float valve?

[etspam]

Hi all-

More or less a newbie, as I bought a house with a pool last year and had to get it useable. I went online to figure out all the pool chemistry and such, and got it adjusted after 1 month+ of experimentation. The homeowners pool inspection didn't find any major issues, though it said the skimmer would need some repair/replacement, but it worked fine as far as I could tell.

I'm finally getting around almost a year later to understanding/doing serious maintenance (had to replace parts to the Polaris 380 APC when things broke). The weir broke on the skimmer, and am replacing that, but I noticed that there was a spaceship thing with the stuff left behind, and finally figured out it's the float valve to the U3 skimmer (now Pentair). Luckily I didn't throw it away. It was not installed when the house was bought. The skimmer seemed to work fine without it, and I was careful to maintain adequate water level for skimmer operation, but I'm trying to understand and maybe put it in, since my online readings indicate it's needed if the water level drops too much. With the drought in our area, I may not be paying as much attention to it as I should, and don't want to lose pump priming. There are 2 holes in the skimmer, and the one I assume is coming from the main drain is not plugged, and does go down, the does a 90 degree turn, so I'm assuming it's in use. There is a drain in the bottom of the pool.

My question is, do I just put it in underneath the filter? Is there something special that needs to be done? My understanding is that there's an o-ring, and it needs a good seal for it to work properly. I also don't know how to adjust the flow (there's something called a trimmer plate?), or HOW much flow is needed. Any help, or pointers to FAQs about this, would be appreciated.

Also, any info/pointers to FAQs on skimmer maintenance would be appreciated as well. I've gotten lots of info on pump filter cleaning (thank you youtube).

ET

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

Under the skimmer basket there should be a groove around the 2 holes. An o-ring would go in that groove and you just set the spaceship on it. The suction will hold it there. On the bottom side of the spaceship there should be a little door that can slide over the hole, the more you close that hole, the more you force the suction from the floor. Personally, I leave the slide almost all the way open so that most of the flow is from the skimmer as that helps gather debris.

You should not rely on the float diverter if the water drops below the skimmer, it can help, but it does not create a perfect seal.

BTW, how are you maintaining your chemistry? Are you using one of the Recommended Test Kits? Have you read much of Pool School?

 

[etspam]

Thanks for the info! So does the o-ring actually go on separately/first, or is it attached to the float valve itself?

I have some leftover TFTestkit from previous owner, and I bought a new one (HDX I think) from HD. It did not have the CYA test. I used the HDX to test chlorine, ph, alkalinity, and bought a separate CYA test from TFTestkits. The chlorine tests aren't that great, hard to determine actual chlorine based on the yellow color, with either HDX or TFTestkit. But it looks like from your links that FAS/DPD is the way to go?

I have not tested calcium hardness, is that critical? Also, do the chemicals go bad? I don't know how old those leftover TFTestkits are.

 

[jblizzle]

Well, mine has the o-ring that is separate that sits in the skimmer bucket. I can not say for certainty that they are all that way, but I have not seen it different.

So you had the best kit on the market and bought and HDX one
If you have the tftestkit.net TF-100 ... go to their site and right now they have the full refill kit on sale.

Generally you should replace the reagents every 2 years or so ... tftestkits guarantees them for 18 months.

 

[etspam]

Didn't really know about testkit manufacturers, and didn't find it until much later (hidden in cabinet above washer/dryer, dunno why). Actually, looking at the pictures, the leftovers were not TFTestkit, but look to be one of the Taylor ones (they're in blue box, maybe K1003, that looks like the same water container). It did not have FAS/DPD (just learned about it from your links), just drops like the HDX one for chlorine, ph, and alkalinity.

Assuming I have the 10ml bottle (I think I do), I'll probably just order the FAS/DPD separately to get correct free/combined chlorine. Is calcium hardness critical? Will need to order that too. Are pH & alkalinity tests fairly standard if using drops? I know test strips aren't good.

 

[jblizzle]

In CA, you should likely be testing your CH. Any Taylor pH and TA tests are good ... no idea about the cheap HDX one.

I would recommend getting a full test kit that you know is new.