Sooooooo the pool I had last year had a skimmer which was great since there are alot of leaves around my pool. Well when buying my new pool this year I guess I didn't pay much attention to what I was buying and I got a pool without a skimmer so now I have two problems. I don't know how to get leaves out without a skimmer, except for taking them out with a net more often....which is probably the only option right? And another problem is when I used my vacuum to clean the bottom of the pool I hooked it up to the skimmer and now I don't have one so how do I use my vacuum or can I? Will I need to get a new one that you can use with a garden hose and if so how do they work????? I'm soooooo lost......could kick my butt now for not paying attention and making sure I bought one
Pool without a skimmer.....vacuum using a hose?
- Thread starter TamithaSue50
- Start date
You could install a skimmer on your current pool. Its not difficult and then you could use your regular vacuum. Another option is to get a battery operated pool and spa vacuum. The water hose vacuum doesn't work very well.
I believe Zea was suggesting a skimmer like one used on a steel walled AGP, one like this.
Yeah that's cool but I am by far NOT at all that talented. I could NEVER do that. Guess we will have to do without a skimmer on this pool. And hope I can figure out how to get a vacuum that doesn't take a skimmer to work.
Thanks.
You could get a leaf canister and put it in the vacuum line and it would act as the skimmer basket when you vacuum.
Wobblerlorri
Bronze Supporter
- Apr 16, 2019
- 2,010
- Pool Size
- 4024
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Liquid Chlorine
You can get a vacuum which attaches to your garden hose, which magically produces suction. I've got one and it works pretty well.
This is the one I have
It can't handle big leaves, you'll need a leaf rake for that, but it gets the small debris really well.
it doesn't fit in a regular pole, it comes with a 4' sectional pole. Works best if you're in the pool using it. Doesn't add that much water to your pool. We put a cutoff on the hose so that I can stop the flow of water without getting out. You still have to remember to turn off the water when you get out.
It ain't perfect, but it works.
This is the one I have
Amazon.com : POOLWHALE Portable Pool Vacuum Jet Underwater Cleaner W/Brush, Bag, 4 Section Pole of 48"(No Garden Hose Included), for Above Ground Pool, Spas, Ponds & Fountains : Garden & Outdoor
Amazon.com : POOLWHALE Portable Pool Vacuum Jet Underwater Cleaner W/Brush, Bag, 4 Section Pole of 48"(No Garden Hose Included), for Above Ground Pool, Spas, Ponds & Fountains : Garden & Outdoor
www.amazon.com
it doesn't fit in a regular pole, it comes with a 4' sectional pole. Works best if you're in the pool using it. Doesn't add that much water to your pool. We put a cutoff on the hose so that I can stop the flow of water without getting out. You still have to remember to turn off the water when you get out.
It ain't perfect, but it works.
I just put a wall skimmer on my intex pool it’s not that bad to do think it was 10 screws I even did it with the water in the pool a little scary but think I only lost a cup of water I connected everything then cut the hole out after and it’s so much better then the hanging skimmer
If your pool is an Intex brand, you could get the Intex Automatic pool cleaner. It goes on the Pressure side, NOT the suction side, but I have found that as long as your bottom is nice and wrinkle or deep divot free, it does a really good job. I've had mine 3 years and it still works great. (If you get one, word to the wise, the connections on the hoses that go inside the pool leak. Many people returned theirs for this but they are supposed to do this, so your cleaner isn't ramming the sides of your pool and so it goes across the floor slowly to pick up debris with it's venturi effect. )
I will work, it just takes time and Money and a little ingenuity. If you're up to it, I can help you with how do it.
Skimmer install is actually really easy. Message me if you have questions. It's the best mod on my pool.
For a cleaner there are robotic cleaners that you just put in the pool and let do their thing. They're a little pricey but also super handy once you get tired of trying to vacuum your pool by hand
Aquabot is a decent one
Dolphin Escapes is a better one but pricey.
For a cleaner there are robotic cleaners that you just put in the pool and let do their thing. They're a little pricey but also super handy once you get tired of trying to vacuum your pool by hand
Aquabot is a decent one
Dolphin Escapes is a better one but pricey.
Looking at the one you got and I know this question will sound stupid but what do you hook the other end of the hose to?
Wobblerlorri
Bronze Supporter
- Apr 16, 2019
- 2,010
- Pool Size
- 4024
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Liquid Chlorine
You hook it to a water bib. Somehow the flowing water in the garden hose creates a vacuum which lets you vacuum the pool. It doesn't add a lot of water to the pool, but does add some.
It's the Venturi effect. And, just personally, to each is own, I find these types of vacs are not that good at picking up fine particles like sand, or heavier things like, oh, immature black walnuts that fall off the tree before they grow to full size. This also adds as much water to your pool as it would if you just put the hose in the pool, no vac, and let it run for however long it would have taken to run the hose with the vac, which means you have to test and adjust your water chemistry every time you use it.
Another option you could choose, which will result in you having to add more water to your pool and readjusting your chemistry after it's done, is to vacuum to waste. With this you would just buy a regular pool vacuum head, attach your vacuum hose, and leave the other end outside of the pool, suction the water from the free end and let it flow out of the pool as you move the vac through the water. Honestly, if you have an Intex pool with Intex fittings with a pump with a 1500 gph rate, the Intex Automatic pool cleaner has been my dream come true. It says it needs at least 1600 gph, but it worked fine with 1500 gph, even better with my 2800 gph. It works on the same principle as the vac Wobblerlorri suggested, only better, and you don't have to do the work.
We did the same thing the other day just wondering if we did it right. My pool had 3 holes. One hole is above the other two holes. We put the skimmer on the hole that is the highest up and I'm just wondering if that goes into the in or out part on my sand filter.
The higher of the three holes was originally the RETURN (to the pool) side. BUT, with the skimmer, that now goes to the sand filter, and the other two are now the returns. I did this, but I am only using one of the two holes. I put an Intex fitting in it, and then capped it with the cap for the backwash outlet from the sand filter.