Skimmer suction

[tcat]

My skimmer has never "sucked" much. I have a Poolskim that does a much better job. I see things like "skimdoctor" that are supposed to create a vortex and create better flow. I keep my water level on the high side (so solarbreeze rides on coping lip), making skimmer suction is worse.

Any reason something like a vacuum plate on the skimmer wouldn't create a great vortex (if top was slightly under water)? Similar to what skimdoctor does, but much cheaper. Or could add a pipe will slot on side, or cut slot in existing protrusion.

 

[jblizzle]

You don't want a vortex that will potentially pull air into the pump. Plus, they do not increase the flow from the pool to the skimmer anyway.

Is your water level still below the weir in the skimmer? Perhaps you just need to add a little more buoyancy to the weir so that the flow is more focused on the pool water surface to better pull the debris into the skimmer.

 

[tcat]

Weir floats well and water is about 1" below top of opening. You can put a leaf in front of skimmer and it will just float by when pump is on low, and might get sucked in with pump on high (25% chance). Valve from bottom drain is 90% closed.

 

[jblizzle]

Well adding a vortex in the skimmer basket is not going to pull more water into the skimmer. It is just going to pull an debris in the skimmer down into the basket more.

On low, no skimmer is going to pull a lot of debris into it. There is just not a lot of water flow into the skimmer.

How far below the water surface is the top of the weir when things are running? You would it very close to the surface.

 

[tcat]

It's pretty much right at the surface. Just amazing how a poolskim on one jet (of 5), with pump on low, sucks 3x more in than the one built in skimmer. Just trying to optimize things.

 

[Jimrahbe]

cat,

Skimmers work best when the water level is just above the bottom of the skimmer mouth... The problem with that, is that you risk the water level going below the skimmer mouth. As the water gets high the skimming action is less, so your 1" from the top is one reason your skimmer does not work well. We recommend keeping the water the the middle of the skimmer mouth..

In my opinion, skimming is about patience. I never worry about which leaf floats by and which one does not.. I just worry about do all the leaves eventually make it into the skimmer. At 1200 RPM, my skimmers fill up just fine.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[tcat]

Kind of what I was thinking, since water level is about 6 or 8" above the top of basket. Reason I posted pictures in first place, this would put the "suck" maybe an inch or two from water level. I'm going to mock something up to see what happens before I waste $8.

 

[jblizzle]

Not sure how else to say the same thing ... putting the suction closer to the surface or creating a vortex will NOT pull more water into the skimmer. The flow rate through the mouth of the skimmer can't be increased by adding some device in the skimmer. Do do that you have to increase your pump speed or force more of the suction to be from the skimmer instead of the floor.

 

[sktn77a]

Skimming action is a function of the surface velocity of the water moving into the skimmer, not necessarily flow. That's why a weir is required, to minimize the "height " of the water moving through the skimmer. For a given water flow, reducing the "height" of the water above the top of the weir increases surface velocity and improves skimming effectiveness.

Have you tried lowering the water level in the pool, as an experiment, just to see if this helps?

 

[tcat]

Had water level low last year, same issue. Pretty much a pump speed issue. Almost hoping my 2 speed pump dies so I can buy a VS.

If you put a vacuum hose 6" below the surface, water surface won't budge; but if you put it 1" from surface, stuff will get sucked in. Same volume of water. Just need that perfect spot that air doesn't get sucked in.

 

[jblizzle]

You are ignoring the point of the weir. It is the weir that is forcing the water at the surface into the skimmer. Changing where the water is sucked from inside the skimmer will not result in more debris being pulling past the weir into the skimmer.

 

[Jimrahbe]

cat,

Here is how I look at it...

The Weir makes the water inside the skimmer appear to be lower than the water in the pool.. Since water likes to flow downhill that is what happens... If you remove the weir, the water in the pool and in the skimmer are at the same level.. With the weir removed the surface will be smooth even with the pump running at a pretty good clip. The pump can not suck more water than what is coming into the skimmer, so it appears there is no flow at all. The Weir is the key to having good skimming action.

Jim R.

 

[jimmythegreek]

Try adding some foam to the back of the wier. The more buoyant it is the more it sucks. Yiu could close off the drain all the way and even shut off the other skimmer if you have two. I run on low on a single skimmer most of the time and it cleans surface well in just a 5hr run time

 

[Oly]

Agree with the importance of the wier and the pool water level relative to the skimmer mouth.
And you are correct a VS pump makes finding that sweet spot possible for your pool system.
I improved my skimming by #1 finding the optimum pump speed. I found a minimum of 1700 rpm to steadily pull in surface debris. Increasing the rpms improves the pull and I found 2400 to be the optimum for efficiency. Now if I want to "polish" the surface I can increase the rpms or the run time.
Also I modified my weir door so that water is not pulled around the sides or below, but pulling water over the spillway which is in the correct position by using the correct amount of Styrofoam. The goal is to keep the edge in position to create a slight water drop or spillway into the skimmer bowl level.