Recent content by phroggie

So tropical storm Hilary passed about 70 miles east of LA and as a result in a 12 hour span we got more rain than over 10 pool seasons combined. (Yeah, I know, in the rest of the world it would be a normal summer rain, but this is LA.) The picture shows how well 1/4" backerboard didn't work this...

I start draining and putting mine away when the water drops below 68˚ and night time temps drop below 60˚. Here in the San Fernando Valley that usually means late October. This year was different: over all this was one of the coldest pool seasons on record and the 4" of cold water tropical...

Yes, but the second pump is an Intex 637r that I got as a stop-gap, not the original pump that came with the Intex.

Here's what I did. As I recall the skimmer was not really effective with the other port open. Are you using the "heater" pad? Use one pump for the skimmer and one for the "heater". Note that having only one inlet to a pump is now considered a safety hazard. (But then mosquitos laying eggs on an...

Here's what I did. You may have to block off the second port. The skimmer was designed many years ago and in the interim the "safety standard" changed and having only one inlet to the pump is considered a safety hazard. Also, consider using a steel C-clamp over the plastic clamp. The latter...

Last year I replaced my Intex with a Bestway (both from Costco). The Bestway came without a skimmer and I was very unsatisfied with the Bestway "plumbing" but that was probably because the current "industry standard" is to have two 1-1/4" outlets (vs. one 1-1/2") for safety. Also, I wanted the...

As a reminder, I went with talc. Disassembly was a easy-peasy with absolutely no sticking. Unlike my previous Intex pool, the metal has a corse powder coating instead enamel paint. The latter might be the reason there was some adhesion with the Intex. And from pictures online, it appears that...

End-of-Season Summary: (As a reminder!: 1/4" backer board is NOT for every situation!) In our case it worked perfectly. But we have very compacted ground. How compact? I actually swept the bare ground with a broom before taking those pictures. Also, from late April to the end of October we had...

I am currently using a two pump solution. When the pump that came with my previous Intex pool failed mid-season last year, I got a small Intex pump to limp through the season. The new Bestway pool has the two ports T-ed to the pump and a "heater" pad. My take was that with the two intakes and...