Anyone here have experience with pool hoses?

The length 'needed' is 60 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose.

Leslie's pool supply says you can only get 35 feet of 1 1/2; if I want 60
feet, it jumps to 2 inch hose (which requires an adapter).

Two questions:
- If I opt for two 35 feet lengths, how do you connect them? (Duct tape?)

- If I opt for one length, can we actually buy 60-foot 1 1/2 inch hose
(Leslie's says it isn't sold).

Thanks, in advance

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 13:50:16 -0700, SF Man wrote:
The length 'needed' is 60 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose.

I forgot to mention this is the 'vacuum hose'.

The one with the spirals to keep it from collapsing.

I think I'll be forced to use two 35 feet 1 1/2 inch hoses ... but if I do
.... how are they supposed to be connected?

On Jun 15, 4:59*pm, SF Man wrote:
On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 13:50:16 -0700, SF Man wrote:
The length 'needed' is 60 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose.

I forgot to mention this is the 'vacuum hose'.

The one with the spirals to keep it from collapsing.

I think I'll be forced to use two 35 feet 1 1/2 inch hoses ... but if I do
... how are they supposed to be connected?

How do you connect the hose to the vacuum outlet ?

To connect two hoses together, construct your own butt-splice
using a short section of PVC piping the correct diameter to
just slip inside the hoses far enough so that you can clamp
the hose to it with a metal hose clamp...

You would then wrap the spliced section of hose where the
metal hose clamps are with a waterproof tape to protect
the world around your pool from getting scratched by your
home spliced super long hose...

~~ Evan

On Jun 15, 4:50*pm, SF Man wrote:

Leslie's pool supply says you can only get 35 feet of 1 1/2; if I want 60
feet, it jumps to 2 inch hose (which requires an adapter).

http://www.mydiscountpoolsupplies.co...m4sg1itvn2li05

Or, http://tinyurl.com/60poolhose
-----

- gpsman

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:42:39 -0700 (PDT), Evan wrote:
How do you connect the hose to the vacuum outlet ?

It's a 1 1/2 inch opening. You just shove the hose into that hole.

To connect two hoses together, construct your own butt-splice

I was hoping there was something more elegant, and disconnectable.

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:56:33 -0700, Oren wrote:
Does the 35 foot hose have a male / female end? If so, they likely
snap together like the 4 foot hoses do...

Both ends are the same. It's hard to say whether they are male or female,
but, they're the same.

They look like male, but, on the one end that goes to the vacuum, it goes
into the vacuum hole (where the vacuum hole surrounds the hose).

On the other end, it looks the same, but instead of going into a hole, it
goes on top of the vacuum head itself (i.e., the hose surrounds the vacuum
head).

You can flip the hose end to end and it would work the same.
- One end acts like a male and goes inside the vacuum hole
- The other end, acts like a female and surrounds the post of the hand
vacuum

Both ends are the same.

On 6/15/2011 5:48 PM, SF Man wrote:
On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:56:33 -0700, Oren wrote:
Does the 35 foot hose have a male / female end? If so, they likely
snap together like the 4 foot hoses do...
Both ends are the same. It's hard to say whether they are male or female,
but, they're the same.

They look like male, but, on the one end that goes to the vacuum, it goes
into the vacuum hole (where the vacuum hole surrounds the hose).

On the other end, it looks the same, but instead of going into a hole, it
goes on top of the vacuum head itself (i.e., the hose surrounds the vacuum
head).

You can flip the hose end to end and it would work the same.
- One end acts like a male and goes inside the vacuum hole
- The other end, acts like a female and surrounds the post of the hand
vacuum

Both ends are the same.

I have a hard time believing you can't buy a longer hose though. Here's
a 50' one. http://www.poolproducts.com/SPP/prod...family_id=2410

On a vacuum hose it would be best if it was one piece. If you cant find
one buy the two 35 foot cut the ends off and get a sleeve for your 1-1/2
tube and use marine caulking or glue to hold in place.

On Jun 15, 6:19*pm, gpsman wrote:
On Jun 15, 4:50*pm, SF Man wrote:



Leslie's pool supply says you can only get 35 feet of 1 1/2; if I want 60
feet, it jumps to 2 inch hose (which requires an adapter).

http://www.mydiscountpoolsupplies.co....html?osCsid=8....

Or,http://tinyurl.com/60poolhose
*-----

- gpsman


Just out of curiousity, what size pool is this for? A 60ft vacuum
hose
seems very long. This is the hose you use to vacuum debris from
the pool right? They usually attach to a skimmer. And most pools
have a skimmer somewhere around the middle and more than one
skimmer. So, even if the pool were 40ft long, a hose maybe 30ft
long should work and it would be a lot easier to work with.
most pools.

Also, I've never found the manual vacuums to be very useful. I have
a Polaris and it does all the cleaning during the season.

With the longer length of hose, it may be a good idea to go
with the larger size. Friction loss in the tubing is a
factor. The water "rubs" on the edge of the hose, and it
makes it dificult to move the water. So, the larger hose may
be needed.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"SF Man" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 13:50:16 -0700, SF Man wrote:
The length 'needed' is 60 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose.

I forgot to mention this is the 'vacuum hose'.

The one with the spirals to keep it from collapsing.

I think I'll be forced to use two 35 feet 1 1/2 inch hoses
.... but if I do
.... how are they supposed to be connected?

On Jun 16, 2:38*am, SF Man wrote:
On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:12:02 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
Just out of curiousity, what size pool is this for? *

The pool is 60 feet long. It has a so-called Paramount Self-Cleaning
System, which means it's not built to use a vacuum hose as there is
supposedly no need for a vacuum.

This is the hose you use to vacuum debris from
the pool right? *

Technically this type of pool isn't built for a vacuum head. So they didn't
place the Paramount "debris cannister" in a convenient location (for
vacuuming).http://www.paramountpoolproducts.com/

They usually attach to a skimmer. *

In a 'normal' pool, the skimmers would go to the pool filter; but in this
type of pool, the skimmers just send dirty water back into the pool,
unfiltered.

I know it sounds whacky, but all the skimmers do is trap BIG stuff (really
big stuff) in the basket; the rest goes right back into the pool since the
skimmers feed the floor jets directly (without any filtering whatsoever).

And most pools have a skimmer somewhere around the middle
and more than one skimmer. *

This pool has exactly that. Except the skimmers are unfiltered. They go
right back to the pool, unfiltered. In fact, I was confused when I was
constantly told by Leslie's personnel to hook the vacuum hose into the
skimmers and to put chemicals into the skimmer.

What happened was I vacuumed debris off the bottom of the pool and watched
it shoot right back into the pool, unfiltered. *

I see what you're saying. Sounds like a crazy system to me. While
there
is a lot of large debris that any skimmer catches, eg leaves, there is
also
a lot of small debris, eg pollen from trees, smaller pieces of leaves,
etc
that a conventional system would remove via the skimmers going to
the filter. In the system you have, if I understand it correctly,
that stuff
has to sink to the bottom first and make it;s way over to the bottom
drain.

I do see your need for a 60ft hose if you want to rely on
vacuuming. How often do you need to vacuum with this system?
I'm here in NJ with a pool with a reasonable amount of trees and
plants nearby and the only time we vacuum is maybe at the
beginning of the season when we open the pool. And then
only if there is a large amount of debris that made it into
the pool, eg leaves, and it's located in clusters or areas that
make it worthwhile. For the rest of the season, the Polaris
does the whole job. Polaris can also do the opening part
too, just that it would take longer, more bag emptying and
if the stuff is mostly in a couple places, the vacuum can do
it quicker/easier.






So, even if the pool were 40ft long, a hose maybe 30ft
long should work and it would be a lot easier to work with.
most pools.

Most pools yes.

This pool has the 'debris cannister" (the only thing that is filtered) on
the end of the pool. It is just not designed for ease of vacuuming.

I guess I 'could' hook up a 120 volt stand-alone vacuum which has its own
filter bag; but that's a LOT more expensive than just buying a long hose
(or securely connecting two shorter hoses).

Also, I've never found the manual vacuums to be very useful. *I have
a Polaris and it does all the cleaning during the season.

I understand. As I said above, this pool has the "self cleaning" jets
sprinkled about. Their job is to stir up the pool (the thing looks like a
whirlpool when they're operating - it mixes better than a pot of boiling
water!) so that the debris ends up at the far end where the drain is.

From that one drain, the dirty water goes through the filter, and then back
to the pool clean.

In effect, there is no place to 'put' the Polaris system, since it would be
permanently installed. (BTW, does your Polaris have its own filter bag?
Does it work for fine debris?).

The Polaris has a bag that's on the unit. It holds about a grapefruit
size worth of debris. On typical days, it can go for several days
before needing to be emptied. If there is a storm and more leaves
wind up in the pool, then it would need to be emptied more frequently.
The pool is 48K gallons.

They have a regular bag and also one for fine debris. Pretty much
only use the regular bag, as that catches everything. I think part of
what happens is as the bag starts to catch leaves, etc, that in turn
traps more of the finer stuff too. When the bag is emptied, it's a
mix of leaves, some wood mulch, insects, sand, etc.

The way the Polaris works is it has it's own booster pump which
is connected to the returning water going to the pool. The Polaris
has a floating hose which connects to a twist on fitting in the
pool wall that goes to that pump. Obviously not an easy retrofit
for your pool. There are other similar robotic cleaners that just
connect to AC that you could look into if you;re interested.




Anyway, the 'good news' is that the cleaning system 'mostly works'.
Therefore, manual vacuuming of the grains of sand and rocks blown into the
pool are mostly what I need to vacuum up.

How often do you have to do that and how long does it take? I found
manuevering the vacuum to be a PIA and it takes quite a while
to do even modest sections.

On Thu, 16 Jun 2011 09:02:51 -0400, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Friction loss in the tubing is a factor.

I understand ... but don't have the experience to know whether it will
work.

If I go with the larger hose (2" versus 1 1/2 inch), friction losses will
be lower but it will be more unwieldy and I then have to adapt the fitting
to a 1 1/2 inch male fitting on both ends anyway.

So, I'm realizing, the best of both worlds, might be a half-length of 1 1/2
inch hose (for just the deep end) and another half length of the larger
hose (with appropriate fittings) for the far end.

The problem now, is locating screw-type couplings to fit.

On Thu, 16 Jun 2011 06:15:16 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
The Polaris has a bag that's on the unit.

My pool is apparently 38K gallons, so, the Polaris should work, in theory.

When the bag is emptied, it's a
mix of leaves, some wood mulch, insects, sand, etc.

For me, it's only the finer, heavier stuff (grains of sand and rocks) that
the Paramount in-floor cleaning system misses.

But I think you've answered my question. I thought the polaris was filtered
by the filter pump - but - it seems it uses its own bag as the filter -
which is good because I would then not need to connect to the filter pipes.

The way the Polaris works is it has it's own booster pump

Interestingly, the builders apparently left an unused screw-type port in
the middle of the pool (where it belongs), which has a pipe that seems to
go to the pumphouse, but, at the pumphouse, it's capped off with a jandy
valve and a cap.

Presumably that's where I'd put a pump that just runs the vacuum system.
All my pumps are 2.2 horsepower (how large is the one that runs your
Polaris?).

The Polaris has a floating hose which connects to a twist on fitting in the
pool wall that goes to that pump.

That's exactly what I have - only it was put in by the builder and never
completed. I guess it was an 'option'.

There are other similar robotic cleaners that just
connect to AC that you could look into if you;re interested.

That may be an option. But, for now, it's the manual vacuum that I need
just to get the heavy small debris (sand & rocks) that the cleaner system
seems to miss.

How often do you have to do that and how long does it take?

I have been using a garden-hose vacuum (which stinks). It takes about an
hour a week, but, it doesn't work all that well (and always leaves a bit of
sand lying on the bottom).

I suspect, once I get the manual vacuum to work, that a half hour or less a
week will get rid of the heavy stuff that blows into the pool from the wind
(it's a very windy area, quite exposed).

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:01:55 -0500, JimT wrote:

On a vacuum hose it would be best if it was one piece. If you cant find
one buy the two 35 foot cut the ends off and get a sleeve for your 1-1/2
tube and use marine caulking or glue to hold in place.

I think two smaller hoses with a 'secure' fitting is where I'm leaning.

Looking at this web site, I should be able to find a fitting that works:
(http://www.poolcenter.com/plumbing_supplies.htm)

I'm thinking of using that blue glue to glue one of those screw-type
fittings on one end of each 35' length of 1 1/2 inch swimming pool vacuum
hose.

Then, I can connect the two hoses.

I guess I also need a very short length on the vacuum head also.

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 15:19:09 -0700 (PDT), gpsman wrote:
Or, http://tinyurl.com/60poolhose

Thanks. I had looked at places like this:
http://www.recreonics.com/vacuum_hoses.htm

And they only went up to 50 feet on the 1 1/2 inch hose.

I wonder what size the END FITTING is on the 2" hose. I presume it's a
bigger fitting than the 1 1/2 inch hose?

I'll need to call one of the suppliers to see if they know as I can
visualize it either way.

On Jun 16, 10:19*pm, SF Man wrote:
On Thu, 16 Jun 2011 06:15:16 -0700 (PDT), wrote:
The Polaris has a bag that's on the unit.

My pool is apparently 38K gallons, so, the Polaris should work, in theory..

When the bag is emptied, it's a
mix of leaves, some wood mulch, insects, sand, etc.

For me, it's only the finer, heavier stuff (grains of sand and rocks) that
the Paramount in-floor cleaning system misses.

But I think you've answered my question. I thought the polaris was filtered
by the filter pump - but - it seems it uses its own bag as the filter -
which is good because I would then not need to connect to the filter pipes.

That's right. Clean return water goes into the Polaris. At the
bottom of the Polaris, there are 3 small jets inside an 1 1/2"
opening that shoot water up and into the bag that's on top
of the unit. Those water jets create a suction effect at the
bottom that pulls in the debris. It also has a wagging tail
with a foam cover that rubs the pools surface as it moves
along.




The way the Polaris works is it has it's own booster pump

Interestingly, the builders apparently left an unused screw-type port in
the middle of the pool (where it belongs), which has a pipe that seems to
go to the pumphouse, but, at the pumphouse, it's capped off with a jandy
valve and a cap.

That sounds like a connection for the Polaris. Mine is in the middle
of
the long side of the pool, about 18" down from the water surface.




Presumably that's where I'd put a pump that just runs the vacuum system.
All my pumps are 2.2 horsepower (how large is the one that runs your
Polaris?).

1 hp. You can get the pump packaged together with the Polaris.
It's on it's own switch so that when the filter pump is on, you can
have the Polaris on or off. I think another advantage of the Polaris
is when it's running it helps get the pool circulated faster as you
have the return water from it going randomly all over the pool,
including the bottom, where it spends a lot of it's time.

On Jun 16, 9:58*pm, SF Man wrote:
On Thu, 16 Jun 2011 09:02:51 -0400, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Friction loss in the tubing is a factor.

I understand ... but don't have the experience to know whether it will
work.

If I go with the larger hose (2" versus 1 1/2 inch), friction losses will
be lower but it will be more unwieldy and I then have to adapt the fitting
to a 1 1/2 inch male fitting on both ends anyway.

So, I'm realizing, the best of both worlds, might be a half-length of 1 1/2
inch hose (for just the deep end) and another half length of the larger
hose (with appropriate fittings) for the far end.

The problem now, is locating screw-type couplings to fit.

I would think you could probably just use 1 1/2" and it would be OK.
You should be able to get an idea by seeing how much vacuum
effect you have from whatever the longest lenght of hose you have
now. Also, if you can close off some of the other intakes, that
will create more suction on the hose you want. I have to close
off all but the vacuum hose to get good suction.

Of course, when
you do that you want to be careful. If that remaining intake gets
closed too, it could cause so much vacuum pressure it could
cause piping to collapse. I think that is only a concern where
they have used flexible PVC underground. Don't know what
they use out there, but here on the east coast, flex PVC is
very common. And you might not know it because they
transition to regular PVC before it exists the ground at the
pool eqpt pad.

This is the part you need to connect two 1.5 inch pool vacuum hoses.
* Images: http://tinyurl.com/6a8t46v

* Pool Vac Hose Connector male-male GPS10
* Pictu https://www.glenridgepoolsupplies.com/media_products/
DPM10_1_w600.jpg
* Price: $3.99 + Tax: $0.40 + Shipping: $11.00 = $15.39
* Tinyurl: http://tinyurl.com/44525cu
* URL: https://www.glenridgepoolsupplies.co...onnector-male-
male-gps10-pool-vacuum-and-backwash-hoses-prod.html?
srt=2d&products_id=3393&mfg_id=73&cPath=304

Leslie's Pool Supply also has it:
* HOSE ADAPTER, FEMALE (58893)
* Pictu http://www.lesliespool.com/lesliespo...mall/58893.jpg
* Price: 6.99 + Tax: $0.70 + Handling: $5.99 = $13.68
* Tinyurl: http://tinyurl.com/5vw8bjk
* URL: http://www.lesliespool.com/Home/Auto...ers/Parts-and-
Accessories/58800.html

You have only one cost-effective solution which is to connect two smaller
hose lengths. Anything longer than about 30 feet is too difficult to
handle.

On Wed, 15 Jun 2011 13:50:16 -0700, SF Man wrote:
The length 'needed' is 60 feet of 1 1/2 inch hose.

As a followup, fundamenally, I 'made' a set of fittings to connect two
35-feet hoses together. Now I have 72 feet (see why below) of 1 1/2 inch
hose.

Chronology:
1. I bought two 36 foot lengths of 1.5 inch vacuum hose (hence the 72 feet)
from Lowes (much cheaper than Home Depot & vastly cheaper than Leslie's
Pool Supply). I paid just over a dollar a foot, after the 10% sales tax was
added.

2. I bought a few 'hose barbs' from Lowes which are about six inches long,
consisting of 1.5 inch male PVC pipe threads on one end, and the other end
has about 3 inches of successevly cone-shaped smaller openings such that it
can be shoved inside the male end of the vacuum hose of varying sizes.

3. Then I added a 1.5 inch PVC slip ring which was female threaded on one
end and a 1.5 slip fitting on the other.

4. To that slip fitting, I added a 1.25 inch "bushing", which makes the
hole opening smaller (because 1.5 inch is apparently the maximum dimension
of the vacuum hose - the minimum dimension being closer to 1.25 inches).

I then used that fitting to connect the two hoses!

As for the 2 inch opening in the Paramount Pool Cleaner cleaning cannister:

a. I bought a 2" slip fitting (2 inch male threads on one end, with a two
inch slip fitting on the other end).

b. I bought a 2" to 1.5" bushing.

Now, I can stick the 1.5 inch male facuum hose end into the paramount
debris cannister with a 36 foot 1.5 inch vacuum hose on the vacuum for the
deep end of the pool.

When I need to vacuum the shallow end (much less often), I can now connect
the two hoses.

If I run the two 10-amp pumps for 10 hours a day, there is little need to
vacuum (one pump stirs the pool and is connected to the skimmers, but it's
unfiltered; the other pump is filtered and connects to the debris cannister
- so both pumps need to be on to clean the pool).

But if I run the two 2.2 horsepower pumps for half that time (about 5 hours
a day), then I need to use this newly made vacuum contraption to vacuum up
some of the debris left over. That vacuuming takes about 10 minutes; but it
takes another ten minutes to hook up the hoses to the debris cannister
(getting it primed is the hardest part).

Anyway, thanks to all - I now have a reasonable solution!

On Thu, 30 Jun 2011 23:24:57 -0700, SF Man wrote:
Anyway, thanks to all - I now have a reasonable solution!

Just for the record, this isn't a 'normal' pool.

It is not designed for a vacuum; so the retrofit is what was the thinking
part.

The pool is designed to have two 2.2 horsepower pumps running for about 10
hours a day: one (unfiltered) is to stir the pool so that debris collects
in the specially designed deep end; the other pump is to filter the water.

The first (unfiltered) cleaner pump simply operates the two skimmers and
the cleaner jets. Strangely, there is no filtering (except for the filter
baskets at the two skimmers and one at the pump).

The other (filter) pump, simply sucks the water out the bottom of the pool
at the deep end; it collects the big stuff in the debris cannister, and
sends the small stuff to the pool filter cartridge.

The ONLY place you can hook a vacuum up that is FILTERED is at the 2 inch
opening of the debris cannister. So, that's where I put my 1.5 inch hose.

Unfortunately, since the pool isn't designed to use a vacuum, this debris
cannister is situated at the deep end of the pool; so that's why 60 feet of
hose is required.

Anyway, the compromise is that, instead of running the two ten-amp pumps
for ten to twelve hours a day to clean the pool, I can clean the pool by
running the two pumps half that time, and then spending ten to twnty
minutes (mostly hooking and unhooking things up) vacuuming up any debris
left over.

It works. If you know of a more elegant solution, I'm always listening.