how to renovate 1 drain, 1 skimmer pool

[sdtfp]

I have an old anthony and sylvan pool. I want to renovate it but I am not sure what to do about having 1 drain and 1 skimmer.

The system works fine now with the existing 1.85 hp pump. I close it myself and can push a lot of air bubbles out of the main drain with a blower from the pump pad. This tells me the main drain is fine. However, I cant remember feeling any suction on the main drain when stepping over it. I guess since its an anthony style pool, the pump can pool from the skimmer, so it never pools from the main drain.

I've had at least half a dozen quotes and most have stayed with keeping the 1 drain and 1 skimmer setup. I did mention to all that I am cost conscious. A few have mentioned more skimmers would be good. But they seem okay with just replacing what is there to keep costs down. One or maybe two mentioned I really should have two skimmers and two drains.

From what I understood, once I go to a new variable speed pump, the suction is going to be greater and it will be a hazard for children. However, all were going to change my flush drain grate to a new one, which from what I gather is not flush and so should be okay for children? Then again, in anthony sylvan pool, the drain and skimmer are connected, so even if you completely block the main drain, I figure the pump can pull from the skimmer.

So as you can see, there is some confusion on the contractors part or maybe my part. I wanted to know if I can stick to 1 drain and 1 skimmer to reduce costs. Or if I really should consider getting an independent line for drain and skimmer, which at that point probably means I need to have two of each so that if one is blocked, the pump can pull from the other? Not really sure I understand that, because the pump only has one inlet, so having 1 skimmer and 1 drain seems redundant enough for me. Why double everything up?

Maybe i need a better understanding of how pool suction works.

 

[pjt]

If you're doing a major renovation, I would consider whether or not to keep the main drain. If you keep it, make sure it's VGB compliant. Sealing and abandoning the main drain is also an option. In either case, I would recommend adding a second skimmer if it's practical. It's best to have a dedicated independent suction lines for each skimmer and the main drain that terminate at your equipment pad.

What equipment are you planning on upgrading?

 

[1poolman1]

I have an old anthony and sylvan pool. I want to renovate it but I am not sure what to do about having 1 drain and 1 skimmer.

The system works fine now with the existing 1.85 hp pump. I close it myself and can push a lot of air bubbles out of the main drain with a blower from the pump pad. This tells me the main drain is fine. However, I cant remember feeling any suction on the main drain when stepping over it. I guess since its an anthony style pool, the pump can pool from the skimmer, so it never pools from the main drain.

I've had at least half a dozen quotes and most have stayed with keeping the 1 drain and 1 skimmer setup. I did mention to all that I am cost conscious. A few have mentioned more skimmers would be good. But they seem okay with just replacing what is there to keep costs down. One or maybe two mentioned I really should have two skimmers and two drains.

From what I understood, once I go to a new variable speed pump, the suction is going to be greater and it will be a hazard for children. However, all were going to change my flush drain grate to a new one, which from what I gather is not flush and so should be okay for children? Then again, in anthony sylvan pool, the drain and skimmer are connected, so even if you completely block the main drain, I figure the pump can pull from the skimmer.

So as you can see, there is some confusion on the contractors part or maybe my part. I wanted to know if I can stick to 1 drain and 1 skimmer to reduce costs. Or if I really should consider getting an independent line for drain and skimmer, which at that point probably means I need to have two of each so that if one is blocked, the pump can pull from the other? Not really sure I understand that, because the pump only has one inlet, so having 1 skimmer and 1 drain seems redundant enough for me. Why double everything up?

Maybe i need a better understanding of how pool suction works.

The vast majority of pools that are as old as your are 1 skimmer, 1 main drain. Unless you have a very large pool, 1 skimmer should be fine, there are codes that show how many are required, based on the size of the pool. Two skimmers will still only feed one pump and the flow into each will be reduced or you run your pump faster. Most codes only call for 1 skimmer on pools of up to about 800 sq. ft. or less. An 800 sq. ft. pool is large on a residential installation in most areas.
Split main drains became a requirement when the possibility of suction-entrapment at the bottom of a pool was finally addressed by codes. If you have an automatic pool cleaner of any type a main drain is not really needed. If you keep it, it will likely have to be split into two though they will both only feed one pipe, likely plumbed through the skimmer as yours probably is now.