Soon to be new pool owner - Basic Questions

Jump to latest Follow Reply
THANK YOU for getting that pretty, shiny badge! :hug:

I found your manual! It is a good one! They do step by step for most everything! I would think about printing it out but make sure you have plenty of ink and paper as it is a big one but has some great info. Sand level, pressure testing, etc.

https://pentairpool.com/~/media/websites/pool/downloads/filters/manuals/tagelus_owners_manual_english_french_spanish.pdf

If this does not work as a link you can do a search to find it. (for some reason I have a hard time linking to PDF files :()

It looks like you figured out where the water goes from the filter when you back wash and such. Do you have any idea where it ends up going? Do you have a storm drain or such? Do you have a creek or such close to the yard?

Your pool is not bad at all! I have an idea for you......................adding some DE to the sand. It helps the sand to really filter out the smaller stuff. Here is a link for it:
Pool School - Add DE to a Sand Filter Now the bad part of this is you cannot do it until you will be there to "babysit" the pool. Each filter is so different there is no way to really know how much DE YOUR filter likes. We had one that liked 1/4 cup and another that likes 2.5 cups so.......I say add 1/4 cup to start with. What you are looking for is a slight increase in the filter pressure. If you do not see an increase of at least 1 psi within 30 mins. add another 1/4 cup. Keep doing this 1/4 cup at a time. Now if your pressure SHOOTS up and fast then you need to turn the pump off and do a back wash to get some of the DE out. That is why I say you need to be there to babysit it until you learn what it likes.

Kim:kim:
 
Thanks for the tip. I did a ton of brushing and manually netting out a bunch of small debris that hangs out on the deep end of the pool. It mostly just moved around in the water vs getting caught in the net.

This may be nothing but I am a bit concerned I might not have great suction in my skimmer line. As I mentioned early on the basket was so full it was not flowing much at all. When watching the skimmer it only had minimal movement in a very subtle swirl.

I will also look at adding de to the filter after trying to do complete a backflush and getting my g3 working once my leaf basket comes.

There are so many trees the pine needles and leaves are a constant concern. There are also fig trees that have seemed to drop figs and leaves into the pool. I have been able to tie back the fig tree to prevent that in the future.

In terms of the drain it connects to a long drain line that is buried underground that then comes up and feeds into the woods down a small hill.

I did have a nice surprise yesterday in the skimmer floating at the top, it was a tiny dead vole spinning ever so slightly.

Thanks again for all the help!
 
Is your skimmer suction low because you still have the main drain valve fully open? Close the MD valve to just barely open. That should increase your skimmer suction.
 
Updated FC from today.

130pm

Fc 14

3pm

Fc13.5

550pm

Fc 13.5

Should the main drain be open or partially closed most of the time

Closing it partially did seem increase the power at the skimmer. Thank you.

The water actually seems a bit more clear this evening.
 
I suggest the main drain valve should be closed most of the way all the time. Increase your skimmer action as that collects debris.
 
There are many pools that do not even have a main drain so........I say do what ever you can do to make the skimmer do a better job. You can also adjust the return eyeballs to make for a better flow to get the stuff to the skimmer. I used ping pong balls to show me how my water moved. The cats had fun watching them as well! LOL

Kim:kim:
 
Thanks again for the tips. I might try adjusting the returns to send water towards the skimmer. I will not be able to get over to the house until around noon tomorrow to check FC level so this will be a good test on the state of the water.

I managed to get most if not all of the leaves and debris at the bottom. There seemed to be a good bit stuck on the drain that I cleaned up.

Given the amount of constant debris I was thinking of picking of a robot cleaner unless after some testing the old g3 that I found in the crawlspace is able to handle things well enough.

If I can find a good price was looking at the m500 unless folks think its overkill for this kind of pool.
 
If the pool is pretty basic I would say the M would be a bit of an overkill. How much do you want the bluetooth, etc?

The S300i has some bells and whistles. My Active20 works great. But basic.
 
I guess I don't really need bluetooth etc. but I its nice to have. My main thing is durability, ease of maintenance plus the quality and completeness of the clean.

I ran over and completed a FC test over lunch and it was down to 10 so I bumped it up to 12. The water was definitely looking more clear.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
Thanks it was still pretty cloudy this evening and the FC dropped again to 10. I bumped it up again before I had to leave. it seems we have had a ton of rain over the past few nights. Even after a backflush for a good 3 minutes and a rinse the water level still is well above the mid point of the skimmer box.

Finally as soon as I packed up and started to leave another very heavy down poor started.

I did manage to get the G3 cleaner connected with a leaf catcher and a skimmer sock and will leave it running overnight. I hope it will finally get the last of the dust piles.
 
The house I am moving from is only about 8 minutes away and officially we have not moved in to the new place.

In terms of prepping for the hurricane, I was planning on shutting down the power to the equipment for the pool at the breaker main panel Thursday evening (assuming that is right before it hits), adding in some chlorine and making sure everything was clear with nothing around the pool.

Beyond that we were officially scheduled to move in on Saturday, so unless the storm dies down or we get lucky and it avoids us I was planning on staying at the old house.
 
Well we are just about moved in and getting things unpacked. I have ordered some DE as the very fine debris issue still persists. We had a ton of leaves and other things in the pool following the hurricane and the water level was insanely high so I had to drain a good bit to get that back down.

The water while clear and passed the overnight test needs some additional work. I tried using the g3 autocleaner to try to get the fine debris we have but it seems to keep getting stuck after moving around a little. I think I may need to replace the diaphragm but I am not 100% sure that will fix it.

At this point I am trying to decide the basic things that I should get at this point since we are quickly reaching the time were we won't be able to use the pool due to outdoor temps anyway.

Do I invest in a robot now or wait until next season.
Given the amount of trees I have all around should get a large leaf net to catch them or do I just get a decent cover to lock down the pool for the winter.
Same thing with other items like a leaf rake, as the net on a pole just does not work well enough.
I have seen that some folks in this area do not officially close the pool as the winters are mild enough while others do. Is there a general rule of thumb to consider here?

Thanks for any thoughts or feedback.
 
Here are your must haves:

-some kind of vacuum-if you want to wait for the robot you can. For right now you can get a manual vacuum from Lowes. You will need a hose long enough to go from your skimmer to both ends of the pool. A vacuum head such as this: Shop Aqua EZ 11-in Swivel-Handle Pool Vacuum Head at Lowes.com you will also need a plate like this: Amazon.com: Hayward SP11071 Skim Vac In-Ground Pool Skimmer: Garden Outdoor make sure to note the size to make sure you get one that will fit.

-leaf net-one with a deep pocket. This is a must have when there are lots of leaves in the pool. You will find them very easy to use. There should be a small lip of sorts on both long sides of the net that you can push along to have get the leaves up and and into the bag.

Now on the question on covering your pool! I just contributed to an article that is being written on that very subject. Here is what I wrote for my part:

""It is coming to be that time of the year here in the states were the temps are starting to go down and the day is getting shorter meaning there is less sun to warm the pool. The question now is “Should I close my pool?”. The answer is “It depends”.

Do you live where the pool will become a block of ice? Do you live where there are only a few nights of “hard freeze” where sitting water can form ice on it? Those are the things you need to think about.

If your pool will become a block of ice and stay that way for a while I would close it. Closing the pool will help protect the pipes and equipment from freezing and bursting.

If your only get a few nights of freezing temps then you can leave the pool open knowing that you will need to run the pump(s) on the nights a hard freeze is called for. You will need to maintain your FC as well as making sure to keep the water balanced. Your FC demand will be much lower than it was during the summer.

Now for the areas in between the above scenarios you will need to know your areas past weather history to make your decision. If you think your pump could not move the water enough to keep it from freezing solid you should think about closing it to protect the lines and equipment.

If you do decide to close your pool here are TFP's links on how to close:

Pool School - Closing an In Ground Pool

Now for your leaves. You have to make sure there are not so many that your skimmer will become clogged during the day or night. Here is one thing that helps with them: PoolSkim USA -- award-winning automatic pool skimmer solves your swimming pool debris problems to achieve a clean and sparkling pool. Here is the Amazon listing for it so you can read the reviews: Amazon.com : PoolSkim Pool Skimmer and Pool Cleaner : Swimming Pool Maintenance Kits : Garden Outdoor

You could also use a cover. Just know some of the leaves can still get into the pool. Many people use a leaf blower to keep the top clean. Me? I like being able to see my pool. My :crazy: husband pops in year round.

Read over this and see what your thoughts are and we will come up with a solid plan for you.

Kim:kim:

- - - Updated - - -

Here are your must haves:

-some kind of vacuum-if you want to wait for the robot you can. For right now you can get a manual vacuum from Lowes. You will need a hose long enough to go from your skimmer to both ends of the pool. A vacuum head such as this: Shop Aqua EZ 11-in Swivel-Handle Pool Vacuum Head at Lowes.com you will also need a plate like this: Amazon.com: Hayward SP11071 Skim Vac In-Ground Pool Skimmer: Garden Outdoor make sure to note the size to make sure you get one that will fit.

-leaf net-one with a deep pocket. This is a must have when there are lots of leaves in the pool. You will find them very easy to use. There should be a small lip of sorts on both long sides of the net that you can push along to have get the leaves up and and into the bag.

Now on the question on covering your pool! I just contributed to an article that is being written on that very subject. Here is what I wrote for my part:

""It is coming to be that time of the year here in the states were the temps are starting to go down and the day is getting shorter meaning there is less sun to warm the pool. The question now is “Should I close my pool?”. The answer is “It depends”.

Do you live where the pool will become a block of ice? Do you live where there are only a few nights of “hard freeze” where sitting water can form ice on it? Those are the things you need to think about.

If your pool will become a block of ice and stay that way for a while I would close it. Closing the pool will help protect the pipes and equipment from freezing and bursting.

If your only get a few nights of freezing temps then you can leave the pool open knowing that you will need to run the pump(s) on the nights a hard freeze is called for. You will need to maintain your FC as well as making sure to keep the water balanced. Your FC demand will be much lower than it was during the summer.

Now for the areas in between the above scenarios you will need to know your areas past weather history to make your decision. If you think your pump could not move the water enough to keep it from freezing solid you should think about closing it to protect the lines and equipment.

If you do decide to close your pool here are TFP's links on how to close:

Pool School - Closing an In Ground Pool

Now for your leaves. You have to make sure there are not so many that your skimmer will become clogged during the day or night. Here is one thing that helps with them: PoolSkim USA -- award-winning automatic pool skimmer solves your swimming pool debris problems to achieve a clean and sparkling pool. Here is the Amazon listing for it so you can read the reviews: Amazon.com : PoolSkim Pool Skimmer and Pool Cleaner : Swimming Pool Maintenance Kits : Garden Outdoor

You could also use a cover. Just know some of the leaves can still get into the pool. Many people use a leaf blower to keep the top clean. Me? I like being able to see my pool. My :crazy: husband pops in year round.

Read over this and see what your thoughts are and we will come up with a solid plan for you.

Kim:kim:
 
Thanks for the helpful tips and the links. Others locally have kept the pools open year round while others have closed. I might jump in year round so would love to keep it open.

I have a simple vacuum that was here with a hose connector for the skimmer it looks bit beat up but will try. Should I run it in the same way I did the g3 or put the pump in drain mode?

I ordered one of the poolskim things you linked to. I think that will help a good deal as the skimmer basket is always full every time I check it.

I do have a net but it just doesn't work so well. It just seems to stir things up more than catch them since many of the particles are so small.
 
vacuum-If trying to get up the fine stuff I would put it into drain mode BUT don't leave the pump on. See it it will drain once you get the vacuum started. With the pump not going you will not lose the water as fast is my thinking. Now I am NOT sure if it will work. It does for me because I have an above ground pool so you are my guinea pig this with a in ground pool.

Getting the fine stuff........some tricks:

-DE in sand filter
-Skimmer sock inside the skimmer basket
-Some kind of "sock" on the returns to catch any stuff that makes it through the other stuff.

Kim:kim:
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply