Converting a Pop Up Pool to a Vacuum

In this episode I will show you how to convert your pop-up/in floor cleaning system to a vacuum.
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DIY Pool Care

[@georgewallace4284]

Ur truly an inspiration brother. I love ur videos. And thank u for all u do. I've been a pool technician for almost 20 years and I've learnt alot from u. God bless. I am based outta Marin County, Calif

[@PoolSchooler]

George Wallace glad they’ve been helpful. God bless you too.

[@PoolSchooler]

BTW I grew up in Northern California.

[@georgewallace4284]

@@PoolSchooler that's awesome.

[@BestoftheBest-oz4ei]

Thank you for taking the time to make all these great videos. You go into details and explain everything clearly so that new pool owners like me know how to take care of their pool themselves, saving us $$$.

[@PoolSchooler]

I'm so glad to hear that. Thanks for your comment and for watching. If you are so inclined, I'd appreciate you sharing my channel and/or videos with your friends and family who own pools as well

[@b0llos]

good video on showing how to convert pop up pool to automatic vacuum cleaner, thanks.

[@PoolSchooler]

You're welcome. Hope you'll subscribe and share my channel.

[@strikerr4105]

I use the vac-mate skimmer basket in conjunction with my "pool cleaner" vac and I love it!

[@blqberry1]

This video is awesome! I believe I have the separate set up! I am so sick of a dirty bottomed pool. I will definitely convert this season and will reach out for help if needed, Thank you!

[@PoolSchooler]

So glad it was helpful. Hope you’ll subscribe.

[@carolcoyle7049]

I Love your videos! So helpful. Thank you for making my home pool system easier for me to maintain myself... :-)

[@PoolSchooler]

So glad it's helpful. Thanks for commenting and please do like, subscribe and share.

[@stephanieelliott6278]

Thank you so much I'm converting my pool, so tired of the pop up system not cleaning or functioning properly.

[@PoolSchooler]

Good for you. Id suggest the Barracuda G3 vacuum and a pentair vacmate. Hope you subscribe And for more great DIY pool service stuff check out my website poolschooler.com.

[@blqberry1]

Oh yeah, I subscribed and liked 🤗

[@PoolSchooler]

Thank you.

[@natethetoe386]

What was invented first, the popup system or the robot vac system? When did pools start to get build with these features?

[@PoolSchooler]

I honestly have no idea.

[@chriswhite2423]

Thanks for the video. Getting sick of our pop ups not working properly and think I'm ready to convert. However, you referred to the skimmer and a leaf catcher that had a valve that could direct mire to one than the other and so it would get rid of the need for the extra piece with the pressure relief in the skimmer. I don't have the leaf catcher but I do have a valve that directs more towards the skimmer or the main drains. Would that negate needing the extra piece too? Therefore making the adjustment at the main valve. Thanks in advance.

[@PoolSchooler]

I would actually suggest using a VacMate. Here's a link to a video I did about converting your pop up pool to a vac using a Vacmate. They're great: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nYTJk4GsadiJla8

[@user-tq5su2wm6w]

Hello, We have several of the pop ups where the inner part has come off, can we just cap these off or do we have to replace the pop ups? Hoping there is an easy solution.

[@PoolSchooler]

Usually you can cap them off. Most of the pop up head manufacturers have caps you can get. You might have to do an online search for them tho.

[@NategoHome]

Great video, but I wasn't able to figure the process out by myself. Any chance you can recommend someone to help in Glendale, AZ?

[@PoolSchooler]

Unfortunately I don't know of anyone out that far. Try either asking friends for recommendations or contact a local pool supply store for a recommendation.

[@AddictedToPlacebos_]

What about when the pop ups are the only returns?

[@PoolSchooler]

Addicted To Placebos that’s a tough one. Maybe go into the actuator and permanently open the flap for the pop ups at the steps so the return flow goes there 100% of the time.

[@kennethclark2329]

I too have a pool with pop up returns only... what do you mean opening the flap to the pop ups at the steps at he actuator? Also, what's wrong with the pop up being the return with a vacuum hooked up?

[@Genessis001]

When he is talking about different types of "push/suction cleaners" aka manual type hoses attached cleaners. Unless you have a vinyl/above ground and even then so. Spend the money for the heavy duty version. Like $40-60.. been a min, so don't quote me. I have/lived in AZ almost all my life, worked for one of the heaylvy hittaa for all things pool for 10yrs. It looks like this gentleman lives here as well. Literally get what you pay for. You get a "El Cheapo",, your gonna end up with just that. Will it work? Sure. Can you replace bearings/wheels, sure. Although it cost you as much.... it's better to just buy a new one. Go heavy duty. Please, save yourself the frustration, money; especially if you live in Zona. Between the Sun, Heat, hard and overly calcification in our water + factor in chlorine. Shits gonna break way less than a year and there goes your money. NOT WORTH IT. Hope you don't dispute this..... PoolSxhool. If so, just shows lack of education and the AZ environment. Cause I guarantee you people don't remove right away when done and it sits, or if removed; it doesn't get hosed off.

[@waltercwiek]

Question: I have taken out the guts for the popups and I attach a vacuum to the skimmer my pressure on my filter goes to 0, is that alright

[@PoolSchooler]

It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s probably so low, because when you took the guts out of your pop-up actuator, you pulled out the stops for all the different sections meaning all the water return flow is going through all of the pop up heads it’s not necessarily a bad thing, though as long as you have enough suction for the vacuum to work.

[@HeartsPT]

I have a question…. I am in AZ in Peoria…..do you service, clean pools

[@PoolSchooler]

Not in Peoria. Too far away from me. Sorry.

[@rossferguson1812]

Yes I'm in kind of a dilemma I'm having a small party tomorrow and my son is flying in from Denver and my pool is not running right

[@BC-ri7im]

My only returns are the pop-ups and two aerators. When I have the aerators set too high the water blasts out too forcefully. So I have to adjust the valve so that the pop-ups are still working at the same time as the aerators, probably around 50/50. It's not ideal, but the vacuum (Aquanaut 450) is doing a good job going over the pop-ups. The suction on the vacuum, according to the instructions, is set correctly (wheel revolves around 12 times per minute). However, I have a diving pool and the vacuum doesn't get the walls hardly at all. It does a great job on the floor and the curve before the walls go vertically. I wish there was a better solution, but it's the best I've come up with.

[@PoolSchooler]

B C I know The Pool Cleaner 4 wheel version does a great job and does go up the sides.

[@BC-ri7im]

@@PoolSchooler This vacuum is supposed to as well, and the suction seems just fine. Not sure what's going on. It might have to do with the aerators being used at the same time as the pop-ups, but not really sure.

[@PoolSchooler]

​@@BC-ri7im​ hmm. not sure what to tell you.

[@BC-ri7im]

@@PoolSchooler No worries. I probably should have returned it, but they only gave me one week and in the winter it was hard to tell within that week. I thought it was doing a better job. It might not be the vacuum though anyway.

[@PoolSchooler]

B C Actually I do have a thought for you. When the manufacturers make a suggestion on how much suction to put to the vacuum that really is very generic and there’s no real hard fast set rules for how much. So I would suggest playing around with gradually increasing the suction to your vacuum and then watch it for several minutes and see if it climbs the walls better. You’ll probably be able to adjust it to where you can get it to climb the walls better without actually coming out of the pool which is something you don’t want to happen. Give that a try and see if that helps.

[@arizonahvac9127]

Does it matter what type of vacu. You use?

[@PoolSchooler]

It really doesn’t as long as it is a suction side pool vacuum but my favorite one is the barracuda G3. I did a video about why here’s a link. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nHekmqx6oZudiNE

[@roddiesmith2167]

Is there a way to convert a POS polaris venture sweep to a vacuum type?

[@PoolSchooler]

I don’t believe there is using the same line because I believe the Polaris is a return side sweep may I suggest you watch my video on adding a vacuum to your pool using a vacmate

[@braytonmccall]

So I have my actuator away from the pump system, and pause switch does not work. If I take out the guts do I still need to have the return open all the way? I don’t not see a knob anywhere for my return

[@PoolSchooler]

Hard to comment without seeing it. Can you email me some pics of your pool equipment area (and possibly a video). That way I can comment more accurately. [e-mail]

[@tktnidjet]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but can I connect my pool vacuum to the leaf vacuum intake instead of my skimmer? Our pool has the pop-ups, but no separate pump , and they aren’t well spaced anyway. A previous owner already attached a vacuum adapter with the spring loaded lid to the pool-side intake of the leaf vacuum you showed in the second pool, but there is no lid or filter bag in the leaf vacuum. Just for kicks I tried attaching our vacuum to it, and it failed spectacularly since it’s open to the air from above, but I wondered if it actually had a lid on it and was a closed system if that would work?

[@PoolSchooler]

Actually it’s not a stupid question at all. And I appreciate your question. The only way you can attach that vacuum to that inlet you’re describing for the leaf vacuum for the pop-up system is if you can adjust how much suction goes to it from the pump and also you have to make sure that The lid seals the leaf bag inside. Actually in the pool that I used for this video they have a similar set up but two reasons we couldn’t use it the way you described, A there was no way to adjust the suction between the skimmer and the leaf vacuum, and the lid that they had for the leaf bag would not seal over the top so we couldn’t get enough suction. So unless you can completely seal that lid and then adjust the suction it probably won’t work

[@meltondaniels2825]

Let me see, Lose my skimmer, got this big thing in my pool all the time and have to restrict waterfall, yeah miss me with that one. I must say your advice has been great otherwise 👍

[@reyanshkingston9559]

i know it's quite off topic but do anybody know a good website to watch newly released series online?

[@emmanuelalexzander304]

@Reyansh Kingston lately I have been using flixzone. You can find it by googling :)

[@averyroman4504]

@Emmanuel Alexzander yea, I've been watching on InstaFlixxer for months myself :)

[@blaneahm9891]

In my opinion, in-floor pop-ups are pretty trash. They exhaust my pool pump, they don't really clean and my bottom is always filled with leaves and dirt. Can't wait to kill them and do a vacuum suction.

[@kiwicory100]

i get a bunch of pollen from a mesquite tree which ends up in the pool and floats around ...with no skimmer function my chlorine gets wacked by all the organic material in the pool and the pollen doesn't sink it sits on the surface...I m thinking a vacmate conversion for the pollen time of year as a compromise.

[@PoolSchooler]

When you have that kind of pollen and that much of it your Fossetts are probably through the roof so get a good phosphate remover like PR 10,000 that will help prevent algae from growing. As far as the vac meat do you not have a stay in the pool vacuum at this time?

[@kiwicory100]

@@PoolSchooler no I haven’t had one. New pool to me so getting to know it. Right now has pop up system in floor and have watched your vids on pros and cons and agree with your thoughts. Good feedback on phosphates and I have a commercial grade product. I think I’ve used it twice so far

[@PoolSchooler]

@@kiwicory100 Ok, so converting to a suction side vacuum like the Barracuda G3 (my favorite) with a VacMate won't do much for the pollen on the surface. But it should help a lot with the mesquite droppings on the bottom of the pool.

[@jackietheronstockstill9660]

Interesting!

[@Ddulz5050]

Thinking of buying a house that has pop ups. If I redo the pool is it a pain to get rid of them then resurface the pool ?

[@PoolSchooler]

That is a question that is probably out of my knowledge base. But… If I were to comment in my limited experience what is the topic of resurfacing your pool and plugging the pop-up. I would suggest resurfacing the pool and there are plugs that can be put into the pop-up holes to seal them and then convert your pool to a stay in the pool suction side vacuum using a vac mate

[@livingadreamlife1428]

Please explain why there is a need to change the system?

[@PoolSchooler]

I'd suggest watching my video on Pop Up Cleaning Systems (it's a bit lengthy) but I talk about how they work, and the Pro's and Con's of them and then I give my opinion on them). And there are several reasons people choose to convert their cleaning system from a pop ups to a stay in the pool vacuum. Here's that link: "In Floor Pop Up Cleaning Systems": kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2fLaH-ebJuJrMk

[@undercovergardener5632]

Im looking to do this and am wondering about a valve that says QDR skimmer. I cant find any info on QDR skimmer

[@PoolSchooler]

Undercover Gardener can you take some pics of it and email them to me?

[@sardanhasan9049]

How can I contact you ? I leave at Peoria Az Do you have a company or website ?

[@PoolSchooler]

I do not have a website. My pool service is "by referral only". I'm in the East Valley and don't go as far out as Peoria. Sorry.

[@Bigshoots86]

How can I convert a Polaris system with a booster pump to a suction system

[@PoolSchooler]

You can't turn a return side port into a suction side port without major excavation and replumbing. My suggestion would be to follow this video THEN you can turn off the flow to the Polaris vac. kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5LKiXSBrbNrsK8

[@JohnSWA]

I have the Caretaker in floor system with only one pump. I do not have a shutoff valve to the system and the only shutoff valve I have is to the water feature. Do I still have to remove the guts to the caretaker or can I just cap off the line that feeds the caretaker system?

[@PoolSchooler]

John Swa do you have a way to ensure that all the return flow goes back to your pool returns and not the pop-up returns?

[@JohnSWA]

@@PoolSchooler I don't Know. Can I take a pic of my plumbing and get your opinion? I'm in Gilbert and it looks like you are in the west side of town?

[@PoolSchooler]

John Swa sure. Take a few pics and email them to me.

[@JohnSWA]

Forgive me, but I can’t find your email. Would you please post it for me?

[@PoolSchooler]

John Swa sorry. It’s usually at the end of all of my videos but it’s [e-mail]. I’ll also update my “about” part of my channel with my email as well.

[@glengilbert963]

When converting to a vacuum system, how do you stop the pop ups from popping up? The vacuum always gets stuck on the pop up.

[@PoolSchooler]

You should be able to “pause” the heads from cycling. Wait for them to open up on the steps and then flip the “pause” lever in your pop up head actuator.

[@TheJForbes24]

@@PoolSchooler I am having this same issue. I took the guts out of the pop up canisters but they're still popping up. I looked for a valve to shut water flow off but no dice.

[@PoolSchooler]

@@TheJForbes24 Yup I've run into that as well. There are several ways these systems could've been set up and plummed. Since you took the "guts" out of your actuator. If you can open it back up and find the port that opens the return flow to the pop ups on the steps of your pool you can permanently remove that flap(s) and then those pop up heads will stay open leaving the others permanently down which should fix your issue, HOWEVER, sometime the suction on your vac is too high and can still cause the vac to stick on a head. Just play with the suction adjustment on the vac til you get enough to keep the vac moving and working without sucking onto a head.

[@josephtheinflatableguy4609]

I hate the pop ups because they are boring. I want the vacuum because I like how they work

[@rossferguson1812]

Are you in mesa

[@PoolSchooler]

I am not. But I’m not far from there. Are you looking for pool service?

[@rossferguson1812]

Yes I have a small dilemma I'm having a small party tomorrow and my son is flying in from Denver and my pool is not running correct

[@PoolSchooler]

@@rossferguson1812 I’m so sorry I can’t help you out. I’m boooked solid all weekend

[@rossferguson1812]

@@PoolSchooler it's ok I had another pool company help me out.

[@PoolSchooler]

@@rossferguson1812 So glad you were able to get it taken care of.

[@XrpAndy]

First !!!!!

[@donnaking4353]

Great job ‘ just. A suggestion take more camera shots of your topic and less of yourself

[@PoolSchooler]

@@donnaking4353 I will make note of that. Thank you for your comment and thanks for watching.

[@alextube1099]

Most of your videos are pretty good and I like them, but this one makes no sense. The pool cleaning system will use a little more electricity, but it comes as benefits. Conversion that you are recommending will leave you with no skimmers and some ugly thing crawling throughout the pool.

[@PoolSchooler]

You are right, but many of my pools in AZ have no issue with vegetation falling into their pools and so this option is fine for their needs. HOWEVER there is a way to keep the skimmer active (to a degree) when converting using a VacMate Skimmer converter by Pentair. I did a video this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nYTJk4GsadiJla8si=_4-zxQ1bQ9uGWSaf

[@jenren5785]

Too much dude. Way too much. I thinks likely a good video, but I wanted to know about moving to a vacuum system and you spent so much time putting out plugs for your other videos and types of vacuums, etc, that I finally quit watching at about the 5 minute mark after getting literally no information on transitioning.

[@PoolSchooler]

Sorry you felt that way. So often I get emails and comments from viewers and subscribers that ask me questions that my other videos will already answer so I try to be proactive and preemptive by giving people a “heads up“ on any videos that I do that cover a subject that I mention, the goal is really to be efficient in pointing people in the direction of a video that will help them without me being overwhelmed by hundreds of emails and comments which happens in the summertime