One of the most frustrating parts of vacuuming your pool manually is shutting the pump off, and turning it back on again. If your equipment is halfway across the yard like many people, this can get old, and be yet another reason why you might not want to vacuum your pool. Add to this the frustration of cleaning out the pump basket every time after vacuuming, and this can get frustrating fast. This is where the pool skimmer vacuum plate comes along to make life easier.
What Does A Pool Skimmer Vacuum Plate Do?
This is one of the simplest pool products, so you don’t hear much about it, at the same time one of the most useful. What it does is allow you to vacuum your pool while keeping the skimmer basket in place. To accomplish this, the pool skimmer vacuum plate plugs into your vacuum hose and you place it over the pool skimmer.
While the pump is running, go ahead and do your typical vacuum process, place the vacuum head on the pole, connect the hose, and drop the vacuum into the pool. Fill the hose with water and attach the other end to the vacuum plate. Place the vacuum plate over the skimmer basket and make sure it has a good tight fit. The suction from the pool pump will hold the skimmer plate in place.
Pool Skimmer Vacuum Plate Pros & Cons
Since you now can vacuum your pool without filling up the pump basket with debris, the process is actually much faster. It also involves less walking around the property to turn the pump on and off.
However, this process isn’t without its frustrations. One of the main frustrations of the pool skimmer vacuum plate is the vacuum plate not fitting in the first place. This is due to there being numerous manufacturers of skimmers and vacuum plates to fit them.
The first thing you need to do is to try and identify the manufacturer of your skimmer. If you’re lucky you can find this by looking under the skimmer lid. Alternatively, you can do it by checking the skimmer basket itself, or the weir / flappy door. If you see a string of numbers on any of these components, try googling “skimmer 555555”, and your results will likely show you the manufacturer. What we suggest doing if you can’t find out who makes your skimmer is to order a few pool skimmer vacuum plates, and see if one will fit your skimmer.
Most Common Pool Skimmer Vacuum Plates
Here’s a listing of some of the most common skimmers and the skimmer plates which fit them. We’ve tried to make it easy and identify which manufacturer and model they each fit on.
Pool skimmer vacuum plate for the Pentair Bermuda
- Vacuum plate assembly replacement
- Fits Pentair Bermuda pool and spa skimmers
- Available in white color
Pentair Admiral Pool skimmer vacuum plate
- Vacuum Plate Adapter Replacement
- Fits Pentair Admiral Pool And Spa Skimmer Models S15, S20
- Measures 9-1/2-Inch Length By 3-Inch Height By 9-1/2-Inch Width
Pool skimmer vacuum plate for Hayward SP1082, 1084, 1085, 1075
- Large skimmer vacuum plate with 1-1/2-inch straight adapter
- Fits Hayward swimming pool skimmer SP1082, 1084, 1085, 1075 models
- By utilizing the skimmer basket instead of the pump strainer basket, the need to turn the pump on and off is eliminated
Hayward SP1090, 1091, 1096, 1097, 1098 Pool skimmer vacuum plate
- Skimmer vacuum plate with 1-1/2-inch hose straight adapter
- Fits Hayward front access swimming pool skimmer SP1090, 1091, 1096, 1097 and 1098, top cover styles models
- By utilizing the skimmer basket instead of the pump strainer basket, the need to turn the pump on and off is eliminated
Pool skimmer vacuum plate for Hayward SP1094, SP1095 (Above ground)
- Skimmer vacuum plate with 1-1/4 and 1-1/2-inch hose elbow
- Fits Hayward swimming pool skimmer SP1094, SP1095 models
- By utilizing the skimmer basket instead of the pump strainer basket, the need to turn the pump on and off is eliminated
Waterway Renegade Pool skimmer vacuum plate
- ONLY fits select Waterway Plastics Renegade Skimmers, check your manual to ensure proper fit.
- Newer Style Snap-In Vacuum Plate
- This part# 519-6480-R1B is the same as 519-6480-R1 except this part is in mfg. packaging.
Pool skimmer vacuum plate for Waterway Flo-Pro and Flo-Pro II (Above ground)
- For Above-Ground Pools. This Vacuum Plate measures 6 3/4″ Diameter; 90-degree Elbow
- Fits Waterway Flo-Pro and Flo-Pro II Above Ground Skimmer
- Fits Waterway Front Access Skim Filter
Summer Waves Pool skimmer vacuum plate for above ground
- Allows connection of pool vacuum hose or deluxe maintenance kit to your pool filter system
- Simply place in skimmer filter canister on top of debris basket and connect your vacuum hose
- Designed for use with Polygroup Summer Waves SFX Series SkimmerPlus filter systems
Pool skimmer vacuum plate for Swimline Hydrotools 8939, 8939G, 8939A, 8939AG, 8940, 8940G, and 89401
- Using the replacement vacuum plate and low profile adapter elbow for your Hydro tools skimmer will help to keep your pool clean and enjoyable
- Includes vacuum adapter plate and low profile vacuum plate elbow
- Works with Model 8939, 8939G, 8939A, 8939AG, 8940, 8940G, and 89401. Vacuum elbow accommodates 1-1/4 inch and 1-1/2 inch diameter vacuum hose
Pool Skimmer Vacuum Plate Summary
Ultimately, a pool skimmer vacuum plate serves a simple yet helpful purpose. It allows you to vacuum your pool while keeping the skimmer basket in place. Finding replacements can be a challenge due to the breadth of models. Hopefully we’ve helped you find the right replacement plate if that’s what you needed. One common misconception is that your pool skimmer doesn’t not come with the vacuum plate. You have to buy it separately.
These plates make vacuuming your pool much quicker. However, they also have a tendency to become damaged and replacing is tricky. The wrong skimmer vacuum plate will not fit and cause problems for you. If you don’t see an exact match with the ones we’ve displayed, search for the right pool skimmer vacuum plate.
