No Suction from Pool Skimmer - Newb Trying Not to Give Up

[Puppytoes]

Edited to add: ok I can’t figure out how to attach the vids. It keeps saying the file is too big for the server to handle. It’s a 9 second vid so I’m probably doing something wrong. I’m working on figuring it out. Sorry!

Starting about four days ago - out of nowhere the suction in my pool skimmer stopped. I’ve spent the last few days reading, watching vids, taking notes, and fighting with the pool and I’ve lost every battle. Both the skimmer basket & pump basket are clean, the water level is right, I’ve backwashed & rinsed the filter several times, I’ve pushed one of those plastic things with teeth down the suction hole about a jillion times (nothing/no resistance or anything), I used the vacuum hose to “plunge” the suction hole (created little air tornadoes in the hole), and I’ve checked the pump impeller and there’s no obstruction.

The water in the pool is still circulating and water is still coming in through both return jets. The main drain is now covered in leaves and stuff because I haven’t been able to vacuum because there’s no suction. I tried turning the Jandy Valve back and forth about a hundred times but nothing changes (see attached video). I ordered a drain bladder thing for the hose but it won’t be here until tomorrow. I’m getting super frustrated and disappointed that I can’t figure out this whole pool thing by myself & I don’t want to give up and hire a pool guy because we can’t afford it & I’ll never hear the end of it from my roommate.

I attached a few vids of my pump running “normally” and then of what happens when I turn the Jandy Valve - I don’t even know which side is which - I’m guessing my left side where the water stops flowing the same is from the skimmer?

My pool is pretty much covered by huge trees so there is a constant stream of leaves, sticks, pine needles, and acorns coming down into it. I skim it multiple times a day every day. The last time I remember the suction working I was vacuuming up a lot of debris from the bottom of the pool & I had the multiport valve thing turned to “Waste”. It worked fine as far as I could tell and then a few days later when I went to vacuum again - I noticed there was no suction.

Maybe important info: I was trying clean everything I could out the skimmer and I pulled a Little Rock & an acorn head out of that other hole in the skimmer - the one that has a little square on it and I think is an equalizer maybe. When I did that - I feel like I may have pushed it down a little from it’s starting position and it stayed. The suction was already not working at this point though and I could’ve imagined the movement lol - I get so nervous handling anything pool related so I’m super tense.

I also attached a couple vids of the automatic chlorinator thing because there’s a kind of clicking noise coming from it and the pipe that goes from it to the filter is vibrating a little - it’s probably hard to see it in the video. It’s probably hard to hear too because the pump is so loud. We leave the pump on 24/7.

Sorry for the long post. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I haven’t been able to find a vid showing the type of pump I have running normally so I don’t know if that’s even working right.

Also, I think you have to turn your phone to the side to see my signature line with all my pool info in it. If anyone can’t see it - I can just post it for them here. Thanks everybody!

 

[Jimrahbe]

PT,

We really need to see pics of the whole equipment pad.

I suspect that your impeller is clogged with leaves and acorns.

With the pump is off, and the pump basket removed, reach into the hole at the bottom and see if you can feel the impeller. You should be able to move it with your fingers and there should not be any leaves or acorns in there.

Show us pics of the whole equipment pad.

Let's see what @1poolman1 thinks...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Puppytoes]

PT,

We really need to see pics of the whole equipment pad.

I suspect that your impeller is clogged with leaves and acorns.

With the pump is off, and the pump basket removed, reach into the hole at the bottom and see if you can feel the impeller. You should be able to move it with your fingers and there should not be any leaves or acorns in there.

Show us pics of the whole equipment pad.

Let's see what @1poolman1 thinks...

Thanks,

Jim R.

Is this the equipment pad? I can turn the impeller with my hand with a little pressure but it did make a squeaking sound.

Edit: it won’t let me attach a pic - it says the file is too large. I know I did it before so idk what I’m doing wrong.

Ok how about this?

 

[Lake Placid]

Your pump is sucking air and losing prime when the right side pipe is open. It’s evident in the video titled Jandy Valve Left. When you turned the valve closing off the right side suction, the pump primed and started flowing normally. With the 3 way valve in the position in that video (off placard facing the right side suction port) do you have any visible flow from the skimmer? For the time being, I’d run the pump in the position in the Jandy Left (at the 20 second mark or so) video so your pump stops sucking air and is working correctly,

 

[Puppytoes]

Your pump is sucking air and losing prime when the right side pipe is open. It’s evident in the video titled Jandy Valve Left. When you turned the valve closing off the right side suction, the pump primed and started flowing normally. With the 3 way valve in the position in that video (off placard facing the right side suction port) do you have any visible flow from the skimmer? For the time being, I’d run the pump in the position in the Jandy Left (at the 20 second mark or so) video so your pump stops sucking air and is working correctly,

Thank you so much for your help! You have no idea how much I appreciate it. Please forgive my ignorance - I’m still trying to learn about all this. When you say “visible flow from the skimmer” - do you mean do I see the water in the little skimmer box in the pool moving around like the suction is working? If so, no - no matter what position I put the valve in the water isn’t moving and there’s no suction. The skimmer basket won’t even stay down.

Do you have any idea what could make the pump suck in air? There is a small tear in the pump skimmer basket but it’s been there the whole time - back when everything was working normally. Or what I think is normal. Does the pump seem to be working & sounding like normal when the Jandy Valve is turned (from around :20 in the Jandy - Left vid & all the Jandy - Right vid)? After I read your comment - I realized I had them labeled backwards. So the Jandy - Left vid is actually showing the right side suction right?

I’m so scared this is a major problem and the pump is going to have to be replaced - which probably won’t happen due to finances and I’ve been working so hard on this since we moved in. I seriously have like 5 binders full of notes which is extra sad because I still feel so lost. I’ve only been able to actually swim in it like 3-4 times now.

- Edited to add: Thank you so much for letting me know where to turn the Jandy Valve - I went and fixed it.

 

[Lake Placid]

When you say “visible flow from the skimmer” - do you mean do I see the water in the little skimmer box in the pool moving around like the suction is working?

When you look at the valve, you see the off placard. Whichever way off is pointing, it is closing off the pipe it is pointing to. So when you turn the valve off pointed to the right pipe, that pipe is closed and the left pipe is fully open. Is there any water moving in the skimmer when it is in that position?

Do you have any idea what could make the pump suck in air? There is a small tear in the pump skimmer basket but it’s been there the whole time - back when everything was working normally. Or what I think is normal. Does the pump seem to be working & sounding like normal when the Jandy Valve is turned (from around :20 in the Jandy - Left vid & all the Jandy - Right vid)? After I read your comment - I realized I had them labeled backwards. So the Jandy - Left vid is actually showing the right side suction right?

The pump sounds like normal flow when you closed the pipe on the right (Off pointing right). That’s when there was a woosh of water and the pump started moving water again. Can you get a pic of the hole you describe in the basket? It shouldn’t be the cause of an air leak, but a pic would help.

Based on your video of the skimmer, it doesn’t appear you are pulling any water from it. What is the water level in relationship to the front of the skimmer? Is it halfway up the face? Higher? Lower?

 

[Shelleylavon]

Edited to add: ok I can’t figure out how to attach the vids. It keeps saying the file is too big for the server to handle. It’s a 9 second vid so I’m probably doing something wrong. I’m working on figuring it out. Sorry!

Starting about four days ago - out of nowhere the suction in my pool skimmer stopped. I’ve spent the last few days reading, watching vids, taking notes, and fighting with the pool and I’ve lost every battle. Both the skimmer basket & pump basket are clean, the water level is right, I’ve backwashed & rinsed the filter several times, I’ve pushed one of those plastic things with teeth down the suction hole about a jillion times (nothing/no resistance or anything), I used the vacuum hose to “plunge” the suction hole (created little air tornadoes in the hole), and I’ve checked the pump impeller and there’s no obstruction.

The water in the pool is still circulating and water is still coming in through both return jets. The main drain is now covered in leaves and stuff because I haven’t been able to vacuum because there’s no suction. I tried turning the Jandy Valve back and forth about a hundred times but nothing changes (see attached video). I ordered a drain bladder thing for the hose but it won’t be here until tomorrow. I’m getting super frustrated and disappointed that I can’t figure out this whole pool thing by myself & I don’t want to give up and hire a pool guy because we can’t afford it & I’ll never hear the end of it from my roommate.

I attached a few vids of my pump running “normally” and then of what happens when I turn the Jandy Valve - I don’t even know which side is which - I’m guessing my left side where the water stops flowing the same is from the skimmer?

My pool is pretty much covered by huge trees so there is a constant stream of leaves, sticks, pine needles, and acorns coming down into it. I skim it multiple times a day every day. The last time I remember the suction working I was vacuuming up a lot of debris from the bottom of the pool & I had the multiport valve thing turned to “Waste”. It worked fine as far as I could tell and then a few days later when I went to vacuum again - I noticed there was no suction.

Maybe important info: I was trying clean everything I could out the skimmer and I pulled a Little Rock & an acorn head out of that other hole in the skimmer - the one that has a little square on it and I think is an equalizer maybe. When I did that - I feel like I may have pushed it down a little from it’s starting position and it stayed. The suction was already not working at this point though and I could’ve imagined the movement lol - I get so nervous handling anything pool related so I’m super tense.

I also attached a couple vids of the automatic chlorinator thing because there’s a kind of clicking noise coming from it and the pipe that goes from it to the filter is vibrating a little - it’s probably hard to see it in the video. It’s probably hard to hear too because the pump is so loud. We leave the pump on 24/7.

Sorry for the long post. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I haven’t been able to find a vid showing the type of pump I have running normally so I don’t know if that’s even working right.

Also, I think you have to turn your phone to the side to see my signature line with all my pool info in it. If anyone can’t see it - I can just post it for them here. Thanks everybody!

When mine didn’t work well the skimmer was broke or it was time to clean my main pool filters or replace. Good luck, I am trying to figure out why my spa jets don’t work..

 

[Puppytoes]

When you look at the valve, you see the off placard. Whichever way off is pointing, it is closing off the pipe it is pointing to. So when you turn the valve off pointed to the right pipe, that pipe is closed and the left pipe is fully open. Is there any water moving in the skimmer when it is in that position?


The pump sounds like normal flow when you closed the pipe on the right (Off pointing right). That’s when there was a woosh of water and the pump started moving water again. Can you get a pic of the hole you describe in the basket? It shouldn’t be the cause of an air leak, but a pic would help.

Based on your video of the skimmer, it doesn’t appear you are pulling any water from it. What is the water level in relationship to the front of the skimmer? Is it halfway up the face? Higher? Lower?

Ok here’s the tear in the pump skimmer basket. It’s a vertical tear on one side - can you see it in the vid?

And omg I’m so dumb - all this time I’ve been thinking whatever way the Jandy Valve handle was facing was what you were turning off but I tried to get a good vid of the water flow in the pump skimmer when it changes. There’s still water coming in but it’s nowhere near as much as usual. And then the sun water in the bottom keeps doing that churning/bubbling thing just at a lower level and maybe not as hard?

Again, thank you so much for all your help!

Oops - I forgot to answer your water level question. It is halfway up the skimmer. I had been keeping it at the level of the third bolts but then I realized there was a little arrow on the front and I assumed that was where the water line should be (a couple days ago). So for most of the time this has been going on - the water was higher than the arrow. I’m gonna get some vids real quick. Sorry I can’t post pics on here for some reason - it keeps saying the file is too large.

Ok actually it does look like maybe I’m too high - definitely above the arrow.

Here’s inside the skimmer. I’ve been scooping out the leaves and stuff everyday just with my hands. This is what built up since this morning.

 

[Puppytoes]

When mine didn’t work well the skimmer was broke or it was time to clean my main pool filters or replace. Good luck, I am trying to figure out why my spa jets don’t work..

Oh no - so it definitely could be a sign that something big needs to be fixed then. Exactly what I’ve been so worried about. I wonder if changing the sand in my filter would work?

Well either way - good luck with your spa jets. Why can’t these things just do what we want them to?!

 

[HermanTX]

As indicated by @Lake Placid the pipe to the left has the least amount of flow and is most likely connected to the skimmer. Do you have 1 skimmer or 2? Approximately, how far is it from the skimmer to the pump? There should be a door that moves up and down on a hinge at the mouth of the skimmer. Ensure that moves freely and not stuck with debris. Don't think this is your problem but always good to ensure the door (it is called a weir door) can swing back and forth.

Note - when moving the handle - slightly unscrew the little knob in the middle. This allows the handle to easily turn from side to side. Then tighten it back down when you have it in a position you want to keep it in.

I see there are some large leaves and debris in the skimmer, but they are not moving to the basket. Could the basket have been out and some of the large debris is in the pipe which is causing a restriction? Also, could a rock or some other object been accidentally dropped in the skimmer hole?

 

[Puppytoes]

As indicated by @Lake Placid the pipe to the left has the least amount of flow and is most likely connected to the skimmer. Do you have 1 skimmer or 2? Approximately, how far is it from the skimmer to the pump? There should be a door that moves up and down on a hinge at the mouth of the skimmer. Ensure that moves freely and not stuck with debris. Don't think this is your problem but always good to ensure the door (it is called a weir door) can swing back and forth.

Note - when moving the handle - slightly unscrew the little knob in the middle. This allows the handle to easily turn from side to side. Then tighten it back down when you have it in a position you want to keep it in.

I see there are some large leaves and debris in the skimmer, but they are not moving to the basket. Could the basket have been out and some of the large debris is in the pipe which is causing a restriction? Also, could a rock or some other object been accidentally dropped in the skimmer hole?

Thank you so much for your help! There is only one skimmer in the pool and it’s about 47 feet from the pump. The weir door thingie is working freely when I move it with my hand. It’s staying like half open now - when I had suction it stayed all the way open all the time I guess because water was being constantly sucked in and over the door. But even half open, there’s plenty of room for water to go in but it’s not.

There definitely could be any number of things that went into the hole - the pool is under almost total tree cover and there are leaves, sticks, twigs, pine needles, and infinite acorns constantly falling down into the pool. And I definitely have been sloppy about keeping the basket in at all times - I work on the pool every day and the first thing I do is take the skimmer plate off, take the basket out to empty, and then I’ll usually hang it on the pool fence to rinse out with the hose when I clean the pump basket later. I’ll start doing other things and that hole stays open without me watching it for awhile. I didn’t even think about how stupid that was of me until now.

Also, the last time I can remember having suction is when I vacuumed a lot of debris out of the pool - a ton of acorns, leaves, & pine needles. I had the multiport thing turned to waste and I thought that meant I could vacuum up anything & everything and didn’t even think about getting a clog

I ordered one of those drain bladder things and it should be here today or tomorrow. I tried sticking the hose down the skimmer hole without the bladder and it didn’t help.

-Edited to add: Thank you so much for letting me know about the little dial you can turn on the Jandy Valve - I didn’t know what that was for so I was scared to touch it.

Also, how do we know which pipe is coming from where (skimmer or main drain)? I looked everywhere on the valve & pipes to see if anything was labeled and all I could find was one at “12 o’clock” that says “Inlet”.

 

[Puppytoes]

I just checked and I got the drain bladder in. I have it connected to the hose but I haven’t built up the courage to go do it yet. I’m gonna go read the instructions and psyche myself up

 

[Lake Placid]

Ok here’s what I’ve noticed. In your video from last night titled Valve Left, when you shut off the right side port the pump started pulling water. In todays video titled Jandy Valve Turn when you repeated the same action, the pump starved for water. This indicates the left side as @HermanTX noted is now pulling air or starving for water. This is opposite of the previous video.

You mentioned earlier that you had debris covering your main drain. Is that correct and is it still there? If it is covered you need to remove it.

If you use the bladder drain, I’d suggest you push water from the pad back to the pool in the reverse direction from normal flow to dislodge whatever debris is in the line. Pull the skimmer basket before you flush the pipe so the debris can exit the pipe into the skimmer.

 

[HermanTX]

Also, how do we know which pipe is coming from where (skimmer or main drain)? I looked everywhere on the valve & pipes to see if anything was labeled and all I could find was one at “12 o’clock” that says “Inlet”.

The assumption that the pipe that is open that is having trouble sucking water is the skimmer because that is what you are having issues with. The main drain is really hard to tell because even if you put your hand on it at the bottom of the pool you would feel much because of its design to minimize entrapment.

You got good advice from @Lake Placid to use the bladder system to pump water from the pad to the skimmer - so you may have to remove the basket in the pump and insert it there.
Keep us posted.
I actually used one of these attached to a power washer to clear one of my skimmer lines, so it can be done - and I had a rock in it!!!! Suffice to say - it is important to always keep your skimmer basket in the skimmer. I now have 2 skimmer baskets so I can just change them out.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0854D9XFG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Kaylee34]

Sorry all, I should have been more clear with my post. My moved post the photo is a screen grab of Puppytoes video showing the action in their skimmer.
I was wondering if someone possibly installed the plug upside down in the wrong skimmer hole.
It's not my skimmer or plug.

 

[Puppytoes]

The assumption that the pipe that is open that is having trouble sucking water is the skimmer because that is what you are having issues with. The main drain is really hard to tell because even if you put your hand on it at the bottom of the pool you would feel much because of its design to minimize entrapment.

You got good advice from @Lake Placid to use the bladder system to pump water from the pad to the skimmer - so you may have to remove the basket in the pump and insert it there.
Keep us posted.
I actually used one of these attached to a power washer to clear one of my skimmer lines, so it can be done - and I had a rock in it!!!! Suffice to say - it is important to always keep your skimmer basket in the skimmer. I now have 2 skimmer baskets so I can just change them out.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B0854D9XFG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Ok I’ve had the bladder on and hose running for about 5 minutes now and nothing is happening. I took a vid to make sure I’m doing it right. I also show how far the pump is from the water tap and from the pool skimmer. Am I doing it right? And if so, any idea how long it’s ok to let it run for?

-Edited to add: ok I’m starting to see little tiny bits is something coming up through skimmer hole - just 1-2 every few seconds.

 

[HermanTX]

Ok I’ve had the bladder on and hose running for about 5 minutes now and nothing is happening. I took a vid to make sure I’m doing it right. I also show how far the pump is from the water tap and from the pool skimmer. Am I doing it right? And if so, any idea how long it’s ok to let it run for?

-Edited to add: ok I’m starting to see little tiny bits is something coming up through skimmer hole - just 1-2 every few seconds.

I see the 3 valve is open to both the drain and the skimmer. You need to turn the valve to shut off the drain and only put flot to the skimmer. Not sure how far you need to insert the bladder but try to put it before the 3 way valve.

 

[Puppytoes]

I see the 3 valve is open to both the drain and the skimmer. You need to turn the valve to shut off the drain and only put flot to the skimmer. Not sure how far you need to insert the bladder but try to put it before the 3 way valve.

Omg yes!! Thank you!! I felt like I should be turning it but I talked myself out of it.

 

[Puppytoes]

I see the 3 valve is open to both the drain and the skimmer. You need to turn the valve to shut off the drain and only put flot to the skimmer. Not sure how far you need to insert the bladder but try to put it before the 3 way valve.

This is correct right?

 

[Puppytoes]

I see the 3 valve is open to both the drain and the skimmer. You need to turn the valve to shut off the drain and only put flot to the skimmer. Not sure how far you need to insert the bladder but try to put it before the 3 way valve.

Omg!!! I’m seeing all kinds of acorns and stuff coming up the skimmer now. That’s a good sign right? I’m sooooo excited so please say yes