my inground vinyl liner pool is losing water and I have air bubbles in the pump basket. I understand that this is an underground plumbing issue because it only loses water with the pump running. I have three skimmers and was wondering how to narrow down the problem area?
leak detection?
- Thread starter lucyh
- Start date
lucyh said:
Hi, lucyh,
Welcome to the forum. :lol: Losing water and bubles in the pump basket are seperate issues.
1. Bubbles in the pump basket is a suction side air leak. That means there is air getting into your system somewhere between the skimmers and the pump. you will lose no water on the suction side.
2. how much water are you losing daily? How many hours in the day does the pump run?
running 24/7 currently and losing approx. 1/2 in. per day. I live in central kentucky and have had several days of cool weather. We just installed the pump a couple of days ago and pool was not losing water when the old pump was disconnected for a week.
So,what seems to have changed is your pump, not the underground plumbing. Look carefully at all the fittings in and around the pump for signs of a water leak. 1/2 inch daily is a little excessive but it's not bad so it's likely a very small leak.
You didn't ask but it is almost always unnecessary to run your pump 24/7. I would find the leak first and then think about cutting back your pump run time to maybe 1/2 what it currently is.
You didn't ask but it is almost always unnecessary to run your pump 24/7. I would find the leak first and then think about cutting back your pump run time to maybe 1/2 what it currently is.
The pool was losing water at the end of last season when the old pump was running. Where to start looking for a leak if it only loses the water when the pump is running. When the pump is not running, the pool does not lose water. Where do I start looking for an air leak? Last season the air bubbles were in the pump basket only when using the vac line. This year the air bubbles are there with the vac and the skimmers. There is no leak in the equipment area. It all sits on a concrete pad and all is dry as a bone.
Well, losing water is a result of a leak somewhere between your pump and the returns. That's called the pressure side of your system. Since you have thoroughly inspected everything above ground on the pressure side, the only thing left is the pipes underground. That's very rare but it can happen and I know of no other way than to dig up the pipes.
What type of filter do you have? If it has a multiport valve it could be leaking out the waste port.
Common places for a suction side leak are the pump basket lid, the drain plugs, skimmer weir and low water level in the pool.
Common places for a suction side leak are the pump basket lid, the drain plugs, skimmer weir and low water level in the pool.
duraleigh I hate to say you are not 100% correct but you aren't. You can lose water on a suction side, it will depend on what line it is and how far down the offending problem is. I had a pool that a 90 cracked at the bottom of the wall and water pressure in the pool would let it leak until the water got to the same level. The best way to verify it is to pressure test each line seperately to eliminate any question you have in your mind about a line.
Swimcmp -- the qualifier was that they only lost water when the pump was running. On a suction side leak you can certainly lose water but you will lose less water with the pump running unless, the suction side piping and fittings (i.e. skimmer outlet) are huge and produce almost zero head loss, and then you'll lose the same whether the pump is running or not. 
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