, you have successfully SLAMmed your pool and then maintained numbers like the above....keeping the chlorine adequate, then you have some other problem but it is not algae.