How to Manually Vacuum a Pool that has a Vacuum Leak (Suction Leak)

In this article I cover how to vacuum a pool that has a vacuum leak, known also as a suction leak. If air is entering the filtration system, this causes the pump to lose prime when you connect a manual vacuum or automatic cleaner to the skimmer. The vacuum leak introduces air into what should be a closed system creating a loss of suction.

Some of the tell tale signs of a vacuum leak are that there is air coming out of the pool return lines constantly while the pool is running, sometimes air will come out of the return lines for the first couple of minutes and then stop. But with a vacuum leak air will come out of the line all the time. When you connect an automatic cleaner or a manual vacuum hose, the pool will lose prime.

One of the problems with a vacuum leak is that the air in the system will cause the pool pump to prime slowly (usually it primes) and a vacuum leak makes it nearly impossible to manually vacuum a pool and will cause your automatic cleaner to work poorly, if at all.

With the air in the system the skimmer will work fine in most cases. It will continue to pull water in at a good velocity and you generally don't have any real issues with a vacuum leak causing the pool not to run, unless the air leak is really large. But when you connect 50 ft of additional hose to manually vacuum your pool, the pump will loss it's prime completely.

Because of the air in the system the pump cannot pull the water the extra 50 ft and the pump will lose prime. Disconnect the manual vacuum hose and the pool primes back up in about 30 seconds. Connect the hose and the pool will lose it's prime again. This can be very frustrating, especially if the pool needs a good vacuuming.

The end all solution would be to fix the vacuum leak. Usually it is the pump lid o-ring, a bad union or a leaking PVC joint. But sometimes it is harder to isolate and the problem will persist for a long period of time. In the meantime to pool is getting dirty. You can of course spend $800 and get a good robotic cleaner that does not require your pool pump and filter, which would solve the problem but is expensive.

Another option is this little trick I have come up with which works in most cases, unless the vacuum leak is just severe. You can use an automatic cleaner skimmer regulator valve to “trick” the vacuum leak. The automatic cleaner skimmer regulator can be adjusted so that while a vacuum hose is connected, some of the suction can still come from the skimmer. So you can vacuum the pool slowly and the pump will hold most of it's prime.

The suction will be pretty weak, but if you move slowly and carefully you can vacuum a pool effectively. I suggest using a heavy vacuum head like the one I use in the video. Here is the link to it and a video on it.

Pentair R201276 Pro Vac #214 Commercial Vac Head – Review: http://youtu.be/JBsXyJUfp3E

Pro Vac Link: https://www.amazon.com/Pentair-R201276-Residential-Commercial-Vacuums/dp/B003840IV6/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til?tag=swimmingpooll-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=d4e0532cf3227f86c0a494e490adf615&creativeASIN=B003840IV6

If you are a pool service professional this trick will come in handy on your pool route if you cannot isolate or fix the vacuum leak in a timely manner, which happens.

Here are some links for the three parts to connect the vacuum to the skimmer:

Hayward AXV092 Automatic Pool Cleaner Hose Connector: https://www.amazon.com/PoolSupplyTown-Cleaner-Connector-Adapter-Replace/dp/B01FVMNF58/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til?tag=swimmingpooll-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=02dd24a0c39c02fd0d5f43d5ce92867d&creativeASIN=B01FVMNF58

Pool Cleaner Skimmer Cone Adaptor for Zodiac Baracuda Valve Cuff W70263 W63900: https://www.amazon.com/Cleaner-Skimmer-Adaptor-Baracuda-W70263/dp/B007Q92FEC/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til?tag=swimmingpooll-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=9df559cf9a2ded952a58a33bbd3d78d7&creativeASIN=B007Q92FEC

Skimmer Universal Cleaner Regulator Valve: https://www.amazon.com/Skimmer-Universal-Cleaner-Regulator-Valve/dp/B00HWDUDK0/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til?tag=swimmingpooll-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=45d9593ea70385639cce3b46a13a86e9&creativeASIN=B00HWDUDK0

So this won't solve the problem but it will allow you to at least manually vacuum a pool with a vacuum leak, slowly and effectively.