Floating pool skimmers come in many models. You’ve seen them floating about in swimming pools, attached to the automatic pool cleaner vacuum. Sometimes they float into a corner and get stuck if the pool cleaner isn’t going. It is a floating pool skimmer, and kit does a lot more to keep your pool clean than it appears.
Pool skimmers are features in all swimming pools, they are essential items of pool cleaning and pool maintenance equipment. There are different kinds of pool skimmers, but they all do the same thing: pool skimmers help to keep your pool free of floating debris that can fall to the bottom of the pool. A build of debris on the bottom of the pool can quickly lead to a buildup of pathogens and algae. It can also cause your pool maintenance costs to skyrocket.
Pool skimmers are even more important for daily pool cleaning than cleaning chemicals because they drastically reduce the need for chemicals. With many types and models on the market, it’s good to know that price does not need to equal efficiency.
One of the most cost effective and efficient choices in pool skimmers are floating skimmers. They are inexpensive but ideal for skimming most residential pools – working efficiently at no extra running cost, to keep the water clear and the pool clean.

Types of Floating Skimmers and how they work
Floating pool skimmers come in many models, but with two main setups.
- Some floating skimmers can be attached to your pool hose and pump via the skimmer inlet. The movement and skimming automation come about through the action of the water being pulled through the pump hose. This propels the skimmer which moves about the pool to skim the whole surface of the pool.
- Floating skimmers can also be attached to float around the pool with the pool vacuum. In this case, the debris is collected through the action of the water flowing through the skimmer flaps into a skimmer basket.
Floating skimmers with their own baskets can also be left to float about the pool with the wind.
Benefits of Floating Pool Skimmers
Every kind of pool skimmer has its benefits, and floating pool skimmers are no different
• Floating pool skimmers can collect debris from 360 degrees. This increases the skimming capacity and cleaning power of the skimmer. They can pick up more debris more quickly than fixed and in-ground skimmer baskets.
• Floating skimmers offer the lowest cost automatic pool skimming option for residential pools. The cost to efficiency ratio rises if you can use the floating skimmer without running the vacuum. This is an option for many pools for much of the time.
• Floating skimmers can reach and clean so called ‘dead spots. These are areas where surface debris builds up, gets condensed and stuck. The pool circulation from the pool pump is often not sufficient to shift dead spots.
• Floating pool skimmers do not need to be attached to the pool pump. This will save you a great deal in utilities.
• Floating skimmers are environmentally and swimmer friendly. Not only do they not require power, but they also save on pool chemical use by helping to circulate and clarify the water while they skim debris off the surface.
• Floating skimmers baskets are ideal for a combined skimming and chlorinating. Add chlorine tablets to the basket for improved water clarifying and pool cleaning.
• They are pool-owner friendly too. Floating skimmer baskets are easy to clean, inexpensive to purchase or replace, and cheap to no cost at all to use effectively.
Floating pool skimmers are the low cost, convenient pool skimmers of choice for most pool owners.