Short story: No water is coming through the skimmer or main drain pipes...nothing at all and I can't figure out why.
Longer story...
Went out of town on Saturday morning. Pool was pumping fine. I run my pump 24/7, and made sure the water level was high so that we wouldn't loose too much while we were gone.
I checked the pool this morning and the water level had dropped down below the skimmer and no water was passing through the pump or filter (eeeek!). No idea how long that had been...I figure less than 24 hours.
I refilled the pool to a good level and turned the pump back on, only to find no water was coming out of the pipes and in to the pump. I figured it was just some big clog and so I got a hose bladder out to force some water through the pipes...except nothing came through. So seems like a complete blockage. No idea what could have gotten in there but no water or air seems to be getting past it.
But here's why I'm really confused. It seems I actually have a complete clog in both the main and skimmer pipes. Which seems crazy. I'm trying to avoid ripping apart a bunch of PVC, but don't know what else it could be.
I've attached a rough drawing of my pipes and the various joints and valves to provide some insight.
When I was trying various methods of forcing water through, at one point I was able to close the main drain valve (valve #4 in my drawing) and force water from the skimmer towards the pump and I was indeed getting water to come through. Then I opened up the main drain valve while still forcing water through the skimmer, and all water passage to the pump stopped and since then I haven't been able to get any water from the skimmer to the pump and the main drain seems to be clogged to because no water makes it's way to the pump when the skimmer is closed.
So...any ideas? Any points of clarification needed? Is it possible for air in the pipes to cause something like this (though I feel pretty sure I got all of that out)?
Longer story...
Went out of town on Saturday morning. Pool was pumping fine. I run my pump 24/7, and made sure the water level was high so that we wouldn't loose too much while we were gone.
I checked the pool this morning and the water level had dropped down below the skimmer and no water was passing through the pump or filter (eeeek!). No idea how long that had been...I figure less than 24 hours.
I refilled the pool to a good level and turned the pump back on, only to find no water was coming out of the pipes and in to the pump. I figured it was just some big clog and so I got a hose bladder out to force some water through the pipes...except nothing came through. So seems like a complete blockage. No idea what could have gotten in there but no water or air seems to be getting past it.
But here's why I'm really confused. It seems I actually have a complete clog in both the main and skimmer pipes. Which seems crazy. I'm trying to avoid ripping apart a bunch of PVC, but don't know what else it could be.
I've attached a rough drawing of my pipes and the various joints and valves to provide some insight.
When I was trying various methods of forcing water through, at one point I was able to close the main drain valve (valve #4 in my drawing) and force water from the skimmer towards the pump and I was indeed getting water to come through. Then I opened up the main drain valve while still forcing water through the skimmer, and all water passage to the pump stopped and since then I haven't been able to get any water from the skimmer to the pump and the main drain seems to be clogged to because no water makes it's way to the pump when the skimmer is closed.
So...any ideas? Any points of clarification needed? Is it possible for air in the pipes to cause something like this (though I feel pretty sure I got all of that out)?