Skimmer plug got sucked through and is stuck

[ScottsdaleSwim]

My friend bought a house and the pool is a nightmare! CYA over 300...
So we were attempting to drain it this afternoon. She went to the local pool store to get a plug for the skimmer so that when the water level drops, it won't suck air. The pool doesn't have a valve to switch between the skimmer and the drain. At least we haven't located it yet!
So we put the plug in, started the pump and the freakin' thing sucked the plug in. It's stuck 18'' down. About a foot from the bend. The plug is 1 1/4" - 1 1/2"... I guess it's called a rubber stop.
We tried to push it through with a snake and it's not budging.
The thing is...it doesn't change the pressure at all. It must be wedged but still letting the water by.
We took the timer clips off because we don't want it running unattended in case it becomes dislodged and moves towards the pump.

Our next step is to use the drain king at the pump end.

If we could get a corkscrew type end on a snake we could screw it in to the rubber and hopefully pull it out.
Even if the drain king forces it to the top of the skimmer hole, it's going to be a nightmare getting it out.

I would appreciate any and all ideas.

[CarlD]

PVC? Cut it out! Splice in a new piece. Shouldn't take you more than 30 minutes. There's even rubber splicing joints available at your local Home Depot / Lowes. It's got an hose clamp at either end.

While you are at it, splice in a ball valve so you don't have to do it again.

[Poconos]

Can you drill a hole in the stopper using a long drill extension shaft to reach down the 18"? Then bend a hook on a stiff coathanger, push it through the drilled hole, hook it and pull it out?
Al

[JohnT]

Try a long lag bolt. Should thread into the plug and pull it out. You might have to get somebody to weld an extension on one.

[poolio]

Consider the deck. If it's grass, wood, pavers, etc. dig to the pipe and do like Carl says - cut it out! super easy as long as it's PVC.

If you've got concrete, then perhaps some of the other solutions would be easier...

[divnkd101]

Can you drill a hole in the stopper using a long drill extension shaft to reach down the 18"? Then bend a hook on a stiff coathanger, push it through the drilled hole, hook it and pull it out?
Al

I like Poconos idea. May I suggest something a little stiffer. Drill the hole, if accessible. Go to Lowes/ Home Depot and buy you a toggle bolt and a piece of All thread rod to match the hole of the toggle. Thread the toggel down a few inches. Lock the toggle on with 2 nuts (locked together behind the toggle). Ram it through the hole. You may want to lubricate the pipe first to reduce friction (dish soap or similar). That should give you plenty of back up on the plug to yank it out of the hole. Good Luck.

[CanuckPool]

You could try drilling the snot out of it till it breaks apart and retrieve the pieces in the pump basket. That is if you have a 18" bit and the dexterity not to drill a hole into the side of your pipe.

Here's a thought, what if you disconnected your skimmer intake to the pump and put that on the output part of your pump, keeping your main drain as the source of intake to the pump... maybe you can blow it back out the way it came. Just make sure no one is looking down the skimmer basket when you turn it on.

[Phillbo]

Scottsdale / Shea rentals has rental pumps for 30.00. Get one of those to finish the drainning process. If water is still getting past the plug, will it be an issue if it's left in place once you refill the pool ? Is there enough volume getting past it ?

[CanuckPool]

I would be concerned about debris collecting and not being able to get past the plug and evenutally clogging it all together.

[MarkC]

If your rubber plug was the type that uses a wing nut on a screw to compress the rubber and the wingnut was on the screw far enough so that some threads were still visible, go to home depot and by a threaded coupler and a 3ft threaded rod that matches that thread size. Get an extra nut of the same thread size. Spin on the nut up the rod an inch, spin on the threaded coupler about half way on. spin the nut down to the coupler and thighten the two together so they don't spin on the rod. Take this device and slide it down the pipe and with lost of trial and error thread it onto the threads on the rubber plug. Then if your lucky you can pull it out. Let us know how you got it out.