Help with no niche skimmer and drain for 3,000 gallon pond. Skimmer wont work.

Tokay

Candiru
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
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popnd drain.png
My buddy bought a house with a 1,700gallon pond drainging into a larger 3,000 gallon pond. Just finished cleaning it out, removing excess rocks and plants, replaced filter and pump, etc.
Original there was no cover on the drain , just a 2" pvc pipe sticking out of the bulkhead.
First we added one of those flat disc style drains, to help prevent fish/frogs from being sucked up. Worked fine.
Then we added a T fitting and attached the no niche skimmer.
But no water is being sucked thru the skimmer, only the bottom drain.
The picture shows how it is setup.
I was thinking the shut off vlave might need be between the bottom drain and the T and not between the skimmer and the T?
Any ideas or better ways of setting it up? Figured id gather as much info as possible before i head back over there.
Thank you for your time.

popnd drain.png
 

kendragon

Silver Tier VIP
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Mar 23, 2009
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What your pump size? From the diagram it shows the skimmer above water level...is it? The body of the skimmer needs to be below water and the floating weir should move up and down freely. It is possible the pump is not strong enough to pull the weir down to skim. Also you might want to check to make sure the valve is truely in the open position.
 

Tokay

Candiru
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
167
3
48
popnd drain.png
Ill find out tomrrow. But its a black pond pump with pre filter basket. I believe its a wave. Its a good size pump and moves a lot of water. The skimmer is below the water level and floating freely

popnd drain.png
 

Tokay

Candiru
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
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Wave II 1/4 HP. I think the problem is the distance from the pump to the drain is about 21-22 feet. Tried different configurations and nothing is working so far.
 

kendragon

Silver Tier VIP
MFK Member
Mar 23, 2009
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Wave II are medium pressure pumps so it should work. What is the pipe size? The no-niche requires 1 1/2". You maybe right about moving the valve to the other leg. It is also possible that you got an air lock in the line. The pump can not run at full capacity with an air lock. You may need to purge the line of air. Fill the outlet with a garden hose. Do you have leaf trap or check valve?
I have a Wave I 1/15hp hooked up to a no-niche and bottom drain and it works fine. I regulate the skimmer/drain with a three way valve.
 

kendragon

Silver Tier VIP
MFK Member
Mar 23, 2009
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Here's my system. No-niche and drain pipes up to a 3-way valve. In the pic you can see the drain at the bottom of the pond and the skimmer at the surface.
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IMG_1765.JPG

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Tokay

Candiru
MFK Member
Apr 22, 2006
167
3
48
It is 2" piping from the pump to the drain. The bottom drain is 2" piping and the skimmer is 2" reduced to 1 1/2". No leaf trap or check valve. I will take picture next time I go to my friends house. If its not an air lock or problem with the setup. It might just not be a strong enough pump to run 2" piping 21-22 feet plus the skimmer up high and the extra drain down low. We are still not even sure what was the original pump on the pond because it had been removed and replaced with a brand new pool pump before my friend moved in...
 
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