Above Ground Pool Bottom Drain & PVC Plumbing 

Thanks for the comment! That stinks you didn't get a bottom drain in the new pool, hopefully you can get this setup done easy enough to keep the new one cleaner!

Thanks so much for the comment! Hope you can get it going this season and alleviate some of the problems!

I'm sure it will turn out great, and it's a huge time saver keeping the pool clean! Thanks for the comment!

Yes that was a huge help as well! I have a pool closing video where I show what chemicals and stuff I do to close the pool for the season. The bottom drain makes it so easy to drain water below the skimmer basket and jet!

Good idea thanks for sharing!

That's awesome! I've been leaving my valve about 1/3 bottom drain and 2/3 skimmer box and it has been working good. Hardly any debris on the bottom. Next time I replace my liner I'll probably do a center drain like you!

Yes I just got tired of hooking up, priming and reeling up the hose for the vacuum. This is always there sucking up any algae that doesn't make it to the skimmer and sinks.

Thanks for the comment! It definitely worked well last year toward the end of season when I installed it. This year will be the first full season. I think it makes a big difference just all the heavy particles sunk to the bottom but still swirling around from the jet. This thing should suck that algae up before it settles

There should be no algae if water is treated right.

@@phouchyubeered1187in a perfect world yes but usually it isn’t that easy. So having this helps in those cases

Glad it's helping! I thought about a hole too but figured I'd try this out. Unfortunately didn't get this setup installed until late last year. Looking forward to easier cleaning this year.

@@NealORussa I'm sure it will work just fine. I already have the spa drain coming and have the pipe and elbow waiting. Thanks for the idea!💯

@@NealORussa I also added a three way valve on the bottom drain pipe and will use it for my pool vac. That way I won't have to worry about connecting to the skimmer basket.

If i recall, my skimmer box has a threaded outlet at the bottom of it. The inside is threaded for a 1.5" diameter male fitting, or the outside is threaded for a 2" female fitting. I used the 1.5" threaded male to a female slip joint, then used a short section of 1.5" pipe into the 1.5" ball valve. Then on the bottom of ball valve i used a short section of pipe, then a female slip joint to female 1.5" thread bushing, then screwed in a 1.5" hose barb fitting. Then i used the old flexible hose to the pump.

Thanks for the comment! Yes clear primer is a lot nicer than the purple primer when the piping is going to be visible.

Thank you! I started my pool up last weekend and it's working perfect!

Thanks I'll check it out! I have used a proteam product in the past that is a small granular packet you put in your skimmer basket and it goes into your sand filter and is supposed to tighten up the particles for a tighter filter and cleaner water. That has worked well for me too. Appreciate you watching and the comment!

Hey thanks for the comment! Mine is about an inch off the bottom. I don't really have a reason I left the space. But I did. It would be fine either way probably.

Nice, how much did it cost? Did they do it during a liner replacement?

above pool with a main drain i never see it, i imagine should be pretty well done for avoiding leaks will be hard to fix

If you're adding a drain, you need to have 2 drains at least 3 feet apart with VGB certified grates. You don't want your kids to drown or be disemboweled.

No I do not. Good point though. Would be needed if you have to change the sand in the filter. Technically after my filter it goes down to my automatically chlorinator and it has a check valve with unions on both sides of it, so I could remove the filter top with about a 2' stub or pipe hanging off the filter lid.

Thanks for the comment! My return jet is about 6' to the right of this bottom drain. My skimmer box is in between the bottom drain and return jet. I always angle my return jet down and to the right a bit. That way the pool water is always circulating in a circular motion. The centrifigual force effect pushes all the floating debris to the outside to get picked up by the skimmer basket. Heavier debris or leaves that don't make it into the bottom drain end up circulating at the very center of the pool and are easy to scoop out with the net.

Awesome to hear! Yes I barely got the vacuum out last year, maybe twice. I usually just broom it over towards the drain.

Hey thanks for the comment! I unhook all my plumbing for the winter with exception of the clear tube from pump to filter. Otherwise everything comes out. I drain the filter and the pump and leave the drain plugs out. Then I use a Weber grill cover over the pump and filter. It works well and keeps it dry over the winter. We don't get a ton of snow but a lot of sleet and ice.

You can thread a plug in the ports. One inside the skimmer basket. One at the jet outlet. These are what I use. amzn.to/3N4SaCE

My walls are aluminum and are fairly rigid when the pool is full. I don't think there will be any problems. The only change I would make would be to use pvc pressure fittings instead of the drain fittings I used.

I did this very late in the season last year and didn't have a lot of time to see how much it helped. But I'll find out this year! I definitely think it will help a lot though with algae building up on the bottom though!

The three way valve I used and linked in the description is better than using 2 ball valves in my opinion. As far as tunneling underneath and putting a center drain in, I don't see any good way to seal it to the liner. It would be possible to cut a hole through the outside wall and install a drain, this was just an easy workaround and didn't require any draining of the pool or cutting of the pool/liner.

Agree! I just bought another air tool last week and tried to tape the quick connect air fitting and did it backwards again and had to redo. The sealant is awesome.

Hey there! The blue monster is sealant you put on threaded connections. The pvc slip connections are glued and you use a clear primer first to clean the pipe and fitting and then you use pvc cement to glue the fittings together and they are not removable. You can buy clear or purple primer so make sure you get clear cause the purple goes everywhere. It is used in hidden commercial applications so that inspectors can see that a joint was primed before gluing.

Yes that's correct, the only intake screen i could find was 2". There is a reducer bushing at the screen to reduce from 2" to 1-1/2".

I used the 2" check valve for more flow through the check valve mechanism. I used 1.5" to 2" reducer bushings at both the inlet and outlet of the check valve to go from the 1.5" pipe to the 2" check valve. If you want to use the 1.5" check valve that would probably work too.

Yes definitely an option. This was just an easy workaround to drilling a hole through the pool and liner and possibly dealing with more leaks. Also that still wouldnt put the drain on the bottom where i wanted it. It would be more of a port, about 8" off the floor.

@@NealORussa I believe what you initially did is what I’ll try. Another hole in the wall seems not a good idea. Under warranty?

@@anthonybrincefield2812 yes it's working great! I'm opening the pool today and I was able to get my pump running with the bottom drain while the pool is still 1' below the skimmer box. Definitely will speed up my opening process!

@@NealORussa That’s a great benefit! Ours has been open for just over two weeks now. I brought top off water from work with one of our water tanks and it took several trips before my wife could start the pump. If I add your idea we could have started the pump earlier.

Hey thanks for the comment! That suction head is probably an inch or so off the bottom. You'll definitely be happy it was a game changer last season! Only had to vacuum a couple times the entire season.

It's a Hayward pump and filter. Definitey not something I would go cheap on. You want to stay with a name brand where you can get parts for it if you ever need to. amzn.to/3YpccNv

Hello! All the major components are listed and linked in the description, but here is the lower intake screen. amzn.to/3AILlka

My skimmer basket and pump are both threaded with 1.5" npt female. I was able to buy all the plumbing parts at Lowe's

Ahhhh Dang. Mines not threaded. I think I can use a fernco being it’s not pressurized.

@@shawnmyers9583 yea on the suction side I agree. Should be able to

It works amazing! I hardly vacuumed the pool last season. Highly recommend doing this to any pool without a bottom drain.

Did you start watching at 10:30? That shows how I began to purge the air out by filling up both sides of the pipe over the railing. I believe I remember i had to cycle the valve back and forth between the skimmer and bottom drain a couple times to get it all out but it definitely did as you can see around the 12:30 mark when I switch valve to full bottom drain. If you're still having trouble I could recommend 2 things. One would be to remove the up and over pipe from the bottom drain to the union at the valve, then completely submerge that pipe and fill it with water. Cup your hand over the end that goes to the union and leave the grate in the water. Lift it up and over and quickly remove your hand and connect to the union. Make sure the valve is off to the bottom drain as well. Then you can start pump off the skimmer then switch valve over to bottom drain and it will be a full pipe with little to no air in it. Option 2 would be to add a tee at the top at the railing with a threaded tee and a plug. Remove the plug and fill the up and over pipe with water from a garden hose or bucket scooping from pool. Reinstall plug in tee. Start pump.

@@NealORussa I think I was being too impatient lol did as you mentioned and moved the valve back and forth a couple times and all is good now! Thanks 👍

@@EverythingxAndroid glad to hear it! Good work!

Thanks for the comment! If I could come up with an easy to install kit that might be a good idea!

Haha thank you! I'm hoping she grows up to be a big helper. The filter screen on the end is more so just to stop leaves etc from going into the pump. It has similar hole spacing to the skimmer basket. Some items make it through and get stuck in the pump strainer basket. The pump strainer is easy to clean now when you shut off the 3way valve and have the 1 way check valve. There's no flow allowed so you can remove the pump basket without water pouring everywhere. The bottom drain is mainly there to suck up algae to go into the sand filter and it has been working great! I have barely touched the pool in the last 3 weeks!

The pool was at the house when we bought it in 2016. I installed a new liner and changed the pump and piping but that's about it. I would recommend a permanent style above ground pool with dug-in footings on concrete blocks with hard metal sidewalls. The intex pools with soft sides just won't last. Here is an example of the hard side pools. amzn.to/3MZQFWp

Really not sure, it was here when i bought the house. I will say it is much more heavy duty and sturdy than newer pool kits i've seen go up lately.

Hey not sure exactly what you're asking but if you mean grounded with a cable and ground rod then no it is not.

Hey Jackie thanks for the comment! The valve and intake screen materials are all linked in the video description but link to the intake screen itself is here! amzn.to/3qeIIFi

Thanks so much.

Why are two required? Also the intake grate is VGB compliant. Search part number 640-3570 V and you can find the certification.

@@NealORussa Two are required to be VGB compliant. I never said the drain cover isn’t compliant. VGB is more than an anti-vortex cover and a certificate. The installation itself needs to be compliant as well. This calls for 2 suction ports and if they’re on the same plane they must be 3 ft apart. Skimmer does not count as a suction port in this instance.

@@nifethrubutter Ahh, i see. Thank you for the clarification. I appreciate your insight. I know a lot of pools with only 1 bottom drain, but I do see the safety aspect of having two, in case a person is sucked into 1, the pump's suction could revert to the other so the person could get free. So i guess if i wanted to be compliant i would have to put a tee on my suction pipe and run a 2nd intake at least 3' from the original or could I install it on a different plane such as right off the tee at a 90* angle to the bottom drain?

Hmm, might have to test that. Seems counterintuitive. Thanks for the comment!

@@NealORussa Same thing with HVAC blowers. The more stopped up the filter is, the less the motor works.

Hmm I'm a bit far from you to help but you might try looking for a local pool supply store for suggestions on installers

Yes it works great. This was late toward the end of last year but looking forward to opening this summer. I could definitely tell less stress on the pump pushing through the smooth solid pipe vs the corrugated hoses. As far as the bottom drain I think it will be a big help with pollen and other light materials that sink to the bottom.

​@@NealORussa yep and brush more than having to vacuum

I don't think another pump is required. The one pump has plenty of power to suck from both. Not sure how you'd plumb two pumps into one filter but I guess it could be done with a tee and some check valves.