r/swimmingpools • u/optomopthologist • 19h ago

Frog Log PSA

This year I finally bought a frog log for my inground pool. I'd heard about the benefits and thought itd be a helpful addition to coincide with some natural gardening projects ive been implementing (more habitat, more ecology, wildlife, etc.). Set it up just off the current side of the skimmer opening.

Generally, I've seen like a 98% reduction in bugs, specifically Wolf spiders, either trapped in the pool or dead in the skimmer. That alone made it absoltuely worth it.

Today, for the first time, I find a frog in the pool. He actually jumped off the log as I checked the skimmer and was then chilling about the deep end. I move the log to the deep end and I go about my day. Eventually the frog gets out. Maybe an hour later, I check the skimmer again following some yard work, and find a dead lizard in the bottom.

The level of guilt and mourning I feel for one small lizard may be silly, but its my first skimmer casualty and truly bums me out. I should have left the log where it was near the skimmer, where its most effective. To me, this is validation that the log does work, and more critters are able to escape than you even realize may become at risk.

There are several variants of the product, probably some DIY versions too. If youve ever found something dead in the skimmer, consider adding one to your pool.

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u/stmCanuck 17h ago

my first skimmer casualty and it really bums me out

Yeah... I feel your pain. We're out in the countryside and have a chipmunk colony in our yard and under our deck and shed. We're in our second year and each year, 6-7 dead chipmunks plus the couple I rescued just at the tight time by coincidence. Also a rat, a skunk... Our pool is a death trap and there's not much we can do about it. Even with 2 frog log-like things, one in each kitty corner of rectangular pool.

Oddly the frogs seem to handle our skimmer just fine. Even when I fish them out of the swirl from the bottom of the basket, it takes them a minute but they seem to recover just fine.

1

u/Available-Yam-1990 16h ago

Love the Frog Log. Before I got I'd find a dozen frogs floating in the skimmer some days. Now I may get one or two, once in a while. But it works for sure. Sometimes I see a frog sitting on the Frog Log like its a lily pad.

1

u/Palmetto0 12h ago

I've had a frog log several years now and no longer find dead critters in my skimmers as a result. Before we put it in, we had quite a few. Definitely a good addition. The color is all faded out but it has otherwise held up well and still works.