Buy or Rent Trash Pump for Emptying Swimming Pool

[rstsco]

I have severely neglected my swimming pool since last fall to the point a family of frogs have moved in. It's 14,000 gallon and fiberglass. I have tried to recover by capturing the frogs, then shocking the pool, and the top will start to look better, but there's a layer of gunk on the bottom that seems to be never-ending. I have two robotic pool cleaners, one battery-powered and does okay removing leaves and simple stuff, and a Dolphin Sigma which has two different sets of filters, one more coarse than the other. Both clog quickly from this nasty sediment. Using a pole and basket, it's really nasty and much filters through. I have reached the point where draining/pumping out the pool is my only remaining option. I have maintained this pool for going on 10 years, and this is the first time I've ever let it get like this. I have a heat pump and we're usually swimming year-round.

I originally planned on seeing if I could get a pool company to come out. Due to the gunk in the bottom, I think a trash pump will be needed. My wife thinks we should do it ourselves and looked up what we could buy one for at Home Depot, a highly-rated, consumer-grade, Champion 3" Semi-Trash Pump with all the necessary accessories. My military discount takes 10% off, so the cost would be $450+tax. It will handle solids up to 3/4". Nothing in the pool is this big that I can tell, since I can't actually see the bottom.

Other options are to rent for $77 for 24 hours from HD rental, and one of their stores in this area has a unit that was a rental for sale. My wife is actually pushing for us to buy one instead of renting. I think the Champion would do what I need. The retired rental unit can only be purchased as-is. Once you leave the store, it's yours. Of course it's a much heavier-duty commercial unit made by Wacker Neuson and comes with the supply and discharge hoses for $588. New, they're ~$2k or more.

What do you think is the best option?

 

[Rand]

Harbor freight?

Realistically you could probably rent the HD model and return it within 4 hours.

 

[grasscutter]

Everybody in my neighborhood pumps the water into the street and then it's on its way to the storm drain via the gutter.

 

[nickaluch]

I rented one from home Depot I think it was $75 for the day with enough hose to reach the street. It emptied it pretty quick. I have also emptied it with a few garden hoses with no pump took a few days

 

[dishdude]

How often do you drain the pool? Once every few years? I'd probably just rent one. Save from having to store it and I never had luck with the carburetors on those little infrequently used engines.

 

[walterjay]

I would just rent one

 

[shortyb]

Third vote for rental.

Are you gonna muck the bottom by hand?

 

[BobsArmory]

Rent, Why buy something that will gather dust and go bad from disuse?

 

[GaryMX5]

Renting one seems to be a no brainer. You can drain the majority of the pool in a couple of hours (probably less) with a 200 gpm pump which most rental units seem to be rated at. You'll usually need a small submersible sump pump with garden hose for the little bit that's usually left. If the weather allows, it's sometimes easier to let the gunk (that the pump can't pick up) to dry then remove it...(a been there done that moment). I've drained a (12'x28' w/ 8' deep end) pool with a couple of 50 dollar submersible pumps and garden hoses in 5 to 6 hours or so (started pumping in the shallow end and then moved the pumps a little deeper to minimize lift).

 

[RhondaHonda]

Can you pump it out using the pool pump and main drain? Not sure on your equipment setup but my pump is below the pool surface. I’ve never had to pump it all the way out though so maybe I’m full of it.

If you stick the net in there does it come up with a bunch of gunk? I’d think you could clear this up with 15 gallons of 10-12.5% chlorine.

 

[rstsco]

Immediately behind the wooden fence, which we recently replaced, is a 25' foot wide concrete drainage culvert which carries water from street drains into a greenbelt. I can just pump straight into it. We don't have a very big back yard, but we own the drainage culvert that runs behind our house. We got the biggest pool which we could legally fit in our back yard, 36' long. They used a 70 ton crane to lift it from the street, over the trees and our 2-story house, and into the hole they dug.

Can you pump it out using the pool pump and main drain? Not sure on your equipment setup but my pump is below the pool surface. I’ve never had to pump it all the way out though so maybe I’m full of it.

If you stick the net in there does it come up with a bunch of gunk? I’d think you could clear this up with 15 gallons of 10-12.5% chlorine.

There is no drain on the pool, so has to be pumped from above.

I currently have 42 gallons of pool chlorine "in stock". It doesn't eliminate the gunk, but what I've already used may have contributed to help breaking it down into this sludgy gunk.

Third vote for rental.

Are you gonna muck the bottom by hand?

I agree with everyone the rental makes the most sense. I'd like to suck out as much gunk as possible, so will probably refill with a few hundred gallons, maybe using the pressure washer on the gunk, after it's pumped all it can. Then pump more of the gunk out. Rinse/repeat.

 

[RhondaHonda]

Ahhh, I didn’t know they built newer pools without a main drain. Yeah if that’s the case, I’d rent a trash pump. Make sure you don’t float the pool shell if you have a high water table.

 

[BobsArmory]

Yep floating a pool out of the ground is a thing!

 

[4wd]

I have severely neglected my swimming pool since last fall to the point a family of frogs have moved in. It's 14,000 gallon and fiberglass. I have tried to recover by capturing the frogs, then shocking the pool, and the top will start to look better, but there's a layer of gunk on the bottom that seems to be never-ending. I have two robotic pool cleaners, one battery-powered and does okay removing leaves and simple stuff, and a Dolphin Sigma which has two different sets of filters, one more coarse than the other. Both clog quickly from this nasty sediment. Using a pole and basket, it's really nasty and much filters through. I have reached the point where draining/pumping out the pool is my only remaining option. I have maintained this pool for going on 10 years, and this is the first time I've ever let it get like this. I have a heat pump and we're usually swimming year-round.

I originally planned on seeing if I could get a pool company to come out. Due to the gunk in the bottom, I think a trash pump will be needed. My wife thinks we should do it ourselves and looked up what we could buy one for at Home Depot, a highly-rated, consumer-grade, Champion 3" Semi-Trash Pump with all the necessary accessories. My military discount takes 10% off, so the cost would be $450+tax. It will handle solids up to 3/4". Nothing in the pool is this big that I can tell, since I can't actually see the bottom.

Other options are to rent for $77 for 24 hours from HD rental, and one of their stores in this area has a unit that was a rental for sale. My wife is actually pushing for us to buy one instead of renting. I think the Champion would do what I need. The retired rental unit can only be purchased as-is. Once you leave the store, it's yours. Of course it's a much heavier-duty commercial unit made by Wacker Neuson and comes with the supply and discharge hoses for $588. New, they're ~$2k or more.

What do you think is the best option?

When I faced that (owned this pool since 1996) - I bought a duplicate of my filter pump. Quick wiring to a plug - and some flex hose - pumped the pool down …
That’s my next pump/motor when the old stuff fails …

 

[cpayne5]

Carefully consider whether draining the pool is the right move. As others have said, it could pop out of the ground. Most fiberglass pool manufacturers will void a warranty if they find out a homeowner drained the pool. At 10 years old, you may not have a warranty to worry about, but it speaks to the seriousness of draining a fiberglass pool. That said, a pool company can definitely get your pool clean without draining it.

Can you manually vacuum to waste? I do that whenever I have a lot of leaves or other waste I don't want in my filter. If you can get the bulk of it out that way, then you can release the robots.

I have a fiberglass pool and let mine turn into a swamp last winter, too. I didn't cover it and the wind blew two potted plants into the pool over the winter. We had tons of leaves and a lot of potting soil on the bottom. It took a lot of work (manual vacuuming) and a lot of chlorinator, but I got it clean. Not fun. Good luck.

 

[4wd]

Carefully consider whether draining the pool is the right move. As others have said, it could pop out of the ground. Most fiberglass pool manufacturers will void a warranty if they find out a homeowner drained the pool. At 10 years old, you may not have a warranty to worry about, but it speaks to the seriousness of draining a fiberglass pool. That said, a pool company can definitely get your pool clean without draining it.

Can you manually vacuum to waste? I do that whenever I have a lot of leaves or other waste I don't want in my filter. If you can get the bulk of it out that way, then you can release the robots.

I have a fiberglass pool and let mine turn into a swamp last winter, too. I didn't cover it and the wind blew two potted plants into the pool over the winter. We had tons of leaves and a lot of potting soil on the bottom. It took a lot of work (manual vacuuming) and a lot of chlorinator, but I got it clean. Not fun. Good luck.

I should have added - when I rigged up the spare pump - I vacuumed to waste at a low level (concrete pool) after hitting the sides with liquid pool chlorine …

 

[rstsco]

I should have added - when I rigged up the spare pump - I vacuumed to waste at a low level (concrete pool) after hitting the sides with liquid pool chlorine …

I had another 1.5hp pump, which I bought a couple of years ago and rigged to a filter cartridge to use with the vacuum attachment, saving wear-and-tear on my larger cartridge filters which uses 4 cartridges. I decided to remove all filters and see what it could pump. It ran for about 5 minutes before it became so clogged it quick pumping.

Went to HD yesterday afternoon and rented a 3" trash pump capable of passing anything smaller than 1.5". Pumped it down some, spraying the debris from the shallower areas into the deep end, then pumping more, etc. During this process, I caught and evicted 2 garter snakes and a half dozen large frogs. I knew some frogs were living there, but not the snakes. I guess they were why there wasn't any small frogs.

Got the pool pumped out and the few remaining bits of debris out with a leaf basket. Been refilling since last night, adding jugs of chlorine throughout the process. Still have several hours before the pool will be filled. In the meantime, I'm flushing out the return line to the main pump and filter (removing cartridges). Still have some work to do, but it might be swimmable by this weekend.

I am SO glad to not have purchased a trash pump. The one I was looking at buying would have taken more effort on my part with all the gunk, then I'd have to find a place to store it and those darn heavy hoses. I'm getting too old for this .

 

[4wd]

I had another 1.5hp pump, which I bought a couple of years ago and rigged to a filter cartridge to use with the vacuum attachment, saving wear-and-tear on my larger cartridge filters which uses 4 cartridges. I decided to remove all filters and see what it could pump. It ran for about 5 minutes before it became so clogged it quick pumping.

Went to HD yesterday afternoon and rented a 3" trash pump capable of passing anything smaller than 1.5". Pumped it down some, spraying the debris from the shallower areas into the deep end, then pumping more, etc. During this process, I caught and evicted 2 garter snakes and a half dozen large frogs. I knew some frogs were living there, but not the snakes. I guess they were why there wasn't any small frogs.

Got the pool pumped out and the few remaining bits of debris out with a leaf basket. Been refilling since last night, adding jugs of chlorine throughout the process. Still have several hours before the pool will be filled. In the meantime, I'm flushing out the return line to the main pump and filter (removing cartridges). Still have some work to do, but it might be swimmable by this weekend.

I am SO glad to not have purchased a trash pump. The one I was looking at buying would have taken more effort on my part with all the gunk, then I'd have to find a place to store it and those darn heavy hoses. I'm getting too old for this .

I have a pipeline filter on that pump - but bypass it - have a screen in the hose and the pump. This is only for bottom sediment after dipping out the big stuff - and a couple days to settle … I still have to clean the screens over and over …
One day I’ll crash the fence with a backhoe

 

[zzyzzx]

I would think that this would be sufficient and cost effective:
https://www.harborfreight.com/16-hp-submersible-utility-pump-1600-gph-63319.html
$65 Connects to a standard garden hose. No idea how long it would take to empty the pool, but does that even matter?

 

[rstsco]

Update: Turned on the heat pump on Wednesday and it ran several hours, then started making a strange noise, so powered it off. The temp was at 79F by then. Tried turning the heat pump on yesterday, but it just hummed like the capacitor might be bad. The pool still showed 79F at 4pm, so my wife and I decided to jump in. She quickly wimped out, but she didn't even move around, other than shivering. Adding borates via Borax 20 Mule Team, so playing chemist until the boron gets to the level I want. Like cyanuric acid (CYA), this is a one-time add unless of heavy rains or draining the pool and refilling.

Our German Shepherd Dog is probably the happiest of all. When he was a puppy, we started taking him in the pool in our arms, then teaching him where the steps were located, so in case he fell in, he'd be able to get himself out. Many years later, he will get in the pool on the top step and wait for us to pick him up in our arms and walk around with him. He was trying to get in the pool on the steps the same time we were trying to get in. We also have a pool float designed for dogs and will put him in it where he'll float around the whole time we're in the pool. His sister (pittie) does not like getting in the pool at all.

So for now, the pool is safe for swimming. Once the borate level is where I want it, I'll be adding cyanuric acid to get the CYA level to where I want. Borate and CYA are for helping to stabilize pH and chlorine, reducing fluctuations in their levels. Borates also help control potential algae and have other beneficial properties in a pool.