Pool vacuum gasket method and apparatus

A method of constructing a pool vacuum, the method comprising:

• (a) providing a skimmer on a wall of a pool, the skimmer having:
• (i) a chamber in fluid communication with pool water through an aperture formed in the pool wall that is aligned with an aperture in the skimmer sidewall;
• and
• (ii) a shoulder disposed between a skimmer floor and the skimmer aperture;
• (b) disposing a rigid vacuum plate in the chamber with vacuum plate peripheral edges adjacent the skimmer shoulder, the vacuum plate having a conduit extending into the pool water and terminating in a vacuum head;
• (c) attaching a neoprene gasket to the vacuum plate, the gasket interposed between the vacuum plate and the shoulder, the gasket having peripheral edges extending radially outwardly of the vacuum plate peripheral edges to at least between the vacuum plate peripheral edges and the skimmer sidewall;
• (d) pumping pool water through the vacuum head, the conduit, the vacuum plate, a central hole in the gasket aligned with the conduit, and the chamber, whereby the gasket seats against at least one of the shoulder and the skimmer sidewall;
• and
• (e) extending the gasket peripheral edges above the top edge of the vacuum plate to form secondary seals in case of a sufficient flow of water past the shoulder.

A pool vacuum component comprising:

• (a) a rigid vacuum plate having a centrally located aperture and peripheral edges, the vacuum plate having oppositely-facing first and second substantially planar vacuum plate surfaces;
• (b) a gasket made of neoprene having a centrally located aperture and peripheral edges, the gasket having oppositely-facing first and second substantially planar gasket surfaces;
• and
• (c) an adhesive interposed between the first gasket surface and the first vacuum plate surface, thereby fixing the gasket to the vacuum plate, wherein the gasket peripheral edges extend outwardly of the disk peripheral edges.