Part 6. This guide shows you how to install a Skimmer on the side of an Above Ground Pool. We assume that you have completed Part 5 - Installing the Top Rails. These instructions may vary according to your pool model so consult your owner's manual for any variations.
1. Check that you have all the parts required to install the Skimmer. You will need the Skimmer itself, the Wall Gasket, the Face Plate, and the screws to mount the Skimmer.
2. The pool currently has 3" of water on the floor. Continue filling the pool until the water level is about 4" from the bottom of the rectangular Skimmer hole at the top of the Wall. If you mount the Skimmer before filling the pool to this level, the weight of the Skimmer will buckle the Wall under the Skimmer hole.
3. The Wall Gasket is double layered with a slot on the outside edge. Place the gasket around the Skimmer hole so that one layer is on the inside Wall (between the Wall and the Liner) and the other layer is on the outside of the Wall.
4. Place and hold the Skimmer on the outside of the Wall and over the hole.
5. Have another person place the Face Place on the inside of the Wall and when it is lined up with the hole, poke a screw into a corner hole of the Face Plate, through the liner and inside gasket, through the screw hole in the Wall, through the outside gasket and into the hole in the corner of the Skimmer. Repeat for the other three corners and firm up the screws. Use a hand screwdriver for this operation not a power drill. If you cross thread these screws into the Skimmer, you will not get a tight fit and the Skimmer will leak and corrode your pool Wall.
6. Complete mounting the Skimmer by screwing in all the inner screws around the Face Plate.
7. After the Skimmer is fully mounted, cut a small x in the Liner inside the Face Plate. Work this cut out to the inside edge of the Face Plate and cut out the section of the Liner inside the Face Plate. Be careful not to cut the Gasket.
8. Connect the Skimmer to your Pool Pump using the flexible hose provided with the Pool Pump.
9. This completes the installation of the Pool Skimmer. Click to go to Part 7 - Installing the Return Port.
If you have any other questions about pool and spa products please do let us know - we are here to help!