Pool Filter (Life Hack)

If you are like me, the last thing you want to think about this summer is pool maintenance. We have a basic 15 ft x 4ft framed pool we put up each summer. This pool comes with a simple skimmer / pump and pool filter.

The problem with this filter is that it fills up very quickly. Within a few days of use it needs to be cleaned. If you cut the grass and your kids walk through the grass to the pool then it fills up immediately.

So what is the solution to this problem? My wife made an ingenious suggestion last year. I was looking for a replacement and describing to her what I was looking for. She suggested nylons. Yes you heard correctly, ladies nylons.

I removed the filter from inside the pump and attached the nylon to the water jet flowing into the pool from the pump. The great thing about this is that the nylon removes even tiny particles from the water and all of the crap ends up at the end of the nylon. What surprised me is that the water flow is not hindered at all. This filter will last about a month in the sun before it needs to be replaces. It is super cheap and works way better than the filter that came with the pool. I am sure someone out there can improve even more on this idea but I have found this to be a big improvement.

I have two more life hacks in mind that I will be posting soon. The first is a flood detector that will cost you $5 or less. This is great if you have a sump pump in your basement and want to know when your pump fails. The other is instructions on how to make an inverter box for your camper so that you can run 120 volts from batteries that are charged by a solar panel. It is a great generator alternative. I just set one of these up for my father-in-law to run his breathing machine at night without the noise of a generator.