How To Make A Pool Vacuum Using A Garden Hose
A pool is always a great addition to any home. However, owning a pool comes with a set of responsibilities. For regular maintenance, a pool needs to be cleaned.
With continued use, your pool will accumulate debris at the bottom and you need a pool vacuum for cleaning. But what if you don’t have a specialized pool vacuum? If you have a garden hose, you can use it to make a pool vacuum.
With a garden hose and a vacuum bag, you can clean the floor of your pool even to the dirtiest part. The key component here is the vacuum bag which creates the suction action. The vacuum bag works by creating negative pressure.
Below are the steps on how to create a makeshift pool vacuum using your garden hose.
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Steps to Make a Pool Vacuum Using a Garden Hose
Things You’ll Need
- Garden hose – It’s your standard garden hose that’s flexible and made of soft rubber. Both ends of the hose are open and can be attached to various devices.
- Vacuum bag – The major component of this makeshift pool vacuum. The bag facilitates the suction and prevents dirt and debris from returning to the pool while cleaning.
- Telescoping shaft or pole – Every pool owner should have a telescoping pole as it’s a must for manual cleaning. It’s usually used for skimming pool water to remove floating debris. Also, you can attach a brush on its end for cleaning pool floors.
- Plastic funnel – Cut a 500 ml plastic bottle at 45 degrees and fit it to the hose. This will serve as a funnel.
Now that you know the materials that you need, let’s move on to the steps.
Steps to Make a Pool Vacuum Using a Garden Hose
Step 1: Select a Long Hose
Make sure your garden hose is long enough. Consider the size of your pool when choosing the length of the garden hose.
For example, an above ground Intex pool won’t require that long of a hose. On the flip side, a sizable inground pool will require a garden hose with a reasonable length.
Step 2: Attach the Vacuum Bag
Once you’ve decided on the right garden hose, attach one of its end to the vacuum bag. Check if the bag is attached to the right end of the hose. You can tell this by determining the end of the hose that connects to a valve that fits the bag’s bypass.
Vacuum cleaners generally come with a vacuum bag. For the ideal configuration of your homemade pool cleaner, use vacuum components from your household cleaner.
Step 3: Attach to Pole
Next, attach the other end of the hose to the telescoping shaft or pole. The free end of the hose may need an adapter that fits with the telescopic pole. In case you can’t fit the telescopic pole’s handle to the hose, try tying the hose’s end to the handle using a clean rope.
Step 4: Lower Into Pool
Once the telescopic pole has been attached to the hose, firmly and slowly lower it into the pool. Make sure that the pole touches the bottom of the pool to allow a good surface area for your hose. Also, make sure that pool’s circulation system is switched off.
Step 5: Vaccum the Pool
Guide the pole through the floor and pay attention to the debris and sediments that settled down there. Keep scanning the floor as needed but ensure there’s enough time to pull in water via the hose pipe. The dirt and debris on the floor will be pulled into the hose because the vacuum bag exerts low pressure.
What happens here is that the vacuum creates negative pressure inside the hose. Since the pressure inside the pool is greater, the water, dirt, and debris are pushed into the hose.
TIP: If the vacuum loses suction power, turn off the garden hose, remove the vacuum out of the water, and empty the vacuum bag. This should help restore the vacuum’s suction power.
Step 6: Remove Vacuum From Pool
It should take you a while but you’ll eventually clean the floor of the pool. After that, carefully take your homemade vacuum out of the pool. This is to prevent stirring the dirt in the water.
After removing your homemade vacuum, detach the telescopic pole from the garden hose. Take out the nozzle connected to the vacuum bag. Clean the vacuum and empty the debris bag.
What If You Don’t Like Manually Vacuuming Your Pool?
First, welcome to the club!
Although you certainly can manually clean your pool using a homemade vacuum, it’s still very much a chore. It’s a good thing that there’s no shortage of automatic pool vacuums that provide the much-needed convenience.
There are three types of automatic pool cleaners.
1. Pressure-Side Pool Cleaners
These automatic cleaners connect to the return line and utilize your filter system’s water pressure to propel the cleaner. The water that’s cycled back into the pool powers the cleaner. However, some models need an additional booster pump to operate.
Pressure-side automatic cleaners use a filtration bag to capture debris and dirt instead of using your pool’s filtration system. This relieves your filtration from significant wear and tear.
Pros
- Cost-effective
- Easy to maintain
- Relieves pressure and wear from the filtration system
Cons
- Needs the filter pump to run
- May require an additional booster pump
2. Suction Pool Cleaners
Suction type automatic cleaners are basically the automatic version of a manual pool vacuum. You set them up in the same way you hook up your manual vacuum. Of course, the main difference is that the cleaner moves around the pool floor on its own.
If applicable, suction cleaners may connect to your pool’s skimmer. To propel the cleaner throughout the pool, the filter pump’s suction is used.
Pros
- The most affordable type of automatic pool cleaner
- Easy to maintain
- Fewer moving parts
Cons
- Needs the filter pump to run
- Increases the load on the filtration system
3. Robotic Pool Cleaners
Think of robotic cleaners as an aquatic Roomba vacuum for your pool. Robotic cleaners are totally independent which means that they don’t connect to your pool system. Just plug them in an electrical outlet and they’re ready to clean.
Robotic cleaners offer superior cleaning while reducing power costs and consumption. They also scrub the floor so you don’t have to brush by hand. However, such power and convenience come at a cost as they’re the most expensive type of automatic cleaner.
Pros
- Cleans and scrubs efficiently
- Energy saver
- Relieves pressure and wear on pool equipment
Cons
- Most expensive automatic pool cleaner
- Needs to empty the built-in filter
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Related Questions
Which is Better, Manual, or Automatic Pool Cleaning?
Many people like manually vacuuming their pool as a zen moment. However, you have to keep in mind that manual vacuuming is a chore. Vacuuming by hand takes a lot of time of strength, and the slower you go the better.We recommend manual pool vacuuming as a stop-gap measure if you don’t have a dedicated cleaner available. Otherwise, you’re better off using an automatic cleaner for better results and convenience.
Do I Still Need to Brush My Pool?
Although most pools come with an automatic pool cleaner, many of them don’t scrub, especially not thoroughly. Brushing the pool floor will remove algae and other small particles on the surface.If you want an automatic cleaner that brushes the surface, you should opt for a robotic pool cleaner. We highly recommend the Dolphin Nautilus CC Plus Robotic Pool Cleaner.
Do I Need to Drain My Pool Every Year?
We don’t recommend draining your pool, especially during the off-season. In winter, keeping water in the pool adds a layer of protection for the bottom, preventing cracks during freezing temperatures.Your pool is at its best when it’s full of water. When you drain the water, you’re leaving the pool vulnerable to all sorts of damages, most notably is hydrostatic pressure. Pool draining should be treated as a last resort.Instead, get your pool a high-quality cover to protect it from debris and cold temperatures. To use your pool during the off-season, invest in a pool heater.
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