A Guide To Skimmers For Your Pool
Are you unsure about how vital a skimmer can be for your family fibreglass pool?
In simple terms, a skimmer skims the water, cleans the floating debris, and keeps the swimming sparkly clean. The debris includes leaves, dirt, twigs, dead insects, oil from your sunblock, and flower petals before they reach the bottom of the pool. In most cases, your pool skimmer will be built into your in-ground pool’s upper side portion. They suck up the garbage automatically and trap it. Also, you can use a hatch through your deck area for accessing most of them. These pool cleaning gadgets have become an integral part of your swimming pool. That is why you need to understand what it is and how to take care of it. In this article, we have provided you with an informative guide to skimmers for your pool.
What Is A Pool Skimmer?
Swimming pools come with a vital cleaning system working collectively to ensure that your pool is properly cleaned. A skimmer is among these components. It can be considered as the first line of defense for your pool. It ensures that the water surface of your pool is free from floating debris. It is located right where the water lives before it enters the filter and the pump. The reason why it is called a skimmer is that it looks like a mesh basket that can be attached to a utility pole to fish debris from the pool.
What Are The Different Types Of Pool Skimmers?
Built-In Pool Skimmer
This kind of skimmer is located right at the opening around the waterline of the pool and looks like a gutter. Depending on what size your pool is, there might be more than one skimmer in it. They are connected to the swimming pool’s plumbing.
For a built-in pool skimmer, you have to connect theses to the hoses of your swimming pool vacuum cleaners when you decide to clean the water surface. Even though they come in different sizes, in-ground or built-in skimmers are usually composed of a weir, basket, lid, and mouth. The weir is a flap that keeps the gathered debris from escaping. The basket acts like a strainer and keeps debris and leaves from obstructing the filter. The lid is there to ensure that no large objects fall into the pool pump.
Manual Pool Skimmer
For a manual skimmer, you don’t need a power source. It is just a net that is connected to a pole so that you can gather the floating debris manually. Even if you do connect it to some filtration system, you will have to move them around manually. These types of skimmers work well for basic debris but won’t be of much use in circulation. Also, since it involves you powering up, it can’t be run constantly.
Automatic pool skimmer
The filter system of your pool can be connected to an automatic skimmer. It comes with paddles looking like a propeller. These paddles maneuver the skimmer along the pool surface so that it can use its hose to suck the debris.
Robotic Pool Skimmer
Also known as a self-contained skimmer, the robotic pool skimmer runs on solar power or batteries. It maneuvers along the pool’s surface while skimming debris. Even though its initial cost is more than other types of pool skimmer, the energy efficiency it offers makes up for it.
What Is Your Pool Skimmer Made Of?
Lid
Build-in skimmers come with a lid that covers the hole containing the skimmer. It prevents people from stepping in it accidentally and injuring themselves. It also stops additional debris and leaves from falling inside the skimmer. It is made of plastic and is usually round. You can find it right outside the pool and above the skimmer.
Weir
Also known as the skimmer door, the weir is a flap covering the mouth of the skimmer. It swings with the water’s motion and is responsible for stopping contaminants like leaf litter from getting out of the skimmer back inside the pool. When the pump is off, the weir remains closed so that the debris remains inside the skimmer.
Mouth
This is a rectangular-shaped hole present at the side of the pool’s wall. It draws in the water, bringing contaminants like leaf litter with it. The contaminants are then trapped inside the skimmer basket.
Basket
The skimmer basket contains several small holes that strain unwanted nasties like sticks and leaves from your pool so that it doesn’t get sucked into the pump. It is important that you keep the skimmer basket intact and ensure that it doesn’t have any cracks or broken bits; otherwise, the debris will escape and ruin the filtration system causing costly damage.
Suction Line
The suction line is the component of the skimmer through which water is sucked. It draws the water right past the weirs, through the basket, and into the filter pump. You have to ensure that the suction line isn’t clogged so that it doesn’t compromise the circulation system’s efficiency or interfere with your equipment.
Equalizer Line
The skimmer’s equalizer line is there for preventing any damage to the pump when the water drops below the normal level. If the water reaches halfway up the mouth of the skimmer, it stops the pump from sucking air.
What Features Must Be Considered While Buying A Skimmer?
When you are shopping for a skimmer, here are a few features that you have to keep in mind:
- Durability: Just like any other product, skimmers aren’t created equal. That is why you have to consider the materials they are made of and read the product review. If there are several complaints, you should look for something else.
- Price: Cost is an important and obvious factor. You don’t want to buy a skimmer that costs a lot and hurts your budget. It is important to note that a higher price tag doesn’t necessarily mean quality. Make sure that you compare products and read reviews before making any decision.
- Ease of installation: If you are planning to purchase an automatic skimmer, it is important to ensure that installing it won’t give you a headache. The last thing you want to do is break the skimmer during installation.
How Can You Maintain Your Skimmer Properly?
If you want to make sure that both your pool pump and filter last longer, you have to empty the skimmer basket regularly. Before you start cleaning it, inspect the condition of the weir, basket, and lid of the skimmer. If any component is not properly functioning or if there is any damage, repair the skimmer or replace it. Only by proper maintenance will you be able to make the most of the pool skimmer.
Pool skimmers are among the most important components of your pool…with a skimmer the filtration system of your pool will work more efficiently
Why Do You Need A Pool Skimmer?
Pool skimmers are among the most important components of your pool. They keep debris out of the water surface and the plumbing system of the pool. Apart from that, they also offer a lot of other benefits including but not limited to the following:
- It increases the longevity of your pool’s filtration system.
- It prevents the replacement of costly parts in the long run.
- When you have clean plumbing, it ensures proper pool water circulation. This prevents algae from building up and stagnation.
In short, with a skimmer, the filtration system of your pool will work more efficiently.
We hope that now you have a basic understanding of what a skimmer is and how you can maintain it. A family pool is a great addition to your backyard, especially if you have children. It is also considered to be a great investment for your house. By ensuring its proper functioning, you can ensure that your investment remains a profitable one in the long run.
