anthony style pool main drain plug

[sdtfp]

I have an "anthony style" pool where the main drain and skimmer line are on the same line. My plug looks like one of these: Rubber Plugs - Double and Extended - Anthony & Sylvan Pools
I've been reading up on it here, such as:

Blowing out lines in old Anthony pool

Greetings all, We're half way through closing our 18,000 gal inground pool here in southern PA. Water levels dropped, blew out & plugged returns, but got seriously stuck at the skimmer/main drain. We have no valves besides the multiport, and the skimmer is NOT a two port deal with a flow...

www.troublefreepool.com

Please explain how this works: Purging main drain line

So, I did everything as advised on closing my 70's Anthony inground pool except dealing with the pools main drain line and the bottom/floor drain line of the attached "spa". Of two skimmers, the one closest to the filter/pump etc has the two holes at the bottom, one for suction (filter) and one...

www.troublefreepool.com

One thing I was wondering if there is a plug to only close off the main drain? The reason would be to give more suction to the skimmer on the days that the trees are shedding pollen or leaves (just to be clear, I only have one suction side pipe in the pump area). And is it common for this type of setup to have a strong pull from the main drain such that closing it will help the skimmer do a better job? I read often that the main drain doesn't do much since gravity makes it easier to pull from skimmer than main drain, but not having any other pool to compare with, I feel like my skimmer is kinda weak and wonder if it's because of this type of setup and whether closing the main drain would help.

Also, with the current double plug I can close the skimmer and be drawing completely from the main drain. Is there any advantage to ever doing that? Draining the pool comes to mind, but from what I read doing that is normally bad. USually because you would suck air through the skimmer. But if the skimmer is plugged, then maybe it's okay in this instance.

Finally, anything to consider when manually vacuuming? I think I found some sort of attachemnt that looked like a hook when I first moved in. Not sure I have it anymore, but maybe that was a way to isolate the skimmer to only pool from vacuum and not the main drain. I quickly got a pool robot so I didn't do much manual vacuuming. But I just opened this year and one thing I am interested in doing next year is manually vacuuming to waste. I ran the pool robot for two days with constant cleaning of its filters and don't want to do that again.

One other thing, is there a gizmo for the closing of this system?

PS. Added diagram of what I think the plumbing looks like. There is also a sylvan style pool, which is a bit different.. so hopefully I have the anthony one pictured. (credit: Inground Pool Skimmer Plumbing Diagrams | InTheSwim Pool Blog)

 

[sdtfp]

Some good news, I found the attachment, and turns out it is called a skimmer diverter valve such as Val-Pak Anthony Pool Skimmer Old Style Diverter Valve 5227 V34-124 Free Shipping . I gave it a try and I can use it to control the suction on skimmer. I daon't seem to be able to turn off the skimmer completely and I'm not sure if it can turn off the drain, so im guessing the range is like 20-80%. Anybody have any mnaul/specs on this? The arrow on the diverter points at a right angle to whatever is it diverting so it's hard to figure out which way to place it without checking the intensity of the flow. IT also screws in for one setting and I believe not for the other.. unless I was doing it wrong. I'm guessing for full main drain it is not screwed in and for full skimmer it has to be screwed. Very complex device so far!

Any problems with leaving it on for skimmer most of the time? I looked at the pump and pressure dial and it seemed okay. The only minor issue is that the skimmer basket is offset a tiny bit by it.

One interesting thing I found is that manual vacuuming was a breeze now and in an unexpected way. At first I put it on max skimmer setting and it was very uncomfortable to move the pole around with so much suction. Without this attachment it is also a bit strong I feel. So I ended up lowering the section and it made maneuvering the pole so much easier while still doing a good job picking up debris. This makes me want to use the manual vaccuum more often over the active20 for when there is a lot of debris like for opening.

 

[DeanP66]

I have an old Anthony pool as well, and I have a similar setup. One suction pipe for the pool that pulls from both the skimmer and main drain. I have that same diverter valve and when you turn it with the pump running, you can definitely feel the change in suction of the skimmer. I believe you are right, I don't think the main drain ever gets completely closed off, but from the change in skimmer suction, it feels like 80/20 for sure.

 

[sdtfp]

I have an old Anthony pool as well, and I have a similar setup. One suction pipe for the pool that pulls from both the skimmer and main drain. I have that same diverter valve and when you turn it with the pump running, you can definitely feel the change in suction of the skimmer. I believe you are right, I don't think the main drain ever gets completely closed off, but from the change in skimmer suction, it feels like 80/20 for sure.

Thanks for the confirmation. It looks like this type of pool is not very popular here. I'm guessing it's a north east kind of thing and the majority of pool owners are probably down south where it's hot. But you are in cali so maybe I am wrong. Let me know if you have any tips on dealing with this type of pool. Some popular advice here I have doubts on, like being unable to drain a pool from the main drain. Also, how to close this type of pool. But that one is probably mainly since I have yet to do the closing myself. Should become clearer after that.

 

[DeanP66]

A submersible pump will be your best friend. Since you can't close off the skimmer suction completely (at least I can't), you can only drain with the pool equipment to the skimmer level before the pump will start to draw air. Just get a submersible pump like this one with a discharge hose and it will take care of all your draining issues.

Superior Pump 91330 1/3 HP Thermoplastic Submersible Utility Pump with 10-Foot - Sump Pumps - Amazon.com

Superior Pump 91330 1/3 HP Thermoplastic Submersible Utility Pump with 10-Foot - Sump Pumps - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

Don't use the 3/4" garden hose fitting though. I'd buy a 1.25" female threaded pvc fitting and attach a nipple to it so you can attach your drain hose. You'll get much faster drainage that way than with the 3/4" garden hose attachment.

I don't have any experience with closing since I keep my pool open year round, but hopefully someone else will chime in with their thoughts.

 

[Newdude]

Don't use the 3/4" garden hose fitting though. I'd buy a 1.25" female threaded pvc fitting and attach a nipple to it so you can attach your drain hose. You'll get much faster drainage that way than with the 3/4" garden hose attachment.

Pretty much what I’ve always done. Seen here with a night and day difference

Submersible pump hack.

Hey all !! I’ve been doing this for years but finally got good pics to show the difference. I have a standard 1/3 HP submersible pump withshown here Flow from 100ft 3/4 inch hose. Here comes the fun part : In the sprinkler section of the home centers / hardware store they have 3/4...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[BassPlayingDude]

You CAN close off the skimmer suction completely if you want to, assuming you have a good o-ring seal for the diverter.. there is a float valve inside that is designed to protect your pump from burning out if the water level gets too low. What you do is, take off the lid, reach inside and hold the weir door closed against the water. The pump will suck your skimmer dry since water is going out faster than it can get in. At some point, the water level will get low enough in the skimmer that the float valve doesn't float anymore, and at that point, the float valve will slam shut with an audible "clunk" and the skimmer bucket will fill back up. At this point, you can release the weir door and it will be sucking 100% from the main drain. To reset the float valve, you need to pull out the diverter then re-seat it. I do this all the time when sweeping dirt to the main drain, and also when I want to pump water lower than the skimmer opening for closing or plaster repairs.

The o-ring must be water and air tight ( the big one that the diverter sits on at the bottom, it goes in a groove, sometimes they are missing ) in order for this to work. It's a great fail-safe for your pump if you are away on vacation etc during the heat of the summer.

 

[BassPlayingDude]

Another thing you can do is use your vacuum hose to drain below skimmer level by weighing down the open end with something, and sticking it into the skimmer hole as if you are vacuuming while your multiport valve is set to "waste". Once you have started draining (this way or the method above ) make sure your pump isn't going to shut off via the timer because once you stop your pump will lose prime.