Vacuum suction weak is 2 skimmer pool

[sws1]

Not sure if this is the right forum...please move if it's not.

My pool has 2 skimmers, and 2 main drains. The 2 main drains get combined into 1 pipe, so for all intents and purposes, it's really one. I can shut off the main drain, which leaves the 2 skimmers running. If I try to vacuum with this configuration, the suction makes vacuuming quite painful. I have to move super slow. Moving too fast, and it pushes the dirt around. It also doesn't have enough power to pull sand off the floor. (The vacuum head I use is shaped like a triangle, 12" on a side, with brushes around the edges and in the middle. The actual hole is probably 2-2.5 inches off the ground.)

The only other option to change the routing flow is to turn one of the skimmers off, but only way to do that means turning the main drains back on. In essence, 3 configs:
2 skimmers and main drain working
1 skimmer and main drain working
2 skimmers working

I tried plugging the hole of one skimmer using the device that is used to block the pipe in the winter (long blue floaty type thing), but it actually started to collapse that. I also noticed the basket at the pump was having more air in it, and filter pressure went down. For the 2 mins I did that, the vacuum worked much better, but I got nervous, so took out the device.

Is there something else I can try? Is a little bit of lower pressure ok, if I were to block the skimmer with something else? Should I find a new vacuum head that sits much closer to the floor?

Thanks

 

[crabboy]

Blocking the other skimmer is the best route. What does the bottom of the skimmer look like? Can a PVC plug be screwed in there? You also have the option to add a new 3-way in there to individually block one or both skimmers. Post a pic of your pump pad for some suggestions.

With the all the ports blocked and a skimmer hose in there, the motor will likely cavitate and you'll see lots of bubbles in there, it is starving for water. This fine for weekly vacuuming, but it's left like that long term, cavitation can erode the internal components of your pump.

 

[sws1]

Blocking the other skimmer is the best route. What does the bottom of the skimmer look like? Can a PVC plug be screwed in there? You also have the option to add a new 3-way in there to individually block one or both skimmers. Post a pic of your pump pad for some suggestions.

With the all the ports blocked and a skimmer hose in there, the motor will likely cavitate and you'll see lots of bubbles in there, it is starving for water. This fine for weekly vacuuming, but it's left like that long term, cavitation can erode the internal components of your pump.

Here's my piping:


The pipe at 10oclock is Skimmer 1...and can be shut off with the valve.
The pipe at 5o'clock is the main drain pipe...and can be shut off.
The pipe at 2o'clock is Skimmer...and CAN'T be shut off, and that pipe is behind that diverter valve.

 

[crabboy]

You may be in luck.

You can shut off both the drain and skimmer 1 if you rotate the valve all the way around. The Jandy valves have a tab on them that can be broken off to allow it to rotate 360 degrees. It is there to prevent shutting off both paths, but the breakable tab 'advanced mode' allows it for more configurable installations.

To break it, loosen the nut so the handle swings freely and then force it right past the stop. The other option is to remove the handle and break it with pliers. You can then close off the port named 'inlet' and vac only from skimmer 2.

Option 2. Adding a new valve.

This does look possible while saving the existing jandy valve. The PVC T can be removed and a new Jandy neverlube added in the vertical position. The nice things about the neverlube is they can be plumbed with 2" on the inside diameter and 2 1/2" on the outside. So the two valves can be butted together with a 2 1/2" repair coupling and the plumbed to the other 2 pipe on the inside. You'll need repair couplings on the other 2 and space may be tight, but it looks possible.

 

[sws1]

You may be in luck.

You can shut off both the drain and skimmer 1 if you rotate the valve all the way around. The Jandy valves have a tab on them that can be broken off to allow it to rotate 360 degrees. It is there to prevent shutting off both paths, but the breakable tab 'advanced mode' allows it for more configurable installations.

To break it, loosen the nut so the handle swings freely and then force it right past the stop. The other option is to remove the handle and break it with pliers. You can then close off the port named 'inlet' and vac only from skimmer 2.

Option 2. Adding a new valve.

This does look possible while saving the existing jandy valve. The PVC T can be removed and a new Jandy neverlube added in the vertical position. The nice things about the neverlube is they can be plumbed with 2" on the inside diameter and 2 1/2" on the outside. So the two valves can be butted together with a 2 1/2" repair coupling and the plumbed to the other 2 pipe on the inside. You'll need repair couplings on the other 2 and space may be tight, but it looks possible.

Thanks. Is option 1 doing basically the same as plugging one of the skimmers with something? Obviously, the "blockage" is occurring at the other end of the piping, but I don't know if that matters.

 

[Jimrahbe]

SWS,

I gave up vacuuming years ago... I use robots. The are 100% better at getting the stuff off your pool floor as well as the do the walls and clean the water line tile.

Like this one..

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[crabboy]

Yes, you are blocking both the main drain and skimmer 1 by rotating the valve all the around.

IMO, this is a better solution to blocking the skimmer, unless you like vacuuming from the other skimmer.

 

[Hootz]

I agree with option 1...no intrusive plumbing required. That was a poor way to plumb the suction side.... there is no way to drain the pool below the skimmers using the main drain.

 

[sws1]

You may be in luck.

You can shut off both the drain and skimmer 1 if you rotate the valve all the way around. The Jandy valves have a tab on them that can be broken off to allow it to rotate 360 degrees. It is there to prevent shutting off both paths, but the breakable tab 'advanced mode' allows it for more configurable installations.

To break it, loosen the nut so the handle swings freely and then force it right past the stop. The other option is to remove the handle and break it with pliers. You can then close off the port named 'inlet' and vac only from skimmer 2.

Option 2. Adding a new valve.

This does look possible while saving the existing jandy valve. The PVC T can be removed and a new Jandy neverlube added in the vertical position. The nice things about the neverlube is they can be plumbed with 2" on the inside diameter and 2 1/2" on the outside. So the two valves can be butted together with a 2 1/2" repair coupling and the plumbed to the other 2 pipe on the inside. You'll need repair couplings on the other 2 and space may be tight, but it looks possible.

Problem solved. It occurred to me that the guy who opened the pool, may have mistakenly swapped the handles of the 2 Jandy valves I have. (The other, which I didn't share pic of, controls the return jets.) I took both handles off and sure enough, the one with the broken tab was on the wrong valve. Now that handles are in the correct spots, their rotation makes perfect sense.

I can now set to only get suction from 1 skimmer only.

Thanks