After You Vacuum Your Pool
When youve finished cleaning your pool, remove the vacuum head from the telescoping pole, and drain any water still in the vacuum hose. Attach your cleaning brush to the pole, and use it to scrub away any algae, dirt, and debris from the sides of the pool.
Clear any debris in your pump strainer basket, and give the filter a final backwashing if you have a multiport system and used the Filter setting.
If you used the Waste setting to vacuum the pool, make sure you switch the valve back to the Filter setting, and keep adding fresh water to your pool until the water level is restored.
Once youve topped off your water, test your pool water, and adjust your alkalinity, pH, and chlorine as necessary.
Rinse all your equipment with fresh water, dry it, and return it to storage. This will help keep it in top working condition and avoid unnecessary wear and corrosion.
You dont have to dread the vac head! When its time to vacuum your poolwhether youre just the hands-on type or waging war on invading algaeyou can get the job done by hand with a little preparation, a lot of elbow grease, and a healthy dollop of patience.
Why Vacuum Your Pool
Why not vacuum your pool? Its just like vacuuming the carpet in your house. Keeps it clean and gets rid of any debris that has settled. And it helps prevent mold, which is pretty much the indoor equivalent to pool algae. But we digress.
Here a few specific circumstances where you would want to vacuum your pool.
-As part of an effective pool care schedule
-To clean up after an algae treatment
-To remove any tough or heavy debris on the pool floor
Why Do I Need To Vacuum My Pool If I Have A Robotic Pool Cleaner
If youve ever seen your robotic pool cleaner push a pile of waterlogged leaves from one end of your swimming pool to the other, you know what were talking about: Robotic pool cleaners are great for light, day-to-day maintenance, but theyre not designed for heavy lifting. If debris isnt removed promptly, it can wreak havoc on your water quality and lead to maintenance issues like algae. A pool vacuum makes short work of heavy debris, helping you keep your pool clean and inviting and preventing maintenance headaches.
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Do All Pools Have A Skimmer
Not all pools have skimmer baskets because it isnt necessary, albeit having one would make pool maintenance more manageable.
Some pools have what is called a main drain. This is a hole in the bottom of your pool that all the water flows through. There are also smaller drains located around the sides of your pool these are used to suction up any dirt or debris on the surface.
If you dont have a skimmer, you may rely on your central drain, or those side drains alone.
This is why its so important to clean out your pool regularly! You can use a leaf net or any other filter for this purpose as well.
Replace The Dry Filter With A Wet Filter
The dry filter that comes standard with the shop-vac is what will trap most of the debris and dirt as your vacuum. However, if you try to use it when vacuuming a pool, all those particles can not only clog up but also damage the wet “dry filter” underneath.
That’s why we recommend replacing this one with a wet filter. This will allow water to pass through the wet filter so that it can more easily trap any debris in the pool.
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Vacuuming Your Swimming Pool
Now that all the preparation is out of the way, you can simply vacuum your pool. There is no special trick here. Simply run your vacuum along the bottom surface of your pool until it is up to your level of cleanliness. If you made sure your vacuum hose is long enough you should have no problems reaching the full length of your pool.
The only problem we see occurring in this step is if by chance you lose suction. With a lost suction we recommend checking the connection of your vacuum to the pump. If you cannot find the issue, simply retrace your steps and try again to recapture that suction you once had.
As you can see, vacuuming your pool manually is a relatively straight-forward pool chore. This process may lead to some hard work for you, but it will also save you a lot of money as opposed to hiring a pool specialist to come out and clean for you.
How To Vacuum To Waste With A Cartridge Filter
There sometimes no waste setting on a cartridge filter, at least in a Hayward system, so you cannot filter to waste. However it is possible to fit a Hayward 3 way valve to bypass the filter and if you do that you will then have the facility to vacuum to waste.
Some cartridge filters have a drain plug on the back of the filter housing which you can unscrew. When the pump is run and you vacuum then the water will come out of this hole. Once finished you put the plug back in.
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How To Effectively Vacuum Your Pool
BackHow to Effectively Vacuum Your Pool
- How to Effectively Vacuum Your Pool
How to Effectively Vacuum Your Pool
Any pool owner will know that to keep it in good condition, a regular cleaning routine is required. Often, keeping to the habit of checking water quality and pumps daily is enough to keep your pool clean and healthy throughout heavy use. However, if a deeper clean is required, then you may choose to vacuum your pool.
In this blog, we look at when vacuuming might be the best decision for your swimming pool, what you need and how to do it effectively.
You can find everything you need for your swimming pool here, at 1st Direct Pools, such as essential pool cleaning products, like chlorine or bromine!
Types Of Automatic Cleaners
Depending upon your budget and requirements, you can select an automatic cleaner.
They are of 3 different types and we would be discussing each one of them in a while to help you in narrowing down on the options and thus helping you in buying a value for money product.
Robotic Cleaner
Frankly speaking, there has been a surge in the demand for an automatic robotic cleaner because of the power-packed superlative features that it comes with.
Ive been using it for quite a few years now, and trust me, its worth the investment.
Other than the high cost, youll not find any drawback, particularly with this robotic cleaner.
To be honest, if youre an owner of a small pool then definitely, you dont need a robotic cleaner.
On the other hand, if you own a large pool that comprises hard-to-reach areas then I would definitely suggest you should opt for a robotic cleaner that comes with remote control.
Suction-Side Cleaner
As the name suggests, a suction side cleaner is attached to your pool filter to create suction.
Well, its an expensive option and you should only use it if your pool is full of dust and debris.
Pressure-Side Cleaner
It is attached to the return hose on your pool filter for suction and also comprises a collection bag.
Some of you might find this process tedious and time-consuming as you need to replace the collection bag too often.
But, at the same time, you need to understand that they do reduce wear and tear on your pools filter by collecting their own debris.
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Remove The Collection Bag
Before you can use the shop vac, you’ll need to remove the collection bag. It’s really easy to do. The lid of the shop-vac can be detached by popping off the two fasteners positioned on opposite sides.
When the lid has been taken off the base, removing the collection bag is as simple as grabbing it and yoinking it off of the intake nozzle.
Everything You Need To Know About Vacuuming Your Pool
Even if you own an automatic pool cleaner, you still need to use your manual pool vacuum from time to time. If you have a pool, you need to have a manual pool vacuum. There are many issues that your automatic pool cleaner cannot cleanincluding algae blooms. To successfully treat algae in your pool, you will need to shock, use algaecide, and then manually vacuum your pool.
To vacuum your pool, you will need:
- A vacuum head. The type of vacuum head you need will depend on what type of pool you have. See your local pool professional if you need advice on which vacuum is best for you.
- A vacuum hose. The size of your pool will determine the length of the hose you need.
- A telescoping pole. Most poles are standard sizes and you can easily attach your vacuum head, a pool brush, or a net to it.
- A skim-vac. A skim-vac is needed with most inground and above groundthere are some exceptions.
How do I set up my vacuum?
To begin vacuuming your pool:
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What Do I Need To Vacuum A Swimming Pool
To vacuum your pool, there are a few specific pieces of kit youll need:
- Vacuum hose
- Vacuum plate
- Telescopic pole
If you own a swimming pool net, the chances are that you already have a telescopic pole. The vacuum hose is slightly different than, say, the one used for backwashing, as its designed for movement across the pool and attaching to specific locations.
The vacuum cleaner head is the section that will do the cleaning on the floor of your pool. The vacuum plate, also known as a skim vac, is a disc that connects to the skimmer baskets in your pump system and is optional but beneficial this will be explained later.
How To Vacuuming An Inground Pool
Vacuuming the pool depends on the level of dirt in the pool. The multiport filter valve has two settings for filter cleaning or for waste cleaning. For higher levels of sediment such as after a storm or after treatment for an increase of algae in the pool waste cleaning is done. In this case, the multiport filter valve is set to waste or drain setting.
If its for routine cleaning the multiport filter valve is set to use the filter valve in order to remove the sediments, and then pass the filtered water through return lines back into the pool.
What are the items needed to perform a vacuum cleaning of an inground pool for sparkling and thoroughly clean pool?
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Understanding Connections To Make It
The pool circulation pump is the part that allows the vacuum to derive the force it needs. It resides in a recessed pit, adjacent to the pool.
The water comes from the inlet of the skimmer once suction action is provided by the pump. And then the water gets pumped through the filter to go back using return lines into the pool.
The lid and strainer basket of the skimmer shall come out next. And then, you need to thread the hose within the inlet of the skimmer. Meanwhile, the open end remains submerging. It later gets plugged into the skimmer bottoms suction port.
In this case, the configuration makes the vacuum force diverted through the hose. And hose to the pool bottom vacuum head. This is the main concept of how to vacuum a pool using a skimmer.
Now if you need to incorporate more than just one skimmer, do this. Plug the vacuum hose to the nearest located pool skimmer. So that maximum vacuum force can be achieved.
In some cases, you might have to deal with a plumbing style of pool that includes dedicated intake valves for each skimmer. You should block all the other skimmer-leading valves during vacuuming.
How To Vacuum An Inground Pool Using The Right Technique
Maintaining a clean in-ground pool with sparkling water at all times is not an easy task. However, if you understand the importance of maintaining a proper balance between chlorine and pH, you will not excuse yourself from regular vacuuming and keeping it clean.
If youre just going by instinct to vacuum the pool and not bothering to learn more about it, youre not going to be much help in the long run.
When you are trying to get your inground pool clean, it is important to use the proper techniques and tips.
Lets give you some information on how to vacuum an inground pool.
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That Sounds Like A Lot Of Work Is There A Better Option
First of all, welcome to the club! While some people find this to be a form of meditation, its still a chore. Thankfully, we live in a world of blossoming technology where you can task this to a robotic vacuum cleaner that will do all of that while you just sit on the poolside with a cool drink or do other household chores.
How To Manually Vacuum Your Pool
In reality, manually vacuuming your pool is a workout and required some muscle work. Additionally, the task can be time-consuming, therefore, clear your schedule for a couple of hours on the day you want to clean your pool.
As you start to vacuum, work your way from the shallow end towards the deep end. Move your pole in long and slow sweeping strokes, making sure they overlap to clear all the debris out. Making slow cleaning strokes is very important because it ensures you thoroughly pick up all the debris.
Making fast and rushed strokes will quickly distort the water and affect visibility. You will then have to stop and wait for a couple of hours before the water settles to achieve visibility again.
When you are cleaning your pool, there are times when the vacuum head will get stuck. To fix this problem, shut off the pump to break the vacuum force so the vacuum head can be free. Then, you can restart the pump and continue cleaning. Additionally, during your cleaning, if the pressure of the filter rises too high, stop the cleaning, backwash the filter and then resume the cleaning.
After vacuuming your pool, remove the vacuum head from the pole and drain water that is left in the vacuum hose. Then, attach the cleaning brush to the pool and begin to scrub off algae, dirt, scum, and debris on the sides of the pool.
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Using Multiport Valve Filters
These may offer several options, with special settings just for vacuuming, including one called Waste. This setting pumps water out of the pool while bypassing the filter.
This setting keeps you from clogging your filter with debris, flocculant, and dead/dying/annoyingly persistent algae.
Important: If you use this method, your pool water level is going to drop while you vacuum the pool. Use a garden hose with an attached hose filter to add fresh water while youre vacuuming and keep air out of the skimmer inlet.
How To Vacuum Your Pool Without A Skimmer
There are several ways to vacuum a pool without a skimmer. If your pool does not have a skimmer, then we will assume it is an above-ground pool. In all likelihood, this means it is an Intex.
It also likely means that your pool pump is probably too weak to create the necessary suction to vacuum your pool. If that’s the case, don’t worry. The following method does not use your pool pump, so you should be fine
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How Does A Pool Vacuum Work
Of course, if you want to clean your swimming pool, you cant just use any old vacuum! Swimming pool vacuums work without any mains power, instead relying on the water flow created by the swimming pool pump.
To put it simply, swimming pool vacuums create suction by attaching to the pumps filtration system, sucking debris through and into the filters. How exactly this happens will become clear as we take you through the process below.
How To Vacuum A Pool With A Filter Or A Pump
Vacuuming your pool is one of the best ways to remove not only the gunk on the bottom of the pool, but also the microscopic algae spores that have failed to be captured by your pools filter system and are, as a consequence, lurking in your pool water just waiting to blossom into life.
In this guide, we walk you through how to vacuum your pool, pool filter settings and how to set up your pool vac.
The process is pretty straightforward.
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The Proper Way To Vacuum An In
Related Articles
Maintaining a sparkling, clean in-ground swimming pool requires a multitiered approach. Proper balance of pH and chlorine are the first level. Control of debris and foreign matter is next. Small particulates suspended in the pool are removed by the normal circulation of water through the filter. Larger, floating debris such as leaves are trapped in strainer baskets as the water passes through the skimmer or may be manually scooped out as required using a skimmer net on a telescoping pole. Dirt, debris and other contaminants that sink to the bottom of the pool, however, usually require vacuuming. Because debris in a pool may vary greatly from day to day depending on usage, many pool experts recommend vacuuming a residential pool whenever it needs it rather than sticking to a rigid schedule.
