Trash Pump vs Portable Pool Pump for Initial Cleaning

wcodyd

0
May 17, 2017
10
Little Rock, AR
Friends,

I have a 20x40’ right L-shaped pool that’s about 10 feet deep at the deep end and covered with a mesh safety cover. Once the pool is fully opened, I’ve got a solid weekly routine that keeps everything in check.

However, the initial opening is a real challenge. Every year, I have to deal with a large amount of leaves and hickory nuts that make their way into the pool. These regularly clog my suction lines, so using the main pool pump isn’t a great option for the cleanup.

I’m considering either a 2” semi-solid trash pump or a portable 3 HP pool pump to vacuum the debris to waste (no return to the pool).

Has anyone used one of these setups successfully? Which would you recommend for making the job of opening the pool faster and easier? I’m more focused on efficiency than cost at this point.

Thanks in advance for any advice!
 
If cost is no object get a Riptide pool vacuum the pros use...


If you want to vacuum to waste you can construct a standalone system using a 3/4 HP pump that plugs into 120V, connect a vacuum hose to the intake, and a waste hose to the output.

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There is also the VacDaddy...

 
I own a small sump pump, it takes quite a while to drain half the pool. I once rented a trash pump and it did its thing in minutes. If I had to do it again I would just rent the trash pump for 4 hours.
 
Are you aware Skimmer basket vac plates exist ? Many arent and risk their plumbing when vacuuming heavy spring debris by plugging the vac straight to the skimmer pipe. There's only a couple sizes and they are clearly different so it's easy to find the one you need. (A 6.5 inch vs a 7.75 inch, etc). You vac to the skimmer basket and it saves the plumbing.

Or they make leaf canisters that go between the hose and suction outlet for those with a vac port in the wall, or even the folks using the skimmer pipe.
 
I do post construction/concrete clean up for all of our jobs. We had a broken filter that I fixed and an undersized pump we would never use. If the water wasn’t too bad I would use the filter. If it was horrible I would just vac to waste. Hayward c4030 filter and a vsp 500. David and Goliath.IMG_2344.png
 
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