Skimmer Socks - Thoughts???

[fission7x]

I just installed a skimmer sock on both skimmers.
They're designed to catch the "finer" debris and keep it from going to the pump/filter.
Anyone have any experience with these they'd like to share?

[ivyleager]

They work great. You'll be surprised how awful the skimmer socks look when you pull them out to clean. YUCK.

CaryB

[AnnaK]

They're great!

On my system, when the pump isn't running, the bottom of the sock floats up and some of the debris it had caught, dislodges. I now put a small rock inside the sock so it stays down in the skimmer basket when the pump is off.

[CarlD]

I've been using them for 3 years. They work great and reduce the number of times you backwash. I replace the sock about once a month--cheap enough!

[NWMNMom]

We use them too and love the "polishing" it does by getting the finer crap out of the water. FYI - you need to check them often to be sure they don't clog up - not much gets through those buggers and they can quickly clog up enough to change pump pressure if there is pollen or other junk floating around.

[AnnaK]

I've been using them for 3 years. They work great and reduce the number of times you backwash. I replace the sock about once a month--cheap enough!


Once a MONTH? I change mine daily. Of course, I get a lot of dog hair in the pool but even without the dogs, like a few days ago, I had something like a gazillion flying ants in there. Must have been a hatch. And during pollen season it got disgustingly full of yellow pasty gunk.

Changing the sock is part of my daily routine. I rinse it off with the hose, hang it over a fence post, and put another one in the basket. Once amonth? Man, you have CLEAN water!

[fission7x]

Excellent ideas!
Thanks!!

[CarlD]

Once a MONTH? I change mine daily. Of course, I get a lot of dog hair in the pool but even without the dogs, like a few days ago, I had something like a gazillion flying ants in there. Must have been a hatch. And during pollen season it got disgustingly full of yellow pasty gunk.

Changing the sock is part of my daily routine. I rinse it off with the hose, hang it over a fence post, and put another one in the basket. Once amonth? Man, you have CLEAN water!

I didn't say I CLEAN it once a month--I said I REPLACE it once a month. I CLEAN it every single day, and in late May early June twice a day (heavy pollen). After a month it gets pretty worn out and I throw it away. Why do you bother to dry it on the fence post?

[salinda]

It definitely cleans, but the pool was getting too high maintenance and as a busy mom I can't check this daily. I have a micron cartridge filter and my water was pretty clean without this, so I removed mine.

[dawndenise]

Of course, I get a lot of dog hair in the pool but even without the dogs, like a few days ago, I had something like a gazillion flying ants in there. Must have been a hatch. And during pollen season it got disgustingly full of yellow pasty gunk.

And if it's not dog hair or flying ants, it's spiders, June bugs, or worse! It also helps to keep my pump strainer basket cleaner. Wouldn't have a pool without skimmer sox.

[Spensar]

How tough are they, can you toss a few into the washer with the towels?

[AnnaK]

Sorry, Carl, I misunderstood what you had said.

I hang mine on the fence post by way of easy storage.

Sure, Spensar, you can wash them in the machine. They're like white knee-high ladies's socks.

[NWMNMom]

Boy aren't Junebugs the worst? Those legs cling in a death clutch even when butts up and can't get them out by shaking or flipping, you gotta PICK them off - eww. Can you imagine all those flying ants getting in past the skimmer (those holes are big enough for them to get sucked in) - I was mortified to see how many small insects the skimmer sox caught, thinking all that went into my filter.

[AnnaK]

Yep! I'm not generally squeamish but the amount of flying ants in the sock that one morning did gross me out. I didn't use socks until mid-season last year so those creatures all wound up in my sand filter. No wonder I had to backwash so often!

My method of dealing with the Japanese beetles is to invert the sock and drop it into a plastic Folger's coffee can of strongish bleach water. They pretty much die. When I pull the sock out I peel off the matted dog hair and the bugs along with it and discard the mess. Rinse the sock and re-use.

Still, it's all pretty disgusting.

[ScottS]

How tough are they, can you toss a few into the washer with the towels?

While they are pretty tough I think this would run the risk of causing more damage to them than it would be good. As they get some age on them they slowly start to degrade and become brittle.

You don't have to overcomplicate the skimmer sock. I leave the sock on the skimmer basket, turn it upside down, shake loose (pluck or pull) the bugs off, rinse it clean with the hose, and turn it back over. The sock is now clean and ready to go.

[CarlD]

Launder them? Why bother? They are usually 3 for $5 or 4 for $8 and once a month when I've rinsed them at least 30 times and the weave starts getting more open I discard the current one for a new one with a tight weave again.

[Phillbo]

I'm really starting to appreciate the total lack of bugs in the desert .... but I do think i'll get a couple socks for when my friends bring their dogs over with them.

[fission7x]

Well, it's been 24 hours with skimmer socks in use.
WOW! :eek: Talk about bugs and debris!
About a thousand flying ants that would have made their way right to the filter!
It's off to the store tomorrow to get another set.
Change 'em, then wash them. Repeat the next day.

Thanks Y'all!! :D :D

[shadowman]

Well, we may have a short pool season :mad: up here in Oregon, but I'm glad we don't have the bugs. All I get is a dozen crickets a week or so and a few clumsy bees. I think I'll try the skimmer sock in the spring though, we do have tons of pollen.

[KurtV]

I just use knee-highs. Wal-Mart has a box of six pairs for about a buck and a half here. They don't last as long as the skimmer socks and I don't think they're quite as fine a mesh, but I get a week or so out of each and my wife picks them up at the grocery instead of us having to make a special trip to a pool store (though I think some Wal-Marts carry the skimmer socks).

[CarlD]

In celebration of the 4th of July, this morning I tossed the old skimmer sock and put in a new one.

Sorry I didn't invite you all over to party...:(

.
.
.:D

[cschnurr]

I started using a skimmer sock this year. Initially, I was having some sealant applied to the concrete deck so I wanted to minimizes any of the sealant getting to my sand filter. But when I saw all the gunk it caught, I will continue to use them.

My pool has a vacuum port on the side pool wall that by-passes the skimmer when vacuuming. I'm considering putting a sock on my pump filter as well. Any thoughts?

[waterbear]

I would be leary of putting a sock on the pump strainer basket. If it got pulled off and into the impeller it could damage your pump. A safer solution would be to get an inline leaf trap. Some of the better ones have filter bags that can be used instead of the basket to collect finer particles. I believe the Hayward leaf canister offers this option and the Pentair (Rainbow) one has a cartridge filter option for collecting fine debris. IMHO, a leaf trap is a MUST for any vacuuming done directly into a vacuum port because it keeps the big stuff out of the pump and filter and keeps your filter cleaner for a longer period of time.

[fission7x]

If anyone has any doubts about skimmer socks, I would tell you to perform this little experiment before you definitively make up your mind.
Install skimmer socks on your skimmer baskets and then cut your grass.
I figured I'd find a bunch a small grass clippings that would normally get through and I'd really be happy.
I cut my grass yesterday and checked the socks this morning. What I found was amazing! The socks were full of the finest clippings and silt you could imagine! On one skimmer, it was about 1/8th of an inch thick!

I'm sold! skimmer socks are here to stay.
Yes, they are just one more maintenance item, but IMHO, well worth the trouble!

[rnjng]

yeah! skimmer sock? good!!!! I used one last year(wife's old knee high). I didn't have one when I first opened pool this year, and was running the filter for 3 days straight, pool was clearing up, but just not as clear as it was last yr. So I bought some skimmer socks(knee highs) and wow, 2 days after that water was very crisp, and some funky stuff in the sock, that you couldn't see. So I'm sold on the skimmer sock, or knee high, but they both do the same thing...For the pool that is.

[salinda]

Here's one thing that confuses me about the socks. I have some that I rarely use. One of the problems is that they are really difficult to stretch over the basket. Maybe I have larger skimmer baskets than most of you? I can't imagine stretching a knee-hi over. I am guesstimating the basket mouth to be 10-11" in diameter

[joliecharlie]

Queen size knee highs are easier to stretch over the skimmer basket than regular knee highs. I buy 3 pair for $1 at Dollar General or Fred's.

[waterbear]

Makes sense--queen sized knee highs for full figured skimmer baskets!:D

[CarlD]

Makes sense--queen sized knee highs for full figured skimmer baskets!:D

Ok, now we are getting JUST a little strange here!:eek:

[waterbear]

Ok, now we are getting JUST a little strange here!:eek:
And you just noticed this for the first time?:cool:

[joliecharlie]

The queen size stocking seems to be shorter as well....so y'all (Carl and Evan)take that little bit of info and run with it.:p

[waterbear]

The queen size stocking seems to be shorter as well....so y'all (Carl and Evan)take that little bit of info and run with it.:p
After you get the knee highs on the skimmer do you take it shopping for shoes?:D

[hoffmans]

Ok, So are you all saying knee - hi's from Walmart or Walgreens.
Are you taking the sheer nylon regular (pantyhose) type or do you mean Tights (white opaque type)?


~Hoffmans

[joliecharlie]

I buy the knee high hose, not tights.
The tights would be better but I've not found queen tights....oh don't get those 2 guys started again:D
Dollar General, Family Dollar, Fred's or similar stores in my area have them 3 for $1. I haven't found them that cheap at our Wal Mart or Walgreens but every area is different.

[waterbear]

Carl,
I think they are talking about us!:cool:

[CarlD]

Carl,
I think they are talking about us!:cool:

What you mean "Us", Kimosabe?:mad:

I'm a big spender--I spring for the Jen-you-whine Skimmer Socks or the alternate brands made for pools. The weave looks like it would catch far more than my beautiful wife's PH. (Frequently overheard in my house: "Oh D***! I just ruined a new pair of pantyhose!" :()

[joliecharlie]

You are so right, the real thing is much better!

I used the real thing last year however, this year I decided to toss rather than wash, thus the cheap knee highs.

Panty hose and knee highs especially were invented to torment women! About the only thing a knee high is good for is a pool skimmer.

[Sumo1]

I bought skimmer socks a few weeks ago based on all the posts I'd seen from CarlD. WOW! Why didn't I think of that? I bought a pack of 5 and leave them hanging on the fence. I change them daily and wash all 5 at the same time. Regardless of routines, my only issue has been that my basket is 1/2" smaller than my skimmer and when the sock is full of crud, pressure will suck the sock and basket 3'-4' down into the skimmer. Who would've thought so much dust could be in water that looks so clean! Skimmer socks are in this pool to stay!
Hal

Oops! I meant 3"-4":o

[CarlD]

I bought skimmer socks a few weeks ago based on all the posts I'd seen from CarlD. WOW! Why didn't I think of that? I bought a pack of 5 and leave them hanging on the fence. I change them daily and wash all 5 at the same time. Regardless of routines, my only issue has been that my basket is 1/2" smaller than my skimmer and when the sock is full of crud, pressure will suck the sock and basket 3'-4' down into the skimmer. Who would've thought so much dust could be in water that looks so clean! Skimmer socks are in this pool to stay!
Hal

Oops! I meant 3"-4":o

It sounds like you have the wrong basket for your skimmer. Most pool stores sell replacement baskets as they get broken a lot. It IS one thing you can go to the pool store for--as well as the skimmer sock.

Yeah, skimmer socks WORK. There are several brands that are all the same but "Skimmer Socks" has grabbed the "natural monopoly" (Like "Kleenex" or "Band-Aid" becoming synonomous with the item).

[shadowman]

I guess I must live in a clean area. I put my first skimmer sock in two weeks ago and it only has a few blades of grass and some errant crickets in it.:D

[joliecharlie]

I'll be happy to send black lab hairs, spiders, frogs of all sizes, pinestraw and many other suspicious looking bits of junk so you will have something to catch!:D

[tphaggerty]

I am a HUGE skimmer sock fan, but I'm not using them now. They really work their magic during pollen season - which is spring/early summer here in NY - not so much after that.

I have 10 or so, just use them up and clean them all at once when I have the last set in the skimmers. But right now, it isn't really worth it.

[Spensar]

Started using the socks a couple of weeks ago and am a fan. Sometimes there isn't much, but other times when the garden is being kick up or after a heavy rain and wind the gunk and small particles it picks up is impressiven not to mention the hair after a girls sleepover.

Has anyone used these on the pump filter basket? I have a kreepy krawler that I use once in a while but it plugs right into the intake with the skimmer basket out and I would like to catch the fine gunk as well.

Anyone used a sock in both the skimmer and the pump basket?

[cschnurr]

Spensar,
Waterbear previously recommended that these should not be used on the pump basket in order to avoid potential damage to the pump.
See Posts #22 & 23 of this thread.

They say great minds think alike... but maybe mediocre minds do too.

[Spensar]

Thanks. DOH!

[Hszwill]

I am using skimmer socks for the first time and I LOVE them! I wish that I would have found them 4 years ago. Daily I wash the nastiness out of each sock and put it back into the skimmer basket with a rock to weigh it down. When I look at my beautiful water, I wonder where all this sandy film comes from off the surface of the water, but I am just thrilled because of how it has drastically reduced the amount we backwash now. After 3 weeks they are looking pretty ragged, so I too will change them monthly. What a cheap way to save the filter and DE!

[CarlD]

I am using skimmer socks for the first time and I LOVE them! I wish that I would have found them 4 years ago. Daily I wash the nastiness out of each sock and put it back into the skimmer basket with a rock to weigh it down. When I look at my beautiful water, I wonder where all this sandy film comes from off the surface of the water, but I am just thrilled because of how it has drastically reduced the amount we backwash now. After 3 weeks they are looking pretty ragged, so I too will change them monthly. What a cheap way to save the filter and DE!

Thanks for bringing a great thread back to life. I'm still using the skimmer socks--each lasts about of month with be rinsed each day--even during the pollen season where they look like they are covered in yellow spackle. The rest of the time the past is gray and not as thick.

Two of the CHEAPEST improvements to your filter are skimmer socks in the skimmer and a third to 1/2 cup of DE in your sand filter just after you backwash--no need to spend big bucks and big headache on Zeo-sand type substitutes. If you spend $15 a year these it's a lot--I use 3 to 5 skimmer socks--that about $6-$8, and I'm STILL on the 10lb of DE I started using at the end of the 2005(?) season so this is the 4th full season--and the box cost me $8! That's averaging out at $10 a year for a drastic improvement!

[AnnaK]

Speaking of skimmer socks, has anyone noticed that the new ones seem to be thinner somehow? Lighter weight than last season's? I don't know whether it's the weave or the thread but in my use of the ones I bought in May they don't seem to catch as much of the fine debris as they did last year.

AnnaK