Our pool is surrounded by birch trees that are dumping seeds into the pool like crazy right now. I'm getting ready to start a SLAM and I'm wondering if I should use a skimmer sock to prevent the seeds from going into the pump and sand filter. I've used a skimmer sock in the past and the pump got starved for water on several occasions when the skimmer sock filled up with seeds. On a windy day, this can happen in 3-4 hours. I'm concerned that it could happen even faster during a SLAM since we've got algae to deal with too. I've got a Skim-Pro tower-vented skimmer basket that is supposed to provide continuous water flow through the skimmer even when leaves and debris fill the entire basket. I've never had problems with the pump getting starved for water when the pump basket fills up with leaves or seeds without the sock in place. Since I've got this type of skimmer basket, should I just skip the skimmer sock while doing the SLAM, since I won't be home to monitor the pump and replace the skimmer sock often? I've done SLAMs before without a skimmer sock but I've never done one when the trees were dropping seeds like this.