PoolSkim install woes, non-standard return inlets

Jump to latest Follow Reply
D

DoAsFan

0
Sep 21, 2012
43
Foster City, CA
Hello,

After reading the positive reviews for the PoolSkim, I ordered one, thinking I'd be able to figure out how to install it. Wrong. Turns out my 35 year old pool doesn't have the standard 1 1/2" threaded returns. From what I can gather, there are a couple of ways to tackle this with my pool setup.

"Easy" but expensive route, which I'm trying to avoid since it's basically 50% more than what I'd budgeted for this project: I have what appears to be a 1" threadless PVC return, which I think a $50 Polaris/Zodiac 9-100-8002 1-Inch Stub Pipe Connection Replacement Kit might fit inside of. I say might because I'm not positive it's a 1" straight pipe.

The alternative, which I'd prefer because it should just be two simple and cheap pieces of PVC, I have an additional threaded return where an eyeball is attached that looks to be around 1-3/8" in size. I'm measuring the inside of the female threaded screw-on cap that holds the eyeball in place, but really struggling to interpret & understand the sizes of adapters, bushings, and reducers. The cap piece seems to screw onto 1-1/4" male fittings at Home Depot, so I'm assuming its actually 1-1/4".

The "fittings" page on poolskimusa's website and a few trips to Home Depot have almost gotten me there, but I can't seem to get the threads from the 1-1/4" reducer bushing from HD to actually fasten onto the threaded inlet! The fit is poor and the threads never catch onto the inlet threads. The reducer bushing is clearly labeled 1-1/4" but measures 1-1/2" on the female inside threads, excluding the threads.

Wondering if maybe the inlet pipe and screw-on cap could have shrunk over the years? Does PVC do that? Or maybe its a non-standard threading pattern... though Wikipedia says the NPT standard has been around for 150 years.

The threaded inlet pipe doesn't protrude from the wall very much, and the female threads in the reducer bushing do seem to start about a sixteenth of an inch further in, which may also be why its not catching. Might require chiseling some of the plaster around the inlet to give the reducer enough room to catch.

Or maybe I'm just being stubborn :brickwall: and should just give up and spend more cash...

The setup


The eyeball


The reducer bushing
 
Last edited:
I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, but I used to be a plumber's helper.

If your return is 1" PVC pipe without a fitting, I'd suggest what is known as a street fitting-either a tee or elbow. One end is made to slip inside standard pipe, the other terminating in a standard male or female fitting diameter. Either one would get you away from the wall enough to go with regular fittings for the rest of the job. You might be able to find a street fitting that would take things from 1" up to 1 1/2, but you can always adapt out to the size needed after the street fitting. It will glue right in, but you will have to drop your water level below the return to glue it, and it's a permanent fix...no going back after it's glued.

A tee could have the unused part plugged off with a stub of pipe and a cap. The elbows come in 22.5, 45 and 90 degree bends. HD, Lowes or any hardware store should have street fittings.

Good luck. I'm curious to see your final solution to the problem.
 
The Pool Skim is METRIC with an adapter. In my PoolSkim, the adapter was misshapen and would not thread on. The company replaced the parts for free.

The pipes and fitting PS sells, other than the adapter are 50mm in size. I think the part on the right in your photo is one of the PS parts where it was cut and glued together, half English, half metric. One half is the white metric side and the other is off white pvc
 
After fussing around with more threaded fittings last weekend, I was just about to throw in the towel and order the Polaris stub kit. But Thimble's suggestion got me focused, thinking, and Googling around for more options on the 1" unthreaded return. Here's a potentially simple solution:



I could drop the water level and glue on one of these "internal couplers" that fit inside the unthreaded return, extend it a couple inches with fresh pipe, then slap on a few fittings to get up to 1-1/2" for the PoolSkim. Cheap material costs, but not easily/cleanly detachable, plus requires dumping a lot of precious water.

Starting to think I'm better off just getting the Zodiac 9-100-8002 1-Inch Stub Pipe Connection Replacement Kit.

Thanks for brainstorming with me.
 
You could put a union in the pool side of that connector making it detachable fairly close to the wall, but you would still have a permanent obstruction (as in not a smooth surface) on your pool wall. A half of a union wouldn't stick out much more than a eyeball on a return does.

It wold sure be cheaper than $53.

Nice to find these things out. I was considering a pool skim, too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply