Drano, Cloghog, snake...

[Mistere1974]

Hi,

i have been having lots of pool issues. I took both bottom covers off today and there is zero suction and some hard compacted sand in there. Has anyone tried drank, plumber snake, or a Cloghog with any luck?

thanks,

 

[kimkats]

I wonder about a plunger? I also like the idea of a plumber snake. Do not add any liquid or such to it.

Any idea how the sand got in there? How long have you lived with the pool? Has the bottom drain ever worked that you know of?

Kim

 

[pooldv]

Snake or plunger is OK. Drano! NO!

 

[JayBauman]

On the bright side, using Drano will definitely lower that pesky pH!!!

 

[Richard320]

Are the drains connected to the pump via a separate valve, or are they plumbed into the bottom of the skimmer?

Pull the skimmer baskets and look at the bottom. If there are two openings, only one will have suction. The other probably leads to the drain. You need a diverter valve to put some suction to the drains to get some flow. Vefore trying that, I'd try a drain king on a garden hose down the second port in the skimmer. If the sand starts blowing up into the pool, you know the pipe is connected and clear.

 

[n240sxguy]

On the bright side, using Drano will definitely lower that pesky pH!!!

It will actually push the ph on through the roof.

- - - Updated - - -

Are the drains connected to the pump via a separate valve, or are they plumbed into the bottom of the skimmer?

Pull the skimmer baskets and look at the bottom. If there are two openings, only one will have suction. The other probably leads to the drain. You need a diverter valve to put some suction to the drains to get some flow. Vefore trying that, I'd try a drain king on a garden hose down the second port in the skimmer. If the sand starts blowing up into the pool, you know the pipe is connected and clear.

I second the drain king. Those things are awesome!

 

[JayBauman]

It will actually push the ph on through the roof.

Oooops....you're correct. Looking at the MSDS I can now see that it's caustic and not acidic. My bad.

 

[Mistere1974]

Thanks for the responses.

Richard320, yes I have 2 holes at the bottom of my skimmer basket. One does produce suction. The other does not, but when I put a garden hose in the non-suction hole, I can feel the cool water coming out a hole about 2 feet below the skimmer going into the pool. I'm not sure what a diverted valve is, but I do have a valve that allows me to suck from skimmer, main drain, or both. However the main drain does not have suction at all. I took off both covers and found very hard white material in there. I've been diving down and chipping it away. What's weird is when I shut off the pump and shove the garden hose in the pump, I can feel cool water in the main, yet it does not have suction. I will try Drain King. I cannot hook it to the main drain though, so do you know where it should go for best results?

Kimkat, I have had this place for almost 2 months and I do not think the main drains worked. They had grass growing right up to the pool. The sand was minor. That white, dense chalk is the main issue.

Thanks again guys!

 

[pooldv]

The hole below the skimmer is called an equalizer line. It allows water to be drawn from the pool if the water level drops below the skimmer level.

Some skimmers are plumbed with that line tied in to the main drain instead of a hole in the pool wall under the skimmer.

 

[n240sxguy]

Take the line apart at the equipment pad and put the drain king in the line coming from the main drain to push waster back through it. If the drain king doesn't clear it out, since you said you can already feel cool water coming back when you use a hose, you may be able to clear it by blowing out the line with an air compressor at low pressure.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Richard320]

Shut off all the valves except the main drain. Then open the pump basket and remove the strainer and feed the drain king down through the pump inlet. It will inflate and wedge itself in - make sure it's all the way in or it can balloon and pop - and see if water pressure can dislodge it.

If that doesn't work and you have a three-way valve, disassemble the valve and feed the drain king or a snake in through that opening. Last resort is cutting the plumbing and repairing it later with a union.

Three-way valve

Union