How To Plumb Your Above Ground Pool

If you need to hook up the swimming pool pump and the filter on your existing above ground pool, or if you need to plumb in your new filter system this guide is what you will need to give you a "heads up" and will let you know what is involved and what you will need so you can decide if you want to do this yourself or hire a swimming pool service company to come out and do the work for you. The Pump Suction & The Discharge Side The pool pump has two openings, they are called the discharge and the suction sides of the pump. The suction side of the pump will hook to the skimmer and / or the main drain if you happened to have one in your above ground pool. The top or side of of the pump will be the discharge side. This is the side that the water will pump out of once the pump is running. This side of the pump will either hook to the "in from filter" port on your filter or hook up directly to the pool return fitting that you will find on the actual pool wall. So what you will want to do is to connect the front of the pool pump to the skimmer or the main drain. You then will want to want to connect the discharge side of the pump to the pool filter or to the return on the side of the pool. Using Pool Hoses OR Rigid PVC Pipe When you are plumbing in a brand new above ground swimming pool you can either use rigid PVC pipe or use the flexible pool hoses. If you use flexible pool hoses you will also need a screwdriver and some hose clamps to attach the hoses to the pool filter, pool pump, pool skimmer and also the pool return. Make sure you always tighten the hose clamps tight with your screwdriver by turning the hose clamp bolt clockwise. If you are going to be plumbing in your new above ground pool filter system for the first and you want to use rigid hard pipe PVC, you are going to need some glue, primer and off course fittings and pipe to plumb the filter system to the pool. You will also need a PVC saw to cut the pipe and also a tape measure to pipe your above ground swimming pool with rigid PVC. Starting The Filter System & Checking For Leaks Once you have completely plumbed in your above ground swimming pool filter system you will need to prime the pump, start the filter system and then check for drips and leaks. You can prime the pool pump by removing the pump cover lid, then you will want to fill the pump with water and replace the pump cover gasket. Then your pump will be ready to start, if you skip this step(priming the pump) you most likely will not be able to start the filter system and your pump could run dry.